Dougie Hill, Slingshot Driver and Santa Pod Marshal writes:
Well that's a wrap on my first full season driving "Motormouse!" It has been a steep learning curve for us running our first race car as a family but we have had a fantastic first full year. We never set out any goals or targets we simply went to the track with mindset of making sure I was safe and comfortable in the car and that's all that really matters. That being said we achieved more than we could have ever dreamed this year.
We ran our first 7 second pass at the Nostalgia Nationals back in may, despite the fact that I lifted at half track. This gave us great confidence going into Dragstalgia. After many conversations and some persuasion from others we entered into the Cannonball, very much aware of the fact it was everyone in the teams first time playing with the 'Big Boys'. Of all the cars I could have match raced in the first round of the cannonball I never imagined that it would be Tim Garlick in Apache. Not only my first competitive pass but also my first pass against a nitro car. On that run we reset our PB with a 7.06 at 175mph, and what a privilege it was to race Tim!
After the highs of Dragstalgia we re-grouped and decided to enter into the Mopar Nationals so I could get some more seat time. On the Saturday we had a difficult start and struggled to get the car to settle. During the first two runs we had Roy Wilding in the other lane and it was a massive privilege to witness both Roy's first 200mph pass and his first 6 second pass from the other lane. Finally at the end of the day it was our turn and despite the tuning difficulties we had earlier in the day we managed to run our first 6 second pass. The car ran 6.96 at 197mph! Lets just say we celebrated that night!
Finally, our last even of the season was the Hot Rod Drags. Again the car fought us and we struggled all weekend to find the right tune up to keep the car from spinning and shaking the tyres. Despite this we still managed to reset our speed PB twice running a 198mph and 199mph over the weekend.
Even though it was the end of the season for us the cars work still wasn't done. I was approached by Mathew Stanley to see if we wanted to display the car at the Classic Motor Show at the NEC. We had a great weekend on the NSRA stand talking about the car and promoting drag racing and the hot rod scene in the UK. And yes nearly everyone I spoke to couldn't believe that I was driving the car at age 20.
So overall we had a pretty cool year, it wasn't all plain sailing but it never will be owning and driving a race car. Thankyou to everyone who has helped us over the year! See you in 2025, from Team Motormouse!
Stacey Reed, tutu wearing, hardcore 8.50 bike racer and goddess of two wheel speed writes;
The 2024 season was dedicated to my Pops, Bois. He's put so much time and money into that beast that I wanted him to have his big come back moment, which I really think he did!! So that meant I was doing my own data logger analysis and playing with different settings, with the mechanical help from crew chief Glen (because I'm just a girl...) this meant that Pops could concentrate on his own bike. It was a really good year of racing and I was having fun learning more about my bike, but I was really just living through Bois's successes.
After Pop's crash, I was then the only rider so I got a bit more help from Bois in order to try and run my first 7! It didn't happen... But that's the plan for next year! I'm not sure if Bois knows that yet but after reading this, he might go and have a once over of my bike down the unit! Hahah This year has reminded me how truly amazing my racing family is, and that's not even a big enough compliment! Thank you all, see you soon!
Hayden Mechaell joins us for a catch-up after his rookie season:
After all the years waiting and watching at Santa Pod Raceway and Shakespeare County Raceway it was finally my turn to send myself down the quarter mile. I turned 16 years old at the end of May 2024 which meant it was time to make a start on building my GSXR 1000 K8 drag bike. We started the build at the start of June and had it finished three weeks later ready for my first RWYB where I would be riding my bike for the first time. The same week I finished my exams at school and was at the track testing my bike. It was the 22nd of June, me and my dad (Jake Mechaell) turned up to the track ready for testing where my dad did the first two passes to make sure everything was working as it should. Which it was.
After nervously watching him whilst knowing it was my turn next, I put my leathers on and headed down to the pairing lanes. I sat in the pairing lanes waiting for my turn, the nerves had started to build considering I had only ridden a Honda Grom 125cc before. So I rode around to the burnout box and it all began…. My childhood dream was becoming a reality thanks to the surrounding support, my first pass was a full 1/4 mile pass where I ran a 9.65 @142mph. Riding back to pits with the biggest smile on my face. We cooled the bike down and were ready to go again. I had two more passes and ended the day with a 9.54 @146mph, which I couldn’t have been more proud of. Knowing I had a lot of pressure off my back and a very well-built bike ready for Summer Nationals,
I couldn’t wait to get back out. Summer Nationals 2024, what a weekend, one I will never forget! My first ever competition pass I had everyone on the start line who had watched me grow up at the track and I think it’s safe to say I proved that racing is in my blood by running a perfect ET on my first ever competition pass, which is quite possibly a first in Europe. I was the most amazing feeling riding back through the pits having everybody clapping and cheering for me. The 16 years of waiting to race finally all worth it and a weekend I will cherish for the rest of my life. Summer Nationals was done and dusted before you knew it and I qualified 1st but got knocked out in eliminations by my good friend Josh McLean.
My second event (green light nationals) was coming up, and I had managed to pick up my first sponsor which was Turbosmart, truly grateful for the support and social media advice they’ve given me. I did the test day to get some more seat time and now feeling comfortable on the bike we decided to turn it up to try and get a personal best. I rode the best I could and managed to achieved 9.12 @ 150mph by the end of the day. Saturday I headed down for qualifying and ran a 9.52 which got me into 2nd position. Going into eliminations, I had Dave Hall in round 1. Dave has watched me grow up at the track into the racer I am today. With a 48- year age gap in between Dave and I, I knew he has the most experience in the class, so I had to make sure my riding was at the best of my ability.
I took Dave out in round 1 running a 9.504 which gave me lane choice in the final against Rob Stanley. In the final, I knew I had to react as well as possible on the tree because that is one of Rob’s strong points on the track. Rob still got me on the tree, but my 9.53 at the top end against Rob’s 9.63 got me the event win, which meant so much as my dad took the event win in Super Street Bike. The next event on my calendar was one which didn’t last long as it got rained off and there were no eliminations, but I took the top spot in qualifying with another 9.53. It was that time of year, flame and thunder!
One last time to see how quick we could go, and it was also my first ever time vlogging as I have now started a YouTube channel. I was up against my dad who had a crazy run and I ran a 9.21 with a bit of wheel spin at the end of first gear with my Dad wheeling past me just before the eighth mile in spectacular fashion! Once again, that was the end of that due to the weather.
So after such a successful half a season as a 16-year-old rookie we’ll be giving everything a little freshen up and a couple of upgrades ready to compete in my first full National Championship in 2025 where I’ll continue to push my abilities as a rider and make more memories with all the JKE team and racing family!
Thank you for taking your time to read my rookie journey and I’ll see you all at the track on 2025!
