"But we all know motorsport ... anything can happen on the day. I've got a good kart, brand new tyres and the home track advantage."
Grayson has done more than 2000 laps of the Roy's Hill circuit in training and reckons he knows the track backwards.
"I've done a lot of racing on it too. Hopefully I can make it a graveyard for the visiting drivers this weekend."
Grayson, who enjoys watching the All Blacks and Warriors on television when the Supercars aren't on, ranks a third placing in a field of 17 at a recent Wellington club day as his racing highlight.
"I beat a few drivers I wasn't expected to beat," he recalls.
His father Gary, who raced streetstocks and stockcars in Gisborne 15 years ago, mentors Grayson. The Stowes moved to Hawke's Bay 18 months ago.
"There are better opportunities for the kids here," Stowe snr says.
It's fair to say his young son is making the most of his opportunities on four wheels. More than 100 karters from around the country, including 18 from the host club, will chase titles in the 12 classes. In addition 35 drivers of vintage karts will strut their stuff during exhibition races.
The Blossom Meeting is the longest-running open kart event in New Zealand. The first one was staged as a road race around the streets of Mayfair in Hastings in September 1968 as a fundraiser for the then new sealed track at Roy's Hill.
The Hawke's Bay club was formed the previous year after both the Napier amateur and Hastings go kart clubs had gone into recess.
Club patron Mark Jenkinson, who will again be racing vintage karts this weekend, remembers his spectator role at the 1968 road race.
"Because I was a junior I wasn't allowed to compete in road races back then. I remember helping out by placing hay around lamp posts to protect drivers," Jenkinson recalls.
"I also remember a defiant resident mowing a grass verge as the karts roared past as well as a lady resplendent in hat, coat and complete with the compulsory handbag walking across the road between passing karts, and residents rushing out on to the road to help extinguish a burning kart," he adds.
Several changes to the Blossom Meeting format have been seen over the years. Road races were held in the Napier CBD and at Westshore.
Later the event became a two-day affair with the road race staged at the old Thunder Park Dragstrip and the sprint event the following day at the club's circuit. In recent years the meeting has been a two-day sprint event with the track direction changed each day.
Five-time national champion Maddie Wise will return to the sport for the meeting and will carry the host track's hopes in the Yamaha Heavy class. For the past three and a half years speedway has been his focus and he has raced for the Hawke's Bay Hawkeyes Superstock team.
A 50-lap grand prix for senior class competitors is tipped to be a highlight of this weekend's meeting. International competitor Tom Bewley and Daniel McMillan will be the Bay starters in the Vortex Mini Rok class.
Stuart Baker, Jamie Van den Berk, Jack Halpin and Dylan Anderson will be the Bay's hopes in the 125cc Rotax Max Junior class. Zac Stichbury, James Aston, Jacob Smith and Jackson Whitfield are the Bay's reps in the 125cc Rotax Max Light class.
Craig Holmwood will be the Bay's sole hope in the 125cc Rotax Max Heavy class as will be Karl McNicol in the 100cc Yamaha Light MAW 155kg class, Shaun Hibbs in the Club Sport LO206 class and Stuart Sowersby in the open class.
William Pearson and Matt Saunders will represent the Bay in the Club Sport 120 class.
