An Interview with National Banger driver Lurch 220 Tom Pavitt
(interview published October 7 2015 in the lead up to the 2015 Accumulator Championship and White and Yellow Grade Series Final)

Age: 22
Home Town: Great Dunmow
Occupation: Warehouse worker
Family: Single
Racing career: Aged 16 at Henham in Bangers

You are set for a busy night on October 17 as you have qualified for both the Accumulator Championship and White and Yellow Grade Series Final, are you looking forward to the meeting?
Yes, definitely. Qualifying for the White and Yellow Grade Series Final was a target for me this season so I’m really pleased to have done that and achieved what I was trying to do and qualifying for the Accumulator Championship is just a massive bonus for me because I don’t get to qualify for races like this very often so to get in that one, which is still one of the biggest of the year at Mildenhall is a really big thing for me and I’m looking forward to that.

This will be your first time competing in the Accumulator Championship, does that make qualifying all the m ore special?
Yes it does, I think anytime you do something for the first it is always that little bit more special and it’s definitely the case with this one. You’ve only got to have a quick look at the people who have qualified and there are some really good drivers in there and it’s almost as good as some of the big championships you see in the sport so to be among them is a really great thing for me and I’m really looking forward to the race although if I’m honest I think I have a better chance in the White and Yellow Grade Series Final.

Having said that, do you have a target for either race?
Like I said one of my targets this year was to try and qualify for the White and Yellow Grade Series Final and I’m definitely going to be going for it in that race and my hope is to be in a position to challenge for the top three or maybe even go for the win. But you never know how these things are going to go do you, it’s so unpredictable out there and even though it’s the White and Yellow Grade Series Final there are still a lot of good drivers in the race and there should be a lot of cars in it as well so it’s sure to be a good race. Hopefully I will get a decent grid position but sometimes it doesn’t matter where you start, especially at Mildenhall where there is a big grid and there is bound to be a lot going on but I think in a race like this if you get a decent starting place it can definitely help and make things a little easier. We’ll see, it all depends how it goes on the night but I hope that I’m able to be in the mix at least, that’s my target. As for the Accumulator, I’ll just see how that one goes, to be honest I’m not thinking too much about it because first my car has got to survive the White and Yellow Grade Final before I can do it (laughs)!

Saying that, we can assume you will have just one car for the meeting, are you confident you will be ok to do both title races?
The plan was to have two cars but I got asked to do the Old Skool team meeting (with Team Mates) and the car I had left over went there instead and I’ve not got time to build two now so I’ll only have the one but I think it will be ok. The good thing about Mondeos if they are a very strong car and you can usually get a meeting from one, it’s not often they get wrecked in the first race so hopefully I’ll have a bit of luck and I’ve plenty of spares for them and with two races between the two championships, there should be enough time to get the car fixed and get back out again.

You qualified for the Accumulator Championship almost a year ago, winning an entertainer award in a DD at Halloween Havoc, the Accumulator Championship is quite unique at RDC as all entertainer award and DD winners qualify for the race, is that something you support?
I do, but then that’s how I qualified so I guess I would say that (laughs). I think the good thing is that it creates an opportunity for all drivers to have a chance of qualifying as winning an Accumulator qualifier is no easy thing and if it was only the race winners who qualified you would obviously have a lot less people in the race and also I think you would have very similar drivers as well, by including the DD and entertainer award winners you get a really good mix of people and I think that is really good as well because for me the best races are the ones where you have a mixture of drivers, racers, crasher and the ones who could do either and you never know what’s going to happen until the race starts. Don’t get me wrong I think in the Accumulator Championship the majority of people in the race are probably going to go for it when the race starts but there are so many that could go wrecking if their chances disappear so I expect it’s going to be a really lively race and those are the ones I enjoy the most, where you have to pick your way through the pile-ups and find the gaps and survive, that’s what banger racing is supposed to be, not just who has the fastest car.

While several qualifiers are like yourself and will first have to survive the White and Yellow Grade Series Final before racing again in the Accumulator Championship (not including those able to bring two cars) but as it stands the Accumulator Championship could feature up to 50 cars, do you enjoy races with big grids?
I do, but sometimes you can have too many in a race and that can spoil it. It’s a fine line really but sometimes you can races with a massive grid like that and there isn’t a pile-up so who knows. I don’t tend to worry about it too much, again what I enjoy the most are the lively races where there is loads going on and you have to try and fight your way through. It always impresses me guys like Dan Lathan and Craig Osborne who are so good at doing stuff like that and when you are on track with them you try and follow them as best you can but usually they will go through a gap and it then closes behind them (laughs).

We’ve seen a change to our lap sheet order restarts in recent times and you’ve been involved in several of these, do you like these starts?
I love having the cars re-lined up double file and the almost clutch starts, I think they are excellent and really exciting and much better than what we had before because it makes the racing a lot more exciting to be a part of after a stoppage whereas before it could sometimes be a bit dull after a stoppage as the field would get very spread out. But I’m not sure I’m keen on the idea of everyone restarting on the lead lap as I think it could be unfair that someone who has been out of the race for several laps has a chance to come back in and restart on the same lap as those who’ve not been taken out but at the same time I can see why it’s done that way and understand how much easier it is.

You mentioned taking part in the Old Skool team championship last month, was that a meeting you enjoyed?
I did, the head to head heat was especially good. Team Motorbitz are full of good drivers and it was a great team race to be in and I think we gave them a really good run for their money, especially as we started a man down as well. The stoppage actually did me no favours that night because I think I was catching Craig Osborne before the stoppage and when we restarted I had Dan Lathan right on my tail so I knew I was in trouble then (laughs). I must admit it was a bit weird because the head to heads are run to DD rules so having people coming the wrong way at you all over the track was a weird feeling, I guess just because it doesn’t usually happen. I was pleased to say that we qualified for the final by winning the consolation as before the meeting that was my hope that we would qualify for the final and then I helped start the big pile-up with Phil Smith, well that’s my story anyway (laughs).

You came really close to qualifying for the British Championship this season, both via the British Qualifying rounds and then on the night in the last chance qualifier, was that a source of disappointment for you and is trying to qualify for the race in 2016 a target?
It is my target for next year and it’s a race I really want to be a part of. It’s one of the biggest of the year at Mildenhall, especially for drivers, like me, who primarily race Mondeos and I really want to have a shot at it. I consider Mildenhall my home track and I think a lot of people will always want to qualify for the big race of the year at their home track but also for me I don’t race on tarmac because it’s so much harder, and more expensive to compete on tarmac, so a big race for me at my home track and on shale is definitely the way for me. It was a little disappointing to just miss out on qualifying this year but at the same time I was pleased to do so well so I can’t complain but maybe next year I will get a little more luck when I need it and qualify for the race.

We’ve mentioned a few times your fondness for racing Mondeos, a car which many are not so keen on, what is it about them that you enjoy?
For me, it’s just that they are so much easier. Don’t get me wrong I love the unlimited and rwd meetings I have done and would like to do more if I can but they involve so much more time and money that’s it’s not really practical for me whereas the Mondeos are just a lot easier. The cars are a cheaper, easier to get, easier to build, I could build one in a day if pushed and also at Mildenhall you can compete in a standard Mondeo and don’t need anything too fancy. A lot of that is down to the track itself and not just the shale as even at King’s Lynn I’ve found it’s harder to be on the pace in a Mondeo simply because the track is that bit bigger. And again a great think about a Mondeo is that most of the time you can get a whole nights racing with one whereas with the older stuff or the unlimited cars there is a greater chance of getting wrecked in the first race. I really enjoy the pre 70 meeting though, being in the WI Engineering team , the meeting is always going to special with Odd Job’s memorial trophy and having Del (Derek Caton) help me with cars and he usually helps find me a pre 70 car, they are usually a lot more work and more money but it’s always worth it because they are just great fun. I do have a Mercedes at the moment which I will build at some point, I was thinking about trying it for the Nutcracker at King’s Lynn but that depends on the time I have, if it doesn’t get done by then I think I might do the Suffolk Open next year instead.

Have you any plans for the coming months and 2016?
The plan at the moment is to have most of the winter off and spend the time preparing for the start of next season and trying to get a little bit ahead as I would like to try and do a few more Mildenhall meetings next season. Again qualifying for the British Championship is a target and I’ve also got a target of trying to score 100 points next season as I think it would be pretty cool to get my final score into the triple figures for the first time.

Is there anyone else you would like to thank or mention?
My dad who helps build and transport the cars and helps me with the costs as well, Derek for his help, letting me use the yard, transport as well and providing the cars, basically everything he does and Trevor for the signwriting and making the cars look the nuts.