Owner Gary Kwong and the Speed-Fanatics Motorsports team have big plans for 2020 after a very successful 2019 race season where several racers completed their required novice races, obtained their senior race licences and competed very well with the Sports Car Club of British Columbia (SCCBC) regulars at the Mission Raceway Park road course in Mission, BC.
Speed-Fanatics driver Joe Bowen completed his novice program in 2019 in a Spec Miata and won the SCCBC novice of the year award. In 2020, he will be running with the big boys in the No. 007 Van Diemen Formula Continental (FC) class, which has become a very popular class in the last few years.
Owner Gary Kwong from Richmond, BC was the 2018 SCCBC closed-wheel champion in his Subaru STI and winner of the 2019 Abbotsford Cup in a Protoform Formula Vee. He is also moving up to the FC class in the team’s No. 17 Van Diemen FC.
Wynn Hollingshead of Coquitlam, BC joined the team in 2019 and will be completing his novice program in 2020 in one of the team’s Spec Miatas. He will be continuing to practice in his No. 888 Van Diemen FC class car and should be competing in that class later in the year. Doug Morgan from Lake Country, BC was the SCCBC novice of the year in 2018 and built and raced a Spec Porsche Boxster in 2019 with Speed-Fanatics. He finished third overall in the SCCBC Improved Production 2 class and, in 2020, hopes to be challenging for the overall championship in his reliable Porsche.
Gord Murphy from Salt Spring Island, BC finished second overall in Improved Production 2 in 2019 driving his beautiful No. 88 Spec Porsche Cayman and is hoping to challenge Nixon Prosports racer Sterling Land for the IP2 championship in 2020.
Ricky Tam completed his novice program in 2018 and is a young talent with lots of drifting background. He raced one of the team’s Spec Miatas in a few races in 2019 and, in 2020, will be racing the teams all-conquering No. 171 Acura Integra in the IPE class, with plans to be competitive with Nixon Prosports Carlos Tesler Mabe in his factory-built Honda Civic.
Three new drivers will be joining the team in 2020 and taking driver training, competing in the 2020 novice race program and will become licensed senior racers as the season progresses. Speed-Fanatics would like to welcome Russell Fok, Zhou Pei and Basil Santamaria to the team, who will be competing in the team’s Spec Miatas and Acura Integra.
Also new to the team in 2020 is talented simulator racer Yue Lang, who took her driver training in 2019 and, in 2020, will compete in the team’s No. 17 Spec Miata. Also joining the team is Nobuyoshi Torigoe, another good simulator racer with lots of autocross experience. He will be racing the full season in the No. 71 Spec Miata.
In addition to racing, the Speed-Fanatics team is also actively involved in organizing high performance driver education (HPDE) events at the Mission Raceway Park road course and the Vancouver Island Motorsport Circuit to promote proper high-speed driving techniques. Participants are encouraged to drive within their capabilities while exploring and improving their car control Skills. Novices are paired with seasoned instructors to help them learn the basics of track safety and high-performance driving.
Karting is the standard venue where countless top drivers started their motorsports career. For 2020, Speed-Fanatics is delving into this new venture to bring up the next generation of the fastest and most skilled drivers the Canadian West Coast can offer. The team will be running several track days at Greg Moore Raceway in Chilliwack, BC for those who want to try driving a competitive Rotax kart or are looking to hone their driving skills.
For more information on all Speed-Fanatics programs, visit their website or email Gary Kwong and follow the team on Facebook and Instagram.
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