Profile: Natalie & Shavaun Harvey

Sport:        Drag Racing

Natalie Harvey is talking on the headset: the race about to start: she fist bumps her junior drag racing daughter and says “you’ve got this” but closing the door to her world record husband’s car she says “drive like you stole it darling”.

He may be one of the fastest import car drivers in the Southern Hemisphere and the fifth quickest in the world but Rod Harvey is first to admit he couldn’t compete on the scale he did if it wasn’t for his wife Natalie.

 The Kiwi driver, who holds more than 20 tracks records, national records and event wins across Australia and New Zealand, splits his time between his homeland and Kallangur, Brisbane as he competes in the Australian racing circuit.

Natalie too divides her time between New Zealand and where ever Rod is racing next: flying to the meets just in time for competitions to ensure Rod stays calm and safe.

It is nothing for this driver to reach speeds as fast, and faster than some competition door slammers: full bodied racing sedans with V8 super charged engines fuelled by methanol, so Natalie says she knows if she has strapped in him she can breathe that little bit easier.

While hitting speeds of over 407km per hour is all in a day’s work for the 46-year-old builder, Natalie also keeps a keen eye on the couple’s daughter Shavaun, who races in the junior categories.

The family is hitting the circuit this year thanks to joint sponsorship by Century Yuasa and Battery World Australia.

While Shavaun is only allowed to reach speeds of 100km or 11.9 over an eighth of a mile: Natalie says she still worries.

“Shavaun says she can’t wait until she can race as fast as her Dad,” Natalie says. “And already her younger brother Carlos, 7, also can’t wait for next year when he can get his junior dragster. It’s definitely a family affair.

“I am the one talking to both Rod and Shavaun through the headsets: I try to keep them both informed and calm leading up the start. I call myself the chief ‘strapper – inner -er”- no one races unless I have strapped them in. I strap both Rod and Shavaun in with the safety harness and make sure the ‘Hans device’ (neck Brace) is clipped to the helmet and the arm restraints are on and clipped in. It is not a superstition: it just gives me peace of mind to make sure the seatbelts are safe and secure. I am also in the tow vehicle that brings the cars back in.

“The scariest racing moment for me would still be in 2005 when Rod crashed his Datsun Coupe and ended up on his roof. ”

For the uninitiated Natalie explains what drag racing is: “Essentially you race down the ¼ mile in a straight line.  You line up against another racer in your class of racing, do a burnout to get the tyres warm, then bring it into stage: we call this the Christmas Tree (nine light bulbs). You need to light up the staging bulbs which are the four top bulbs and then the bigger three orange bulbs light up and then a green. When or before you see the green you GO!

“I think you have an acquired taste for drag racing you either love it or you don’t.”

With three racing seasons already under her belt, Shavaun Harvey still remembers the day her dad pulled up in their driveway with a junior dragster in the back of the van and said “you’re going racing tomorrow”.

“That’s how it pretty much started,” Shavaun says. “I was so excited and am still excited now: every time I race I still get that same rush. Dad has given me the nickname  ‘Tiger Bear’ because he reckons I am a bit like both of those animals when it comes to racing.  I always give my best.

“I compete in both New Zealand and Australia. I basically attend every meet I can and love racing with Dad in Australia: especially at the Winternationals at Willowbank in Queensland.”

Shavaun’s Junior Dragster goes 8.50’s, which is over 125kms down 1/8 of a mile. She rates winning the New Zealand IHRA Championship her best racing memory so far and hopes to do it again along with one day winning at Willowbank.

“My worst moment was red lighting and losing a round,” she says. “ With drag racing you just have to be focused. Once Mum straps me in, I am ready to race. It’s very hard to beat some people: so I just put my foot to the floor when I see the green.”

Thanks to Century Yuasa and Battery World along with other sponsors the family is off to the USA in October where Rod will race at two prestigious events at Orlando Speed World – the World Sports Compact Challenge (October 26-28) and the World Sports Compact Finals (December 3-4).

Rod’s new car was the first ever to run a 3.6 second ET to the eighth mile in pro-nitrous trim, and is 200 pounds lighter than the Toyota Celica he has been racing for years.

“I loved the Celica,” Natalie said. ”But this car is something different: we have transferred the engine and driveline from the Celica to the Camry: so this car has a really powerful combination. And of course, Rod is determined to break the 400km per hour record so I will be sure to keep him calm as possible through the headset.

“Like all drivers, Rod gets really keyed up before a race: they have to become really focused: at one point in his career, Rod was the fastest Import driver in the world. I know he can achieve that again.

“Some of my friends do not understand our passion but they are always interested. My workmates think it is awesome and our extended family all watch and get behind us.  I have no desire to jump in and drive myself. I’m quite happy as a wife and mum, to be part of the action and to make sure my loved ones are safe.”

And with the diplomacy of being mother and wife: Natalie says her best racing memories are when Rod ran a 5.90 sec pass and when Shavaun won her first ever meet.

“What really lights up a race meet for me is that this is us coming together as a team and as a family,” Natalie says. “The kids understand what dad is going through and vice versa: we always have something to talk about at the dinner table.”

Thank you to sponsors Century Yuasa and Battery World. If you’d like to follow the Harvey team, drop by their facebook page.

Article supplied by Tracey McGowan