Shane Lawrie
Girls and boys aged between 12 and 17 will be eligible to attend a free Racing Together open weekend at the Norwell Motorplex on the Gold Coast on 21-22 May, when their potential as team members will be assessed.
Organisers are seeking candidates for roles as mechanics, engineers, logistics and communications crew and tyre technicians, with one also having the chance to train as a racing driver.
A further place will be allocated for an appropriate person with high academic potential to be supported to study motorsport-related engineering at university.
The not-for-profit Racing Together program was founded in late-2020 by international motorsport identities Garry and Monique Connelly. The team now fields a Hyundai Excel car in a one-make Queensland series and an all-girl kart team in the 4SS class.
Team members build, maintain, prepare and race their vehicles, with all costs from tyres to travel supported by Racing Together, Norwell Motorplex and commercial partners.
A successful first season saw the Hyundai team race not only locally but also at the Supercars Indigenous Round in Darwin and receive mentoring from some of the sport’s most successful representatives, including team owners Ryan Story and Roland Dane and team owner, Norwell operator and driver trainer Paul Morris.
The project is already on target with one of its main objectives, to provide a career path for its participants, with three of the initial members already employed in the automotive industry, two of them in Supercar teams.
In other developments, team members enjoyed a behind-the-scenes experience at the recent Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix. Shell fuels and lubricants national distributor Viva Energy will partner Racing Together in a three-year program to mentor 130 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander teenage boys and girls in motorsport, including in other parts of Australia.
Garry Connelly AM said the success of Racing Together meant the time was right to add fresh recruits to the program.
“The benefits of the Racing Together program have been proven after the first season and we’re ready to take the next steps. Our girls and boys have made a tremendous effort and been rewarded with success; for some it has changed their lives,” he said.
“We plan to add a second Hyundai to the team soon and we have other new projects in the pipeline in line with our ambition to make a difference to the lives of these young people and show them the potential for a motorsport career.”
The two-day intensive training, education and selection programme at Norwell Motorplex will start at noon on Saturday and finish around 4pm Sunday. An application form to attend will be available to download from the website www.racingtogether.org from Monday 25 April.
Candidates successful in joining the team will be required to commit to continue their school or tertiary education.
Racing Together is supported by Indigenous organisation Gunyah Meta and Motorsport Australia.
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