Motorsport: Reid Harker relishes Toyota Racing Series homecoming

NZ Herald

24 Jan, 2018 04:00 PM2 mins to read

Toyota Racing Series rookie Reid Harker in action at Ruapuna. Photo / Matthew Hansen

Toyota Racing Series rookie Reid Harker will cherish the more familiar surroundings of Hampton Downs Raceway this week as the series moves to the North Island.

Harker has endured a tough initiation into his first major campaign in single-seater racing. He ran into changeable weather in his debut at Ruapuna before a mechanical failure hampered him last weekend at Teretonga – two tracks the 21-year-old has limited experience on.

The Aucklander is looking forward to round three at his local track this weekend.

"I think I am definitely getting more racey," Harker told The Herald. "I am looking forward to Hampton Downs – I think if we can put all the pieces together we should be pretty strong.

"Hampton Downs is also my home track I guess.

"My first time racing at Christchurch was something new, racing in a single seater car for the first time and I spent the whole weekend to find my feet. The weather didn't help either with being wet in practice and semi-wet in qualifying and then dry for the races.

"Invercargill was good in that we had four days of dry running to settle in and find out feet. By the end of the weekend we were pretty racey. I just need to tidy up a few things on my end – race starts and we had a mechanical failure in race two.

"Hampton Downs is a bit more familiar to me. I have done a bit more running there and a few more laps around there than most other tracks.

"I quite like the track too."