Just under 140 entrants turned up to the Top Alcohol Challenge, held over April 9–10 at Masterton Motorplex, with cars turning up from all over the country. The lead-up to the event was looking a little dodgy, with most of the country hit by rain, but by the weekend, attendees were treated to two cold days, but not a drop of rain in sight.
And, as this was Masterton’s last meeting for the season, many racers came along with high hopes. A few left with those hopes more than fulfilled. In fact, a number of racers smashed their PBs, and not only by mere hundredths of a second, but by close to half a second in some cases.
With nine Top Alcohol cars entered, one Funny Car, and one front-engined dragster (FED), this was the biggest field of big boys at Masterton in a while. Meanwhile, the Super Sedan class was, once again, filled, promising big burnouts, wheel stands, and everyone generally trying to outdo each other.
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Adam Prestney, driving the twin-turbo Pirtek Camaro, smashed his PB big time — the car left the line so effortlessly, and then it just hauled arse right to the end of the track. With a 6.97-second pass at a whopping 209.72mph, the team definitely earned a few celebratory beers!
Fellow Wellingtonian Mark Thomas finally got his Ford Customline sorted, pumping out a 6.47 at 218.12mph. He didn’t get off scot-free though, pulling the chute a bit late, and going for a little drift before ending up in the sand. Fortunately, the car wasn’t damaged from the experience, but, sadly, mechanical issues ended his event early.
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Speaking of Top Doorslammers, we even spotted Chris Tynan working on his old ’55 doorslammer in the pits — how’s that for a modern-day blast from the past? Making the occasion even better was that his son Bob was sharing driving duties with current owner Mike Reid — the pair running a best of 7.10 at 186.82mph.
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Fabian Goldbert was another Super Sedan competitor who was absolutely hauling arse. He was the number-one qualifier in his class, with a 7.97 at 171.11mph.
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Andrew Neiman made the trip over from Wellington, to get behind the wheel of his injected 383ci small block–powered FED. Maybe he should have put his wheelie bars on; after launching hard, the front end headed for the sky, producing the best wheel stand of the meeting.
Brian ‘Stormin’ Norman is a dedicated man, coming all the way up from Alexandria down in the deep south, to race his Hemi-powered FED in the Top Alcohol Challenge. This car looked and sounded terrific, and managed a best of 6.67 at 202.83mph. The goal of running a five-second pass is getting closer and closer.
Frank Bogaart had the only Funny Car entered, and it was worth the trip, with him running a new PB at the event of 7.34 at 183.9mph.
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The finals came down to Anthony Marsh and Shane Lodge, with Marsh resetting the track’s best ET and mph, with a 5.37 at 271.62mph. Lodge wasn’t far behind, though, running a quick 5.61 at 249.49mph. Marsh is seen here against Dwane Garrett, who unfortunately grenaded the ‘Torquing Heads’ dragster’s Hemi after its best half-track pass to date.
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Vanessa Lilly — maybe New Zealand’s number=one back-up girl — had the honours of backing up the Marsh A-fuel car, among five other cars over the weekend. Having just turned 21 on Saturday, she was lucky enough to be given a ride in Brent Whittingham’s wheel-standing Camaro.
Speaking of back-up girls — who doesn’t like them?
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It wasn’t all plain sailing for everyone, though — looks like he won’t be going far without a drive belt …
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It wasn’t just comp cars that were plentiful at the event. How’s this for a line-up of tough streeters, and, yes, they’re all from Whanganui!
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The feedback was that the event was the best to be held at Masterton Motorplex — no small feat when the last event held there was also given the same tag line. With two massive events in a row, though, the venue has well and truly proven itself to be up there with the best, and we can’t wait to get back there again next season — and neither can the racers!