A background in theatre has served Zane Elliott well in his callings – the ministry and speedway.
As a young local repertory actor he had to pace himself for a season of performances and now he has to make sure he saves his voice from Saturday night commentary for Sunday services at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Richmond.
Zane relished going to the Eastern States Speedway in Blenheim as a child with his father and the senior minister never lost the thrill of speed.
“I grew up in a bogan family and built some really great friendships. I just love fast cars and British motorcyles. As a commentator you are looking for those moments of tension and huge drama on the track. Nelson is a very busy track, there is always another turn coming so you can get a lot of dynamic racing. So you want to build things up and draw people in,” declares the 41-year-old, who has tried his hand at many things.
While acting, Zane trained as a chef and also sold a lot of Hunter’s Wines to help himself through theological college in Nelson.
He achieved his goal of becoming a military chaplain and arrived back in Nelson in 2020 after a year in Jakarta, the Indonesian capital.
“From a city of 30 million people to quiet, clean and green Tasman with the speedway just five minutes drive away,” enthuses Zane.
From the pulpit to pitlane, his dual roles ensure foot to the floor weekends during the racing season.
“I can be here in the parish office at 6am on a Saturday prepping for service, and then at 3.30pm I zip home for a shower and then dash to the track.”
He is probably easy to spot there as he likes sporting bright colours rather than black clothing which clergy often wear. With his obvious passion, Zane was readily accepted into the commentary team with Jody “the professor” Scott and “Delivery Dan” Henson.
“I don’t use coarse language. I am not irreverent, but I think we really clicked in the box.
“Jody is called the professor because if you need to know something about speedway that man has it at his fingertips.”
He can see correlations between his church life and motor racing.
“We talk of love for one another and encouraging each other, core things that Jesus teaches, and at the track there’s the camaraderie. You see drivers competing against each other, but mucking in to help out off the track.”
Zane loves a good underdog story, people doing it all on an oily rag against well-funded teams.
“It is also really exciting to see the young drivers coming through. There is a real sense of community.”
The festive season is a hugely busy time at the church with three sessions on Christmas Eve alone, but the Richmond vicar already has January 24, 2026, blocked out on his calendar for the demolition derby. Then the family holiday begins the next day with his wife Karen and two children William and Amelia.
“Karen does most of the driving, in the 2016 Holden Captiva, as I have a two-minute commute by foot to the church.”
He has never driven in a race, but the high-revving rev would love the opportunity to if it presented itself further down the track.
