The final lap of the 2020-21 summer of racing was completed on Saturday night at Mount Gambier’s Borderline Speedway. The chequered flag waved at Borderline Speedway for the final time after two state titles plus Formula 500’s and Wingless Sprints all hit the dirt during one action-packed night.
Borderline Speedway president Cary Jennings said it was a great way to put a full stop on proceedings. “It turned out be a good meeting with five hours of full-on racing and 32 events,” he said. “It was great to cap off the year with a couple of state titles.”
The Glenburnie oval hosted some of the country’s top young drivers who were all chasing the SSA Junior Sedan South Australian State Title. More than 30 competitors from South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania and Victoria went door to door and Victoria’s Jaxon Vella was crowned the winner.
The Ballarat young gun started from pole and led all 20 laps, but it was not all smooth sailing. With just a handful of laps remaining, Mildura’s Cater Metcalfe attempted a move for the lead, but slipped back to third after running into lapped traffic.
After the late chaos, Naracoorte’s Aaron Tranter snatched a second position after a strong performance. The SA Limited Sportsman class also produced a good final and Troy Curran from Bairnsdale Victoria took first place.
Second was Horsham’s Jock Baker, while another Bairnsdale driver Trent Wilson rounded out the podium. A local was nominated to entertain the home crowd, but sadly they pulled out due to illness.
The Wingless Sprints races hard for 25 laps and Michael McDonnell gave Victoria another victory. He edged ahead of local star Mitch Broome, while junior Blake Walsh also stood on the rostrum.
The Formula 500’s completed the finale of its South Australian State Series championship. On the track Adelaide’s Brendan Zadow was the class of the field and won both the race and the title.
Corey Jones and female racer Jesse Ellstone finished second and third respectively. Local racer Ryan Harry did not make it to the final with mechanical problems, but finished third in the championship, an impressive effort in his rookie season.
Looking back at a season which was ravaged by COVID-19 restrictions and did not feature World Series Sprintcars, Jennings was pleased with the end result. “The season overall has turned out really good and hopefully next year starts even better,” he said. “We did not know what was going to happen and took it race by race. “This season did not get off the best start because we were affected by COVID with two cancellations, but we got all of our events in after Christmas and kept the racing flowing which was beneficial for us.
“We survived the season and financially did not lose any money. “I would like to thank all of the media, patrons and especially the sponsors and volunteers.” However, Jennings said the action did not stop off the track. “We will have a promotion day at the speedway in May and will organise a volunteers thank you night,” he said.
“There are a few annual national meetings over the off season to try and promote speedway throughout Australia as well. “We just hope to keep going fullsteam ahead and get a full eight shows in next summer.”
