To be the best at anything takes huge dedication and Kerry has got that in spades. His passion for racing has seen him take the podium many times and there’s still plenty of fuel in the tank.
Photography by Emily Chalk
“I always wanted to be a racing car driver,” says Kerry. “From the time I was five years old, I’d be hanging around the race track all day. I was one of those kids who’d just walk up to a car, open the door and jump right in.”
But despite knowing exactly where his heart lay from an early age, Kerry was reluctant to step into the driver’s seat for some time. “I watched my brother try to race during his younger years and I thought, unless you’ve got plenty of money behind you, you can’t do a good job of this.
“When I was about 25 everything changed. My brother offered me a drive in his Midget race car at the new Meremere Highbank Speedway track - then he talked me into buying it off him. After that I started racing there, at Western Springs, and then competing on most of the tracks in the North Island.”
Off the track, Kerry was busy running his own panel beating business for 20 years before selling it and taking on Pukekohe Honda. Whenever he wasn’t working, however, he was racing.
“When you look at anyone who is really good at sports - Olympic athletes and so on - you’ll see that they are the most self-centred and self-driven people on the planet,” he says. “You have to be, if you want to compete at a world level. Self-discipline is everything.”
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And while discipline has never been an issue, Kerry’s level of dedication has meant certain compromises in life. “Over the years I’ve struggled with relationships or other areas because I’ve been so focussed on being the best race car driver I can be. I never went to 21sts or weddings because I was always racing on Saturday night. It got to the point where people stopped inviting me because they knew I wouldn’t come!” he laughs.
But for Kerry the rewards have also been great: “I’ve been honoured to compete for New Zealand in my time and when you’re standing there while they’re playing the national anthem for you, well that’s another level, that feeling. It’s right up there on my list of highlights.”
And although he may have missed a few social occasions to do what he loves, the collaborative aspect of racing has also been hugely important to him. “I think that any sport where you’re working with other people is really good for you. For me to be a great racing car driver, I have to have a great team that I can trust. If I’m going 100 miles an hour directly towards a wall then I have to believe in myself that I’ll turn exactly when I need to and have confidence in my crew that nothing’s going to fall apart.”
Thankfully Kerry’s courage and capability has proved to be a winning formula on many occasions - not that he ever rests on his success. “I’m a shocker for analysing everything that happened. Even if I’ve had a really good night I’m still analysing the hell out of it - and this can go on for days or weeks. I always describe myself as hard work because I need everything to be perfect. That’s how I run the Store too. My expectations are really high for myself and for everyone I work with.”
Kerry admits that when he was younger, having such high standards could make him a little hot headed at times. But many years and many miles, has led to many lessons learned. These days, when he hits a bump in the road, Kerry chooses another path: “I’ve realised that sometimes you need to put a 24 hour rule in place - so you can go away and look at things from both sides before you act,” he says.
“Now, when I’m under pressure I just say ‘Is it ok if I come back to you?’ Then I take the time to think about it and really suss it out. Sometimes I even change my point of view completely. I’m a better person for doing that.”
If I’m going 100 miles an
hour directly towards a
wall then I have to
believe in myself that I'll
turn exactly when I need
to and have confidence
in my crew that nothing’s
going to fall apart.
Kerry has always raced with Honda engines but also admires the philosophy of the brand itself: “Honda is very understated. They do a lot of really cool stuff. Honda don’t make a big song and dance about it. They just get on with it.
“Their approach is: If you dream it, we’ll try to make it. And that’s not just cars but bikes, planes and robots. Honda is not just a car company, it's an engineering design company that comes up with really cool things.”
When not racing, you'll find Kerry at Honda Store South Auckland.
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