Spectator: Half a meeting is better than most!

There is something about me, Palmerston North and Stockcars that when added together means rain! We flew down on Friday full of hope and expectation after what I can only describe as a very average season so far, landing in cloudy but promising weather conditions, only to see rain drops starting to fall on the windscreen as we approached our motel... sinking feeling.

We still went to the track but by 6pm the plug had been pulled and it was Hell Pizza and Super 14 rugby on Sky, Blues v Hurricanes (more disappointment!) as our nights entertainment. I did manage to score the Teams programme and Palmy 75th Anniversary Book while I was at the track and had a look around the pits so it wasn't a total washout.

Saturday Night

With the programme now moved on a day, Friday nights racing became Saturday nights, and Saturdays moved onto Sunday for the finals. Now even though 5 of the last 10 years meetings have meant one night has been cancelled we only booked flights that returned us to Auckland on Sunday morning so once again we knew we would be missing the finals. Why are we always so optimistic when booking our flights? Seems we weren't the only ones as quite a few well known drivers were also on our flight home too.

Once we dealt with that aspect it was off to the track and straight to the pits for a look around. One of the reasons we love this meeting more than any other is the fact we can pre-buy our seats and not do the mad 4pm queue at the gate thing we used to do years ago. In fact the entire operation at Palmy is head and shoulders above any other track in my opinion.

Once seated there seemed to be a real party atmosphere that's been missing these last few seasons. Expectation was high and I have to say we were well rewarded with possibly the best "Friday night" racing in years. There didn't seem to be a single dud race and even the traditionally weak teams performed so well that the result could have gone either way.

I have to mention the "spectacular" wall of fire death car display which got probably the biggest reaction of the night (booing) it was so lame but gave us such a good laugh, I dont know if that was the intent. It was right in front of us and so much effort went into getting it set up that the resulting stunt was so incredibly crap! Then a streaker completely stole their thunder and then it was back into the racing.

As always, we bravely cheered for Auckland (or Dorkland depending on where you come from) and after the first race suddenly there was silence around us! Not only had they won, but a clean sweep over the Glen Eagles. Joy! Of course it was soon dealt with swiftly by the naysayers around us with screams of injustice about the way in which Darryl Hammond had dispatched 75c. Suddenly the angry crowd who bleat that stockcars don't hit anymore wanted to know how 43a could do that, what a maniac, mass booing and thumbs down. What a sweet moment for us long suffering Allstars fans...

Although the dream didn't quite come true with a narrow loss to the Scrappers in the final race in the group, what a great performance by a team that was well and truly written off before the meeting. In fact these last few seasons the Aucks have done pretty well and made our time in the stands a bit more pleasureable! The re-emergence of the Stratford team was well received and they surprised quite a few by qualifying for the second night.

The debut of the Kihikihi Kings and the massively improved performance of the Otago Cougars are really positive signs for a class that is heading in an uncertain direction. Superstock teams racing is the jewel in the crown of speedway but it comes at a price. These cars are such high performance beasts now that some of the hits are just unbelievable. Scotty Miers hit on Kerry Remnant was the highlight of the night. You have to be brave to get out there and Scotty Miers is the epitome of a teams racer.

The rest of the meeting was similarly spectacular and although we knew we weren't going to see the finals we felt we had seen a return to form for one of the best meetings every year. What a great 'half a meeting!'

There is a comprehensive review on the Palmerston North website including the finals won by the Palmerston North Panthers.