Where the rubber meets the road

ALAN PERROTT reports on burnouts, a sport described as ice skating in a car.

Liz Stewart views life through a tinted windscreen.

She loves cars so much she moved from the North Shore to Henderson to be closer to the region's infamous car culture, and she is a committee member of the Westie Road Markers car club.

"Just don't call me a bogan," she said. "I might be into cars, but I hate heavy metal."

The 30-something's pride and joy is a matt-black Holden Torana V8 with an Evil 8 plate that has made her the driver to beat at Sunday's Skidfest - a monthly burnout tournament which has dragged one of South Auckland's illegal night-time activities into the sunshine.

Liz Stewart's weekday shopping cart is a matt black 1974 Ford Fairlane V8, the biggest make ever constructed in Australia.

It has enough space in the back for groceries and car seats for her 3-year-old twins.

To drivers, burnouts are a skilled sport with a big future.

"It's a huge adrenaline rush," said Liz Stewart, a regular winner at Skidfest.

"The engine is producing enough power to hit 180 km/h plus, but you're skidding in one tiny area. It's the hardest thing you can do behind the wheel - think of it as ice skating in a car."

And she's not just hanging on for the ride. While spinning, she is constantly working the gears. She is aiming to be able to spin the car while in fourth gear.

Skidding is an expensive hobby. Even setting up a cheap car can cost about $20,000, but her success has attracted sponsors who supply everything from engine parts to the short-lived tyres.

She could do with a sponsor for her traffic fines as well, after having accumulated more than $3000 in tickets over the years which she pays off at $40 a week.

"But at the end of the day, if you're into fishing how much are you willing to spend on that? If you're into it, the cost is almost irrelevant."

Skidfest titles are just the beginning for Liz Stewart. She dreams of flying her Torana to Australia for a semi-professional career.