JEDDAH: The Saudi Arabian Formula Team (SAIF) stormed onto the local and world F2000 World Cup Powerboating scene at Obhur on Wednesday with a blistering charge from 14th place to second.
Delayed by the reluctance of cold engine to fire up on the start line - because of the slow arrival of other drivers to settle - driver Colin Jelf flying the Saudi colors got the bit between his teeth and drove what his team-mates described as “his best race in years” and brought the thousands of cheering spectators to their feet.
“I have to admit, I was pushing it, I was right on the edge,” said an exhausted Jelf at the end of the race. The second place just behind Alex Carella of Italy who drove a flawless race in the Steel Trade boat puts Jelf now on 48 points just one point away from his third consecutive world championship. The win is good news for Carella who blew his engine up in Riga, Latvia at the last meeting. Michael Nylund came third in the Red Devil boat breaking his duck for the year scoring 16 points.
The deciding race will be in Malaysia on December 14.
The crowds were treated to a masterful display of powerboat driving by Jelf who was by far the fastest in the field.
Taking seemingly impossible tight inside lines around the turns and at times pulling up to five times the force of gravity laterally, Jelf pushed the boat to its absolute limit of aerodynamic stability. Slicing through the field the green and white of the SAIF team was cheered to the echo by the crowd who gave continuous noisy support. In the pits, his engineers and father Ted Jelf, used to similar displays of bravado, were unusually quiet.
The Obhur meeting saw the first outing for the newly formed four man Saudi team.
The husband and wife team Colin and Jenny Jelf will share their many years of experience with the young Saudis in training and will manage it. Jenny Jelf, who will provide instruction in the F2000 rules and race management said that the December round of the championship will see the recruits more deeply involved in the race procedures. “We hope to have them in boats during the 2009 season,” she said.
Ms Hadil Bougany, who runs a successful advertising agency in Jeddah, was the initiator and driving force in bringing about the formation of SAIF. Now sanctioned by the Supreme Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, the team is ready to train and make its presence felt on the racing scene.
“I am very happy to see this new team, since last years F2 races we were thinking about starting a team, and now we have authorization to make go ahead” said Bougany. The team manager of the Saif team, Mr Loai Bafageeh, a marketing manager from Jeddah, made his intentions clear to make the best possible representation for the Kingdom in International powerboat racing.
“As a team we are honored to have been given this opportunity and we will do our best to make Saudi Arabia proud and we look forward to a great future together with the team”.
In all the tension and circus that surrounded the race, no one was more proud of Jelf’s storming second place than Ben Jelf, Colin’s eight year old son whose first visit it was to Saudi Arabia but who is a veteran already of the Formula 2000 circuit and drives a scaled down boat. Holding the handsome cup that denoted the placing he beamed; “That’s my dad; future champion, me!”
