The epicentre of Kiwi drag racing
Shearing, sunshine, both synonymous with Masterton summers, as is the sound of souped-up engines roaring from the distant south-eastern corner of town. Who would have thought 30-years ago that Masterton – as quintessentially Kiwi as they come - would be at the epicentre of New Zealand drag racing? By Walt Dickson.
Home to one of the best drag strips in the country, Masterton is the envy of ‘petrolheads’ all over New Zealand. How do we know ? Because drivers, crews and fans come from far and wide to participate and revel in the drag racing experience.
Take this month, December 12-13, the dragster faithful will be pouring into town for a National Drag Racing Championships round; they’ll be back again for the New Year-celebration Dragstalgia meeting January 2-3 and then en masse February 20-21 for the Auckland Invasion - National Drag Racing Championships. Either side of these big calendar occasions there are other meetings that keep the fans comin’ and the adrenalin pumpin’.
While the catalyst is very much the internationally accredited track and the facilities at Masterton Motorplex, equally significant are the people.
For Bob Wilton, chair of Masterton Motorplex, the drag racing fraternity has a special quality about them. “It’s like one big family,” Wilton says.
And family it truly is with the full whanau getting in on the act and along to watch, complete with dragster apparel and obligatory heavy-duty ear muffs.
The whanau get in on the act….
A longtime regular is Horowhenua-based Gavin Doughty. Although an out-of-towner he knows more than most about the drivers, their vehicles and crew - he is one of the main announcers. There are plenty of colourful personalities involved in the sport, all with a story to tell that Doughy is only too willing to share over the loudspeaker.
Grease Martin and Andrew Ray are regular favourites, along with the drag racing statesman, Crusher Graham Christison, who at 74 continues to be very competitive. Doughty says there is a tremendous level of camaraderie amongst the drag racing community.
“Most guys will lend each other parts, even though they might be racing against one another, I can’t think of another sport where that would happen,” he says. Drag racing is also a great demonstration of kiwi ingenuity, according to Doughty. Crews usually work off small budgets but manage to “achieve some amazing results” with world records for some classes of cars.
“We’ve got millionaires involved in the sport, but a lot of it is real grassroots with crews learning as they go, making modifications, rebuilding motors where perhaps in other countries they might look to put another motor in a vehicle . . . . just a lot of work themselves, so I really admire the way that come into the sport and keep on improving.
“Drag racing is like the ultimate performance of a vehicle, a lot of people think that it is in a straight line but once you start hitting big speeds they take some driving.”
While the uninitiated might not recognise that, the dragster faithful certainly do, says Bob Wilton.
With six to seven meetings spread over the season Masterton Motorplex has established a strong reputation for putting on a great show. Wilton says they took a bit of a hit because of Covid with the cancellation of the “Aussie cars” coming in March, but 2020/21 is shaping up well. “We’ve got the NZ Nationals here in February, so that is a really big deal.”
The following week is the biennial Wings Over Wairarapa Air Festival at Hood Aerodrome making for a massive back end of the month for Masterton. Wilton says it is difficult to get an exact gauge of the economic contribution that drag racing brings to the region, but it is “significant”.
Most meetings are over two days meaning that many people stay and spend money in town.
An independent survey at the track earlier this year revealed some surprising spending habits of drag racing fans, ranging from stop-offs at Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre, Paul Melser Pottery, Aratoi, and of course local hospitality and accommodation.
Masterton Motorplex started from humble beginnings, operating under the name Ramrodders. The early years were homeless using public roads to run 1/8 mile street drags. Eventually they graduated up to using the airstrip at the Hood Aerodrome; since 2014, home has been on a purpose-built, internationally accredited permanent drag strip behind Hood. More information at www.mastertonmotorplex.co.nz
