An Interview with 2 Shaun Swinbourne
(interview published March 11 2015 in the lead up to the 2015 Unlimited Banger BBA Supreme Championship)

Age: 24
Home Town: Dover
Family: Girlfriend Holly and daughter Daisy
Occupation: Concrete repair foreman
Started Racing: First meeting was last year (2014) in Rookie Bangers at Dover

You are one of several to make your Supreme Championship debut this year, are you looking forward to it?
I am, I’m actually quite excited about it and quite nervous as well because the meeting will be a lot of firsts for me and I guess you could say I’m really going in at the deep end but at the same time I can’t wait, I had some trouble finding a car for the meeting so there was a little while when I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it but now I’ve found one I can’t wait.

Every year the qualification system throws up some surprisingly qualifiers and dare we say it, you are perhaps the most surprising of the bunch.
Yeah I reckon you could say that (laughs). I can’t believe this is happening to me really because the Masters Championship at Dover where I qualified was actually my first National Banger meeting and this could possibly be just my second National Banger meeting so I would imagine most of the people at the meeting won’t have a clue who I am (laughs). But that might help me because hopefully then they won’t expect too much!

Can you tell us about your banger racing career so far and how it has led to this?
The first time I raced was at the Rookie Banger meeting at Dover last year. I’ve a lot of family who race, my brother-in-law is (former Bangerstox Masters Championship and National Banger driver) Steve Sedgwick and Barry and George Sedgwick are my cousins. I’ve always had this interest in anything to do with motor racing both bikes and cars so have always been keen to have a go myself and last year this Escort estate came up which wasn’t too much money so I bought it and did the rookie meeting and had a fantastic time, I absolutely loved it. I really fancied doing the National Bangers but thought I could probably do with a bit more experience so I did a few more Rookie meetings at Arena and again really enjoyed them and I was keen to try and get a National meeting in before the year ended so I managed to get a Cougar and built it for the last meeting of the year at Dover which was the Masters and I couldn’t believe how well I did. I won the last chance qualifier which was just amazing, I had no idea I’d won until I went to drive off the track and was told to go back to the start line because I’d won the race, that was just brilliant but to then finish third in the Masters was just incredible. It was a really rough race the championship. The track was still pretty wet from the meeting before so the track was quite tricky and there was a huge pile-up on the pit bend and it just became a matter of trying to fight a way through every time and I guess I got quite lucky that I kept on finding a way through and not only finished but came third. As special as the first win was for me, the result in the championship is probably more special now because that has got me a place in this race and I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to it even though as it stands it might be just my sixth banger meeting and only my second National meeting. It’s also my first time in an unlimited banger, first time at Mildenhall and first time on shale so it could be interesting (laughs). I say it should be my first time at Mildenhall because I’m hoping I might be able to come up for the season opener (on March 7). The car from the Masters is still ok for another meeting so I’d really like to come up and have a go, just to get some kind of feel for the track, if I manage that then at least it will be on less first to worry about at the Supreme (laughs).

Despite your limited experience, was the invitation to compete in the race something you were eager to accept?
Yes very much, I know there will be some who will think a guy like me shouldn't be in a race like this and they might have a point but I've qualified and earned a place and the truth is I have no idea if an opportunity like this will ever come up again so I'm eager to make the most of it because like I said I might never get to do the race again and then I woiuld kick myself for not doing it this time, regardless of how out of my depth I might be (laughs). But on the other hand, I'm already in front so to speak because I'm so pleased to have just qualified and anything on top of that is a bonus. I would love ti finish the race, that would be a really cool achievement I think. I've never been to this meeting before but I have done some homework and watched some of the previous races on the internet (laughs) so I've half an idea of what I'm getting myself into! It looks like in previous years the race has been an incredibly rough one and not too many people have finished so that would make finishing it a real achievement for me but I know that's not going to be easy, especially with the limited experience I have and especially with this being my first unlimited meeting. On the other hand, if things don't go well at the start I might just try and have a crash instead, having a good crash in a race like this would be just as special as finishing or doing well, but I'm sure whatever happens I will enjoy myself and that is the most important thing.

Can you tell us about the car you have the meeting?
I've got a modern shaped Jaguar. Again there was a point where I really thought I wasn't going to find anythiung suitable to race and this came up on Facebook for £225 and I snapped it up and went and got it the next day because I didn't want it to slip away. I think it will be a good car, to be honest I would have raced whatever I could get my hands on, I wasn't too fussy but people have said to me that they are pretty good cars so hopefully this one will be. It also helped that it wasn't too expensive I don't think. I know some people pay a lot more for unlimited cars these days and I was really happy to get this car for that price. We've already started working on the car, it's already stripped out and we are about to start the process of changing the engine as I want to use a V6 in it which I think will be the best bet. I'm lucky that I've got a lot of great people who are helping me out and I really don't think I would have been able to do this without them so they've been brilliant but I've been enjoying the process since we got the car. Again it's a new experience for me and having that interest in cars, this is all quite fun. We are hoping to do a good job with the car to try and give myself half a chance but I'm also hoping to do some more unlimited meetings in the future so the hope is that by spending some time with this car it might help me later on with other cars. I've also never raced a car which has been painted, which is usually because everything has been so last minutes but I really want to make the effort with this one and try and make it look a bit pretty, again I might never get the chance to do this again so I want to make the most of it.

You mentioned how rough the Masters Championship race was, assuming the Supreme Championship is again as it has been in the past, do you think the experience from the Masters might help you here?
I guess it can't hurt can it (laughs). I think all the experience you have helps and that race certainly will because that was a matter of trying to pick your way through gaps and to keep on surviving and I think this race could be similar but apart from that there aren't many other similarities at all so I know it will be very different and quite difficult. I think if it does become a rough race and one which is more about survival than anything else that will help me a little bit, if for no other reason because races like that are a lot more fun and exciting to be in.

Have you paid much attention to the drivers who are set to take part in the race and the meeting?
I haven't if I'm honest but a lot of that is because I’m so new to this that I don't really know too many of the names and stuff like that so it all looks a bit random to me, I'm sure I'll be very familiar with all the top boys afterwards (laughs). But again I think that helps a little bit, it's still a month away or so and I'm quite nervous already so I doubt having a greater understanding of the drivers I'm against would help me very much (laughs).

You were meant to race at Mildenhall last year for the Mildenhall Team Championship, but your team had to withdraw, now you are preparing for the Supreme Championship, is it extra disappointing that you missed the team meeting?
It was a shame but George (Sedgwick) had a bad car accident and obviously couldn't race and the family were much more concerned with that so we had to forget about the racing for a bit. It would have been nice to have done the meeting, I was really looking forward to trying out the track but now I'm in this race I'm sure it might have helped me a little but it can't be helped, it's just one of those things isn't it. That's again why I'm hoping to do the opener. The car is there, it's just a matter of time really because I'm so busy with the Supreme Championship car and other things but I would like to go and have a race at Mildenhall before the championship because I honestly think it will help.

Have you any plans for 2015?
I'm hoping to do all the meetings at Dover for Bangers. I've already got a few cars line up but I've not found a van yet which is quite important to me because that is one meeting I really want to do because it always looks like a great amount of fun. We are hoping to have a team for the (Kent team championship) so that would be good and I also hope to get up to Mildenhall again for a few meetings, if the Supreme goes well then maybe another unlimited meeting because they always look really good and after missing it last year we've already said about doing the (Mildenhall team championship) again.

Is there anyone you would like to thank or mentiuon?
My brother-in-law Steve who has been helping me a hell of a lot, the Sedgwick brothers and big Barry who have also done so much to help me, George Reynolds, John Armstrong and anyone else whose helped out at all.

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