Dark moment for Gore

Blames bad light for Heroes of Speed mishap

Glenroy Sinclair, Assignment Coordinator

If he could turn back the hands of time, Doug 'Hollywood' Gore would erase memories of the final event at the Heroes of Speed race meet, held at the Dover Raceway, St Ann, on National Heroes Day.

"It was a scary moment for me. More scary than even the on-track incident last year that I was involved in," argued Gore, who has openly blamed the Jamaica Race Drivers' Club (JRDC) for exposing him to danger.

He was referring to the running of the Thundersport Open event, which was done in failing light. While negotiating corner three, popularly called 'Pinky's Bluff, Gore's car climbed an embankment, spun out and, in the process, the rear rims were damaged.

"It was a close one for me. The place looked pitch-black to me. I never saw the mountain side (embankment). It was very scary," said Gore. He has since replaced the damaged rims and is in the process of shipping the car to Guyana for the third and final leg of the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship.

With Dover now behind him, the tall Montegonian is hoping to wrap up the Caribbean Championship.

"Since the car came back it has been unbeatable, so it was a very successful year for us. Come next year, some new sponsors are expected to come on board and things can only get better," Gore said.

In response to Gore's comment, director of the Heroes of Speed race meet, Dean Corrodus, charged that the JRDC and its officers should all be held responsible for the lateness of the meet.

However, Corrodus said, "Doug (Gore) had an option. Coming into the meet he had an unassailable lead in the Thundersport II Class. With the failing light, he could have chosen not to compete. He would have still won the class championship," said Corrodus.

The meet director also believes that it could have been worse.

Veteran circuit racer Peter 'Zoom Zoom' Rae, who was among a number of drivers who competed in the event, said he had no problem with the light. He shares Corrodus' view that Gore should have opted out of the race if he had a problem.