Curacao was siiiiiick

First up, here are the Amenic7 and VFmedia.TV videos first, keep reading for my recap!

Say Howdy! Get Rowdy! International : Curacao from BC RACING NA on Vimeo.

Caribbean International Drift Battle | Curacao | VFMEDIA.TV from VFMEDIA.TV on Vimeo.

Leaving for Curacao we were all in high spirits. The group of guys and support staff really mesh well and we were ready to throw down in a new country. This time, we were going for an entire week and already were planning our off track adventures to the cliff jumps, Dutch town district and other local hotspots. Just a heads up, this is more than an event, this was an entire experience, but by the end, you might be booking a flight to Curacao!

First night there, we headed straight for some of the taste bud rejoicing flavor of the steak and fries, smothered in cheese and peanut sauce. One of the best parts of these trips is the food! Can’t describe how good it is, but I think we ate this same thing 3 times over the 7 days- it’s that amazing.

In the morning, we set out to see the track we would be competing at in a few days. We stopped by the more known “Festival” track that has

huge walls surrounding it, almost giving a prison or “Death Race” feel to it. I really wanted to drive that track, but due to difficulties with organizing- the track could not accommodate us.  Just a little further was the Curacao Drag Strip. Up on a hill, surrounded by cactus’ and tons of unfriendly bushes, we hoped that the spectators would come through the gates this time.
We were not allowed to test the track to keep it ‘fair’, even though the locals run there often, Ter-Tech once again expanded some of the pavement to allow for a new line through the corner.

Either way, I had some work to do on the car. We found a wobble in the rear wheel by reviewing video from Aruba. I had to guess at what the issue was since the cars were in a container on a boat while I watched the video back in Florida. We took an educated guess and picked up some Energy Suspension bushings for the rear lower control arms from Enjuku Racing. Perfect guess, 3 of the 4 lower bushings fell apart as we unbolted them. A local driver, Bryan, had a press at his house (basically a full shop!) so he helped my press in the new bushings and Josh Finklestein (friend/crew from US) helped me button up the car.

The next day Chelsea Denofa of FormulaD fame, arrived and we headed for some beach time. We headed for the cliff jumps and after a few wrong turns, and picking up some liquid courage, we found it. Turns out, I might be the only person with a deathly fear of heights. I climbed the rocks, dodged the cactus and sharp bushes to overlook the jump. So beautiful I can’t describe. Eventually I took the leap and it was exhilarating! Everyone had a blast and we vowed to return before heading back to the USA.

A few drinks and some steak and fries later, it was the next day and we had a new plan. We were gong to Koral Tabaak (sp). KT is a local treasure of sorts, at least for drivers. It is a massive complex that is wide open, no gate, no fees, no employees…. But it does have a drag strip, a beach with a fully driftable gokart track, a clubhouse, plenty of rolling dirt roads to bring out the rally driver in you, some rock climbing areas and a gorgeous cliff area where waves crash and splash a hundred feet into the air. This area just sits there, open to anyone, anytime you want to get nutty.  As the most nervous passenger in the world, I experienced every asset of this complex and have to say, I am crazy jealous they have this place. Sadly, I was too busy hanging on to capture much on camera.

We had to leave so we wouldn’t miss our live radio broadcast on 88 Rockorsou! The whole lot of us were crammed in the studio and all had our turn on the mic. We had a few good laughs and got some great hype up for the event that weekend.

Next day we just did some random island exploring as we waited for our evening’s scheduled police cruise yet again! One of the best parts of these events are driving in a long line of race cars, with police helping stop traffic for us. Ending at the Curacao Sports Club, we lucked into having an upfront position for the night. This was our first time meetings most of the local drivers so new friends were made. Had some grub, shot some pool and had some drinks with our new brothers. We finally got the cars back to the track and locked up for the night.

Party didn’t stop there.  Continuing our night, we were brought to the Kokomo Beach Club. This place is so massive, the parking area is good 5 minute shuttle ride like you’re going to Disney or something. We get there, and go through the entrance… its actually a beach! A huge stage about 1,000 feet in front of me with live music, a raised sheltered area with a bar large enough to be it’s own club to my left, a giant row of beer/liquor/snack tents to my right, and about 2500 people filling the place. Just becareful to not fall in the untamed bonfire as you get deeper into the fray. Again, this place is insane, how does Florida not have a place like this!?

Finally race day was here. Track was open for practice, but with limited tires, we wanted to conserve. After a few runs I already felt good so I decided to watch other drivers. Sadly, the locals didn’t show for the first 5 hours of practice so it was just us, I wanted to run with locals, another reason to save tires. By the time they arrived, there was only a little practice time left. We heard that they were there the day before getting practice so they already had their time. I think they felt like the Curacao v USA was the most important part, where we just wanted to drive with them. It is terrible that I only got to tandem with ONE guy from Curacao the entire time there.

We were using the staging lanes as our VERY short run up (2^nd off line, power-short-shift 3^rd and cut the wheel to initiate) and starting our drift from behind the drag strips tower, passing the drag strip lanes and continuing on to a side pavement that was before the grandstands. This area is just wide enough to hold a 3^rd gear 65/70mph manji flick and then came to a screeching 15mph u-turn at the end to course finish. The worst part was right at the commitment spot, the 1^st clip, as you are flying out toward the barrier, there was a major bump that sometimes grabbed and sometimes floated your car. It was very unsettling to drive at times.

Qualifying came and the sun was already setting. I had my best run of the day but again, the outer marker on the manji I barely tipped with my bumper so I got a 0. Super hungry for the top spot, I floored off the line and was so aggressive I was at full lock the entire entry… too bad my line was a little shallow due to the angle and a hit the 1^st clip but finished the run off. I received two 0’s, because the single judge (same as last event) is strict on clips. However, later drivers complained they can’t see the first one (bad lighting?) so it no longer became a penalty, but it was too late for me, he still gave me a 0. Normally I make sure to get a score but since there was only 14 drivers for a top16 competition, I was still in it and actually wasn’t even lowest qualifier. I’m not sure what happened because 2 other drivers also had clearly 2 zeros but were ranked in top8… I REALLY don’t agree with a single judge.

Ends up Harri Tervola (Ter-Tech Owner) himself is my first foe. I have to run versus the 700hp supercharged LS BMW…. GREAT! Harri had been facing some engine hiccups that we narrowed down to fuel quality on the islands. I handed him a bottle of octane boost but joked about taking it back once we were set against eachother. He lead first- Harri is a fantastic driver with an ultra fast car, so I knew I didn’t have to worry or hold back. We went in as hard as possible and stayed clean and clear on our chase. My lead run was awesome until the last 15 feet where I had to check up my line with ebrake. I barely squeaked by the final course marking barrel as we swung the uturn. Harri caught up to me quick once I was on the brake and tucked in on my door- unfortunately, the barrel was right there so he hit it, giving me the win.

Next round up was against Monkey from Aruba. We had a good thing going with the Monkey/Banana gimmick and now we were able to face off. He lead first, and immediately off the line he had a slow shift/bobble and I had to lift off so I didn’t run into his bumper. He got the gear and pulled a couple cars and then I hit the throttle and by the first clip was back up with him but my momentum was off and the grip of my car shallowed up my line. I got to the manji transition and felt I was going to either hit Monkey or the light pole so I lifted and tried to make it work but it didn’t. As the next transition came up I still didn’t have the momentum to get the car to swing out with ebrake and it was just a disaster of a run. I was pretty upset. I felt that if I had just given him space I would have had no issues…. But when you have less power you don’t give room but I have so much more grip- I choked myself up. My lead run I had was radical and I pulled an enormous gap on him but it wasn’t enough to show the judge I deserved a win. So I had to take a spectator position for the rest of the event.

I watched some questionable calls through the battles but one of the worst was the final. Bill Stenger (Aruba winner) made it to the finals again despite some craziness going on in his car with a broken transmission. Lead run was magnificent – surely giving him an advantage. Then, he literally rubbed on his opponent’s, Ali Leche, car through the entire last corner as he layed down a magical chase run. Apparently, the judge felt it was possible that Bill dropped a portion of his tire in the dirt of this 30ft wide area RIGHT has he crossed the finish line on his lead run- so he gave BILL a 0 an awarded 1^st to the Curacao native Ali. There was a lot of talk about this call through the night and next day. Eventually, it garnished an apology from the judge acknowledging that it wasn’t his best moment.

The next day, we realized we still had some good times left. First we took a tour of the mountain caves where salves used to hide out centuries ago. It was insanely hot in there, not like the underground caves I’ve been too that are freezing. Then we headed back to the cliffs- only this time, we spent a short time at the first spot, and then headed for an even HIGHER cliff at Playa Forti. Adding another 15 feet to the original cliff’s height, I got this one in a million video as a souvenir:

Over the next day we spent some time in the Dutch district and walked across the floating bridge. We had some more local grub before having our last night out at the Fort near the Dutch area. The epic trip was finally coming to an end.

I can’t thank Harri Tervola, Ter-Tech crew,  and all the other drivers (Ryan Kaufman, Bill Stenger, Chelsea Denofa) for making the experience everything it was and giving me memories that will last my lifetime. I sure hope we make it back next year!

Due to the overwhelming cost and unfortunate hurdles that were out of Ter-Tech’s control, this may be the last of the international trips for this year. We were set to visit Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. I am working to fill the end of our year with a few great events to replace the loss of those international trips.