MOTORSPORT - North driver fast-tracks his rally shot

The Kerikeri helicopter pilot and Heliops company director is getting pointers from one of the country's best today after booking Mark Tapper as his co-driver for the Possum Bourne Memorial Rally.
Thompson grabbed the attention of the Northland rally fans at the 2007 Rally of Whangarei when, after an early "off", he completed the rally with his mangled Mitsubishi Evo resembling a convertible.
The 35-year-old has acquired a reputation for being fast - but a little reckless - in his first 18 months of rallying, primarily due to his belief in pushing himself as hard as he can.
"I figured that going hard out and learning your limits the hard way was the best way to learn," he said.
Thompson will be looking to Tapper to give him the benefit of his experience during the one-day clubman's class rally in this weekend's WRC Rally of New Zealand in Waikato.
"I want to learn some driving techniques off him, basically to try and gain more speed," Thompson said.
His years-long passion for the sport was curbed by its expensive nature - but now he plans to make up for lost time.
"I used to race motocross and, even then, I always had an inclination to get into rallying at a later date," he said.
He jumped at the opportunity to have Tapper on board after the Aucklander dropped his NZ Rally Championship commitments to concentrate on chasing down the Pirelli Star driver award at the Malaysian Rally in October.
"When the rally starts in Malaysia, everyone starts with a clean slate and I've got as good a chance there as anyone so I'm putting all my funding into that and that's given me the chance to help Kingsley out," Tapper said.
Thompson has helped Tapper with sponsorship for his trip to Malaysia.
"And in return I'm giving him some tuition with his driving, he's already set some big goals for someone who's only been driving for a while and he's come a long way already," Tapper said.
Using Tapper as a teacher is part of a bigger picture.
"This is another learning year for me. I'm looking at getting a new car and doing the national championship next season and that's why I'm enlisting the help of people like Mark to help me prepare," he said.
The pair seek a podium finish in the rally, although the competition against a number of well-known drivers will be tough.
Whangarei's Brendon Oakden, the winner of the Clubman's Rally at the Rally of Whangarei, is another major Northland hope. He is planning a safety-first strategy in his first Rally of NZ.
"We're planning to consolidate and stay out of trouble and hope that some of the others fall off," he said. "There are a couple of goat tracks first up that don't really suit my style but then there are some really fast stages that kick in for the afternoon."
Oakden is currently running second behind Glenn Smith in the "Last Rally Series" - an event run over five rallies and culminating in the Rally of the Far North in October.