An Interview with National Banger driver 83 Bobby Wilmer
(interview published May 21 2014 in the lead up to the final National Banger British Qualifier and Martin Seex Memorial at Mildenhall on June 7)

Age: 29
Home Town: Peterborough
Occupation: Lorry driver
Family: Girlfriend Nadine
Racing career: Started racing Junior Minis at Peterborough aged 14 and started Bangers aged 17

You returned to being an RDC driver for 2014, why did you decide to do that and how has the year been going so far?
To be blunt I just wasn’t happy at the other places I tried since moving away from RDC. I did a couple of meetings at Mildenhall at the end of 2013 and really enjoyed myself so decided to come back and honestly I know wonder why I ever moved away and tried something different because I’ve been having a great year and I’m really enjoying myself. I consider myself quite lucky because I do have the means to travel around to other track if I like but right now I’m enjoying the meetings on my doorstep so I don’t feel the need to do that right now and that’s brilliant so it’s been going really well and I’m hoping to do a good bit more before the year is done.

You head into the final British Championship qualifying round on June 7 on the edge of the top 12 following your win in the final on March 29, was trying to qualify for the championship a target going into this season and how important is it for you to qualify?
It wasn’t a target at first. At first I was just quite happy having a good time smashing cars up but at the last round at Mildenhall I kind of thought to myself that as I was going to be doing all the rounds at Mildenhall it would almost be a waste to not at least try and qualify which is why I raced at bit more at the last (Mildenhall) round and fortunately it paid off and I had the win in the final and now I have half a chance of qualifying going into the last round. I’m trying not to overthink it and I reckon I’ve got my plan susses and that is to not go racing (laughs). Honestly when I go to a meeting intending on trying to score points, that’s when it all goes wrong for me so I honestly reckon my best bet is to go into the meeting like anything else and try and go crashing and hope it falls my way again. It would be brilliant qualify for the British. I’ve done it once before in 2009 but the less said about that the better. I’d raced Mondeos all year and for some reason thought I would try something different for the championship and it was a disaster so it’d be great to have another go this year. I’m not saying for one minute I think I would have a chance in a race like that but just to be a part of it would be fantastic.

You mentioned your crashing side and we have certainly seen plenty of that thus far in 2014. Was that your intention when the season started?
It was to a certain point. When I had my year at King’s Lynn, I found the racing wasn’t as consistently crashing as I think it is at Mildenhall. You get big hits at Lynn but because of the size of the track it’s not as lively at Mildenhall and sometimes you don’t get the chance of a crash as much as you might like. So I found myself racing a lot more which is nice but I think I did miss the crashing a bit more and when I started racing at Mildenhall again I just found there were a lot more chances to have a crash and I was having a great time. Honestly in the final I won on March 29 it was actually quite hard trying to resist having a crash. I had the chance of a good hit on (517) Sid Cooper but I knew I was doing well and I was trying really hard to think of the big picture and keep going (laughs). I’m glad I won in the end.

You had a little luck in winning the race as the race was stopped a few laps from home, just as you were about to come under pressure for the lead, do you think the stoppage was a big help for you?
Definitely, I really don’t think I would have won had the race not been stopped when it did and there is no telling where I would have finished but it was nice to have some luck go in my way for a change (laughs). Usually in situations like that I never seem to have the luck so it was pretty cool that for once it did me a favour and getting the win has given me a shot at qualifying for the British Championship which is great.

As part of being tremendously dedicated to the Mildenhall meetings this season you were present during the Winter Series. Despite their obvious difficulties, those who raced at these meetings seems to enjoy them, was that the case with yourself?
Yes, I had a brilliant time at those meetings but I actually enjoy the wet meetings because I think I tend to do well at the meetings when the conditions aren’t ideal. I can’t explain why it’s like that but I just seem to do better so when it’s wet and a bit slippery I enjoy it. The Winter Series meetings are also a little different to the in season meetings as well. The atmosphere is a little different, a bit more laid back and it just seems the drivers that are there are there to have fun and not to take it too seriously. I think at the winter meetings, especially if it is a bit wet, it’s hard to take it very seriously and so the meetings do tend to be a bit of fun which is what it’s all about. It’s also nice to get out and get a bit of racing in around Christmas and New Year and it also helps get you a little bit revved up for the main season.

You are also a regular at our National and Mondeo meetings, Mondeo based National Bangers seem to get a bit of a bad press at the moment but do you enjoy them?
Yes I do but I can understand why some aren’t so keen on them. The cars are so hard they are almost unstoppable which has its obvious disadvantages for drivers and fans and I get why a lot of people don’t like them, especially older drivers who obviously feel the hits a bit more than younger ones. But they have a lot of advantages as well and one of the best things is you can have a crash with one and know you’ve a good chance of backing off and continuing and they can take plenty of hits as well so when you race a Mondeo you usually know you are going to get a good night of racing with it and I think the Mondeo meetings tend to be more crashy races because the drivers know they can take the stick and keep going which some of the older cars can’t do, with them sometimes one hit and that is the end of your meeting whereas with a Mondeo you usually get a bit more than that from them.

You were involved in a lot of controversy a while ago when you were involved in the Cream Team and Gladiator battle and a hit you delivered left Gladiator Andrew Milner seriously injured. Much was said about the hit and yourself at the time, what your thoughts about that now?
It was a very hard time for myself. Don’t get me wrong, I understand how what I went through was absolutely nothing compared to what (Andrew Milner) and his family and friends went through, it wasn’t even close but it was a really bad time for me personally, a pretty sickening time and if I’m honest I went through a time when I seriously considered giving up from the sport because I honestly wondered if it was all worth it. Some of the things which were said about me were so wrong, I understand a lot of it was because people were upset and I appreciate that but when you have people saying you are trying to hurt people intentional, that’s pretty hard to take. I don’t think any driver goes out on track to try and hurt anyone, I know I certainly don’t and the feeling I had about five minutes after I did the hit was one of the worst I’ve ever experienced. It’s very hard to describe but it is an absolutely sickening feeling when you are in that situation and I really hope I never have it again but it is always in the back of your mind. One of my greatest fears is hitting a car when someone is getting out because you can never be 100 per cent certain that the car you are hitting the driver hasn’t just unbelted or by hitting them you know cause a knock on to another car where the driver is getting out. You have to put your faith in the drivers and marshals but after the (Andrew Milner injury) it did make me look at things very differently. Having said that I’m quite happy with the rules on hitting stationary cars in the sport. If you said you can’t hit stationary cars then it would be a huge restriction on what you can and can’t do in a race and it would also be very hard to police fairly.

Is there anyone else you would like to thank or mention?
My misses who supports me so much. I’ve had difficulties before with relationships when it comes to racing but Nadine is absolutely brilliant and she really enjoys it and even helps with the cars when she can and that’s made a huge difference to my racing right now and my dad for all he does, without him I would only be able to race a fraction of what I currently race, I’d probably only manage a meeting every six months without him! And also Wayne who helps me a lot building my cars.