Festive meeting sets furious pace

The summer heat greeted Kartsport Whangarei club members as they converged on the Anderson Raceway in Maunu on Sunday for their annual Christmas meeting.
An excellent turnout of regular club members was bolstered by some new faces both on and off the track, plus some more karters who made the trip from Auckland for the meeting.
"The club has been growing since the start of the season and we have had more new drivers turn up for each meeting since then which is really great to see," spokesman for the club Brendon White said.
With intense battles on the track in each of the several classes running at the meeting perhaps the most exciting were the Raket 120 class, with the field cautioned by the officials for their aggressive behaviour.
The class had the largest field and many skirmishes were between the front runners as they battled over the lead all the while threading their way through rookie drivers being lapped, resulting in numerous incidents and tempers to flair.
The Cadet class once again had the driver's parents watching nervously as their youngsters sped past at full speed.
Also making the odd parent nervous were the 12-to-17-year-olds in the Junior class, where competition was fierce. Drivers are maturing and beginning to match the speeds of the seniors and in some cases are faster than their dads.
For the senior classes Rotax, Yamaha, Open and Raket the driving abilities of the club regulars are astounding, with some racers still getting around the Anderson Raceway well past retirement age.
Once the suits, helmets and gloves are on age means nothing and the track becomes a warzone.
Perhaps the highlight of the day was the Wives' Race, where any unlicensed female was invited to compete.
Amy White was spectacular in her charge to catch leaders Cassandra Carter and newcomer Nicole Harris after an early spin.
She was however unable to make up the deficit before the chequered flag finishing second to Harris after Carter hit a backmarker and was forced to retire.
The day ended with a barbecue for the club members who chatted about the day's racing and set aside any earlier disputes.
And all this was just at the Kartsport Whangarei Christmas party. Just wait until the action at the club's biggest event of the year the Summer Slam 2011 on the January 8-9.
Being the first karting event of the year for the entire country this Northland meeting is an iconic event which is sure to attract drivers from all over the North Island.