Local car fanatics get their engines ready
KYALAMI – CEO of the Kyalami 9 Hour, Tom Pearson-Adams, tells the Fourways Review a little bit about what race fans can expect on 21 to 23 November.
Car fanatics, start your engines. The Kyalami 9 Hour is back on South African tracks.
From 21 to 23 November, the The Kyalami 9 Hour will be coming to the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit. The event is an endurance sports car race which was contested in South Africa from the late 1950s until the 1980s, The Intercontinental GT Challenge is an endurance challenge with high-performance sports cars you would see and recognise on the road. It will be endurance racing with racing versions of cars such as Bentley, BMW, Audi, Porsche, Lamborghini and Aston Martin.
“We are now relaunching the Kyalami 9 Hour in South Africa, being the first in 37 years as part of an international series,” said Tom Pearson-Adams, the Kyalami 9 Hour’s CEO and an integral player in the effort to bring it back to SA.
“Not only are we completing the circle as the fifth continent, but we have the honour of being the last of the internationally renowned endurance races.”
The last time this race took place on South African soil was 1982, before a change in the race format (from a nine-hour race to a six-hour race) saw the event being cancelled from 1983 onwards.
The construction of the Kyalami track in 1985 delayed it even further, and by the time the country was ready to resume motorsport, international endurance racing had come to an end at Kyalami. “We wanted to revive the history and heritage of the Kyalami 9 Hour as well as reintroduce GT racing to a new generation of motorsport fans,” said Pearson-Adams.
“Over the two days, fans can enjoy plenty of racing which includes the iconic 9 Hour and also the Falken Polo Cup and MotoMart VW Challenge.”
Fans will have the chance to watch homegrown giants in the field and see how international names handle South African challenges.
“Eyes will be on [South African prodigy] Kelvin van der Linde after his success with Audi at Suzuka, but Jordan Pepper [from Edenvale] is really well prepared and could easily pull some winning moves out there.
“Also, we must remember that the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit offers a tough challenge due to its unique design [and competing in] the altitude could be a bit tricky for the foreigners as well as the chance of high temperatures or even short November thundershowers which are quite common in Johannesburg.”
There will also be fun activities for attendees who are not petrol heads. “[Other activities on the day include performances by] famous DJs and musicians like Black Coffee and Prime Circle, a dedicated kid’s zone, go-karting, helicopter flips, a classic car parade and previously raced 9 Hour historic car parade, a display by the Soweto Drift Academy, hot laps and much more.”
Pearson-Adams and his colleagues have managed to secure the rights to stage the Kyalami 9 Hour Intercontinental GT Challenge for the next 10 years in a bid to achieve the main objective of rebuilding the international motorsport future for South Africa.
Details: Kyalami 9 Hour www.kyalami9hour.com
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