The return of championship drag racing to Victoria is imminent with the running of the Aeroflow Sportsman Drag Racing Championship at Fuchs South Coast Raceway, Portland on January 5-6.
It will be a highlight of the season for Victorian Competition driver Craig Geddes as he gets to showcase his drag racing skills again to many of his local family and friends.
“This is just fantastic for Victorian teams and fans alike, for so long we have been starved of top level championship racing in this state,” he said. “The Portland venue is a credit to the guys in the local club, it just keeps getting better all the time as they continue to invest in the facility. The amenities are great and the racing surface and start line traction is as good as anywhere in the country. I hope they are ready as this event will be huge.”
Geddes races a vehicle known as an altered, a short wheelbase, lightweight race car equipped with a highly strung V8. At just 4.5 litres, it isn’t the largest motor in the field by a long shot but packs enough horsepower to accelerate Geddes to 283kmh in just 7.48 seconds.
Making the semi finals at the Australian Nationals at Sydney Dragway in November got Geddes’ season underway in fine form.
“This season so far has been very rewarding, in the off season I built a fresh engine and the results have been fantastic,” he said. “As well as the semi final finish at the Nationals we also set new time and speed records which has helped start the points chase off on the right foot.”
The round of the Aeroflow Sportsman Drag Racing Championship in Portland will also be unique in that it will be run over an eighth mile distance (201 metres).
“Running my car over the eighth mile will not be a problem, the racing will be fast and exciting to watch,” Geddes said. “The beauty of cars like mine is they perform very well early in the run and I am confident this style of racing will suit our set up.
“I believe we have a package which should be more than competitive for this event, if I can continue cutting good reaction times we will be in with a real chance, the racing for this event will all be conducted during the day which will ensure great consistent traction as ultra light cars like ours tend to be a handful when racing on cold night tracks.”
The Aeroflow Sportsman Drag Racing Championship at Fuchs South Coast Raceway will take place on January 5 and 6 with racing in Competition, Super Stock, Super Compact, Competition Bike, Supercharged Outlaws, Modified, Super Sedan, Modified Bike, Super Street, Junior Dragster and Super Gas.
Racers in Competition, Super Stock and Super Compact are reminded that there is now a provision for a Super Comp bracket to be run at regional events should entries not be high enough to run two or more categories individually (ie more than six entries).
Super Comp merges the above three brackets for eliminations, with points accrued still going towards the competitor’s respective bracket. Super Comp will also be available in the event of low entries for the rounds in Alice Springs, Benaraby and Mildura.
For more information contact ANDRA on (08) 8271 5355 or info@andra.com.au.
Image courtesy Fred Dwyer.