By Hayley Wildes
Ally Morrison is following in her Dad’s footsteps and it’s fair to say there will be no backwards steps in her journey.
Ally, a 16-year-old from Officer, was born into a speedway racing family and began racing at the age of eight.
“I started racing in a little go-kart buggy, called quarter-midgets, in 2011 and we raced on mini-speedway tracks,” Ally said.
“Then I started driving standard saloons when I was 10, racing against 16 year olds.
“It was fun; I used to give it to the 16 year olds pretty good back then.”
Having raced against people far older than her from day one, Ally has become accustomed to facing racers with more life and speedway experience, but she never backs down from a challenge, nor feels overawed.
“I never felt intimidated; I don’t feel intimidated by anyone really.” She said.
Ally’s Dad, Dale Morrison has been involved in speedway racing for decades and his love for the sport rubbed off on his daughter very quickly.
“Dad raced standard saloons for like 18 years before I started, so I grew up with racing and Dad used to do burn-out cars as well, so I was always around and in cars,” she said.
“We decided that when I turned 10 it was my turn to have a go.”
Ally and Dale do all the work on their cars themselves and when asked why she keeps racing and what motivates her, Ally highlighted her Dad once again.
“A big part for me is Dad; to follow in Dad’s footsteps,” she said.
“It’s also the people, the support you get from everyone and the adrenaline you get when you have a win.”
Having dominated the junior speedway circuit, Ally has recently turned her attention to senior events. Unsurprisingly, she’s off to a flying start!
At Drouin Speedway in early February, Ally raced her first ever senior race in the ladies crash and bash. Despite that not being her favoured class, she took on the field and amazingly won the final.
Not content with that accomplishment, Ally headed to Nyora Speedway on Saturday night and in her first senior event against both men and women, she grabbed a podium finish.
“I didn’t know what to expect. I went into the weekend thinking I was going to get absolutely eaten alive and spat out, but I went alright and came third in the final in a field of about 10,” she said.
“It was just crazy and it gave me a heap more confidence than what I had during the week, that’s for sure.”
Ally would like to thank her family for their support, as well as Murray Tucker, Kellie Latham, Leigh Latham and Bradley Hill.
