First blood to Thomsen and Caldow

The 2021/2022 Lucas Oil NZ season kicked off over Labour Weekend outside Whakatane despite Covid restrictions threatening to decimate the entry by preventing Auckland-based competitors from contesting the event.
Host organisation the Eastern Bay Twin Diff Club (EBTDC) had worked with the local councils on how to best manage the event and make it possible with teams coming across the North Island.
Both Auckland and the Waikato were in lockdown heading up to the event, the decision was made by the Competitions Committee and EBTDC to reduce entries only to those not in the Auckland and Waikato regions. This meant that defending champion and NZ1 Scott Biggs, NZ2 Jarred Biggs, NZ3 Phil Walton and most of last year’s top 10 were unable to begin their title defences.
With multiple teams stuck in lockdown and a few ‘seat changes’ over the off season, the series top three now consisted of:
77D Sam Thomsen and Mitchell Caldow, NZ1 co-driver last season with Scott Biggs, now in the driver’s seat of the three time NZ1 Nitro-Custom
240D Stuart and Liam Earle, NZ9 last year in the ex NZ1 Cowper-Truck
236C Nathan Fogden and Mike Gibbons, Multiple C Class Champ and 12th overall last season in their C Class Cowper-truck.
Sam Thomsen and Mitchell Caldow won the day, followed by Kevin Hermansen and Nick Hamilton in their Cowper truck and the last-minute pairing of Chris Tomalin and Fleche Crawford.
Thomsen and Caldow had a clear run at the front, winning both morning and afternoon. Hermansen and Hamilton enjoyed the improvements made to their IFS/IRS Cowper truck over the off season to finish just 75 points behind and 100 clear of third place. Usual co-drivers Chris Tomalin and Fleche Crawford were left without a seat, with their drivers NZ8 Russell Luders and NZ2 Jarred Biggs caught on the other side of the border. With Ruby the 2020 C Class champ at Chris’ shop and owners Rebekah and Jenni Templeton also in lockdown, a deal was struck for a one-off appearance. Tomalin, who had last competed behind the wheel in 2013 duly finished best of the rest in third, with Stuart and Liam Earle a narrow eight points behind in fourth.
The C Class trucks were fighting hard with Rhys O’Brien and Clarrie Vazey finishing seventh overall, and Nathan Fogden/Mike Gibbons not far behind in ninth. Both were trailing Tomalin and Crawford by just 20 points in the morning but dropped away in the afternoon.
Cody Fogden and Jacob Muir were the sole entry in E Class with their Zook-Sport Suzuki SJ413, finishing a lonely 28th at the end of the day.
In the J and K Modified classes Sean Cushing and Geoff Butcher edged out Daniel Whiting and Willow Eayrs by a single point over a tight day between the two. Cushing led the morning by 20 points in their Evo-powered J Class, before almost throwing the lead away by taking a marker out in the afternoon timed section. This gifted Whiting the 20 points needed to catch up, however they could not overcome the last two points to take bragging rights with the Speights Truck.