Picture - 8 year old Kobi Harpur helps her dad Jason Harpur with a few last minute
adjustments before this weekends opening meeting at Oreti Park

published 11-11-2014

Harpur Feels At Home On The Dirt


By Daryl Shuttleworth


This Saturday night 15-11-2014 sees the Russell Cunningham Properties Oreti Park Speedway roar into life for the first time this season and sidecar rider Jason Harpur is chomping at the bit to get back on track and get wheel to wheel with his opposition, in what will be one of the biggest seasons for the grade.

The Oreti Park club will host the New Zealand Sidecar Championship next season, and although that is over a year away this season will be a chance for combinations to find their groove and get as much home track advantage as they can. Harpur, who is a self employed fabricator has been competing in sidecars for fifteen years, the majority of them as a rider but in his early days of speedway as a swinger, he has tasted success in many championships over the years with one of Harpurs biggest highlights being a 7th place finish at last seasons New Zealand title but it is not the title he holds closest to his heart.

Harpur rates the Malcom Officer Memorial as his favorite race meeting, Harpur once worked for Malcom Officer and Harpur's swinger Mark George is a relation of Officer giving the event plenty of significance, they will get the chance to compete for this title in March. Harpur has a pretty straight forward goal for the upcoming season, that's to finish every race meeting safe and sound, and when asked who his biggest rivals are Harpur states that " any combination that lines up at the starting tapes has a chance of winning, and they all have his respect".

Harpur and George get plenty of chances to test themselves against New Zealands best this season, with the South Island title being contested at Oreti Park in February along with the Southland Sidecar Champs, The Malcom Officer Memorial and Peter Blick Memorial all being held throughout the season.

The Oreti Park club also hosts Inter-provincial Solo Teams racing in the new year where the Southland Outlaws take on The Auckland Rhinos and Canterbury Comets who this year feature multiple National Champion Jason Bunyan, and later this month host the Burt Munro Speedway Spectacular with a record amount of entries received to date.

This weekend sees the club host the Brian Reed Memorial for Solos which is one of the season highlights of the Solo grade, the class welcomes back Daniel Shuttleworth who took a year long break from the sport along with regulars Grant Tregoning and Hayden Sims who recently placed 4th in the Canterbury Champs.,

The solos will be supported by full fields of sidecars, 23 bikes entered including the all girl combination of Claire Hartnell and Tracey Davidson, Solo supports will be in action with new riders Tina Hansen and Jimmy Hannan,  Classic Solos, Junior Solos with newcomer Devlin Joseph and a large field of Peewees featuring new riders Ritchie Brookland, Braxton Casey, Dakota Crengle, Seth Hansen and Lachlan McIntyre who will all debut in the entry level class, this promises to deliver some entertaining racing.

Racing starts 4pm Saturday at The Russell Cunningham Properties Oreti Park Speedway on Pit Road.