By it’s very nature Speedway racing is loud, dirty and can be a very aggressive environment on the clay track.

Hardened individuals charge hard and take significant risks in their quest for racing glory.

There’s often no quarter given or taken and sometimes the twist of a wheel one foot the wrong direction can result in a huge race accident that can wreck your racecar and change your day significantly.

Some might boldly suggest, given the levels of testosterone, that it’s a man’s world.

But that would be unfair.

And, if you ask the six women competing in this Saturday night’s 2014 NSW Wingless Sprint Championship, completely inaccurate.
For a number of reasons, the Wingless Sprint ranks boast a very high incidence of lady racers, almost all of who are in their late teens or early twenties.

The type of young ladies you might expect to be frocking up in high heels and hitting the nightclubs rather than donning a fire retardant race suit, nomex full body underwear and crash helmet.

The reality is, that Nikki Briton, Mikaela Blyton, Courtney O’Hehir, Ashleigh Jack and Stacy Galliford do that too, but on Saturday night’s they’d rather be mixing it up with the boys on the Valvoline Raceway track then chasing drink specials in the city.

Realistically, most of them were born into the Speedway thing, each having a parent or sibling who raced or still currently races.
Even, yes, a boyfriend also races.

Mikaela Blyton for example has both her brother and her Dad racing against her each night and her boyfriend is rising Sydney Sprintcar hard charger Blake Skipper.

Courtney O’Hehir’s boyfriend Toby Bellbowen is one of the fastest Sprintcar drivers in NSW.

Nikki Briton’s boyfriend Cameron Ware (who used to race until he was injured in a crash) actually grades and prepares the track at Valvoline Raceway – her Dad used to race, her Uncle Brian still does and her granddad Dick Briton is one of the most celebrated champions in the sport’s history.

So it was no surprise to anyone with Nikki expressed a desire to do a little of her own racing.

The girls however are bonafide racers in their own right and any male competitors who treat with them with contempt do so at their own peril.

With 48 cars competing in total Saturday night almost 1/8th of the field are women and there’s a very good chance that one of them may end up either on the podium or with a win.

There won’t be any on-track concessions from the fellas you can be pretty well certain however.

Title favourites include Mark Blyton (Mikaela’s Dad) Adam Hourigan Michael Sammut, Damien Abbott, Sean Mayo, Sean Dicker, Clint McCorquodale, brothers Dean and Jeff Thomas and several others.
It’s a wide-open affair.

In addition to the Wingless Sprints the V8 Super Sedans make their 2014/2015 Valvoline Raceway debut with 16 cars nominated including Newcastle father and son team Bernie and Simon Roberts in their orange and black Carline Mufflers Holden Commodores.
Bernie has been around racing for almost four decades and his son Simon has always been an outstanding kart racer who branched into Speedway like his Dad several seasons ago.

Also on Saturday night’s program will be Litre Sprints, Street Stocks and Fender Benders.

Gates open at 2pm this Saturday afternoon with action starting from 6pm.

Valvoline Raceway is located at 21 Wentworth Street Granville – phone (02) 9637 0411 or check out www.valvolineraceway.com.au

Adults are $30
Pension $20
Juniors (13-15yrs) $15
Kids 12 and under are free if accompanied by an adult
Family Pass (2 adults and 2 juniors) $70