A large contingent of competitors and spectators travelled to Port Pirie on the long weekend for the second round of the Associated Dirt Circuit Clubs of South Australia State Titles.
The weather turned out to be a huge contrast to the first round held in Whyalla on the June long weekend, where contestants struggled, and spectators froze, in extremely cold and wet conditions.
Port Pirie turned on magnificent weather, which brought out many spectators and some very fast racing action.
With points at a premium all classes were strongly and fiercly challenged by the fancied drivers ,as well as the not so fancied drivers.
From the first race until the last there was no clear-cut winner and with lap records tumbling by large amounts, it was obvious that the preparation of the track and the rise in standard of cars, that no one ever thought they didn't have a chance at winning.
There were no major accidents, with the exception of one, which meant that the flow of races was always consistent giving the large number of spectators from around the north and west of the state maximum value for money and drivers and pit crews little time to make any changes to their cars.
Whyalla driver Troy Frisby was unfortunately caught up in a racing incident that created a huge cloud of dust crossing the track.
As the spectators waited for the cloud to clear, a sickening crunch was heard as another Whyalla driver, Brian Brown, collided with the stationary vehicle of Frisby.
Neither driver received any injuries but both vehicles where totally destroyed.
Alan Kirkwood enjoyed the best racing performance of his career in the Street Stock division and was rewarded with fastest race time of the day in his class.
This will obviously boost his enthusiasm for the sport.
Adrian Jones, also in the Street Stock class, had a less fortunate day but still managed to secure enough points to add to his first round tally to give him an overall total of 32 points and take third place in the overall positions.
Had the marble draw been more favourable for starting positions on the grid then more points could have well meant a higher overall finishing order.
Simon Moore had a great day, his racing was consistently fast enough and his car ran strong to gather 21 points, just one less than the class winner to give him 37 points and second place in the Street Stock class.
In the super fast division of Modified Sedans the action was even hotter than the strong sunshine and drivers had little chance of an easy ride.
Trevor Driver on his four cylinder turbo charged Nissan was giving nothing away to the multi litre big cars and challenged at every opportunity for every point he could get.
He was rewarded with 19 points for the meeting and combined with his 20 point haul from the Whyalla round give him a two-point advantage to be crowned Modified Sedan State Champion 2008.
A target he has aimed for and narrowly missed in his 10 year racing career.
This was certainly his year and a worthy champion was loudly applauded by all in attendance at the trophy presentation that evening.
Less fortune came to Whyalla in the Open Wheel classes and mechanical failure of a minor nature restricted points leader Stacy Harris from holding onto a position.
Overall a great effort from Whyalla meant that they finished second in the overall team perpetual Dunns Brothers Trophy by just a mere 20 points to eventual winners, the strong team of Ceduna.
October 5 ? Port Pirie
Street Stock ? 1st Simon Tucker 22 points, 2nd Simon Moore 21, 3rd David Frisby 19, 4th David Car 18, 5th Kym Pahl 16, 6th Jonathon Cox 16 countback to times.
Modified ? 1st Ian Atkins 23 points, 2nd David Reardon 21, 3rd Craig Manners 19, 4th Trevor Driver 19, 5th Reg Davis 18.
Open Wheeler A ? 1st Shane Petry 21 points, 2nd Aaron Matulich 19, 3rd Andrew Gray 19, 4th Darren Cummings 17, 5th Geoff Munro 16, 6th Stan Manners 14.
Open Wheeler B ? 1st Viv Coe 22 ponts, 2nd Paul Groen 20, 3rd Adam Tapley 20, 4th Scott Harding 18, 5th Karlon Hartwig 16.
Championships
Street Stock ? 1st Simon Tucker 41 points, 2nd Simon Moore 37, 3rd Adrian Jones 32, 4th David Carr 32, 5th David Frisby 29.
Modified ? 1st Trevor Driver 39 points, 2nd Ian Atkins 27, 3rd Joshua Pickert 34, 4th Reg Davis 34, 5th Craig Manners 34.
Open Wheeler A ? 1st Shane Petry 41 points, 2nd Darren Cummings 35, 3rd Andrew Gray 33, 4th Aaron Matulic 29, 5th Alan Woollatt 24.
Open Wheeler B ? 1st Paul Groen 36 points, 2nd Viv Coe 35, 3rd Scott Harding 34, 4th Karlon Hartwig 32, 5th Jason Irvine 32, 6th J. Brine 30.
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