Wyndham Street Races
45km north of Invercargill, Wyndham closes off the centre of the village to create a street circuit. The circuit is roughly triangular but with two of the corners cut off, including a sharp lefthander outside the pub and a chicane by the petrol station. The racers love it, the locals are totally involved and spectators get great views of the racing. The racing is very varied covering fifteen different classes of bike ranging from Pre 63s with Girder Forks to Super Motards, with seven classes for Classic and Post Classic bikes. Class winners are determined by the total points over three races. The Pre 63s with Girder Forks were exciting to watch with the final heat turning into a really close race between Chris Swallow on his immaculate 1934 500cc Velocette Works Racer and local boy Rhys Wilson on his “battle scared” 1937 500cc Rudge Ulster. This race should have seen Steve Scullion on the very rare 1949 Velocette DOHC 500, but he took a tumble at the Bluff Hill Climb leaving him and the bike with a small amount of damage. The Classic Pre 63s (up to 500cc), had twelve entries from the late 40s, 50s and early 60s mainly singles but included two Triumph twins. The racing in the main pack was close, but in the first two races the field was headed by Andrew Drake, on a much modified 1956 Velocette Venom. Dave McKenzie’s beautifully prepared 1948 Triumph GP sounded great and Phil Price, on his 1954 Velocette Eldee DOHC 250, was mixing it with the bigger bikes. The overall winner was Paul Carr (1962 B40) and with Bill Veitch second (1957 BSA Goldstar). The Classic Pre 63s (over 500cc) had five entries, with Colin Tate first (1962 Norton Dominator).
The Post Classic Pre 72s was split into two classes up to 500cc and over 500cc. The two classes were run simultaneously with a very varied selection of bikes out on the track, from Neale Eldder’ 1972 Morini Strada 350 to Campbell Johnsons 1971 Kawasaki A7 350. The up to 500cc class was won by Colin Tate (1962 Manx Norton) while the over 500cc class was won by Malcolm Pearce (1972 Triumph Bonneville). The Post Classic Pre 82s was also split into two classes and run simultaneously, Wayne Affleck , one of the “Challenge“organisers, was hustling his six cylinder 1979 Kawasaki Z 1300 around the track in fine style, finishing a creditable 7th. The up to 500cc class was won by Geoff Mahon (1981 Yamaha XJ550). The over 500cc class was won by Sid Chaloner (1979 Honda Nico Bakker CB 1123). The Munro Family Trophy was awarded to Australian double amputee Alan Kempster 51, who competed over the four days, in the more modern events, on his modified 1991 Kawasaki ZXR 400. Further details of all of the Burt Munro Challenge events and video clips from previous years racing can be found on (www.burtmunrochallenge.com).