An Interview with 597 Barry Clow

This will be your sixth appearance in the championship having made your debut back in 2002, is qualifying for the championship still a special achievement for you and something you strive for in any given season?
Definitely, it's races like this that we go racing for and I suspect if you ask the majority of shale based drivers they will tell you the same. This is our championship and it's quite special because it is the one we have every year. Most of the other championships swap around the tracks so every year you have different drivers going for them, but year after year the World of Shale is the shale drivers championship so I think it's one the majority of us want to be a part of. 

You just barely made it into the top 20 this year but two strong rounds at the end of the series saw you finish 19th, are you pleased to have qualified or disappointed to not be further up the grid?
I'm quite pleased. The thing is I don't travel to Belle Vue anymore. I had a couple of bad experiences there where we went to race and the Grand National would be cancelled and we only got two races and it is a long way to go for that so I took the decision not to risk it anymore. It's a big reason why I bought a tarmac car just so I could race at Skegness. It's just down the road for me and there are so many meetings there it gives me a greater chance to do more racing in any given season. One of the biggest overheads drivers have at the moment is the price of fuel so cutting down on travelling too far really helps. I love my shale racing but even with all the Mildenhall, Coventry and King's Lynn dates I still want more racing so doing the Skegness dates helps that. So with that in mind I didn't do all of the qualifying rounds and therefore I'm really pleased to have just got into the race, that's the main thing.

Qualifying for this year's race has been harder than ever with only the top 20 going through to the championship. What do you think of the changes?
I think they are ok. On one hand it does make it tougher but then it also makes it mean a bit more if you do qualify. I also like the idea of having a last chance qualifier now which gives the guys who just missed out another chance to qualify. The thing with shale racing and especially at Mildenhall is it is so unpredictable so you just need a bit of bad luck and your race is over, again especially at Mildenhall because one mistake or one spin and you are lapped. I think that is a reason why the last chance race has a lot of good drivers in it because for one reason or another they've just not had the luck in the qualifying rounds but they get another chance now which I think is good. I just hope all those who have qualified for the race and the last chance race make the effort to do the meeting. Having recently done the World Championship Semi Finals I found it rather frustrating that so many drivers who had qualified didn't go to the semis. I'm now in the consolation semi final at the World Final and while I know I've probably not got the best of chances I'm still going because I'm in it and I think it's a shame more don't do that. At the end of the day we all race for fun and whenever I'm racing I'm enjoying it.

Your best result in the World of Shale is a seventh in 2012 last year, do you think you can improve on that this year and do you have a goal going into the race?
I think the car and engine are good enough and possibly I am too but you just never know what is going to happen. Again Mildenhall is so unpredictable with the racing. You can be doing everything perfectly right and one tag from another car or another driver wants to put you out and you haven't got a say in the matter. Also with so many cars in the race it is going to be hectic so I don't think anyone will know exactly what is going to happen so it should be an interesting race and hopefully a good one too. I'll be happy just to finish but anything in the top 10 in a race like this has got to be considered a good result. I've had a win at Mildenhall this year which gives you a confident boost and had some really quick laps and things went really well at the weekend event in July so it's possible. Chances are it's going to be a lively race too and I've a feeling the winner might not come from the front. There are a lot of top drivers up there who all want to win and sometimes that can end badly so I wouldn't be surprised if the winner comes from a little further down the grid this year.

With that in mind who do you think might win?
I actually fancy Mark Simpson for it. I think it will be one of those races where the best driver will win and experience is going to play a big part. Mark might not have the equipment others have but as a driver he is one of the very best and I think those qualities are going to shine here so I think it could be him. It would be great to see him win it as well, having come close so many times, he certainly deserves it.

Is there anyone you would to thank or mention?
My misses Mel, Phil my mechanic, all the sponsors and also the promoters who support the formula.