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EASTERNATS 2005 |
Words: |
Paul Beck |
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Sandown Raceway VIC |
Pics: |
Jason Kirk
Jade Ward |
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Pretty
ladies battled it out with tough American muscle cars for attention from the
massive crowd on hand. |
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Carmine
Lorusso’s rear tyres never stood a chance.
Smokin’ heavy Chevy!
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Pinky and
Easternats head honcho,
Jon Davison. |
 ake
no mistake about it, the Easternats are here to stay. The massive amount of
people attending, both in an entrant and spectator capacity, has seen the
Easternats rival just about every other event in Australia. Everyone you
speak to regarding the event had nothing but praise for the way the
Easternats is run - a trend that has continued for sometime.
Most of the entrants that make up the Easternats, hold out for their once a
year thrash around Sandown Raceway without any fear of speeding, burnout or
driving in a manner dangerous fines.
There’s a fine line between being on the edge and over it, with just a few
drivers taking a trip to the “other side” – much to the delight of the
spectators that lined the trackside fence and filled the massive grandstand.
Jon Davison knows that to keep his event ahead of the competition, he needs
to keep it fresh.
This year saw a new driving event added to the agenda. The Stampede had
drivers hurtling down the straight at warp speed before having to circle
some tyres and head back towards the start line.
Check out the pics! There was plenty of smoke and rubber flying around the
circuit with drivers going well past their driving limits in an effort to
secure a good time.
Some drivers took the safe route opting for a steady time rather than a tyre
smoking run that more often than not ended when the driver took out the rack
of tyres in the middle of the racing circuit.
James Sid however managed to
guide his VX SS Commodore through the course in a shade over 20-seconds to
win the inaugural First Place award. He was followed by Brad Willmott (200SX
Nissan) on 21.03 seconds and Ryan McEwen (TD Cortina) in third on 21.44
seconds. |
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THE STAMPEDE
HAD DRIVERS HURTLING DOWN THE STRAIGHT AT WARP SPEED BEFORE HAVING TO CIRCLE
SOME TYRES AND HEAD BACK TOWARDS THE START LINE. |
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Not all
drivers went around the tyres in the Stampede driving event. |
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The
Easternats program also featured the usual driving events that were a
massive success last year including the Drifting, Go to Whoa, Burnouts and
Street Drags. As with previous years, each and every one of the driving
events was fiercely contested. Pro-street cars were going head to head with
their Japanese counterparts in the drifting, whilst some of the guys and
girls more familiar with the roundy-roundy type of racing lined up against
some quarter mile specialists in the Street Drags.
The Street Drags always packs a full field with drivers all gunning for a
shot at the final two placing’s and therefore a chance at taking home the top
award and a chunk of the Easternats prize money. Filling those two positions
for the last race of the 2005 Easternats was Zac Weiss and Mark Whitlam. In
true Holden vs. Ford rivalry, it was the Weiss Torana up against Whitlam’s
Capri. As they crossed the line, the Torana had its nose in front.
As we’ve come to expect, the burnouts drew the biggest crowd of the
weekend. When the first car rolled onto the main straight to perform in front
of the overwhelming crowd, the cheers went up. |
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Pop one tyre and the cheers got louder; but burst both and the noise
from the stand was deafening. The driver was instantly elevated to hero
status. The usual suspects were in attendance including Clint Ogilvie
and Peter and Debbie Gray in their monster Camaro.
Fifty-five cars lined up for their chance to destroy their rear tyres,
but at the end of the day, there can be only one winner. In 2005, Peter
Gray finished with the highest score and inturn took home the trophy and
prize money for creating more smoke, more noise and more attitude than
anyone else. Phil Youlten tortured his Gemini just long enough to secure
second whilst Clint Ogilvie was third in his familiar pink LC Torana.
Debbie Gray topped the female competitors finishing fifth overall. |
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With so many opportunities to go hell for leather on the
track, drivers had no excuse for letting a little steam off on the public
roads around the circuit. And from all reports, the streets around Dandenong
were mostly quiet when the event shut down for the day.
Even though the driving events make up for the bulk of the entrants
attending the Easternats, there are still those who go for the show ‘n’
shine. It’s never really been a huge part of the event, but the quality is
as good as you’ll fi nd at most events.
Ray Sumner’s HR Holden Ute scored big by winning a spot in the Top 10,
1st Place Best Show Vehicle, Best Paint and Best Commercial. Others to make
an impact on the judges included Dean Vannutini’s ’32 Ford Roadster (Top 10,
2nd Best Show Vehicle, Best Undercarriage, Best Hot Rod) and Trevour
Barton’s ’34 Ford Coupe (Top 10, 3rd Best Show Vehicle, Best Body) These
three were indicative of the quality spread throughout the show ‘n’ shine
area.
The 2005 Easternats will go down in history as the best yet and the
general consensus is that 2006 and beyond will continue to grow.
Jon Davison wouldn’t have it any other way…
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Courtesy of
 magazine |
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