Flashback: Kukerin Burnout and Creekbed Championships

First published in the December 2007 issue of Street Machine

It’s been tough in rural south-west WA. The drought has driven many off the land, leaving big holes in the small communities there, and only good rain in recent months has stopped more from moving away. Through it all the Kukerin mud bash lives on and it gives the locals something to look forward to each year.

Now called the Kukerin Burnout and Creekbed Championships, the event has evolved since we last visited. It’s all about burnouts and mud, and 70-odd entrants brought purpose-built machines along. A crowd of 1400 watched the action and cheered them on, particularly the girls on the quadbikes in the mud, whose style of bouncing on the bike to get traction livened up the boys.

There were familiar faces peering through muddied helmets — the Team Bongo crew were there, and King Brown Racing came away with the Rear-Wheel Drive Creekbed trophy. The Pinjara Crew was another mob who presented well, the father and son team of Neil and Gary Hutton taking out the burnouts.

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For the uninitiated, the creekbed event is a race against the clock with all manner of vehicles taking on a loop — outward bound across the top bank and then back through the muddy creek. There are massive holes to negotiate along with the water and mud, so it’s a test of durability as much as speed.

“We only had three cars still running at the end of the day,” says organiser Darren Smith. “We managed to kill them! But they all got at least three runs in and that’s what it’s all about. Some went through four or five times.”

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After the official time trials, the track was thrown open to give the entrants a chance for a bit of fun.
“They build these machines for one event a year so you may as well let ’em pig-out on it.”

The vehicles range from motorcycles to quadbikes, rear-wheel drive cars to 4WDs and purpose-built buggies. It’s the wild cars that create most interest, such as the King Brown entry with exhausts through the roof. The Team Bongo van has a 351 mounted in the tray with a chain dropped through to the diff. It’s an insane and popular machine.

The crews themselves represent the outlying areas in the bottom left corner of Australia, and the atmosphere over the weekend is enviable for event organisers. There’s no aggro, the crews are organised (some with branded stubby holders) and good natured. It’s a bunch of blokes and sheilas who know how to have fun with cars.

“It’s about the right size for an event,” says Darren Smith. “Just such a good, well-behaved crowd.”

It’s been 19 years since the first rubber was laid on the Kukerin burnout pad. Neil’s son Gary was just a kid back then but this year he was able to take on his old man in their tough XE that held together through six burnouts and the finals. Neil was proud as punch when his young fella got up to win, more than happy to take the second place V8 Burnouts trophy over Kevin Mantech in his methanol-fed 400 Chev-powered Commodore.

Another of the Pinjara crew took out the Six Cylinder category, Mike Hamilton in an XE Falcon, with Josh Smith’s 202-engined 1961 Datsun ute in second. Bremmer Bandits’ Andrew Gooch in an XC ute was third.

In the mud, it was King Brown who showed most dash and splash in the 2WD class, the WB Statesmen piloted by Allan Mateljan getting over the line in the best time, ahead of Adrian Frankland and Jamie Ward. Hiluxs were first and second in the 4WD category with Matt Giumelli and Tony Pannett picking up the trophies, Brad Smith third. In the bikes, Rex Smith hit the showers first, with Amy Parish on the quad second, and Mark Balshaw third.

1. King Brown was well represented in the mud — Sean Ward here in the 350 Chev pick-up.

2. Gary Hanson makes sure he’s wearing clean undies before taking on the mud in a 350 Chev Cruiser.

3. Kevin Mantech from Ravensthorpe brought this Commodore with a methanol-sucking 400 Chev. He was third in the V8 burnouts.

4. Allan Mateljan shows how it’s done on his way to victory in the WB Statesman, complete with roof-exiting exhausts.

5. Amy Parish showed that the chicks were prepared to get down and dirty on her way to second in the Motorbikes. Her method of bouncing on the bike to get traction was popular with the boys.