“I’m more nervous for the demolition derby than I was on election night.” And after witnessing the carnage that took place on Saturday night, Tasman Mayor and derby contestant Tim King had every reason to feel the jitters.
The annual demolition derby was the climax of a spectacular night at Milestone Homes Top of the South Speedway.
Racing for Heart Kids NZ, in association with Burson Logging, was focused on the younger generation, with junior members of the club taking centre stage. Proceeds from the event went towards Heart Kids NZ – a charity providing vital support for families of children with heart conditions.
Nelson Speedway Association president Wayne Russ says the event showed the strength of the club’s family culture.
“One of the reasons we support Heart Kids NZ is that all money raised from the evening is distributed locally, which is massively important to us. We have families helped by Heart Kids NZ up in the corporate boxes tonight, which is great. You see the families here tonight that have been involved in speedway in Nelson for generations, and it’s that local family idea that we want to support.”
A kids’ bike race underlined that focus, with more than 50 children, some as young as three, taking their pushbikes onto the track for a lap in front of proud parents and supporters.
Although spectators enjoyed clear skies, earlier rain left the track heavy. Organisers spent hours packing the surface, but drivers still battled unpredictable patches on turn two and turn four, where bumper clashes and barrier hits kept fans entertained. Flying mud delighted children and sent parents scrambling.
The Quarter Midget races were hotly contested, with Bailey Bensemann prevailing despite a spirited effort from Blake Stilwell in race number three. The TQ Midgets were dominated by the Bezett family, with Kynan taking the honours ahead of Mark.
The Youth Ministocks highlighted speedway as a sport for both boys and girls, with Kody Hogarth and Kayla Musgrove winning races one and two. The third race in the series, the ‘Race for the Kids’, was won by Kade Taylor with a superb drive, with Locky Martin taking overall honours.
In a first for Top of the South Speedway, the Stocks and Superstocks raced together, giving the Stock drivers valuable racing time before their National Championships in Wellington later this season. Brett Nicholls produced a flawless drive to take out race one, before Callum Russ took over in race two to win handily.
Race three saw multiple high-speed crashes and contests, with Ben Taylor avoiding the carnage to take the chequered flag. Production Saloons produced three different winners. Shaun Heath’s #23 produced a terrific drive to take race one.
Easton Salter’s black #22 Honda took out race two, before Eddy Frans went post to post in his V6 Toyota to take the flag in race three. Overall honours went to David Allan with his consistency proving vital.
In the Streetcars, which gave demolition derby drivers the chance to get on the track and complete laps before destroying their vehicles, Marc Ryan and Luke Blom took the flags, with Raymond Zimmerman close behind. As special guest driver, Tim produced a steady performance to finish midpack in race one and second in race two, made more notable given he had not raced in close to two decades.
“Back when Todd Blackadder was Tasman Mako coach, he convinced me to get in and drive, but I haven’t raced since then. I came to the speedway all the time as kid and I love it here, but I’m still bloody nervous.”
With the 19 races on the programme complete, the main event of the evening was imminent. The spray truck doused the track to make conditions treacherous, and the 16 demolition derby cars took to the track.
What followed was 25 minutes of pure carnage – bumpers were obliterated, tyres exploded, and radiators spewed coolant and steam into the night sky. The event was stopped three times to ensure drivers in dead cars could exit safely – including Tim, who’s blue #15 holden started flickering flame under the front of the vehicle and had to be extinguished.
The final five minutes of the derby saw the last two driveable cars, Dan Cane’s #11 and Aiden Hogarth’s #88, smash each other over 20 times. It was a war of attrition, with Aiden Hogarth finally emerging the victor and saluting the thoroughly satisfied crowd.
