Motorsport Barbados

I remember way back when I was in my early twenties being given a first lesson in the art of drag. Drag racing was fairly new, and sort of exclusive, as there was limited scope for it in the hills on the East Coast where the more popular dirt bike was ensconced. Added to that was the necessary outlay and greater cost if your car got damaged.

Fast-forward to May 8, 2022 and imagine my delight to read that Barbados is planning to let Motorsport do for it what Surfing has.

The Soup Bowl in Bathsheba has become one of the best known places for surfing in the island due to regional exposure and international competitions, and the island’s association with the World Surfing League (WSL) enhanced it as a surfer’s paradise with many visitors and locals. The professional sportsmen dropping into the waters that surround our gem find themselves flipping waves with the best of Barbados’ surfers, a great percentage of whom are themselves WSL qualifiers.

Motorsport

or Rallying, as most refer to it, is to be placed now even higher on the world wide calendar for our island .

The concept is of a “Motorsport Island“.

Video: barbadosmotorsport.com

If you happen to be on the island right now or taking a Virgin Atlantic trip in the next couple of days, check out the Drag Racing (BADD) and Kart Race Meet (BKA) on the 15 May, while the King of the Hill is on the 29 May. Autocross was on the 7 May, but you will still get to see why Motorsport in Barbados is definitely headed to a higher level with the much deserved input from the “powers that be.”

Way back when, as in most things, this extreme sport was for leisure pleasure and a thrill. We then became a world-class Motor Sports destination, e.g. Top Gear Festival, the Race of Champions and Red Bull Global Rallycross Competition, with a far better arena.

However, now more than ever, Motorsport also is for sustaining our viability as a vacation spot for tourists.

I wonder though, is there a measurable carbon footprint to this giant step?

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