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Shepherd fired up for the night fire top fuel spectacular |
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Wednesday, 12 December 2007 |
Bright and bubbly Amanda Shepherd couldn’t be more excited about
returning to the track at which she made her maiden finals appearance
during only her second competitive event in September, as she prepares
to head to Willowbank Raceway for the January 4/5 Night Fire Top Fuel
Spectacular.
Fresh from her run at round three of the ANDRA Top Fuel
Championship at Western Sydney International Dragway at the weekend in
which she followed up her QEC Australian Nationals appearance with a
Personal Best pass of 287 miles per hour (461.8km/h), the 19 year old
Shepherd is revelling in her first season in Top Fuel.
Her WSID weekend now sees her at equal third in the ANDRA Top Fuel
Championship with Martin Stamatis and Darren Morgan on 140 points and -
one could say - slightly excited, as she prepares for round four at the
Willowbank Raceway Night Fire Top Fuel Spectacular.
 “I cannot believe how well everything is going, I just love Drag
Racing – it is still so surreal to think of how things have played out
over the past few rounds,” enthused Shepherd.
“To be sitting equal third in the Championship and to be lining up
against these guys and actually holding my own, its just amazing, and I
am so excited to be heading back to Willowbank Raceway, the home of my
first finals appearance and where I learnt to race in the first
instance.
“Willowbank Raceway was the first time I pulled a chute, and where
I did a nine second pass to get my fully endorsed licence as part of
the Ken Lowe Drag Racing School in 2006.
“The track is so different, I remember talking to Phil Read before
(Nationals) qualifying about how it differs from Sydney, and he advised
me that in the middle of the track there is a bit of a hump, and then
the track slopes down, so I was a bit nervous before my first run.
“To get to the final at my very first time in Top Fuel at
Willowbank Raceway just put the cherry on top for me, words cannot
really describe just how thrilled I was with that result, so I am
really looking forward to heading back there for the New Year.”
While there is no doubt Shepherd is one of the new stars on today’s
Drag Racing landscape, if the young gun cannot secure some full-time
sponsors by the end of this season it may be her last, with Top Fuel
veteran dad Bob looking to reclaim his dragster if his daughter can’t
come up with the funding.
“I am so grateful to my dad, he is my hero and who I look up to –
without him I would still be playing with the engines and never would
have had the wonderful opportunities I have had to get behind the wheel
and do what I am doing,” said Shepherd.
“Having said that, he wants his car back so he can go racing again
– so if I can’t find full funding to back another dragster by the end
of this season I am going to find myself crewing again.
“We have some great sponsors on board, such as Wynn’s who are
helping us get from round to round, but if we can find a full-time
backing sponsor for Amanda Shepherd Racing we can continue what we have
started next season, and perhaps I will get to face-off against dad one
day!”
Shepherd’s sponsor Wynn’s will be on hand at the January event to
speak to fans and to give away product over the course of the weekend.
Willowbank Raceway’s Night Fire Top Fuel Spectacular acts as the
ANDRA Championship Round of the Top Fuel, Top Alcohol and Pro Stock
Motorcycle categories, to be held over Friday January 4 and Saturday
January 5.
The New Year Top Fuel extravaganza at Willowbank Raceway delighted
spectators during the 2007 running of the event, which saw the quickest
side-by-side pass in the history of Australian Top Fuel drag racing at
the time set when Phil Read’s 4.66 seconds (317 mph/ 511 km/h) proved
just too good for Allan Dobson who turned in a 4.71 second effort (306
mph/ 494 km/h) in the final.
The overall performance over the two days reaffirmed ANDRA
Championship Drag Racing’s position as the best competition outside the
professional ranks of North America and continued to enhance the
reputation of Queensland’s Willowbank Raceway.
This January’s event also features a family entertainment package
including fireworks, skydivers and free kids rides PLUS nine other Drag
Racing categories led by Supercharged Outlaws, Super Stock and
Competition Eliminator.
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