Craig Cardwell: Super Saloon racer ahead of the Waikaraka Speedway's reopening

The newly redeveloped Waikaraka Speedway is opening this weekend and they’re pulling out all the stops. 

On the docket are Super Saloons – saloons, stock cars, and of course, fireworks. 

Super Saloon racer Craig Cardwell joined D’Arcy to preview the event.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the All Sport Breakfast podcast with Darcy
Waldgrave from News Talk SEDB.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Let's go racing, A white got a speedway, freshly developed
super saloon, superstock saloons, stock cars, fireworks that goes on.
Craig Carble joins us. Now he's a super saloon racer.

Speaker 3 (00:24):
Good morning, Craig, Good morning. How are we?

Speaker 2 (00:28):
I'm good? Not as excited as you though, bro. Finally
back skidding again and back at white Cuttacker Park and
you and your super saloon. You must be drooling an anticipation, Craig.

Speaker 3 (00:39):
Yeah, today's race day.

Speaker 4 (00:40):
So it's been a long time coming, even though they've
done it in a very short period of time. It's
it's surreal having the track finally finished, which is cool.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
You've had to skid around. What's it like compared to
what it used to be like? Is there a noticeable
or palpable difference?

Speaker 4 (00:59):
Yeah, I mean we moved up to Aubland in two
thousand and I first raced around that track two thousand
and a mini stock and went on from there. Sorry
it would have been maybe two thousand and one, but
the track back then up to now has been a
it's still been a good track, just tired, you know.

(01:19):
And then as I moved up to the super saloon
grade faster cars, it was testing at times with track
worth and the gradient of the track as such. So
we've now moved to a track that's a lot more banked,
free flowing, wider at the narrow points which it had
and it's going to make for a fast racing and

(01:41):
all grades, not just the super saloons, but the open
wheeows that like moving over with us as well are
going to throwly enjoy it.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
Well, the open wheler is next weekend. It's what we're
worried about this weekend. So what are we running. There's
a number of different class plainly the super saloons. Who
else what other divisions are running near Craig.

Speaker 4 (01:58):
Tonight it's going to be the Auckland Stock Car Club,
which is stock cars and superstock, super saloons, saloons, many stocks,
street stocks and I think modified as well.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
It's a massive program, isn't it. That's that's a lot
of action, But I suppose it's the opening night.

Speaker 3 (02:15):
It needs to be, it will be. It's going to be.

Speaker 4 (02:18):
I heard circa one hundred and twenty cars for tomorrow
and after tonight, so it's it's going to be it's
going to be a busy night for people attending in
a great show.

Speaker 2 (02:27):
So as far as the championships concern, what are you
running in? Where does all this head to? Is this
on the Auckland base? Is it a national competition? Just great?
Fill us in of the details there.

Speaker 3 (02:38):
So tonight it's just going to be, I believe, a
club night.

Speaker 4 (02:41):
Generally in our grade we have certain championships, it's points
towards the end of the season, club points.

Speaker 3 (02:49):
But for us it's.

Speaker 4 (02:50):
Not a it's not a major event, but opening of
a brand new trackers is a big event in itself
as such, but we're not so much racing for a
trophy or a sash or anything of that. So yeah,
tonight tomorrow Night's just is the big unveil and and
to win out tonight will be a big deal too
because you know you can only win over the night once.

Speaker 2 (03:10):
As you know, what makes it so spectacular and what
dragged you? Why are you racing this? And why do
the crowds love these cars? What is about the sleeper saloons?

Speaker 4 (03:19):
Much like all my sport, noise and speed and racing.
You know, it's a drug for us, you know, for
myself included. I began racing when I was a kid
and go carts around about seven, and then I moved
up to tears and had a bit of a break,
and then went into a mini stock which was a
Debts in twelve hundred sort of style car on the dirt,
which is great learning the art of the craft of driving.

(03:43):
And then when I had to go and my dad
raced twenty thirty years and one night he threw me
the keys and had to go on it and I
just did a couple of laps and straight away I
was like hopped on it. So it's for me and
my buzz is speed and you know, and the fear factor,
and I guess for people coming to watch is as

(04:04):
much the same.

Speaker 3 (04:05):
You know.

Speaker 4 (04:05):
We try to pull, we try to do an art
out there on the track that no one else can do,
and do outrageous moves without crashing and passing and drive
up by the wall, et cetera.

Speaker 3 (04:16):
So that's sort of the idea behind it.

Speaker 2 (04:19):
All and the beauty of speedway racing. I have taken
my daughter quite a few times back to the Western
Springs and peace. Western Springs are coming next week. Is
the fact she goes Dad, you can see everything. I
love this. She loves the circuit racing because you can
see it. All the action is right there. You can
almost chuck a golf ball at the cars and Dad

(04:41):
is bringing. The proximity is huge.

Speaker 4 (04:43):
Yeah, I mean it's you know, you take a family
out for the night.

Speaker 3 (04:46):
You know, you go to constantly, go to movies, you
go to dinner, whatever.

Speaker 4 (04:49):
But the thing with the most what you nailed it
on the head there you can see every single move.
So if you've got to drive a particularly you want
to follow, you know, you can see their whole race
and what they're doing. Where if you go to the
likes of circuit racing, you know you might just see
the straits or the corners or something like that. So
it's a completely different atmosphere and you're watching multiple grades

(05:10):
in the time of three to four hours, you know,
from faster to slower, to different looking, to crashing to
non crashing, etc.

Speaker 3 (05:17):
Where So you get a variety of the night. Basically.

Speaker 1 (05:20):
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