Radical Action Promised for Dover Heroes of Speed
Published:Friday | October 13, 2017 | 12:00 AM
When you go to the final race meet for the year at Dover on Monday, do not blink, or you will miss it. It is fully guaranteed to serve- up thrills, as no less than four Radicals - the new auto buzz word for purpose, built race cars - Kyle 'Speedy' Gregg and 'King' David Summerbell, will be picking up where they left off from the last meet, where Summerbell was forced to play second fiddle every time, whether because of lack of seat time or sheer bad luck.
Barbadian Mark Maloney had a purpose-built Radical car shipped in from England to Dover raceway. Word is that he will be having a lot to say as the two Jamaicans duke it out. There are also whispers that Doug Gore may hop into the driver's seat, but nothing has been confirmed.
If that wasn't enough, Jamaican-Guyanese Rugie Misir has also secured a Radical car of his own and wants to roll back the clock to a time when he growled like the top dogs.
"We took it out on the track last Sunday, and even with shaking off 22 years of rust on my part in a car that had been parked for a few years, we got in some very decent times," Misir said.
Gregg weighing his options
Kyle Gregg says that with all the excitement of new cars on the track, he is not worried.
"I think the best competition will still be David. I'm not worried about the other two for sure. I know that David is getting more seat time in his car, which is going to be more of a challenge for me," Gregg said.
He will have a lot on his mind, though, as the Thundersport Championship, as well as the drivers championship are both in his grasp, and that thought is weighing heavily, especially since he didn't expect to be in this position.
"I never thought that I'd be challenging for drivers championship again. I am actually leading by 10 points going in, so the question for me is, do I risk everything and battle with David, or do I want to play it safe by taking three second places, which would still give me the title?" Gregg reasoned.
Gregg will have to decide whether to yield to the temptation of a heavy right foot or give in to the peppering and harassment he got from Summerbell at the last meet, where the three races were intense, with neither driver showing any mechanical respect for the other despite their differences in size, weight, and engine power.
Unfortunately, Gregg recently blew his engine at a race meet in Barbados. However, his connections in England swapped out parts, put in new cam shafts, and had the unit back in record time.
As for Summerbell, he, too, has been putting in the practice. "We went down to practise two weeks ago. Got in some good laps and made minor adjustments. We wanted a special team to come and help out with the telemetry, but they were otherwise occupied in Europe," Summerbell said, adding that he rued the missed chances at the last meet.
"We were pretty good the last time. In fact, there's a race we could have won were it not for traffic and being a bit cautious. I guess if Rambo (Gary Barrett) had heeded the blue flags in time, it would have been different," Summerbell said.
Make way for the new school
The Young Guns are sure to add to the excitement. Collin Daley, William Myers, and Fraser McConnell are expected to rinse every bit of performance out of their NG racing-prepped Honda Civics. They are all still in school, and they have brought their devil-takes-the-hindmost never-say-die brand of excitement from karting up to circuit racing.
McConnell, 17, has the record as the youngest ever Champion Driver, and he will have that in mind when he lines up with the others in the energy-filled modified production classes.
Meanwhile, there is a record-filled grid of bikes with all 21 units lining up to see the green flag drop. Bikers such as Greg 'Tallman' Cross, Kyle 'Rastaman' Reynolds, and the Italian, Pedroli 'Pizzaman' Gianmari riding his Ducati, all have scores to settle, bragging rights to chase, and races they want to win.
Qualifying starts at 9.15 a.m., and the first race roars off at 10.30 a.m.. The big eight-lap finale, where all the drivers who have a point to prove and a championship to win, gets the flag at 4.05 p.m.. By that time, all those who came would have got their fill of excitement, and those who didn't, will be cursing their luck.