By Daniel Powell
From being taken out at the start of the feature race at Tolmer Speedway to finishing on the podium at Murray Bridge Speedway, the opening two rounds of the Eureka Garages & Sheds Series certainly brought James McFadden a mixture of fortunes.
Making his debut aboard a brand-new KRE Race Engines built powerplant and COOL chassis, McFadden ventured to Tolmer Speedway, near Bordertown in South Australia, for the opening round of the Eureka Garages & Sheds Series. Confident of hitting the ground running with their fresh engine and chassis package, McFadden and his team, who had never competed at Tolmer Speedway previously, hit a snag before even hitting the track after being unable to engage the car into gear. As a result, they missed hot laps and also the opening rounds of heat race on the night.
With their backs against the wall after being forced to change the rear end of the NQ # 25 Totally Workwear Midland & VIC Park supported COOL, McFadden and the team finally hit the track in the second round of heat races. In his heat race, McFadden finished in second and in the process recorded the fastest heat race lap of both rounds. Due to not contesting the opening round of heat races, McFadden lined up in the B-main and did enough to make the feature race field by finishing fourth.
McFadden’s feature race turned out to be anticlimax, as it was over before it had even began. This came as a result of an opening lap concertina effect from further up the field. Although he managed to avoid crashing into the cars ahead of him, McFadden was hit from behind from another competitor and the damaged sustained, a flat left tyre and a damaged top wing, forced him to retire without even reaching the start line.
After a tough run the previous night, McFadden and his team ventured to Murray Bridge Speedway for the Bill Wigzell Battle of the Bridge and it resulted in a consistent night that rewarded them with a second place feature race finish. After finishing fourth in the opening heat race from a rear of field start and then going on to win his second heat, McFadden was the equal highest point scorer heading into the top six pole shootout. In the pole shootout, McFadden posted the third fastest lap and that was where he started in the feature race. On a one lane and follow the leader track due to minimal passing opportunities, McFadden moved into second place early on and that was where he remained until the fall of the chequered flag.
Despite a mixed bag of results over the weekend, McFadden was upbeat about his form and the performance of his new engine and chassis package.
“We had a little bit of bad luck on the Friday night, but despite that we still managed to be right on the pace with our new package, so that was very encouraging,” he expressed. “At Murray Bridge we had a consistent night and came away with a satisfying result. At Murray Bridge the track was really hooked up and it certainly tested my shoulder injury a bit, as up until then I had only raced on mainly slick tracks, but it was nothing to be too concerned about. I just need to keep working hard on my recovery in the gym and getting more track time.”
McFadden now returns to Queensland and is next scheduled to hit the track for the fourth round of the KRE Race Engines Series at Archerfield Speedway on Saturday night, November 5.
McFadden would like to thank his car owner Scott Milling, parents Dave and Tania, and crew chief Glen Beaton, along with his valued sponsors: Totally Workwear Midland & VIC Park, Western Diamond Drillers, AUS FUEL GULL, Lucas Oil Products Inc, KRE Race Engines, OMP, Racer Industries and COOL Chassis for all of their ongoing support in the 2011/12 season.
To find out more about James McFadden, visit his official website: www.jamesmcfadden.com.au