Humphrey’s Confident Debut Season

​With a handful of race meetings under his belt thus far in the 2016-17 season, Talon Humphrey has had a solid start to his Junior Quarter Midgets debut, with the racer having already shown good confidence on the track.
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Currently contesting his first season of competitive racing, the eight-year-old racer has been able to step straight into the Novice A class, rather than first joining Novice B, after showing good confidence and maturity from the moment he hit the track.

After some practice runs at Geelong’s Avalon Raceway, Humphrey hit the ground running, coming away with victories in his first two feature races at Avalon Raceway; however, his solid start hasn’t been without its challenges.

Experiencing engine woes in the early stages of the season, the Drysdale-based racer was forced to learn a new setup by running a borrowed engine, having just started to familiarise himself with his own. In his return meeting with his own engine recently, he managed to score second-place finishes behind his best mate Callan Atkinson at both Avalon Raceway and Laang Speedway tracks, proving his knack for being a regular front-running contender.

With no hereditary background in speedway racing, Humphrey’s passion for the sport developed when he and his dad, Daryl, would attend events as spectators. It was the affordability and low maintenance of Junior Quarter Midgets that drew them to the chosen class, with Humphrey’s parents putting money aside in order to purchase a car and help him pursue his dream.

Having grown up watching the likes of his favourite drivers, such as James McFadden, American Kyle Hirst and Will Carroll, Humphrey’s desire to race speedway competitively for many years to come is extremely strong and he hopes to continue his recent form and learn as much as he can as the season progresses.

Humphrey would like to thank the following sponsors for their valued 2016-17 season support: Sacrifice Scooters and TC’s 50’s and 60’s Diner. He would also like to give special thanks to his mum Candice, his dad Daryl, and his siblings Corey, Chloe, Jaxon and Harper.

A Junior Quarter Midget is a quarter scale version of an actual open wheel midget (Speedcar) which is open to race for kids between five and 16 years of age. The cars are built around a tubular chromoly frame including ant-intrusion bars and kick-outs to stop wheel interference. All vehicles are fully suspended with coil over racing shock absorbers.

The vehicle bodies consist of fibreglass and aluminium and the cars are powered by Honda GX120 or GX160 single cylinder air-cooled 4 cycle engines providing 4.5-5.5 horsepower in standard configuration. The emphasis in Quarter Midget Racing is on participation and skill building and as such, the JQMA has a strict sealed, standard motor policy.

For more information on Junior Quarter Midgets Victoria, visit their website at www.jqmv.com.au or contact their President Graham Hutchinson on 0417 566 709.