Perfect attendance at race

Few know the inner workings of the Boxing Day Cemetery Circuit than Craig "Cudge" Scott.

At age 43, this year will be his 43rd time attending the annual Wanganui motorcycle meeting.

"Mum took me to my first meeting in a pushchair before I was one and I've been every year since," Scott said.

Scott heads the track set-up team, a job he has had for more years than he can remember.

The track set-up team he heads is just one the teams involved pre-race, during the day and pull-down day.

More than 200 volunteers lend their services to the Cemetery Circuit meeting making up the programme sellers (Hospice Wanganui), crash crews, marshalls, security, set-up and pull-down crews.

"It's all about safety while ensuring there is great spectator visibility and every year we try and improve on the season just gone. It's a lot of hard work, although I can't take the credit, there's a lot of people helping out. It's my job to assign the tasks and make sure everything's safe for both riders and spectators.

"We hold a lot of working bees in the lead up to the meeting and immediately following those helpers need to be thanked for their support - without them the meeting simply wouldn't go ahead," Scott said.

Special mention, Scott said, should be made of the support given by businesses and residents around the track and Loaders for donating the use of their office in Ridgway St on raceday, Emmetts and Hookers Transport.

Of course, Suzuki New Zealand also received special mention for sponsoring the event.

The motorcycle mechanic has also ridden at the Cemetery Circuit for 18 of his 43 years, although hasn't competed for the past six.

Only two of the 18 years has been on road bikes, the rest were all on motocross machines before there was a specific class known today as the 450 Moto class.

Scott still has a love of racing and satisfies his addiction racing speedway sidecars.

Last season he and his passenger won the West Coast North Island title.

THE VOLUNTEERS (200+)

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  Track set-up
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  Crash crew
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  Marshalls
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  Security
• 
  Pull-down crew
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  Ticket sellers
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  Programme sellers