Whangarei's 11-year-old speed merchant Thomas McLean continues to impress as he comes to grips with racing in a new karting class this year. Last year's Top Half cadet class champion approached the national championships, held in Hamilton over Easter, with few expectations. It was only the second time McLean had driven thenew Trackmagic Hornet Junior kart and he was expected to struggle after moving up to the Junior Restricted Class two months ago. With a field of 22 in the class, many of whom are getting ready to move up to the next class, McLean stamped his mark on the new class early by mixing it up on the track with both past and present national champions. There were four races over the weekend consisting of two heats, a pre-final and a final, all run on the Friday. The day started with two tuning runs, but they hardly helped McLean adjust when he was forced to take evasive action and ended up in the bash bags at the end of the straight. He qualified 15th in the time trials, which meant that the first two heats he started off grid 15. The first heat saw Thomas drive well to move from 15th to eighth, while in the second he went from 15th to 13th. This gave the Whangarei driver a grid position of 10 for the pre-final. McLean was by now beginning to get a real feel for the kart and track, and he finished the pre-final in sixth position, giving him grid six for the final. A protest involving drivers further up the field saw one driver awarded a 20 second penalty, bumping McLean up to grid 5. The final was a real nail biter as McLean and two other drivers in positions 4, 5 and 6 swapped positions constantly. He brought the Trackmagic Hornet Junior home in sixth place, earning his first trophy in the class and further hopes for a year of achievement.
