2018 Results Summary
Driver: Gabriel Elkayam
D.O.B.: 13/01/2013
November 2018 - DKC
Cadet Comer A
November saw the last night race at Dalby for the season. Despite being unwell with a nasty virus which had plagued him for several weeks, Gabriel was still keen to race. With clear instructions from the boy, we attended the final race meet for the year and he had a great time with his track buddies. There was stiff competition again this meet, having both Comer A and B groups racing simultaneously, with the added challenge of racing in reverse direction.
Even though Gabriel had never driven in reverse direction on the track and was sick as a dog, he still did very well. Out of four heats he managed to take two first and two second places, being awarded 1st on the podium at the end of the night. Needless to say, he was both exhausted and pleasantly surprised!
October 2018 - DKC
Cadet Comer A
A successful month was October! Gabriel attended another race meet at Dalby this month and managed to walk away with 2nd place on the podium. The competition were well prepared this time with some effective moves, but Gabriel still managed to steal away one of the heats, placing 2nd, 2nd, 2nd and 1st in the four heats. Although he was a little disappointed to not get onto the top step, he took away some good lessons in race craft and worked on his sportsmanship. Excellent job, little man!
September 2018 - DKC
Cadet Comer A
Gabriel has been out and about sampling other tracks over the past few months and loving it! On his first ever visit to the Dalby kart track Gabriel thrashed out some awesome lap times, winning 4 of 4 heats to take out first place overall for the day in the Comer A category. He sure gave that little JT Motorsport engine and Project X Racing JC chassis a workout!
Gabriel demonstrated an excellent understanding of race theory by finding the race line without instruction on an unseen track. Good on you, buddy! Best of all, Gabriel had a fabulous time making new friends at the track and was very proud of his achievements.
June 2018 - TKC Round 4
Cadet 9 Comer
What a weekend! Racing in the Cadet 9 Comer category, Gabriel qualified second place, with only 0.001 seconds between first and second position on the grid. Unfortunately, Gabriel got a DNF for the second heat due to a carburettor issue. In record time Gabriel’s kart was retrieved from the track by our good friend and kart racer, Tim Maguire, who was able to fix the problem and get him back on track for the next heat. There were several comments about Gabriel's pit crew being as efficient as a formula one team. Awesome job, mate!
Although the DNF placed him at the rear of the pack for the third race, Gabriel quickly worked his way back up to take second position - pretty solid work for a 5 year old on a sound legal engine. At the end of the day he took 2nd place on the podium and was very happy with his accomplishments.
Thanks to all his mates for a great race day! It was also fantastic to have Nan and Pa visit Gabriel at the track and he was very happy to show off his driving to them. Finally, thanks to our friends for the great company. Gabriel had a fantastic weekend of racing on his awesome little Project X Racing James Courtney kart and JT Motorsportengine.
May 2018 - TKC Round 3
Cadet 9 Comer
It was nail-biting action on track this weekend! Gabriel got his first ever podium... and it was 1st place!
This little man well and truly deserved his his trophy after the spectacular performance he put on in all four heats this weekend. What made this weekend interesting was that for the second heat a partial reverse grid order was implemented, which put Gabriel further down for the start, but he still managed to work his way up. He made heaps of awesome overtakes and even after a couple of decent spins, Gabriel recovered by working his way back up through the field. He fought like a lion and finally got his place on top spot!
Perhaps the most satisfying thing was to see Gabriel shaking hands with his competitors, thanking them for a great race and just having a fun time between heats with his pals. He always races clean and takes note of the rules and regulations of fair competition. We are so proud of the fine little man you are becoming, Gabriel!
Thank you to Jon Targett of JT Motorsport for a ripper little engine and great advice. Gabriel certainly made his JT work this weekend! Also, many thanks to William of Project X Racing for the at track support and the awesome setup on Gabriel's James Courtney chassis. Gabriel would also like to say a big thank you to both Dale and Adam of Pacific Kartsport for their expertise and advice over the past two years. Finally, thank you to Gabriel's buddies at the track with whom he has such a great time, both on and off the circuit.
March 2018 - TKC Round 2
Cadet 9 Comer
Round two started with Gabriel qualifying 2nd in the Cadet 9 Comer category. Gabriel raced clean and followed the regulations of the competition well. Unfortunately his times were not as good as in his recent practice days, but he still managed to finish 4th overall. Again, another awesome effort from a great little driver who is a clean and fair racer. Good on you, Gabriel. He's getting a little closer to that podium each and every race!
Thank you to Gabriel's racing buddies for the competition and good company.
February 2018 - TKC Round 1
Cadet 9 Comer
Green is the new black!
Gabriel has had a busy start to the year with starting school, celebrating his 5th birthday and getting used to his brand new JC kart from Project X Racing.
It has been a steep learning curve for Gabriel's pit crew (Mum and Dad) over the past six months and despite our best efforts, we don't always get to the root of the problem quickly enough.
Unfortunately, on this race weekend Gabriel's practice engine had an issue - possibly a bent crank - which caused the rear sprocket hub to bend sometime over the weekend. We were't really sure what was wrong with the kart at the time, so we tried problem solving but couldn't rectify the issue.
Although we had a spare race engine, we decided to lend that to a fellow Comer competitor as theirs was not working. The way we see it, it would be mighty unfair to have the other kid sit out a whole race day when there was another option. We also figure that there's no point winning simply because your fiercest competition has been let down by faulty equipment. Good, clean, fair racing is what kids karting should be about. We were very happy to see that young man step on the podium this weekend. Congratulations!
Despite Gabriel having issues with the sprocket hub, which ultimately prevented the rear wheels from turning freely, round one found him in 4th overall at the end of the day. A fantastic result considering all of the dramas. Well done, Gabriel!
