DRIVERS and volunteers from Gunnedah Speedway Club celebrated a memorable season after taking home multiple awards at the Racing Sedans Australia presentation in Narrabri.
More than 40 people from across NSW travelled to the Narrabri RSL Club for the annual awards night, highlighting the achievements of drivers, crews and officials throughout the season.
Award winners included Matt Cobb as Street Stocker Champion, Charlette Keeler as 4 Cylinder Driver of the Year, and Clinton Hall as Junior All Star Driver of the Year.
Club volunteers were also recognised with Darlene Hall named Official of the Year and Joy Darcey receiving the Presidents Award for her decades of service to the sport.
Charlette Keeler was named 4 Cylinder Driver of the Year at the Racing Sedans Australia presentation in Narrabri. Photo: GSC.
Darcey records the lap scoring and point scoring by hand at Gunnedah, Narrabri and Tamworth tracks, with her contribution helping ensure race meetings run smoothly.
Hall plays a key part in the everyday running of the club which helps members travel and compete during the season.
Gunnedah Speedway Club member Mark Hall said it was fantastic to see the behind-the-scenes work acknowledged.
“Joy does all the point scoring and lap scoring, and that’s a pretty important job,” he said.
“A lot of the work she does is behind the scenes and people don’t always see it, so it’s great to see her recognised.
Joy Darcey with the Presidents Award, recognising her decades of service to local speedway. Photo: GSC.
“You’ll often find Darlene and Joy in front of the computer doing speedway stuff before they even go to work, so it’s great that their contribution gets acknowledged.”
The Gunnedah club was also recognised with the Crew of the Year award for its 6 x 4 Shed team.
The crew brings together six four-cylinder cars, including junior and fast four competitors, across five Gunnedah Speedway families: the Halls, Partridges, Marshalls, Keelers and Jacksons.
The group has built a reputation for teamwork and helping each other whenever needed, whether preparing cars, completing repairs or getting competitors back on the track.
“We called it the 6 x 4 Shed because there are six four-cylinder cars involved,” Hall said.
Gunnedah Speedway secretary Darlene Hall was named Official of the Year. Photo: GSC
“We all look out for each other, if someone has a big racing incident, we get in there and help fix the car and do whatever needs to be done.”
Earlier in the season, the team rebuilt the front end of a four-cylinder car within a week after it was damaged in a collision with the track wall, highlighting the commitment of the group.
The awards also highlighted the importance of the club’s strong family involvement, with many competitors coming from long-standing racing families.
While speedway is an individual competition once drivers hit the track, Hall said the sport relies heavily on teamwork and community support.
“It is an individual sport when you’re out there racing, but at club level it’s definitely a team sport,” he said.
“We all go away and race together, travel together and help each other out across a lot of different tracks.”
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