A look inside the notorious Northern Skids street racing event

A LOOK inside the notorious, underground street racing event that is killing teens and creating danger on Victorian roads.

WHEN night falls, Melbourne’s quiet, suburban streets are unrecognisable.

As it nears close to midnight, industrial estates and silent roads are transformed into scenes from the film The Fast and the Furious.

The city’s revheads only show their faces under the cloak of darkness, at an underground street racing event known as Northern Skids.

Fireworks are launched into the sky as cars tear it up on the tar and only a hint of light from the headlights can be seen through thick exhaust.

High revs and sparks off wheels awaken cheers in the crowd of hundreds.

The latest meet on Tuesday night, ending in Campbellfield, resulted in the deaths of Harley Churchill and Ivana Clonaridis.

They competed in a drag race and plummeted off the EJ Whitten Bridge about 1.30am Wednesday.

The location of Northern Skids is kept a secret, and it doesn’t make its way on to the police radar until it’s too late.

Using social media and texts, organisers divulge secret locations to other revheads at the very last minute.

Northern Skids isn’t the only illegal street racing gang either, with South East Skids overtaking some Melbourne suburbs at night.

Police say the two groups often meet up to compete against each other.

It is believed they mark their cars with either an “N” or an “S” to show where their loyalties lie.

A source told news.com.au the events were unpredictable, sometimes 10 cars would show up, other times there’d be 200.

Each car usually rocks up with two or three people inside, who are there as spectators.

He said the meets happened regularly and it was only a matter of time before somebody got hurt. “Unfortunately it’s going to happen again,” he said.

Another person with links to Northern Skids said not just anybody could turn up.

“You need to know someone that goes, meet times and location are sent by text and then shared to friends,” they said.

The police are not blind to the illicit and secretive behaviour, with Victoria’s Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton aware of the stunts, which have been going on for years.

“People driving fast in cars and feeling bulletproof has been an issue since the days of James Dean,” he told 3AW.

“More recently we have noticed it’s getting a lot more organised.”

He said hoons baited people into dragging while others would meet privately and race each other along freeways and straight stretches of road, running red lights.

Victoria Police’s Clair White said hoon gatherings across the state were constantly monitored.

“The number of attendees and locations vary frequently, however the majority of events are organised via social media,” she said.

“We are aware of groups like Northern Skids and the Southern Skids, who spur each other on at these gatherings, competing for the best hoon burn out, for the approval of those in attendance.”

“Taskforce Regarder was established in November 2015 in response to the increasing number of hoon gatherings across metropolitan Melbourne.”

Mr Ashton told 3AW when police disrupted events, revheads would scatter to the four winds.

Hoons around Melbourne are meeting up at illegal street racing event. Source: Instagram

On one YouTube video of a Northern Skids event, you can hear how prepared the hoons are for the arrival of police.

“Stupid cops will be here in five minutes,” someone is heard saying.

Mr Ashton told 3AW the event had its “lookouts and cockatoos”.

Hoons will also sneakily remove the plates from their cars so police can’t even use a camera to find out their rego.

Mr Ashton said police were looking at whether they could lay charges against street racers and organisers of the secret meets for conduct endangering life.

The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years and vehicle impoundment.

While the criminal charge is a lot more severe, Mr Ashton said they needed better evidence against organisers and major players to enforce it.

Since Mr Harley and Ms Clonaridis were killed, people have pleaded on social media for revheads to think twice.

“People be safe on the roads, just a click of the fingers you can be dead,” one wrote.

“And seriously, everyone that goes to the Northern Skids you’re putting your life in DANGER.

“It’s scary to know that it could be one of my friends in that position, your [sic] not only hurting yourself but people that love and care for you.”