Motor Racing continued strong resurgence last year

Jan 05, 2017 Sports

Motor racing made its mark during 2016.

By Rawle Welch
Riding high after a fantastic 2015 season, the sport of motor racing continued its strong resurgence after enjoying another productive year in 2016.
For a sport whose lifeline is heavily reliant on the support offered from the business sector, it managed to survive a year that saw Guyana still in the throes of economic adjustment following the installment of a new Government.
Albeit all the challenges that could have easily derailed the Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club (GMR&SC) programmes, the entity stuck to its task and pulled off every planned event with irrefutable success.
In the process, the Club accomplishments emitted explicit evidence of the sport’s lofty status on the sport calendar, while its growth in popularity continues to enjoy upward mobility.
Last year saw the long awaited increase in activity in the sport, while the novel innovation of a floodlight Meet, though not hitting the mark of success, was endorsed by many.
The administration led by President Raj Boodhoo did a wonderful job in sustaining the momentum gained in the previous year and the performance could be summed up as excellent.
The support for non-traditional segments such as drag and endurance racing grew alarmingly, while the traditional racing support stayed strong as well with new drivers entering the fray at every Meet.
The Club also managed to improve the facility at the South Dakota Circuit by making it more comfortable through the construction of a Booth for time keepers and a Media Centre, while the Pit Area also benefitted from an overdue expansion to accommodate the increasing influx of newcomers and larger contingent from overseas whenever Guyana host the final leg of the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship (CMRC).
The need to improve the aesthetics of the Clubhouse also did not escape the attention of the club administration and collaboration was sought with some investors and the birth of an upgraded go-kart facility and Sports Bar were the attendant results.
It is evident that the Club is becoming more broad-based in its thinking with the development of young drivers and by extension the sport placed as high priorities, while the need to have a family-oriented atmosphere was given similar consideration.
The Club was also able to maintain strong relationships with regional counterparts and the CMRC overwhelming support during the final leg in November bore evidence of this.
The keen rivalry that exists between Guyana and Suriname enjoyed an elevated grade with record number of competitors exchanging visits throughout the year, making it a successful one.
Honourable mention must be made of the admirable work that the small staff did and while they appeared tired and overworked, they operated with admirable efficiency, especially in preparation for the international Meet.
In describing our performance at the regional level, Guyana failed to retain its crown, but competitors’ interest was what mattered and perhaps apart from Trinidad and Tobago, strong contingents were always present at every Meet.
Another facet that made the year memorable was the rivalries that evolved, especially the ones that featured young daredevils Matthew and Elliott Vieira, the two most exciting Superbike racers in the Caribbean.
Then we had Guyana’s own Kristian Jeffrey against Jamaica’s Doug Gore and Barbados’ Barry Mayers and Mark Maloney.
Those rivalries provided the catalyst for year-round excitement in the sport and Guyanese had the opportunity to get a glimpse of them during the staging of the final leg of the Series.
The stage is set for another year of success in motor racing and the hope is that the GMR&SC use back-to-back years of high performance to keep the momentum going.
Ksaieteur Sport extends best wishes to the entity and look forward to another year of excitement.

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