Antigua Automania

[DavidVizard-GFN]

Antigua Automania

By
David Vizard

‘Tourism’ and ‘Drag Racing’ rarely crop up in the same sentence – but the racers in Antigua are striving to change all that.

If I had to pick one word that least describes my life it would have to be ‘Dull’. For me life seems to leap from one adventure to another with apparently no end in sight. Not only do I spend a lot of time building and experimenting with high output engines (that’s my passion) but also I get to meet the movers and shakers (mostly on the engine side) of the performance world. And when I say ‘world’ I do mean ‘World’. This business of mine has taken me to about every English speaking country on the planet as well as about 90% of Europe.

It’s a Monday morning and I get a phone call from well known Caribbean racer/crew chief Mervyn Bonnett. “Hey, I’m in Antigua. The guys down here want to know if you’ll help represent the race community to the government. The idea is to present drag racing as a means to boost tourism in Antigua. They all seem pretty sure, that with your help, they can justify a new drag strip” After a few questions to fill in some details this looked like something I could possibly help out with but a new drag strip in Antigua, government sponsored at that, and for international events - where are we going here?

Antigua is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean chain that starts with the Virgin Islands to the north and ends in Trinidad to the south. Antigua, which is eleven miles by four, is situated about half way down the chain. Coincidently, with only 45 inches of rain a year, it is also one of the driest of Caribbean islands. It has just enough rain to keep it green while also having so many days of beautiful sunshine that race day cancellations are a rarity. Because the island is so small it has, except for maybe a couple of hours in early morning and evening, a constant sea breeze. This means very acceptable temperatures for any outdoor activities. Couple this to some stunning beach scenery, friendly, out going local inhabitants and a deep water harbor able to take about the biggest cruise ships there are makes it a prime stop for cruise ship tourists.

#1 Antigua’s deep water harbor is meant to deal with big cruise ships and looking at the ‘Adventure of the Seas’ one would have to say they don’t come much bigger. When a cruise ship of this size docks the population of Antigua goes up by some 8%!

Add to this a modern international airport that would be the pride of any community of just 68,000 folk and it’s easy to see why so many people make Antigua their vacation destination of choice.

#2 If you are into old world charm, quaint shops, friendly locals ------------------------------------

#3 ------ reasonably priced hotels with self contained suits, unusual cars and cozy corner restaurants then Antigua might well be just what you are looking for.

Tourism is a big deal in Antigua and the old world charm of the capitol, surrounding townships and Mother Nature’s contributions to Antigua’s attractions are obvious. However, the locals also realize they are just one of a whole chain of islands that can offer equally beautiful scenery and quaint little towns. So, to attract more tourist dollars, the island offers events like Antigua’s Sailing Week, as well as another major regatta and a yacht show. Then there’s cricket and that so traditionally Caribbean event of Carnival. I have, at one time or another, experienced most of these events and though fun in their own right, they are none-the-less, what you might expect of a sun drenched tropical island.

#4 Here’s the hotel I stayed at. Friendly service, nice rooms, nice pool and garden and a great beach. Within walking distance there were several good beach restaurants. Also close by were facilities for Scuba diving, sailing and parasailing.

The bottom line is, there are plenty of fun things to do in Antigua but as an incurable racer, I was there to determine the likely answer to one important question. Namely, would a drag strip add a viable new dimension to Antigua’s vacation entertainment profile? If there was a positive answer here then a whole slue of other questions become pertinent. For instance, an important issue was that of local talent. Were there enough cars and drivers to put on a good show – were there enough experienced race staff to organize it because without this a drag strip is hardly an asset. This I was about to find out but first a look at the existing drag strip.

The currently used strip was fine for club-like events that drew mainly on the islands for competing cars. Where it fell short in the most literal sense of the word is that it was just that - short. Any car capable of a sub 10 second run was unlikely to have sufficient stopping room before the asphalt ran out. Now many might well ask just how many sub 10 second cars can there be in an island group that has almost no local race infra structure and import duty on auto parts that you and I would consider out-of-sight? Surprisingly enough the answer would probably be a lot more than most people would guess. The factor that significantly sways that number is the sheer enthusiasm the Caribbean community has in general for motor racing.

#5 There’s the gorgeous beaches, the picturesque harbors --- and then there’s the drag strip! There are no grandstands but nestled in this little valley the view of the action from the hillside is great. With only a 300 yard shut down area the strip is run as an 1/8 mile for cars capable of 10 seconds or less for the quarter and as a ¼ mile for those running 10 seconds or more.

Sure this Antigua track has some negatives but let’s keep things in proportion here. Any US community the size that we have here would be more than pleased to have a local and freely accessible facility such as this. The question I was now forming was whether or not the racers, and the country as a whole, could reasonably justify a facility that could actually host international events. The race weekend was coming up and time would tell.

Track Time.

I’m addressing our principle audience here – that’s the US, England, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and such. When we go to the races it’s a question of loading the race car on the trailer and going. If you are a racer in the Caribbean it’s just not that simple. Most of the time a trailer barely factors into the situation. The typical scenario is to drag the car down to the docks, load it and all your gear into a container and have it shipped to wherever the race is being held (other than Antigua it could be Trinidad, Grenada, or Barbados). The potential for a load of shipping hassles and the certainty of some substantial expense here would be a sure fire deterrent for many mainland racers but spend time in the islands and it becomes apparent many of these racers are cut from a different roll of cloth.

#6 It’s Thursday and the track crew starts prepping the start line pad. Also the first of the race cars arrive from the docks in containers. These will stay at the track and be used as workshops and in some cases, crew’s quarters.

The first few cars arrived on the Thursday preceding the race weekend. By Friday morning the track was a hubbub. Early on in the day I noticed several things of interest. First there was a lot of helping

#7 Where there are race cars there are pretty girls – this Antigua event was well attended in this area!

hands going from one car to another as needed to get the job done. Also the number of barbecues that were fired up was well past the average. Lastly there was the element of the fair sex. Race events and fast cars usually mean pretty girls as well and this event was no exception there. Beyond that I did notice what seemed to be a lot more than average participation by the ladies in the event itself. Of about 65 cars competing I seem to remember about 8 were driven by gals that ranged from competitively fast to ‘fella’s I’ve just taken your first place trophy home’ fast. But the drivers seat wasn’t the only place the ladies made there presence known. Among other things it was in the timing booth, on ATV’s acting as emergency crew, start line crew and more.

#8 Starting Top left we had the young lady helping out with ministerial matters, top right vivacious Virginia helped ferry drivers and crew between hotels and the track, then there was that cute Track Aid gal. (It crossed my mind that if a heart attack was in my future now would be the time to have it!)

Although there was an overall atmosphere of people having a ‘ton of fun’ there was an underlying sense of seriousness. Almost none of the racers present fell into the category of ‘rich’ and they had all shelled out big bucks, not just to be here, but to be here and race. For every one of those racers, making the start line involved making a higher than usual effort in a sport that is already uncommonly demanding if winning is the intent.

#9 So why weren’t our start line booth ladies smiling? Well apparently someone had just taken out the lights – again!

#10 In a driving career spanning some twenty years Erica Dinnoo has, in her Castrol sponsored turbo racer, collected what must be a garage full of first place trophy’s. This event, much to the chagrin of some of her male competition, was no different. It was first place all the way. For the young lady on the fender of the other car it was a slightly different picture. This was one of her first events if not the first. She started the day slow and ended up equaling the time posted by her experienced hubby. Good for you gal!

All through Friday there seemed an element of disarray in the event. This could have been because of customs, shipping and dock to track transportation problems many crews were experiencing. Some teams were in the process of arriving from the docks at 3 am race day morning. However once official time trails started an air of Caribbean style efficiency (that might not be what you and I would normally recognize as such but it works for these guys) descended and everything appeared to run at least as smooth as a State Side event. I was particularly impressed with ‘Start Line Mike’. From what I could see he appeared to run that start line based on three non-negotiable rules. First ‘all racers will be treated fairly and equally regardless of race, creed, gender, size of bank balance or engine displacement’. Rule # 2 ‘every racer will recognize that on that start line he is the boss – period! Third rule ‘a racer (or representative there-of) will not even think about debating a possible start line issue unless they are fully committed to do it politely and with no more vocal volume than necessary to make themselves heard’. I saw that policy justifiably enforced and only a contrite apology got the racer concerned back on the track.

#11 ‘Start Line Mike’ – a guy that runs the show on the pad with a combination of a no-nonsense attitude while extending professional courtesy to the racers.

Race Time,

Race day rolled around and my first duty was to get with the Minister of Tourism – the Honorable Harold Lovell. I have had to meet people in this and similar professions before and the Honorable Harold Lovell was not quite what I expected. Within just a few minutes of meeting him I got the impression he was a dynamic, instantly likable person with a ‘can do’ attitude. In all we spent an apparently productive hour or so discussing the various political and financial aspects and potential locations for an up scale drag strip. But more on that later. Let’s get down to the show!

#12 Here we see racer/crew chief Mervyn Bonnett getting ready to take the minister of Tourism, the Honorable Harold Lovell , down Antigua’s ¼ mile track. Note the right hand drive on this Chevy powered Nissan Laurel.

After the usual pre-race ceremonies and national anthem the track was officially pronounce open for racing and that our honorable minister was to make the opening pass as passenger in a small block Chevy powered Nissan Laurel. Having little experience of anything much less than a 15 second car the ride in one that could record high elevens proved to be a turn on to the extent a second ride was politely requested. A minister that liked drag racing proved popular with the sizable race crowd and elicited some serious clapping and cheering.

#13 First time down the drag strip, first time in a car capable of sub 12’s, this ride it seems, greatly impressed Minister, the Honorable Harold Lovell. Possibly we have a race car convert here.

Once started, racing went almost like clockwork. I say almost here because, other than the minor glitches, which go almost un-noticed, there was a scary incident. This involved one really quick front wheel drive turbo car which got out of control at about the 150 yard mark where it swung violently across the opposite lane and off into the boony’s. From my start line vantage point it then appeared to hit a large boulder which cannoned it skyward. Upon landing the car end’oed and rolled several times while still close to about 90 mph. I would tell you what sort of car it was but the wreckage was so bad there was little to no possibility of recognizing it. The miracle was that the driver, though bruised somewhat, escaped without any broken bones or serious cuts and abrasions. The emergency crew was there about as fast as an ATV can make it happen. An ambulance took the hapless driver to hospital where he was later pronounce OK.

So much for the unfortunate side excursion – back on with the show. Regular readers of some the paper mags I contribute may have seen my Ford Mustang 5.0 Comp Cams Special project. This is actually three cars – mine and two others that we use to test various engines and other pertinent go fast stuff. One of those cars is Alan McIntyre’s, Mervyn Bonnett built, 5.0. This car hails from Granada (Lewis Hamilton’s ancestral home) and was shipped to Antigua for this event. It was also an opportunity to set up the suspension as one of the visiting tech dignitaries here was Baltimore chassis guru, Mark Constantine. With Mark’s help in this area Alan’s Comp Cams Special went on to record a 6.6 second flat for the 1/8 (that equates to a 10.16 for the quarter) which is very creditable for a car that owes less than eight grand total. As fast as Alan’s car was it paled compared to say Iceman’s home grown turbo import that reeled off a 5.20 for the 1/8.

#14 Baltimore chassis guru Mark Constantine (left) was a guest tech inspector for this meet. He graciously found time in his busy schedule to help set up the suspension on Alan McIntyre’s (right) 5.0 Mustang. Additionally he found time to team up with crew chief Mervyn Bonnett to sort out the wandering characteristics of Spanky’s tire burning 550 hp turbo RX7 and Brice’s big block powered 80’s Mitsubishi Starion. After their rework of the suspension both of these fast cars went arrow straight!



#15 Just as in the US 5.0 Fox body Mustangs were popular with the racers and were prominently represented at this meet.



#16 Here’s the ‘built on a shoestring budget’ big block powered Mitsubishi of Richard ‘Richie’ Lawrence (in set). Looking at this car it is hard to believe it goes as fast as it does on all old parts. Richie’s outstanding performances have undoubtedly made him one of the most popular Caribbean racers with both spectators and fellow drivers. Just to make a race he will help even his closest competitors make it to the line. They say nice guys don’t win races – here’s proof they do. A sponsor looking to make a popular placement of promotional dollars would be hard pushed to make a better choice than this driver/mechanic.



#17 This is ‘Build it at Home Hollister ‘Flambo’ Edwards. ‘Flambo’ is short for Flamboyant which is about as apt a nick name as can be had. He’s excitable to the extent it may take a bucket of cold water to calm him down but there is no denying he can drive the wheels off a race car. Another of the ‘got no money but I am going to race anyway’ brigade, Flambo’s car is just a few steps off proving the practicality of going into the 8’s for the quarter on a dollar forty nine!



#18 There were some 600 inch plus cars at the meet but they were the exception rather than the rule.



#19 Catch-A-Fire did some awesome burnouts but getting those big hp numbers to the ground sometimes looked a little difficult on this track.



#20 Gordon Rooks 540 inch ‘Tweety Pie’ hails from Trinidad. Gordon is one of those drivers who consistently puts on a good show with a good looking car.

In fact Iceman’s Corolla is a prime example of the fact that home grown talent can build record setting cars that would be competitive anywhere. Want more proof. Import Drag racers – cast your mind back to – I believe - the 2004 final round of the year at LA County Raceway, Palmdale, California. There Trinidad racer/car builder Ryan Garcia, with his home built 1979 Mitsubishi Lancer proceeded to put all those high buck championship leading US built cars on the trailer with such apparent ease it almost caused a media meltdown.

By race days end I have to say that the racing consisted of a lot of high hp noise, tire smoke and great racing. Now for the $64,000 question. Can these guys put on a ‘value for ticket money’ show for locals, tourists and die hard visiting race fans? Sure they can - but, believe it or not there are plans afoot bigger than just that. During meetings with various key personnel within the clubs involved revealed the target was a new track that could handle and financially justify an international ‘Antigua Speed Week’ event. What does the Minister think off that – “sounds like a plan”.

With the right track, the right incentives (financial or otherwise) the right time of year and the right planning the Antigua Speed Week could be to Drag Racing what Monaco is to Formula One! My advice here was – ‘Go for it’. If you readers want to show your support for this proposal it could be important that you are vocal in doing so. If you feel it’s a good plan then, no matter what part of the world you live, these guys would like your support – and you can post it here.

David Vizard