End Of An Era For Calder.

      End Of An Era For Calder.Nino Cavallo always puts on a show @ Calder

By Mark Humphrey

Calder Park, Vic/Aus. 3^rd December 2014. It looks like its official. The last ever race meet on the existing racing surface will most likely be on the 7^th of December 2014, as the works order for the new surface is about to be finalised. Current track promoter Peter Pisalidis has scheduled in round 9 of the Street Outlaws qualification series for the day along with a test n tune session for competition vehicles and bikes. With so many competitors having competed at Calder over the last 40 years the staging lanes might be full of comp cars as they celebrate what was once the best drag racing venue in Australia. Lots of memorable moments have taken place over the last 40 years with the 95 ANDRA Nationals a standout. More than 50,000 spectators packed into the Keilor Park venue on finals day to watch the likes of Rachelle Splatt, Jim Read and co slug it out for the famous ANDRA Xmas trees. Who can ever forget Victor Bray laying down ½ track burnouts in his Castrol Chevy or the new kid on the block in Doorslammers John Zappier. Romeo was at his peak in the Funny Car ranks with household names like Russo, Phillips and Cowin all there putting on a horsepower extravaganza like nothing before. The Herald Sun was on board with full page centre spreads on what makes the sport tick with numerous other publications also on board for the ride that was the ANDRA Nationals. A full list of qualifying and finals results from the 95 Nationals courtesy of ANDRA are listed below. Check out the names of drag racers competing back in the day. Plenty are still going around today. (Quality is poor)Matt Forbes has picked up Aussie Championships on the way.

Sadly for Victorian drag racing fans the good times were to last only a handful of years down the track as legal wranglings and in-house friction saw the demise of the sport in Melbourne with just the odd True Blue event and some legal off-street drag racing the only form of drag racing available for Calder Park spectators. ANDRA threw their hat in the ring in October of 2013 with a Top Fuel event coupled to some sportsman categories. I remember Victor Bray down as an observer, on the PA throwing his weight behind the Calder resurrection and then returning to Calder earlier this year to compete in the ANDRA sanctioned Southern Nationals. Although the Southern Nationals turned out to be “topical’the chain of events that occurred after the meeting seemed to kick start that well-worn request to upgrade the racing surface. With Rodney Jane now in charge of all things Calder the push for a new racing surface all of a sudden seemed a reality. Jane knowing the full earning potential of the Calder facility put out a tender to replace the racing lanes and barriers with a brand new concrete version. Contracts to build the new racing surface are due to be signed at the end of this week or early next week after some finer points of the contract had to be ironed out. Make no mistake; we will see a brand new racing surface ready for the Top Fuelers in February.Hugo !!! True Blue Victorian and Calder die hard with Frank looking on.

There has been plenty said about the role ANDRA has or has not played in supporting drag racing at CalderPark over the past dozen years but one thing that can’t be disputed is the tremendous drive they have had in canvassing Rodney Jane for the upgrades at Calder. I caught up with ANDRA CEO Malcolm Bully to get his reaction on the official statement that Calder is finally getting the up-grades they had been canvassing, “Calder Park was always going to return to the calendar. Major ANDRA Championship Drag Racing events in Melbourne form part of a key strategy to return the sport to the upper echelons of Motorsport in Australia. Added to the developments of tracks in Swan Hill and Bairnsdale, there has never been a better time of growth for Drag Racing in Victoria. Calder Park is the centrepiece of this growth and with the upgrades to the track surface and return road we can ensure the on track action of our major Championship brackets is second to none thereby rewarding the starved Drag Racing fans of Victoria for their patience." Bully went on to say"The owners of Calder Park have expressed their desire to return the venue to a premier Drag Racing facility and we are working through the processes of achieving those goals. Further details will be released in due course but rest assured that once we get the key elements of the track surface and return road sorted out, the rest will come."ANDRA Doorslammers are scheduled in for October 2015.

Calder Park Drag Racing will undergo a complete track makeover with completion expected mid January. The existing ¼ mile strip will be removed along with the concrete barriers and be replaced with a new concrete racing surface incorporating new concrete walls. The first of many ANDRA open class drag racing events is scheduled for February 7^th& 8^th 2015 when the awesome fire breathing Top Fuel dragsters roll out for round 1 of the championship. Top Fuel bike along with Pro Stock and Pro Stock motorcycle will be in support.

The ANDRA sanctioned event kicks off what will be an exciting year for drag racing at Calder in 2015. I caught up with track promoter Peter Pisalidis and asked Peter about the upcoming year “yeah it’s really exciting to know the track upgrades are finally going ahead.We have a full program pencilled in for next year which will include the Andra Top Fuel event in February and the ANDRA Top Alcohol/Doorslammers event in October” he said.  Pisalidis added “With the track upgrades completed, it would be nice to see Victorian drag racers turn up to support the local events planned for 2015”.On that, Pisalidis has put together a program that includes 8 rounds of Street Outlaws culminating with a final, The John Taverna Classic, Rowe Memorial and 2 other state rounds to give Victorian racers and spectators a full calendar of Calder Park Drag Racing in 2015. I asked Pisalidis the theory behind the 2015 calendar “well the John Taverna event is dear to my heart and was the first event pencilled in and we need to finish the year on a bang and what better way than with the 4^th and final round of the State Championship sometime in December” he said. Plenty of local talent around to contest State rounds.TheDecember meeting will remain the Andrew Rowe memorial event and like the Taverna Classic will be annual events on the Calder Park Drag Racing calendar. Legal Street cars have also been catered for with the Street Outlaws series to continue in 2015. Although the track upgrades will push the 2014 Street Outlaws final into 2015 I asked Pisalidis about the 2015 Street Outlaws program and what he had planned “The Street Outlaws series is something I will persevere with. We haven’t been inundated with entries this year but I want to continue the series in 2015 so the regular guys off the street have a local competition they can compete in” he said. Pisalidis added “The plan is to run 4 qualifying rounds before winter and then 4 rounds after the winter break. Street Machine has indicated they would like to tie in their drag week with the outlaw series in 2015 which would be a fitting end to the series” he said. Indeed it would. We had a glimpse of what could be with day 4 of the 2014 Street Machine Drag Week series rolling into Calder Park to run with the Street Outlaws series last month. The thought of combining the Street Outlaws final together with the final day of the Street Machine Drag Week has substance and no doubt would be the pinnacle of street car drag racing in Victoria.

So with the track upgrades finally getting the go ahead attention is now focused on what could be the final meet for 2014 which will take place on December the 7^th. Pisalidis has scheduled round 9 of the Street Outlaws series and like past Outlaws qualifiers the track is open for comp vehicles and bikes. In the past we have seen a good number of comp vehicles roll out to put down some passes with some dipping into the 7’s. As the last ever day will be a daytime meet the tired old track will still give up plenty for those horsepower heroes who want to come out and celebrate the curtain going down on the current track surface. Already there has been plenty of interest from comp competitors wanting to share in the history making day and I have no doubt that more will join in as we close in on the day. There have been so many wonderful memories and highlights over the journey at Calder Park and who knows, the old girl might throw up a couple more on the 7^th.Jess Turner is one of the many female drivers competing @ Calder.

To keep up to date on the track upgrades and the 2015 Calder Park Drag Racing calendar go to the Calder Park Drag Racing website and their facebook page.

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Street meets are a great way to try out drag racing and test the performance of your everyday street vehicle in a safe and legal environment.

Calder Park will be hosting ANDRA sanctioned street meets through the second half of 2013 so you can experience the thrill of Melbourne's own quarter mile.

Entry cost: $65 (includes $5 ANDRA divisional day licence)

Spectator entry: $25

To go racing at street meets, all you need is a street vehicle that passes basic safety checks on tyres, brakes, steering and liquid leaks. If you race a vehicle with a manufacture date of pre 1 January 2008 you can run up to 11.00 seconds without the need for a tech inspection or ANDRA licence. Vehicles manufactured post 1 January 2008 can run to 10.00 seconds without the need for a tech inspection or ANDRA licence. Check www.andra.com.au for specific information on safety and licence requirements.