Speed Promotions Drag Racing
6th July 2008
Photography by Narend Sooknarine and Duane Boodasingh


Frankie Boodram with his Speed Promotions Limited crew held their drag racing event at Camden after having to postpone it due to inclement weather the weekend before. This Saturday still affected racing with intermittent showers but Sunday offered perfect weather for 'drags'.

S2 Promotions were carded for the previous weekend but declined, postponing their event until further notice due to restrictions laid down by Briko with regards to use of the Camden air strip. Speed Promotions took up the date and began preparations for an event. One of the stipulations from Briko required that an alternative access route would be used to the airstrip as the previously used gates for the concrete area was too close to the A1 jet fuel tank and Briko's aircraft. Speed Promotions carried out infrastructure work to the side of the runway to allow access to the track, 120feet down from the original start area. This move also meant that the extensive work done on the launch area for the past 8 months was now lost. The use of trackbite was also restricted. Briko has since declined any solution to use trackbite or use the launch area which has already been capable of six second passes. The Llumar rail, now sporting a new engine aquired from Shelden Bissessar's 6 second rail, was unable to make a reasonable pass with no trackbite and no proper launch area - a few test passes later the Llumar rail was packed up in the Party Time Race Team trailer.

The spectator mound previously built also had to be removed and a small bridge contructed. All these stipulations were required by Briko since there have been multiple infractions by the racing fraternity at Camden that have gone against the terms of use for the active Couva airfield. Up till 1:30pm on Sunday work was still being done to the muddy, waterlogged access road to the pit area and track. The burn out area ended up in the middle of the pit area, with tents and cars flanking the track up to the start line. A far from ideal layout, yet with no other alternative in sight, this seems to be the format for the rest of the year until another location for racing can be realised.

With previous issues from disgruntled drivers and spectators, added to the rainy days before, both racers and spectators were noticably absent from this Speed Promotions event. The small crowd barely filling a few bleachers and just around 30 racers, down from nearly 100 entries from the last few Camden events are signs that what is considered to be the "biggest" motorsport in T&T is suffering badly and there seems to be no immediate solution in sight.