For today’s In Focus, we zoom in on tireless Townsville resident Ashleigh Smith – former Aussie Dirt Track Champion and well-known powerhouse of NQ speedway officialdom.
1. In your officiating life, what track and in what role are we most likely to find you?
I do the Race Secretary Role from club days through to Australian Championships and the tracks you can usually find me at are Bowen Speedway, Pioneer Park Speedway, Rockhampton Speedway and North Brisbane helping out the Darcy Ward Speedway Promotions Speedway team. Sometimes you can catch me as a practice supervisor at speedway practice events and I also am a Dirt Track Race Secretary.
2. How long have you been an official and what other capacities and/or locations have you acted?
I have been a level 4 official since 2018, so have done a few years experience before that! I am always volunteering at events in the sport, sometimes I am in the canteen making burgers, I always take a flag point to help out the host club, whatever I can do to help really, I am a bit of a ‘yes’ person haha.
3. How did you come to find yourself officiating?
I wasn’t racing myself anymore, and we had just moved back from the UK as my husband had finished his speedway career at that point and I just wanted to help out the local clubs. Ayr Mcc organised an operational officials course and race secretary course and a few of us went and started out. Then I just kept volunteering locally, went down to Ipswich and did some hours down there, I just really went wherever I could to learn from a variety of different race secretaries and it just escalated from there.
4. What keeps you coming back?
My son is racing now and to see him out there having the best time with his mates is what it’s all about. Without officials and volunteers there is no racing. The satisfaction you feel when you have been a part of an incredible event is so rewarding.
I always watched my Dad in an official capacity growing up and remember being so grateful that he did, it’s a weird thing really – it comes in waves where the same people are doing jobs for years, then it moves on to the next set of people. I would really love to see more people get involved in volunteering at motorcycling events, sometimes it really is the best view in the house!
5. Who is the most amazing rider you’ve encountered along the way.
I feel like this is the toughest question of them all! I feel like I have been a part of hundreds of race meetings, all with incredible riders. The 100 years of speedway had some special riders, the Australian Championships our club hosted was also just as good… I mean you cannot go past the accolades of someone like Darrin Treloar, Jason Doyle etc. However, if I was looking to the future and who I have seen around the tracks…you read it here first, one day our little mate, Ky Mitchell, will be World Speedway Champion. He has skills on a bike that I have never seen on someone so young before, I would compare his ability to another good friend of mine, Darcy Ward. Just effortless skill.
