701 laps and going crazy
You must be crazy to be driving home, sloshed from too much Black Russian, and coming from a chic-laden party. Home is not where you should be driving your girl to. You should be drivinger her somewhere else romantic. Tee! Hee! But seriously, driving home plastered is quite normal for the party animal. What is not normal is taking a long drive out of town without SLEEP! Well, that’s how crazy the racers were at the City Kart Race Track, which included celebrities, Issa Litton, Victor Basa and Philippine racing icon Pia Boren.
In the first week of July, City Kart Racing announced the holding of the Manila 701 dubbed as “The Crazy Race Second Edition”. Race drivers were to compete in teams with the first to complete 701 laps of the City Kart’s indoor race track, which is close to the distance of driving out of town. So what’s crazy about it? Race drivers would complete the lap from evening until past noon of the following day without sleep! Well, race drivers get some relief time by being substituted by his teammates but I doubt if that would be enough time to doze off. The race was held last July 19 and 20. A total of eleven teams competed.
Crazy is not as easy as 701 laps and drinking tons of Lipton green tea to keep the racers awake. Surprises along the tracks shook their finish times with simulated extreme weather conditions, landslides, strong rain, black outs and potholes that seem to appear from nowhere. There were also extreme traffic jams, heavy ash, balloon drops, surprise detours and sleet showers using ice pellets. According to City Kart Managing Director Jeff Freihuber, this type of race tests how flexible a team is and how well the drivers react to race conditions and surprise activities.
Although Manila 701 brings a high dose of playfulness, the race organizers ensured that safety is still tops. All special effects used do not affect track conditions and are introduced to inject real fun and excitement. Endurance karts are maintained by a pit crew. Just like any major racing event, pit crews refuel and provide any needed maintenance at strategic stops during the event and are available to deal with mechanical malfunctions during the race.
Hari ng Kalsada
We have all heard the superior skills (not to mention the adherence to road etiquette) of our beloved jeepney drivers better known as Hari ng Kalsada. An interesting part of the race was a team indeed named Hari ng Kalsada and composed of real jeepney drivers. Hmm, were they part of the real life scenario (and err .. obstacles) of Philippine roads? Hehe! Well, not quite as they were among the most behaved teams that participated (none of the hot headed finger-pointing and shoulder to shoulder contact apparent on other teams). They were like angels from the start and the myth of Hari ng Kalsada debunk as they failed to even make top three. Kudos Kabayan!
Party like a race kart driver!
Tuner lifestyle was encouraged to give color to the race. Being an overnight event, the City Kart Race Track bar was opened to serve booze and give spectators the party of their lives. There were ladies who came in clubbing attire. Threatening rains kept the party indoors however. Hot music bands provided entertainment including Sinosikat. House music and hiphop played in between bands all night long.
Final Outcome
It’s not how you start but how you finish. Top recorded individual time belonged to CKR Juniors team members whose ages ranged from 15 to 18 but teamwork prevailed as the trophy ended up with PLDT Track Love which completed 701 laps at almost 1PM, almost fourteen hours of non-stop racing! The gap between the first and second placers was only about one to two laps apart.
First Place – PLDT Track Love
Jovy Hernandez
Vic Icasas
Pasi Riipinen
Julian Van Haesiujk
Second Place – Team Nobac
Mike Asuncion
Jet Calosing
Pep Sandejas
Brian del Val
Roby Benito
Third Place – CKR Juniors
Carl “Slick” Luig
Yna Carangan
Jolo Aranas
Lars Hernandez
In the first week of July, City Kart Racing announced the holding of the Manila 701 dubbed as “The Crazy Race Second Edition”. Race drivers were to compete in teams with the first to complete 701 laps of the City Kart’s indoor race track, which is close to the distance of driving out of town. So what’s crazy about it? Race drivers would complete the lap from evening until past noon of the following day without sleep! Well, race drivers get some relief time by being substituted by his teammates but I doubt if that would be enough time to doze off. The race was held last July 19 and 20. A total of eleven teams competed.
Crazy is not as easy as 701 laps and drinking tons of Lipton green tea to keep the racers awake. Surprises along the tracks shook their finish times with simulated extreme weather conditions, landslides, strong rain, black outs and potholes that seem to appear from nowhere. There were also extreme traffic jams, heavy ash, balloon drops, surprise detours and sleet showers using ice pellets. According to City Kart Managing Director Jeff Freihuber, this type of race tests how flexible a team is and how well the drivers react to race conditions and surprise activities.
Although Manila 701 brings a high dose of playfulness, the race organizers ensured that safety is still tops. All special effects used do not affect track conditions and are introduced to inject real fun and excitement. Endurance karts are maintained by a pit crew. Just like any major racing event, pit crews refuel and provide any needed maintenance at strategic stops during the event and are available to deal with mechanical malfunctions during the race.
Hari ng Kalsada
We have all heard the superior skills (not to mention the adherence to road etiquette) of our beloved jeepney drivers better known as Hari ng Kalsada. An interesting part of the race was a team indeed named Hari ng Kalsada and composed of real jeepney drivers. Hmm, were they part of the real life scenario (and err .. obstacles) of Philippine roads? Hehe! Well, not quite as they were among the most behaved teams that participated (none of the hot headed finger-pointing and shoulder to shoulder contact apparent on other teams). They were like angels from the start and the myth of Hari ng Kalsada debunk as they failed to even make top three. Kudos Kabayan!
Party like a race kart driver!
Tuner lifestyle was encouraged to give color to the race. Being an overnight event, the City Kart Race Track bar was opened to serve booze and give spectators the party of their lives. There were ladies who came in clubbing attire. Threatening rains kept the party indoors however. Hot music bands provided entertainment including Sinosikat. House music and hiphop played in between bands all night long.
Final Outcome
It’s not how you start but how you finish. Top recorded individual time belonged to CKR Juniors team members whose ages ranged from 15 to 18 but teamwork prevailed as the trophy ended up with PLDT Track Love which completed 701 laps at almost 1PM, almost fourteen hours of non-stop racing! The gap between the first and second placers was only about one to two laps apart.
First Place – PLDT Track Love
Jovy Hernandez
Vic Icasas
Pasi Riipinen
Julian Van Haesiujk
Second Place – Team Nobac
Mike Asuncion
Jet Calosing
Pep Sandejas
Brian del Val
Roby Benito
Third Place – CKR Juniors
Carl “Slick” Luig
Yna Carangan
Jolo Aranas
Lars Hernandez
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