An Interview with 245 Zak
Murdoch
Age: 50
Home Town: Alyth
Occupation: Runs a bus company
Family: Girlfriend Ellen, two daughter and two grand children
Racing career: Started racing bangers 20 years ago
Congratulations on winning the points championship at Crimond Raceway in 2013 which in turn resulted in you being offered the chance to race in the Supreme Championship, are you looking forward to taking part in the race?
Yes, very much, it’s something I’ve been looking forward to ever since I was told there was a place for me and was asked if I would like to go to be the seeded entry for Crimond.
This will be the first time you have raced at Mildenhall, but is it your first time racing in England?
Yes it is, I never been to England to race although I have been as a spectator a couple of times so this should be a really special meeting for me because it will be a lot of firsts all at once and I really looking forward to it, it’s been a long time coming I suppose and it’s nice that my first time racing in England will be in one of the biggest events of the year, it’s very exciting.
Having never raced in England before is there anyone in particular you are looking forward to racing against?
All of them I think, there are a lot of names there I have heard off before and several who are new to me, my knowledge of the drivers from outside of Scotland is quite limited but there are a few I have heard off and so it will be nice to race against them and be a part of the event. One name I do know, is Speak, I’ve watched Rob Speak race at Cowdenbeath many, many times and always admired him and his brother Wilf is in the race so that will be good, I would have loved to have had the chance to race against Rob, but maybe another time.
Have you got a car in mind for the race?
Yes, I’ve just bought a Lexus LS400 which will be another first for me. At Crimond, our racing is very different to how it is in England and you can race front wheel drive cars in unlimited meetings which is what I and a lot of the other drivers do so I’ve never had a Lexus but that is another thing which I am looking forward to. Everything is going to be new to me, including the car and I’m looking forward to building it as well as racing it, I think it’s going to be rather interesting. And the good thing for me is that because I won’t have much use for the car again I can race it all night and hopefully wreck it as well which is ideal because I want to try and get the most from my trip. The car won’t be fancy in the slightest, I think it will be enough just getting it built but hopefully it will be good enough, I’ve heard good things about these cars!
Speaking of your trip, have you looked into how far Mildenhall is for you?
Well I actually live a fair way from Crimond, about two hours away. Cowdenbeath is actually my local track but I work on Saturdays so I can’t race there so instead I race at Crimond but we think it is going to take around eight hours to get to Mildenhall so it’s a long way but I’m sure it will be worth it.
Since the Supreme Championship became an unlimited event in 2012 we’ve had tremendous support from the Crimond drivers, have they spoken highly of the event and did that play a part in you accepting your invitation?
Yes they do and yes it played a big part. I get on with the Riddell family who’ve been coming the last couple of years and every time they’ve come back (to Crimond) they’ve brought some great stories about their weekend away and how much they enjoyed it so hearing them talking about it got me interested and when I won the points and had the chance to go myself I decided to give it a go. They (the Riddells) are going again so we should be travelling down with them and being a group of us will make the weekend even more fun, the social element is important in racing but will especially be so during this weekend.
Have you seen much of this event or Mildenhall in general and have you any idea what to expect?
I’ve seen some videos on youtube and it looks like a lot of fun. I’m really looking forward to trying my hand on shale and seeing how I get on with that, again it’s another first for this meeting. From what I’ve seen I would expect it to be quite a lively race, it’s hard to imagine a big grid of big cars on a track that size being anything else so I would imagine it’s going to be very enjoyable.
Have you any set targets for yourself in the race?
No, not at all. I think it would be silly of me if I did because I think my chances are quite small. I would love to finish the race, that would be a massive achievement for me if I could and I think that will be what I’m going for but we’ll see. I just hope I get the chance to get a few laps in and get a feel for the car and the track and give myself a chance, rather than getting wiped out before it really starts.
As we’ve already mentioned you won the points championship at Crimond Raceway in 2013, how pleased were you with that success and is trying to retain the title your intention for 2014?
Yes, I was very pleased to win the points. It’s funny, because I live so far away from the track I am a little bit of an outsider there and so at the end of the season, certainly the last meeting in particular, there were a few people trying to stop me so a more local driver would win but that just made it more challenging and an even bigger delight when I won it, I was really pleased and having those other drivers trying to stop me just added to the win. I very much want to try and retain the title this year and even if I can’t I’ll be doing all the meetings at Crimond this season and doing my best and hopefully be a good champion.
For those with little knowledge of Crimond Raceway, can you tell us a little about the sports most northern outpost?
It’s a good little track and the emphasis is very much on fun. I think it would be seen as quite basic when compared to a lot of the tracks in England but we get good entries of drivers and the racing is always enjoyable which is why I keep racing there and I think why a lot of other people do.
Is there anyone else you would like to thank or mention?
My brother Colin who does an awful lot to help me and everyone else who lends a hand.