Murray Bridge driver selected for Australia’s toughest street car competition
Naomi Ward is competing in this week's Street Machine Drag Challenge.
This story was contributed by Veronica Ward, with assistance from Glenn Power.
Murray Bridge local Naomi Ward has been selected to compete in this week’s Street Machine Drag Challenge, Australia’s toughest streetcar competition.
The 10th running of the full-fat, five-day event is designed to prove the street cred of competitors’ cars.
Entrants race five tracks over five days, driving between each without the aid of support vehicles or crews.
Ward started crewing for Steve Paech of Paech Performance Racing at Mildura and Heathcote, Victoria.
Once the Dragway at the Bend opened they began having street meets: quarter-mile drags.
These street drag meets consisted of fragsters, street roadsters, coupes, sedans, front-engine nostalgia dragsters, sport compact cars and more.
Ward enjoyed the dragging from the very start.
“It was a hoot: line up, drag race and do it again – and as often as possible,” she said.
“Once the sounds, sights and smell of the drag cars get into your blood, you’re gone.”
She began racing an HSV Clubsport, but found that drag racing was too harsh on the clutch and gearbox, so she bought a 2000 VX Calais, an automatic, perfect for drag events.
Racing as Nomes Racing, Ward is constantly registering improvements in her start times and is fine-tuning her approach to staging at the lights.
At a recent street meet at the Dragway at the Bend, she achieved a personal best time of 12.38 seconds for the quarter mile.
“I’m fully in preparation for (this week’s) drag challenge and I cannot wait to see the results,” she said.
