Thomsen and Caldow surge through to win

The Lucas Oils NZ4WD Trial Series has crowned its champion with a round to spare, and the action has been spectacular at every round. New Zealand’s switch out to ‘traffic light’ Covid response mode opened up the fields from round three onward, and the rivalry has been intense.
First win for Mckies at Inglewood
In late January, the third round of the series took place in Inglewood, hosted by the Mt Egmont 4WD Club. With Covid restrictions moving to the traffic light system, defending NZ1 and NZ2 Scott and Jarred Biggs, who had missed the first two rounds due to the Auckland lockdown, were able to return to action.
Heading into the halfway point for the season, the return of the top two left the title anyone’s game.
Dave and Reece Mckie took their maiden win with a comfortable lead over Jarred Biggs and Fleche Crawford, followed by Scott Biggs and Jamie Taylor who were debuting the latest Nitro Custom. Kevin Hermansen and Nick Hamilton edged Mckie by three points to take the lead in the morning before dropping back to finish fourth. Round 1 winner Sam Thomsen and Mitch Caldow suffered from starter motor issues putting them out early in the day.
Nathan Fogden and Mike Gibbons once again took the lead in C Class finishing first in class and eighth overall. Glenn and Jacob D’Ath led at half time before suffering a broken axle at the end, the day leaving them to finish 11th overall.
The 2010 C Class champ John Hawken and Blair Harrison finished third in class.
Cody Fogden and Jacob Muir (Suzuki SJ413) finished ahead of Michael and Ben Black (Toyota FJ40) in the Super Production classes.
Brent and Michael Ward were 26th outright in their K Class Homebuilt, finishing ahead of ten C and D Class buggies. Sean Cushing and Geoff Butler finished ahead of the remaining K Class entrants, 36th overall in their J Class ‘Dirty-Evo’.
With round three run and won, all eyes turned to the remaining rounds of the series, with the next at Whatawhata.

Results, top ten overall, round three
1. Dave Mckie/Reece Mckie
2. Jared Biggs/Fleche Crawford
3. Scott Biggs/Jamie Taylor
4. Kevin Hermansen/Nick Hamilton
5. Rowan Huckstep/Hendrick Hofstee
6. Reuben Mason/Shane Mason
7. Neal Turner/Wade Alexander
8. Nathan Fogden/Mike Gibbons
9. Neville Mather/Richard Verner
10. Phil Cameron/Beau Taylor

Mather and Verner take home
win at Waikato
Round four at Whatawhata was the first wet rally of the season and locals Neville Mather and Richard Verner became the first repeat winners of the season, taking the honour over first round winners Sam Thomsen and Mitchell Caldow with Kevin Hermansen and Nick Hamilton third.
Thomsen and Caldow led the morning stage with Hermansen and Hamilton taking the afternoon win, however it was the ever-consistent pairing of Mather and Verner who took the outright win for the day.
Nathan Fogden and Mike Gibbons finished first in C Class and 13th overall after surviving a rough day at the office, the duo suffering from a punctured radiator halfway through the morning requiring emergency repairs before finishing the rest of the day. Rhys O’Brien and Clarrie Vazey finished second in their K24 powered Homebuilt.
Brent and Michael Ward continued their undefeated streak in K Class by taking the win over Stuart Mickell and Brendan Austin.
Results, top ten overall, round four
1. Neville Mather/Richard Verner
2. Sam Thomsen/Mitchell Caldow
3. Kevin Hermansen/Nick Hamilton
4. Reuben Mason/Shane Mason
5. Scott Biggs/Jamie Taylor
6. Dave Mckie/Reece Mckie
7. Rowan Huckstep/Hendrick Hofstee
8. Jamie Larsen/Jacob Higgins
9. Neal Turner/Wade Alexander
10. Stuart Earle/Liam Earle

Championship won with a round
in hand
The Counties 4-Wheelers Club hosted the penultimate round of the season near Huntly, with the dry and dusty conditions catching many competitors out. Dry conditions offered improved traction over recent rain-affected events, any mistake by crews would be punished by the concrete-like ground.
Five-time national champ Dan Cowper made his first appearance since winning C-Class at Counties in 2020, driving the ex-Hamish Auret LS7 Cowper Truck on loan from current owner NZ2 Jetsprinter Scott Donald. His day was short lived, with a backward rollover on Course 13, the truck suffering irreparable damage that put them out of the competition.
A further eight teams would find themselves out before midday, including NZ2 Jarred Biggs and Fleche Crawford who went out with engine issues.
Sam Thomsen and Mitchell Caldow put on an impressive display throughout the day, taking the lead in the morning and afternoon to finish 130 points clear of Stuart and Liam Earle, followed by Reuben and Shane Mason. With the teams’ best four-out-of-six rounds going towards end of year placings, Thomsen and Caldow’s consistency was enough to clinch the title with a round to spare, after a strong season where they finished no lower than third overall.
The fight for the remaining positions remained wide open, with Stuart Earle, Kevin Hermansen and Neville Mather in contention for NZ2 and Dave Mckie, Reuben Mason and Scott Biggs in with a chance of NZ3.
Nathan Fogden and first-time navigator Brinn Fogden took out C-Class and finished a strong fifth overall giving the Zook-Sport crew their third C-Class title in four years. Rhys O’Brien and Clarrie Vazey finished second and 10th overall followed by Rebekah and Jenni Templeton.

Results, top ten overall, round five
1. Sam Thomsen/Mitchell Caldow
2. Stuart Earle/Liam Earle
3. Reuben Mason/Shane Mason
4. Kevin Hermansen/Nick Hamilton
5. Nathan and Brinn Fogden
6. Phil Hobart/Shane Beech
7. Neville Mather/Richard Verner
8. Scott Biggs/Jamie Taylor
9. Dave Mckie/Reece Mckie
10. Rhys O’Brien/Clarrie Vazey