An eventful year!

For a large number of individuals, 2009 is a year to be forgotten in a hurry. It was fraught with financial peril and innumerable obstacles hampering both personal and national development. Evidence of God’s grace abounds, however and for that thanks flows freely like an energetic river carving its way through the landscape.

 On the motoring front, congratulations are in order for all of our heroes who emerged as victors or champions in their respective classes in the various disciplines, drag racing, rally-sport, dexterity, karting and circuit racing. There are so many significant memories which assemble for mention, but I only have space for a few.

Drag Racing

Drag racers, despite losing their hallowed grounds at Vernamfield to the JDF for some time now, were kept occupied with happenings at Jamwest, Westmoreland. The Vengeance drag racing series ran for the year and scintillating on track performances were the norm at the events.

We witnessed Craig Lue’s nine seconds pass in his Evo, out of this world creations by Brinn Morgan, and a hell-hot 11 seconds class with numerous combatants – ‘Spi’, ‘Spoon’, ‘Brownspeed’, ‘Lizard’, ‘Haggi’ and others. The Cayman invasion was evident and for the fans it was rewarding because with the Caymanians came awesome machines. Patrick and Jody rose to the occasion at the latter meets during the year and recorded scorching times in Nissan’s Godzilla, the Nissan Skyline GTR.

Circuit Racing

David Summerbell Jr. reclaimed lost honor and can now beam with pride having secured the driver’s title in the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship (CMRC). I mention this milestone because it was achieved primarily through mating a driver who has remarkable skill with a world class machine, TA1 (Total/AMS/Motor Sales Evo VIII).

What proved invaluable, however, was teamwork. Summerbell dominated Round 1 of the CMRC at Dover Raceway, but the Jamaican contingent which went to Barbados for Round 2 was under-represented in terms of numbers. A malignant engine sidelined Jaleel Handal (Tile City Subaru Wrx) reducing the race worthy cars to 1, TA1.

David Summerbell’s effort jackknifed and was destined for catastrophic failure after a warm-up lap incident, but a united front from the Jamaicans (using parts from Handal’s Subaru) rescued the ailing machine which allowed Summerbell to secure valuable points from the meet. Without those points, it is my view that the CMRC driver’s trophy would not be here in Jamaica, it would be vacationing on another island!

Rally

I cannot overlook Rally Jamaica which put an emphatic WRC style ending to the scheduled activities on JMMC’s motorsports calendar. Despite stout opposition from our Caribbean neighbors, the main trophy remained in Jamaica, snatched and kept by the team of Gary Gregg/Hugh Hutchinson (2005 Ford Focus WRC).

 Jeffery Panton’s gearbox decided to ditch 5th and 6th gears in the recycle bin, thus thwarting his attempt to defend his title (2008 Rally Jamaica Champion).Panton overcame the mechanical restrictions, whipped gears 1 through 4 into his routine, attacked the stages with ferocity and secured second place. This was a remarkable feat, bearing in mind that there were other WRC cars in the rally. His coordinated mayhem, dominated by sublime ‘Focused’ control at the ‘after-party’ at the National Stadium, indicated in no uncertain terms why he remains a favorite to rally sport fans.

Formula One

On the international front, the excitement in several premier series will be discussed for eons to come. In Formula One, Ross Brawn’s outfit, Brawn GP, with driver Jenson Button who was described as an underachiever, started the season with a grenade- like, explosive bang. Despite hiccups and valiant challenges from his teammate Rubens Barrichello and Red Bull Renault’s Sebastian Vettel, Button hung to what eventually became a meager lead and secured his first F1 title. Well done Jenson Button, 2009 Formula One World Champion.

MotoGP

Nail-biting finishes were the order of the day in MotoGP. Fiat Yamaha riders Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo dominated the top step on the podium. Their intense rivalry played out on the circuit, which stimulated an emotional roller coaster for their supporters during the races because there wasn’t much separating them.

My heart goes out to Casey Stoner who I think, could have made a serious push for the title,  but his stomach had other ideas and a mysterious illness relegated him to spectator for three rounds of the Championship.

Thanks to Lorenzo and Rossi there were races which made you more committed than an American to fast food. You simply could not remove yourself from the race (tv) until the checkered flag was waved. Round 6 at Catalunya, Spain was magical. Rossi won his 99th Grand Prix with a last corner pass on Lorenzo. Congratulations Valentino  Rossi, 2009 MotoGP World Champion.

WRC

I did not see much of the World Rally Championship (WRC) but, the little I saw was refreshing. Someone has finally stepped up to force Sebastian Loeb (Citroen C4) to think twice before he begins each stage.  Ford’s Mikko Hirvonen, brought the championship to the wire with a 1 point lead heading into the final round of the Championship, Rally Great Britain.

It is my view that Ford in these circumstances does not have much luck. I can remember a few years ago, Colin McRae went into the last round, Rally Great Britain, with a good shot at ‘locking’ the championship. As luck would have it, or wouldn’t have it, he rolled his Ford Focus on one of the slippery, mud and gravel stages. Game over. The incident was different for Mikko, but the outcome was the same. A dislodged bonnet surfaced as the culprit, which drowned Mikko’s championship dreams. Sour luck for Mikko resulted in a sweet victory for Sebastian Loeb.  Congratulations Sebastian Loeb, 2009 WRC World Champion.

2009

How do I want to remember 2009? This is how I want to remember 2009. Through unity everything can be conquered and if motorsport teaches nothing else, it teaches that only through team work can victory be claimed. The champion on the podium is as a result of the hard work of countless individuals. Team Jamaica in Barbados at Round 2 of the CMRC made this abundantly clear.

It would be a major achievement if we could somehow use the motorsport team model as an avenue to carry the message of – the importance of unity to success – to the wider society, thus assisting ‘the rock’ to grasp it’s potential and claim its dominance on the world stage.

So to 2009 we say thanks and goodbye and in welcoming 2010 we anticipate much more thrills and far less spills!

Cecil Munroe Gleaner On-Line Writer