“The racing has been absolutely intense”
What a year I’ve had, I must say it’s been the most challenging, enjoyable and successful year I’ve had in National Hot Rods. I started the year coming of the back of a threemeeting ban and several missed rounds due them being snowed off.
The first major championship was then quickly upon us and I was a bit rusty. When I arrived at the European Championship at Lochgelly in Scotland, the pace was there. A single practice session was all that was required for me to recognise I had a good car underneath me.
By Turn 1 the job was done: the polesitter went wide by half a car and I was in. The car had the pace to pull away and it was an easy win.
The next major was the World Championship in July. The previous mentioned ban and cancelled events conspired against me which resulted in not enough points gained to qualify. That was an unpleasant weekend at home.
In the National Championship in August, qualifying races were brilliant and put me second on the grid. The race was less than exciting and a result of third place felt like failure. On reflection, it wasn’t, there were 50 cars entered so to finish third was no mean feat.
The final major of the year was the British Championship in Northern Ireland. I qualified outside pole but managed to go round the outside of polesitter Adam Hylands on lap one. I was confident of the win and managed the race perfectly until the last lap: my concentration lapsed for a split second as we arrived behind backmarkers, that split second was enough for Hylands to charge down the inside. Hylands went on to win while I went rallycrossing across the infield…
That’s normally the end of the significant races but there was one more event. The inaugural Angie Rowe Memorial was hastily planned to tie in with the last event of 2018, Bonfire Night at Hednesford. This is always a great event as the atmosphere is electric, a big crowd is always guaranteed and racing under the floodlights speeds everything up. Angie Rowe was a legend of National Hot Rod racing, her dedication to the sport was immense, she would always be working away in the background to make events as well run and organised as they could be.
The racing was intense, the level of focus from all drivers was absolute. Racing three abreast became constant, overtaking relentless. Jason Kew was the man of the night and won the final in style, I finished third.
I have never enjoyed my racing as much as this year, winning my first major was a big weight of my shoulders. I am absolutely convinced that the future of National Hot Rods and oval racing will be a good one.