The Fast and the Farias

Published by admin on Fri, 07/22/2016 - 11:01
By: 
Phillip Harnden (jphillip@glenrockind.com)
“It’s like racing on black ice at 50 miles per hour” - Randy Faria
The crowd gasps between cheers as they watch their favorite drivers slip and slide around the track. The dedicated fans sit on the edge of their seats more than normal for this race.
But that is to be expected when the cars are racing in reverse.
That is what the enduro class of racing is all about; the unexpected. They often race around the track in the opposite direction as normal. Or they are slipping on a freshly watered track and avoiding large tractor tires placed on the dirt.
The rules on the track are much different than other racing classes when it comes to enduro.
Enduro racers put cheaper cars on the track, compared to other classes, as their cars get beat up regularly. But enduro racing isn’t for the faint of heart just because they don’t have large engines. It’s more about driving skill than big cars.
Enduro has no caution flag. If a car stalls on the track, or someone spins out, the race continues. The other racers just slip and slide their way around the downed car, trying not to be taken out themselves.
“It’s like racing on black ice at 50 miles per hour,” Randy Faria says.
Faria knows this all too well as the mid-20s racer is in his third year on Valentine Speedway as an enduro driver.
He slips and slides around the track each Saturday during the season. And as the name enduro indicates, this class races for more than just a few laps. The races can be up to 50 times around the track.
“It’s hard to keep your car in control,” Faria admits.
The wind turbine tech enjoys the class so much that last year he convinced his brother Ian Aldaugh to build a car for the class.
Faria also put a second car together and his wife Katie joins her hubby and brother-in-law on the track.
Although Faria has often been behind his brother at the finish this season – on the track they are adversaries, after all – once they get back to the pits, they are family.
“We help each other with our cars all the time,” Faria concedes.
They haven’t come up with a team name, but they are simply having too much fun racing to bother naming themselves.
“Enduro is so much fun, except when my brother beats me,” Faria says with a laugh. “I really love racing, even if I don’t win.”
Faria grabbed his latest victory July 9 with a first-place finish. He sits at 6th in standings for the current season. Faria and his family will be back on Valentine Speedway July 23.

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