Respected sprintcar driver doing what he loves again after cancer battle

The Allansford resident has endured a rollercoaster almost two years battling and recovering from cancer but is in the clear, which he received for a second time in August last year.

He returned to racing earlier this year and on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13 will contest the Australian Pro Sprintcar Championship at Avalon.

The former Northern Territory and Western Australian sprintcar champion has re-adjusted his expectations for the 360 title.

"Before I got crook I probably would have said I wanted to finish in the top-five but obviously with a couple of years off and what's been going on we'll be happy to make the A-Main," he told The Standard.

"We've got 54 cars, if I can scrape into the A and push the thing into the trailer Saturday night I'll be happy."

Regardless of what eventuates, Van Ginneken is happy just being back in the driver's seat.

He was looking in good touch at Portland racing for the Victorian title on Saturday, April 6, finishing fifth in his heat.

The Victorian started front row in his second heat before a steering-arm bolt broke sent him into the wall and ended his night.

He said he was slowly finding his groove again but his energy levels weren't yet what they were before the cancer.

"Energy's the killer." he said.

"But the crew I've got around me, they're full of beans and bloody pumped to be here so that sort of lifts it up a little bit.

"Everything's clear so it's just a matter of getting a bit of the energy back. That's the only thing about it. I get up in the morning and I feel like normal and then just after lunch I'm knackered."

Van Ginneken has a big racing schedule ahead of him and will head to Darwin's Northline Speedway next month to compete in two wingless shows in May, two in June, three in July.

He will race sprintcars at the same venue in August before contesting the Chariots of Thunder sprintcar event in September.

Following that he plans to do every race he can.

"I want to get into it as much as I can next year because the year after my young lad Chase can race the junior 500s. So he'll probably take over," he said.

"He's skidding around in his quarter midget. He finished fifth in the Vic title a couple of weeks ago. He's loving it. That's probably a bit more motivation, like before I got crook he'd hang around a bit but now he's right into it."

Van Ginneken is just glad to be involved again with a sport he's known his whole life.

"I've got Lauren (White) racing the wingless every now and then and I just get as much enjoyment out of that as I do racing," he said.

"I just want to be involved and do something. I've been doing it all my life, it's just one of those things I wouldn't know what to do if I didn't do it."