An Interview with Victor 188 John Reeves
(interview published March 9 2016 in the lead up to the 2016 Unlimited Banger BBA Supreme Championship)

Age: 36
Home Town: Hawkinge
Occupation: Machine driver
Family: Married with three children
First race: Aged 11 in Junior Bangers at Dover

You are set to make history this year as this is not only your 10th Supreme Championship appearance but your 10th consecutive appearance which will tie you at the top of the leader board with 348 Sonny Sherwood and, assuming he is on the grid as planned, 247 Lee Clarke. Do statistics like that interest you and is that something you are particularly pleased about?
I had no idea it had been that many years but it’s funny as I was talking to someone the other day about the championship and the year I won the race (2009) and I couldn’t believe how long it had been, either that or I couldn’t believe how rubbish I’ve been pretty much every year in the race since I won it (laughs). Saying that I’ll have been racing 25 years this year and you just don’t realise how fast the time goes until it’s pointed out to you. It’s actually a bit scary in a way! I wouldn’t statistics like that interest me to much because it was something I was completely unaware of but I think what makes stuff like that cool is when you say how few people have done that and to be only one of three drivers who have done 10 in a row and the other guys to be drivers like Bro and Mushy, to be a part of that is pretty special.

Is this a race you still look forward every year, especially being locked into the grid, like Lee Clarke, as a former champion who have competed in every championship since winning?
It is but sometimes not at first. The trouble I have is that because it’s at the start of the season the invites go out and the bookings open during the winter when my enthusiasm is typically a bit low (laughs). I hate the winter, it’s cold and horrible and it’s the worst time to ask me about doing meetings because I don’t want to do anything so usually when the invites go out I’ve a bit of a can’t be bothered attitude but by the time the meeting actually comes it is something I look forward to. It’s always a big occasion and unlimited bangers on shale is always fun so you do look forward to it when it finally happens but before that I usually get the feeling that it’s more hassle than it’s worth but I think that is mostly to do with the winter. Having said that I’ve never been so ready for a season before in my laugh. We’ve been plodding along with the cars through the winter to try and get a bit of a head start and I can’t really believe how far along I am. It’s been helped that I’ve not had to build a car for the Supreme as I’m using one of (Nat Cohn’s old cars) but I’ve got cars for the first British qualifying rounds, Good Friday and some other stuff all ready to go.

As you mentioned it what car are you planning to use for the Supreme Championship?
I’m using an Omega estate which is actually Nat’s, it’s his World Final car and he offered it to me to use as he wasn’t sure if he was going to the meeting and was thinking about getting rid of the car if he didn’t even though he promises me it doesn’t need much work to be ok to race again (laughs). I leant him a car for a Masters Championship at Dover a couple of years back and he’s never had the chance to repay the favour and this was a chance so when I said to him about how I wasn’t looking forward to having to build an unlimited for the meeting, again because I hate building cars in the winter (laughs), he suggested I use his.

Do you think an Omega will be a good car for the race?
Probably not (laughs) but then again I think it will be as good as anything else I would race. In fact I might be a little better off because Nat has raced more of them than I have so for all I know he might build a better one that I do! The problem with them is the same as most modern cars in that the suspension is pretty weak and I think unless you are racing them all the time it’s hard to figure out what you need to do to make them better so again I might be better with a car Nat has raced because he’s had more of them that me. I struggle a bit with unlimited cars because I’m not willing to spend the kind of money you need to spend on (Ford Scorpios). They are good cars but they are so expensive and far more than I’m willing to spend on a banger and the older stuff like the Granadas and Volvos are good but you can’t get them, even Volvos aren’t the easiest thing to get anymore and even if you could get a Granada they are only really any good at all Granada meetings now I think because they are such a target at a normal unlimited meeting for someone wanting to obliterate something and get noticed. There are more modern cars out which are better, I’ve had a Lexus and that was pretty good and these Mercs look good but the trouble is that when you try something new you have to do all the extra work to make stuff that’s going to fit that car and I think it’s that work which really puts me off racing unlimited bangers more. I had a Lexus IS200 at the (unlimited) Icebreaker and even though it’s a smaller car for unlimited bangers, it was a pretty good car and I was quite impressed with it and even though it was my first one it wasn’t too bad to build the thing. I had intended to build another for the Supreme until Nat offered me his car.

Do you think the Supreme Championship is better now as an unlimited event?
I think so. Maybe not for me but in general I thin k it is probably a better meeting now. I’m not sure if it would get more or less drivers racing, while there are a lot of people who don’t like racing Mondeos, everyone can get them and build them whereas there are still plenty of drivers out there who just can’t do unlimited meetings for whatever reason. Also I think with the Mondeos the drivers are on a more even playing field although I guess at Mildenhall it’s a fairly even playing field anyway whatever the cars are because the track is so small. It’s probably not as good for my chances as I’ve never been the best in unlimited bangers, I never seem to have any luck whereas in the Mondeos I do but I think the meeting is better for being unlimited, I guess that is the most popular type of racing at the moment and there is usually a good crowd for it and that makes for a good atmosphere which is always good and it’s always fun, even if I don’t usually do very well now it’s unlimited (laughs).

What kind of race do you expect?
If there is plenty of cars again it’ll be busy, when you have 40 Mondeos at Mildenhall, it’s busy so if you have that many unlimited cars it will be even more so. There is a good chance of a pile-up as well because you only need one person to play up on the bend and that can block the track just like that and there are a few people in the race that could do that and few feuds which could cause some carnage. It’s one of those races where you need to be pushing because if you aren’t pushing the chances are you are going to be getting pushed yourself and it’s always better to push than be pushed (laughs).

Do you enjoy races like that and how do you rate your chances?
I do like races like that, for me that is what banger racing should be. If you are just going round and round in circles, where is the fun in that, that would soon get boring so it’s much better to have a lively race with lots of stuff going on, it’s a lot more fun even if the chance s of you getting taken out increase in a race like that. But for me I think my chances in a race like that are better because I seem to be better at getting through the gaps and surviving rather than being the quickest, that was how I won the championship in 2009 when it rained, I just survived when pretty much everyone else didn’t (laughs) but my luck of surviving unlimited races isn’t the best! I don’t rate my chances too much, being unlimited now but I’ll give it a go, it would be nice to finish as I’ve not had that much luck in doing that the last few years.

Who do you think are the top contenders and do the shale regulars have an advantage?
I’ve honestly paid no attention to who’s doing it this year. I usually take a look but I just haven’t this year but everyone in the race is good, you have to be to get in it so you can’t really single anyone out I think everyone has a chance but the shale guys probably do have an advantage. It’s like anything, if you are doing it all the time you always have a bit of an edge over the guys who don’t and there is definitely a knack to going well on shale which the shale drivers will have.

We also have the 1400cc Banger Suffolk Open Team Championship coming up, is this a meeting you are looking forward to?
Yes, I always look forward to the team meetings. If I could only race at team meetings I probably would because I enjoy them so much, I love the social side of these meetings and the atmosphere in the pits when you are all working together to get your cars fixed for the next race which you don’t really have at normal meetings. I’ve always had guys in the team who will work as a team in the pits as well as on the track because to me that is just as important, sometimes more so and so I really enjoy that side of it. And sometimes the team make a weekend of it which we will with this one as we go up the night before and have a night out which is great as well, to be honest the social side is more important than the racing these days anyway (laughs).

Your team has won every team championship at RDC except the 1400cc Suffolk Open event which you have finished third in three times, how special would it to be finally win this one and do you think you have a chance this year?
I’d be lying if I said it wouldn’t be brilliant to finally win it because of course it would but it’s not something you can worry about too much because it is such a hard meeting to do well in with that many teams and cars and so many people there who just want to ruin your day you can’t really plan for anything, to be honest I’m glad to have done as well as we have the last few years. I think we’ve a good team again and it’s cool to have Lee Saunders and Lee Hughes do the meeting with us again. (Lee Hughes) has done this one the last few years and I think he enjoys it more than he lets on but at the start of the year it’s easier for him before he starts with all his other racing commitments and (Lee Saunders) is always a brilliant guy to have in your team, I think he is a superb driver and so good at these meetings because he is so aware of everything going on around him. But I think to be honest your success at a meeting like this is more on what everyone else does rather than what you do yourself.

You ended 2015 by winning the Mildenhall Team Championship, was that something you were pleased about?
Yeah, that was a great meeting and to win it after battling with the Gladiators all day was just brilliant. With a team like that I always think if you don’t get them first, they will get you so that was our thinking when the meeting started and it kicked off between us all day so it was a great battle, they are a great team to crash with and I think we all enjoyed that but to somehow pull the win out as well was very cool.

Have you any plans for the season, this year is the first since 2011 that you will be without a silver roof so is regaining that a target and were you disappointed to not win a points title last year?
I wasn’t so much but (wife) Stacey was. She was gutted and threatened to divorce me because she didn’t want to be married to a loser (laughs)! It’d be nice to win the silver roof again but who knows, to be a points champion for six years (he also won one in 2009) is pretty amazing it itself and if I never win one again I don’t think I could complain, the biggest problem is the cars look rubbish without a silver roof on them (laughs)! Winning a points title isn’t a target at the moment but if the year goes well and I’m in contention towards the end (of the year) I would certainly go for it but I would like to do the TSR World Final again and to do that you’ve got to be up in the points so that will be a goal for the first half of the season at least. Like I said I’m in a fortunate position at the moment because I’ve managed to get plenty of cars to race and we’ve a good few built so that should get us going pretty well and we’ll see where it goes. I want to do the Stan Woods Memorial at Stoke again, hopefully I’ve got a Maxi which will be great because they were the car to have when I started in Juniors at Dover and I never raced one so it will be cool to finally do that and hopefully I’ll have a car for Stacey as well as I think the meeting would be good for her to do. We keep talking about racing in Emmen as well and as much as I would love to, it’s just easier to go out there with the boys and have a weekend away (laughs).

Your daughter Codie started in Ministox last year, is this going to feature in your plans this year?
Yes, we’ve finally got her a car of her own now as the cars she had were borrowed ones but she’s got her own car now so hopefully that will help her improve. It’s been a little frustrating because when she first raced in the Juniors at Worthing she was doing really well but she had a crash which has knocked her confidence and that makes such a difference. Combining that with the Ministox she’s had being borrowed cars which I’ve not been able to change much to try and help her and she’s struggled a bit but hopefully this year might be better. She’s keen which is the most important think and she enjoys it and hopefully we’ll get to more meetings with her this year as whenever the Ministox are on, bangers are on as well.

What are your thoughts on the new ORCi ruling about not exiting your car while a race is in progress?
I think in a way it’s good but at the same time I kind of think, I’ve been racing for 25 years now and I think I should know when it’s safe to get out of my car or not but I understand you can’t have rules for one and different ones for another. I can fully understand why the rule has been brought in and to be honest I don’t think it will make much difference to me as I rarely get out of my car anyway but having done it when needed for so long I’ve a feeling I’ll wind up doing out of habit still, just because you are used to doing it on the odd occasion (laughs). But personally I think it should be the driver’s choice.

Is there anyone you would to thank or mention?
Stacey for putting up with me buying cars and then spending the nights in the shed at the yard building them, Mike for spending those nights in the shed at the yard building the cars with me and everyone who helps at the track, especially Kev, Alex and Jack.