Coimbatore :

In a first in the country, a 72-year-old active racer has won an award for completing 50 years in motorsports. Stepping into the 51st year of career, D Vidyaprakash is not ready to give up the sport anytime soon. He is gearing up for another round of racing competition, with eight races lined up for the championship this year in the saloon cars category.

Recently, Federation of Motor sports clubs of India (FMSCI) had felicitated him with an award. “It is a big honour for me. And receiving it from Jean Todt, who was the manager for the Ferrari team when Michael Schumacher won five times world championship, made it more special,” Vidyaprakash said. Jean Todt is also the president of the Federation Internationale de Automobile (FIA).

Ask Vidyaprakash what keeps him going and pat comes the answer – Racing. “Since my childhood, I loved to fiddle with parts of any machine and always worked to make it better. The same passion drew me to racing in which every year I wanted to come up with a better and faster car. The satisfaction that I get from racing cannot be matched with anything. My teammates, family and competitors are also a source of inspiration,” he said.

In 1980s, Vidyaprakash had almost retired from racing. “In 1990s, Karivarthan created a car and wanted me to test it on the track. He also gifted me the car and asked me to use it for the next race. There has been no looking back since then,” Vidyaprakash said.

Aware of his limitations that have come with the ageing, he said, “I know my reflexes are slower and eye sight is becoming weaker. I know where to draw the line and am careful at the racing tracks,” said Vidyaprakash. “I will continue to race until I feel I can,” he added.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Coimbatore News / TNN / February 13th, 2017