by Bailey Dixon (co-written by Julie Dixon – in the event of illness, it’s great to have a backup – thanks mum!)
Albury-Wodonga Kart Club April Club Day
April brings with it the mists and the chills of fresh Autumn mornings up our neck of the woods, and this April Club Day was no exception with the thermostat sitting at a brisk 5 degrees as everyone pulled in to set up for a promising day ahead.
The numbers may have been down with the combination of NSW school holidays and Easter not far behind us, but there was plenty of action, particularly with a cold, slippery track for the practice sessions.
When it came time for the heats, the Cadets – 9 and 12s, fell into an order and stayed there. Anthony Alessi clean-swept the Cadet 12 class, while Noah Dixon clean-swept Cadet 9. Both Eddy Cooper and James Brett chased the leaders hard, but fell back eventually to finish second in their respective classes. It was perhaps Jaxson McKinna and Benjamin Roberts in the Cadet 9 class who provided the most entertainment, as they resumed their battle from last time around, trading places throughout the heats, and racing hard. However, the Cadet 12 class also had what appeared to be a four-kart pile-up in heat three between Anthony, Eddy, Sol Alessi and Ryan Taborsky, from which Eddy took the lead and held it for most of the race. Despite a gallant effort, Eddy fell back to second with only a few laps to go, while both Sol and Ryan were unable to make it back onto the track.
In the Victorian Combined Medium class, Jackson Rice managed to clean-sweep the day as well, taking victory over Stephen O’Hare and Jason Gambold. This class was not without its issues however, as Gerard Hudson on the warm-up lap of Heat one, lost a wheel and went into the gravel trap between turns six and seven, and Stephen had his bumper hanging off for the last few laps of the final.
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The Junior category was somewhat divided, with three classes racing together. Dylan Muller took a dominant overall victory, while Toby Robins claimed first place over Piper Muller in KA4 Junior Heavy. Nathan Hogg achieved the top step of the podium in KA4 Junior Light over competitor Flynn Twyford, but also managed to shuffle the order around. He finished fourth overall in heat one, and second in all the other races for the day, following some close racing with Toby Robins.
The largest class for the day was Victorian Combined Light, with some of the most exciting races of the April Club Day. Kevin Mullavey scraped through to stake his claim on first place. This result was achieved after finishing fifth in heat one, first in heat two, second in heat three and victory in the final over Daniel Taborsky, whose DNF in the final lost him the victory for the day, and Dayna Rice, whose young age and recent addition to this class have not held her back from fighting up the front.
From an outside perspective it would be easy to assume it was a fairly quiet club day, but still the racing was tremendous. It was also the perfect day for our members to hone their race craft, beat their personal bests, or experience their very first race. Not to mention swap stories of success or woe from our recent round of the Golden Power Series.
And thus, it was that we walked away in the end with satisfied smiles, and well-earned weariness for another great club day, and… WAIT, what’s that? There’s no May Club Day. So, Albury-Wodonga members enjoy your month-long break and the hard racing at Winton and we’ll see you on track Sunday 30th June.
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