There are fifty days to go until the racing takes place at Calder Park Raceway.

It is confirmed that there will be a double-digit vehicle presence for this round, last round numbers were down to things like mechanical issues from 2022 and busy lives, but everything is looking good to go this time around.

A model of the #47 Allan Grice Pontiac that graced Charlotte is being made and it looks fantastic, Stock Cars Australia fans would recognise the #47 paint scheme because the #97 Pontiac has something similar to it.

This week I was playing with a wood engraver and using it to carve OzTrucks and Stock Cars into the wood, the results weren’t bad for the basic machine and investment in better equipment is a possibility.

I checked in with Zac this afternoon and we talked about how the sport has grown in the last couple of years.

5-6 years ago, it was a battle to have sufficient numbers for the entire weekend because mechanical attrition was high, or people needed to hit the road and go home and SCA had to once cancel one race because there only four vehicles were left.

As the 2010’s drawn to a close, the category had a steady nucleus of Brett Mitchell, Danny Burgess, Stephen Chilby, Robert Marchese, Mick Heppleston, Rod and Corey Gurney and of course Zac O’Hara with the likes of Trevor Crisp and Graham Booth running rounds every now and then.

Things really have changed in the last few years, Scott Nind, Laurence Mckinnon, Lukas Gates, Troy Perichon, Richard White, The Morris Family, Brendon Hourigan and now Paul Hourigan are all in the series and then you had Aaron Hills and James Burge having a go and Peter Byrnes as well.

Let’s not forget all the Muscle Division drivers as well, the division has helped keep the category on the bill when Stock Car numbers were low at the usual haunts of Wakefield Park, Sydney Motorsport Park and Winton.

The recent growth has shown that patience and persistence eventually pays off, many may have given up by now, but Zac held on, worked hard and now has a good field of vehicles and great owner/drivers.

The round at Calder Park has wonderfully become a bugle call to fans of the sport, it has taken over a decade, but people are starting to realize that Stock Cars Australia exists and the people in it are serious about their machines whilst driving cleanly, some may wish it was all one type, but the mixed field is far better than the alternative which is nothing.

The year is going to end with a flourish of rounds as after Calder comes Sydney Motorsport Park and after that is Winton to finish off the year but there’s still plenty of editions to go before, we see the year out.

Thank you for taking the time to read the latest going happenings in the Australian Stock Car world.

Fast Fact: The #97 Pontiac Grand Prix and the #17 Chevrolet Monte Carlo seen in the Australian Stock Car Championship had previous lives as the #10 and the #34.