How the WEST WAS WON
Motorvation 32 WAS A THREE-DAY HORSEPOWER HOOTENANNY AND A STELLAR RETURN TO FORM
MOTORVATION has long been one of Western Australia’s premier street machining events, but last year’s instalment was a stripped back, one-day deal that was nothing like the Motorvation of old.
Pleasingly, this year saw a return to the tried and tested three-day format, and the West Aussie modified car community responded in kind. Entrants, clubs and punters returned in droves, and competition for the coveted Grand Champion gong was among the fiercest in the history of the event.
Proceedings commenced on the Friday of the Australia Day long weekend, which was a day for competitors to set up and get acquainted with the venue. The guts of the show were jammed into Saturday, but Sunday was definitely worth a look, with the new eighth-mile drag racing proving to be a hit.
Spencer Jarrett and his immaculately presented VH Commodore were crowned this year’s Motorvation Grand Champion, but it wasn’t an easy win. The competition came right down to the wire, with Spencer forced to slug it out with defending champ Clint Digiovanni in his Capri, in a winner-takes-all go-to-whoa decider. Yep, the scores remained tied even after the static judging, go-to-whoa and slalom had been run and won, so it all came down to a go-to-whoa showdown. Spencer stopped the clock first, and he was rapt.
“Taking out Grand Champion was amazing,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming – I’ve been in the running a few times before. I know the VH has been on the scene a while, but I always get excellent feedback. She’s a nice, easy car to drive and maintain, and people really enjoy seeing it street-driven.”
The Elite tent was noticeably smaller than in previous years, but it was packed with quality metal. Chris Bitmead’s glorious XBOSS was the centrepiece, having
finally completed its tour of duty. As if just seeing XBOSS wasn’t enough, Motorvation punters were blessed with the opportunity to witness this magnificent creation cutting laps of the complex throughout the weekend, and those who questioned whether or not the car would ever be driven were forced to eat their words.
Another highlight in the Elite tent was FOX-1 – yep, the original 1970 Dodge Challenger used in the movie Running On Empty. Jason Turner and Dominic Dagastino acquired the car last year, and have been busy sprucing it up and showing it off at every chance they get. Ex-summernats Grand Champ Mark ‘Happy’ Williams had his Holden One Tonner on display, and there were a heap of other cool rides; even German classics like a Porsche 356 and a metalflaked VW Taipan buggy!
Back out on the track, the Naturally Aspiratedclass cars turned up the heat in the skid comp. With an impressive field of cars, the spectators saw plenty of action, plenty of smoke, and plenty of carnage to boot. Daniel Shoesmith bagged the win in his appropriately named LSWON VH Commodore, with Reece Regan coming in runner-up in his FATAL Commodore.
The blown line-up was a little on the lean side this year, but it didn’t stem anyone’s enthusiasm for the competition. George Separovich hit the pad hard with his screaming Psi-blown small-block VF Commodore, and it was sounding downright evil until a failed points box caused an early retirement for the revered engine builder. Luckily it was an easy fix and George had the VF back out the following day.
The stars of the show, however, were Matt James and Chris Orchard, with Chris earning a well-deserved Best Driver award for his efforts in his blown and injected VL, as well as second place in the main game. Matt James, fresh from his legendary Burnout Masters 1-2 victory, once again took home tinware for both cars. His blown and injected big-block powered VF ute, UNWANTED, makes such a devastating sound when he hits the loud pedal that you just about want to duck and run for cover. His efforts in the ute placed him in third spot, but it was his COMPACT Fairlane that earned him the outright win this time around.
“It was a pretty rewarding feeling to pull it off after Summernats, but doing it in COMPACT was an even sweeter feeling,” Matt said. “The Compact is so hard to wheel around; I have to really make sure I’m not just a passenger when I throw it into the pad. I had no idea if it would be competitive or not when I first drove it, so to see it up there with the best cars in the country is really exciting!”
The future of Motorvation is looking positive once more. Hopefully things keep tracking in a northerly direction for this iconic event, and Motorvation 33 builds on the momentum of its predecessor. See you there!