Ruapuna rolls a feature

Press, 23 November 1987, Page 25

Ruapuna rolls a feature

Close and exciting racing, which included a handful of car rollings, were the feature of Saturday evening’s speedway meeting at Ruapuna Park.

With such close racing and car fields having increased meeting by meeting, the action began from the opening three-quarter midget car race when 19 cars faced the green flag. As the cars bunched going into the first turn two cars hit the concrete safety fence, both drivers emerging unhurt.

Dick Chapman won the event with Bruce France and Chris Beach claiming the minor money. France was involved in a spectacular incident in the next race which saw France’s and Dick Webb’s machines touch coming out of the Town bend resulting in Webb’s car climbing over France’s and then rolling several times.

In the full size midget cars Selwyn Everett flipped his machine after clipping the rear of Gerald Ness. Everett’s car suffered moderate damage to the front with Everett able to walk away from his upturned car. Mark Williams was the star of the midget class, winning all three races, with Ness and Gordon Roxburgh claiming several minor placings. The thundering sprintcar class produced some great racing with Kevin Clive again impressing in his first season. In his four races he picked up a win, two seconds and a third. In the feature race Clive quickly took the lead and then had a great dice with Mike Allan who held second place. Both cars were locked together for four laps until Clive went slightly wide on the Town bend and Allan blasted his injected V 8 through the gap. Allan had

his best meeting to date and also took the chequered flag in his opening race and a third in the other race.

Larry Ross maintained his record of not having been beaten by a rival so far this season with another faultless speedway display, with his main opposition coming from young Mark Lyndon. Lyndon was unbeaten until he met Ross in the final, which Ross led from the tapes with Lyndoh second and Simon Morice third. The former national sidecar champions, Wayne Turner and Laurie McMahon, equalled the. four lap record in winning the first side-car race but were put out of all results, for barging, in the next before easily winning the feature from John Sullivan and Phil Mannering with Mike Slade and Shan Ferry third.