Team endures round four at Dezzi
In addition to all the mayhem the team suffered during and before the race, neither Vale nor her co-driver, Wade van Zummeren, had previously raced at Dezzi.
Benoni’s Clare Vale and her team recently took part in the Dezzi three-hour event, round four of the SA Endurance Series, at the Dezzi Racetrack in Port Shepstone.
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The team of five includes Clare and Wade van Zummeren (drivers), Don Vale (team manager and Clare’s husband) and Joka Baptista and Edgar Ball (technicians).
“We had a challenging weekend, although even a tough day of racing beats a day at the office, hands down,” said Clare.
After finishing fourth in their class at the previous event in East London, they were hoping to make the Podium this year.
“We only finished seventh at Dezzi; however, only eight cars finished out of 15 class entrants so it was definitely a hard weekend for many people.
“We had several technical issues, including brake and power steering problems, refuelling challenges and an ailing diff, so all in all we were jus happy to make it to the chequered flag,” she explained.
In addition to all the mayhem the team suffered during and before the race, neither Vale nor her co-driver, Wade van Zummeren, had previously raced at Dezzi.
“We had to learn the track from scratch, it was our first time so we didn’t know what to expect,” explained Vale.
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“It’s also a very technical track, with plenty of blind corners and changes in elevation but we thoroughly enjoyed driving there.”
The team will take part in the next final race for the series this year and it will be a nine-hour event taking place at Killarney in Cape Town on December 5.
“This is the big one, we will also have an additional driver to help behind the wheel.
“The race will run until 11pm so we need to have our night driving skills on point!
“In a race as long as this one, the biggest challenge will be making sure your car makes it to the end of the race as the wear and tear on components is massive.
“With less than a month to go, our BestDrive Backdraft Cobra is stripped to the chassis while we check every nut and bolt and I’m really looking forward to the event as Killarney has always been one of my favourite tracks, and as an ex Capetonian it’s always a treat for me to race there,” she concluded.
