Sport
19 April, 2024
Track work begins
WORK has begun on replacing the existing track at Warrnambool’s Premier Speedway.
After what some have referred to as a ‘highly contentious and sometimes frustrating’ season on the current track, drivers and teams can now look forward to testing their skills on the new clay come the start of the 2024/25 race season.
Earlier this week, contractors began work on removing the dark coloured clay from the track and delivering new clay to the pit area, ready for installation.
According to general manager Michael Parry, excavators and trucks began work at the site earlier this week, marking the start of an “exciting project” at the venue.
“This is no doubt a highly anticipated and exciting project not only for our club but also for drivers, teams and spectators,” Mr Parry said.
“We will be removing around 2500 to 3000 cubic metres of clay from the track, to about 300mm below the racing surface, and will then put in the new clay.
“We’ve estimated the project will cost around $150,000 at completion, which we hope to be within the next week depending on the weather.”
While the costs are high, Mr Parry said the work was vital for the future of the venue.
“We know there were some teams who didn’t come here this season, in part because of the track conditions, but we are confident this new clay surface will be a great improvement,” Mr Parry said.
“We’ve listened to feedback and we are doing all we can to have the best track possible for the new season. We have utilised external resources, the clay has been formally tested and we are increasing our knowledge of how it will best race.”
He also acknowledged that the current surface had not delivered on expectations, resulting in unfavourable track conditions at times.
“With the dark clay we had a very small window; the track was constantly changing dramatically from very wet to very dry. There was no consistency and we were constantly having to do track work on race nights which meant delays and longer nights.”
Mr Parry thanked competitors and patrons who had continued to support Premier Speedway and said he was looking forward to seeing cars on the new track as soon as possible.
“Our first race of the 2024/25 season is scheduled for November but we hope to have multiple practice runs prior to that.”
