SPEEDWAY: Making tracks in his first season

SHANE HURNDELL
Visiting English solobike riders struggled to believe Hawke's Bay's Michael Patey was a first-season rider when he finished third in the unofficial North Island junior A championship in Auckland last weekend.
"They nicknamed his bike 'The Grenade' because he flew like a grenade," said his proud dad, Ian, a 1960s solobike racer at Meeanee, who built his 200cc Honda-powered bike last year.
What the English riders didn't know was the fact the 14-year-old Hastings Boys' High School year 10 pupil has already had a stint at a three-day academy run by nine-time world champion Ivan Mauger and the fact he hails from Flaxmere - the home of national solobike champion Andy Bargh, former national champion Paul Atkins and the nationally ranked Craig Ramsay.
"I learnt quite a lot at the academy," said Patey, who wants to match Bargh's feats and race in England.
"Craig has been a big help to me and so has Darrin," said Patey referring to Hastings' Darrin Wilson, who had played a key role in the return of regular solobike racing to ZM Meeanee Speedway this season.
Patey, who is leading the Hawke's Bay Speedway Club's series in his age group, rates his third placing as the highlight of his career to date. He hopes to beat the two riders who finished ahead of him, Hamilton's Sean Mason and New Plymouth's Craig Hancock, at Auckland's Rosebank Park track this weekend and again at the April national championships.
A former road racer, Patey also does motocross racing but said he might have to sacrifice his motocross racing because of all the travel involved with solobike racing.
"I've got to remember my homework too," he said, emphasising the importance of education.
Patey also knows the importance of sponsors and was quick to rattle off his sponsors list to SportToday.
"There's Hastings Honda, Weldwell New Zealand, Colin McKie, Fred Timmo and Harold Sergeant ... I couldn't travel around the country without them," said Patey, who has also raced at Ohakea and Palmerston North.
"It's great we've got regular racing at Meeanee again. A lot of Aucklanders come down and it helps us Hawke's Bay riders get better," he said.
Provided he finishes this weekend's meeting in Auckland uninjured ("I've never been injured yet.") and there are no major mechanical problems, Patey will be on track to race at Meeanee on March 10.
It will be another opportunity for Hawke's Bay speedway fans to see if they have a similar opinion on Patey to the English riders he impressed last weekend.