The weekends turning the spanners for Tasmanian driver Shaun Dobson gave him valuable experience working behind the scenes.

They also served a second purpose: Speed was able to save money. The decision is proving its worth 12 months on.

Speed is in the midst of his maiden formula 500 campaign, something which wouldn’t have been possible without the dollars stashed away.

The 18-year-old Woodford driver has taken to the track twice, although “electrical gremlins” mean he is yet to finish a final.

He’s hoping for better fortune when he contests the coveted Jack Willsher Cup at Allansford’s Premier Speedway on Saturday night.

“It’s going to be quite a big one. There’s 39 nominations so far. There’s the Australian number one coming down,” he said.

“It’ll be quite an intense field. It’ll possibly be the first meeting I get to start in the field rather than at the back, though I haven’t confirmed that.

“Hopefully we’ll end up starting in the pack and the new car will be drama free and we’ll get a clear run.”

Speed, a go-kart driver for three years before turning to formula 500s, said he was enjoying the change of scenery despite the frustrating results.

“We were either going to go up a class (in go-karts) or try something different. We decided to head across to speedway because it’s local,” he said.

He debuted at a Premier Speedway day show in November and raced again at Simpson a fortnight ago, feeling at ease behind the wheel both times.

“I think I’ve settled in pretty well. We’ve got on pace reasonably quickly. If we get a clear run at it, we’ll see the car’s true potential and true speed,” he said.

“But it’s been a good transition, hasn’t been anything too unexpected. I went in with a pretty open mind so I didn’t get a huge shock.”

His season aim is to claim Victorian rookie of the year honours. But a crash in practice last weekend means he is battling to be ready for Saturday.

“If we can get a good clean run at it we’ll be a chance (to win rookie of the year),” he said.

“We were practising at Laang last weekend and we had a steering wheel pop off the column and we wrecked the chassis.

“We’re currently building another one at home to be ready for this weekend.”

Speed thanked his sponsors for helping fund his campaign. Rivals Dylan Willsher, Grant Stansfield and Leigh Van Ginneken have also been invaluable.

Speed knew he was unlikely to claim Jack Willsher Cup honours but understood the importance of the race.

“It’s quite a prestigious race just before Speedweek. No one wants to wreck a car before Speedweek but they go all out for the Jack Willsher Cup,” he said.

Formula 500s are one of two classes in action at Premier Speedway on Saturday.

The meeting also features round four of the Sprintcar Racing Association of Victoria series, a twin-feature show which has attracted 60 entries.