If you had nothing to do this weekend, the Extreme Festival at Zwartkops Raceway would have made a great family day outing. The day was action packed and clearly designed to have lots on offer for everyone!
On arrival, you would naturally want to get straight into the action and the best place to get started would be the pits, but you might get a little side tracked on the way. The karting track, which is on your left as you walk down the main causeway to the pit area was buzzing and screeching with the sounds of drivers taking theirs turns to wrestle the twisty and challenging track. A little further down to the left of the main pit area was the karting paddock, which played host to a collection of Subaru enthusiasts from the Subaru Owners Club of South Africa (SOCSA), who had brought their variously tuned mutations of “Scooby’s” for all to see. I wasn’t able to catch everything, but according to the program of events, these and other performance vehicles went up against each other doing various challenges on the main track and also on the skidpan gymkhana, which was open for all to have a go with their private cars after 1:30pm. The parking area of the paddock was also to host a “battle of the bands” later in the program.
Moving on towards the pits, a very necessary pit-stop for some food and drink would be at the “Aces Cafe”, so that you were topped up and ready for a few laps in the driving simulator which was located nearby. Finally, we’ve made it to the main pit area which plays host to everything from high performance super cars to classic racing motorbikes, not excluding the newer monstrosities taking part in the day’s racing events. Visitors were permitted to roam the pits freely and get up close and personal with drivers and their racing machines, which is always a treat not to mention the market stalls and beer garden which were located in the upper pit area with even more on offer for Mom and the kiddies. There was also a miniature drifting track designed for radio controlled cars as well as a “scalextric” track nearby for those who wanted to have a go.
Tired yet? I hope not, because we are still moving on and now we reach the sound-off area, playing host to some of the loudest cars in South Africa, competing to win honours as the loudest of all. If the sound is deafening, keep moving and you will reach the “Show and shine” area, which comprised of some really lovely cars on display, constantly being pampered by their owners on such a windy and dusty day. Wanna know how powerful your ride is? There was also a dyno machine standing by for anyone wishing to put their own vehicle’s power to the test. In fact, there was a Lamborghini Gallardo standing in the parking lot nearby and later on a sneak appearance was made by the new McLaren MP4-12C, I wonder what kind of power figures we’d have seen rolling off the dyno from those two…
We’re still moving on, and with the day’s main racing events complete, it’s now the turn of the SupaDrift crew to show off their highly tuned drift-spec machines around the upper portion of the track near the ZOC clubhouse. This event was well attended and was very exciting to watch these skilled drivers rip up their tyres to extract roaring applause from the crowd and earn top points for style and consistency in the process.
Had enough? If such an action packed day of motoring was not enough for you, fear not, because Zwartkops raceway will be hosting the next leg of Wesbank Super Series on the 25th August 2012. For more information on events taking place at Zwarktops raceway, visit their website at http://www.zwartkops.co.za.
