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Pocket rocket looks to take racing up a notch

Posted on December 2, 2011

By BEN PISCIONERI

SUNRAYSIA is in the midst of a race driver resurgence. Not since the Kelly brothers has there been such a sweet spot in terms of Mildura drivers making a name for themselves on the national car racing stage.

Cameron Waters set the Australian Formula Ford championship alight this year, winning the title with a round to spare before earning himself a place on the Bathurst 1000 start line after winning the Shannons Supercar Showdown reality television series.

As Waters vacates his seat for a Fujitsu V8 Supercar drive, there could well be another Sunraysia driver to replace him in the Formula Ford ranks in the not-too-distant future in the form of 14-year-old hotshot Jaidyn Job.

When you first meet the 14-year-old you’re struck by his attitude, reminiscent of a pint-sized Mark Webber.

Certainly polite, but there is a no-nonsense, driven attitude to Jaidyn Job that gives you the impression he’s heading places, despite his young age.

When we arrived to interview the teenager he’d done all the right things. He had his race kart cleaned up and ready and was dressed in his team shirt with sponsors boldly displayed – an initiative he’d undertaken himself, as he’s all too aware of the need to give his supporters good value.

After a quick photograph he chronicled his rise through the karting ranks to selection among just eight drivers in Australia in the upcoming Arrows Rewards program later this month.

Arrows, which is a brand of race kart, run the program each year, providing a chance for aspiring drivers to prove their skills in a Mygale Formula Ford race car.

Job first got behind the wheel at just two-years-old, driving a small dirt kart around the backyard of his parent’s Dareton property.

As soon as he reached the minimum age to race karts he commenced his racing career, starting in Midgets.

Three years later he made the progression to Rookies, which is where he started to make a name for himself.

After working through a steep learning curve in his first Rookies year, Jaidyn starting getting results, recording numerous race wins and podiums and his first ‘clean sweep’ – winning every race in every heat at a meeting.

At the end of 2010 Jaidyn was ranked third nationally in his class and had taken a North West Kart Titles crown, also finishing on the podium in the highly competitive Victorian Country Series.

He graduated to the Junior Lites class year, continuing to developing his skills, both on and off the track.

However, it was during his Rookie racing years that he got the attention of Formula Ford Mygale boss, Greg Woodrow.

As fate would have it, Greg Woodrow happened to witness Jaidyn’s first pole position start, sparking a relationship that has continued up to this day.

“We kept in touch, gave Greg some of our background information and a few of our results and he asked us to come and meet him,” Jaidyn said this week.

Jaidyn and his parents were soon on a plane to Melbourne where they met up with the Mygale Australia boss, who offered him a racing scholarship in 2009.

“Since then they’ve done an unbelievable amount for us,” the 14-year-old said.

Just as valuable has been the opportunity to work with current Formula Ford teams at race meetings around Australia, including Bathurst and the Melbourne Grand Prix, building relationships with current national teams and simply ‘learning the ropes’.

“I’ve also been down to the Mygale factory three or four times during school holidays and spent two weeks working with the team,” Jaidyn said.

His efforts both on and off the track this year have earned him a place alongside just eight other drivers in the Arrows Rewards program this year at Winton Raceway.

Drivers are judged not just on their race results, but on their sportsmanship, professionalism and attitudes away from the race track. This includes how they handle the media, the public and their general conduct.

With his spot in this year’s program secured, Jaidyn has been doing everything he can to prepare, including getting used some advanced driving techniques, including ‘heel and toe’ braking, which involves using the right foot to brake and use the accelerator at the same time.

“Dad and I have been going out to Tapio Station, driving an old Toyota Corolla, getting used to a manual, learning how to ‘heel and toe’. Hopefully that can give me a bit of an advantage,” he said.

The transition to a Formula Ford will mean Jaidyn will have to use a manual gearbox, something hasn’t needed to do in karts, as most don’t have gears. If he performs well at this month’s Arrow Rewards day, the 14-year-old will earn both a test day and a race day in the Formula Ford category next season, which could launch the Sunraysia driver’s career.

However, even if he outperforms the other eight drivers in this month’s Arrows Rewards program, Jaidyn knows sponsorship will be one of his biggest challenges in the years ahead, as it is with any up-and-coming race driver.

“Definitely for Formula Ford, we’re really going to need sponsorship,” he said. “Whether someone just wants to be a one-weekend sponsor, helping us with fuel and accommodation or for the full season, it all adds up.”

In 2010 alone, Jaidyn and his family travelled more than 24,000 kilometres just getting to and from races. Looking to the future, and if all goes according to plan, Jaidyn said his ‘end game’ is to race V8 Supercars in Australia, listing Craig Lowndes and former Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton as his racing idols.

People interested in supporting Jaidyn’s racing efforts can contact him on j_jobmotorsport@hotmail.com.

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