Paradise Valley Speedway season finishes with Easter Extravaganza

There was plenty of carnage during the demolition derby at the Hickey Contractors Easter Extravaganza at Paradise Valley Speedway. Photo / Sportsweb Photography

The rain cut the final night of the Paradise Valley Speedway season short but not before fans were treated to some exhilarating demolition derby action.

The Hickey Contractors Easter Extravaganza, held on Saturday and Sunday night, included a range of other racing classes leading up to the SDM Mechanical & Engineering Demo Derby on Sunday night. Overall, 257 drivers registered to race.

The demolition derby was brought forward on Sunday night, as the rain began to fall, and 49 cars took to the track hell bent on smashing each other until the winner, Alan Corcoran, was the last man standing.

Paradise Valley Speedway secretary Sonja Hickey said it was a great meeting with about 3500 spectators piling in on Sunday.

"Getting the demo derby in on Sunday kept everyone happy and it was a great race. They are just road cars that have the glass and everything taken out and a roll cage put in. Then off they go and smash each other up. They're all on the track at the same time, nearly 50 of them."

She said on both days there was plenty of fast-paced action across a range of racing classes.

"It was a record crowd for Easter Sunday and there were no complaints at the gate when they had to leave due to the rain, they were all happy.

"We got a full meeting in on the Saturday night and there would've been a couple of thousand watching. There was just some good, hard, fast racing and plenty of action."

The Easter Extravaganza was the final event of the 2018/19 Paradise Valley Speedway season. It was a season which Hickey described as one of the best yet.

"It has been a really good season, it's been good to the club. Crowd numbers were up this year on previous years. The weather wreaked havoc with a couple of meetings but that's to be expected, that's just what happens, it rains occasionally."

Hickey said the highlight of the season was the TWS World Invitation Superstock Championship which attracted 103 drivers and more than 8000 spectators.

"That's always a highlight, it's an amazing meeting and this year was probably the best we've ever run.

"We couldn't do any of it without the staff and volunteers who show up every week. It takes about 80 people on an ordinary night - we would've had about 90 on Sunday. Without your volunteers, you're nothing."

The team at Paradise Valley Speedway are already looking ahead to next season and how they can expand to provide an even better racing and spectating experience.

"We've got big plans for the winter, we're building extra seating and terracing to accommodate more people. It's just as busy as the regular season, just different. [Having to fit more people in] is a good problem to have, we're quite lucky.

"In two years time we're hosting the New Zealand Superstock Championship and celebrating our 50th anniversary at the same time so it's going to be a massive year. This work is all part of the planning for that."

Hickey Contractors Easter Extravaganza Results

Saturday
Tyre Repair Services Rotorua Ministock Champs
1st 92R Jayden Fraser
2nd 48R Cody Bryson
3rd 95R Mitchell Fabish

Rotorua Toolshed Jnr Easter Ministock Champs
1st 74R Ticayla Manson
2nd 88R Cohen Wright
3rd 118R Joel Steiner

Easter Champ - Production Saloons Best Pairs
1st 92R Shaun Heron and 34G Lloyd Stuart
2nd 48H David Pilkington and 11H Annmarie Warrender
3rd 7R Grant Loveridge and 27R James Cunningham

Easter Champ - Production Saloons
1st 17G Antinio McKay
2nd 7R Grant Loveridge
3rd 92R Shaun Heron

Sunday
Easter Champ - Modified Best Pairs
1st 78A Ray Chatfield and 9W Blair McPhee
2nd 12S Jason Kalin and 24S Carl Hinton
3rd 3NZ Jamie Fox and 193H Syd Fergusson

Easter Champ - Modifieds
1st 18R PJ Fergusson
2nd 67S Richard (Bunter) Pierce
3rd 9W Blair McPhee

Ginger Hayward Memorial
3NZ Jamie Fox

Easter Champ - Stockcars Best Pairs
3rd 38R Robbie Morris and 74B Tony Palmer
2nd 68R Keith Spanhake and 12R Beau Thompson
1st 99R Shannon Orr and 99S William Hughes

Easter Champ - Stockcars
1st9R Sheldon Arapere
2nd99R Shannon Orr
3rd72R Michael Rumney

Easter Champ - Superstocks Best Pairs
1st 23R Lance Ashton and 53S Blair Johnson
2nd 82S Hamish Booker and 63R Steven Flower
3rd 79R Lionel Hemming and 77R Lance Elsworth

Easter Champ - Superstocks
1st 9R Lance Ashton
2nd 126C Asher Rees
3rd 38M Ross Ashby