The weekend of 8th-9th October saw more activity for the ‘Christians in Motorsport’ Ferrari Team.
The last two rounds of the 2005 British GT Championship were crucial for a number of reasons.
As far as the racing was concerned, the team needed a strong finish in both races to make a challenge for second overall in the GT3 class of the championship. With regular second driver Allan Simonsen racing in the Bathhurst 1000 in Australia, ex ‘BoyZone’ pop star Shane Lynch was drafted in to take his place alongside Hector Lester.
The pressure was on from the word go and matters were made no easier by Shane’s lack of track time having not been in the car for over two years and in addition the team struggled to find a quick set up for the car over the national circuit. Leaving the pit garage for qualifying on Saturday the car sounded distinctly unhappy, things were not looking good. However qualifying turned out to be more positive than expected and the car took 7th on the grid, not as much as could have been expected but a good effort in the circumstances.
Saturday’s race was, in true Silverstone style, a complete deluge. On the formation lap and into the rolling start, visibility was so poor that the drivers complained of not being able to see the ‘High Visibility’ rear lights, even of the car directly in front of them. The race got underway and involved a number of big shunts in the wet, but was un-eventful for the CIM team. The tactics were to do a ‘safety drive’ and this worked out as hoped with the car being brought home in a cautious 7th place overall.
Sunday’s race saw Hector and Shane fighting tooth and nail with other similar Ferrari 360s, with racing about as close as it gets short of ‘panel bashing’. In the titanic struggle, the ‘Morgan Aero’ managed to slip away and finish in front of the Ferrari which took 9th place overall.
Although the car was a little off the pace over the weekend (obliterating the team’s normal challenge for a podium place), it was enough for the team to claim 3rd overall in the drivers championship. A resounding success, particularly for a small team in such illustrious company.
As well as the usual racing, the CIM Ferrari team were also busy at work with their mission of sharing the good news of the gospel with race goers, drivers and mechanics across the paddock. The weekend saw a very different style of outreach to previous events (which revolved around entertaining guests who responded to an ‘open-invite’). Instead the team awning was opened to all-comers with refreshments being served all day free of charge. ‘United Christian Broadcasters’ were on hand distributing copies of their ever popular ‘Word for the Day’ Bible notes and at set times both Hector and Shane gave interviews to the assembled crowds.
The interviews attracted considerable interest for several reasons. For the most part fans are not allowed anywhere near the cars and drivers in the busy environment of the paddock and so to find a team that was open to all certainly had a draw, coupled with the chance to meet the drivers (and no doubt the reputation of a certain singer) meant that a large crowd assembled at the awning for the interviews. CIM Team member Andy Clark quizzed Hector and Shane about the day’s driving, strategy for the race and most importantly asked them to share a little of their journey to faith and how it came to be that they were pleased to be called ‘Christians’.
Shane was immediately at home behind the microphone and spoke movingly about the state of his life leading up to the point at which the Lord intervened. He spoke of his life as a lonely and broken individual who knew that no man could provide answers.
So, having discounted mankind as the answer he turned to the only other source of help he knew – God himself. He pinned his own troubles down to the fact that he “wasn’t talking to the boss”, as he put it. Shane visibly demonstrated the life that Jesus speaks of as he animatedly spoke of his rescue and the changed life that he now leads. Hector too spoke movingly of the role that Jesus plays in his life and why he is unashamed to race a car emblazoned with ‘Christians in Motorsport’.
CIM PLANS FOR NEXT YEAR TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON
Following on from the success of this season, CIM are planning to build on the current format by working alongside at least two more independently-funded Christian drivers in various series. This will enable the Christian message to be taken out to a wider audience and allow for far greater numbers of people to be entertained and given ‘Gospel Hospitality’ at the races.
Consequently CIM are looking to recruit staff to run the outreach and cars. If you have a passion for motorsport and more importantly a passion to reach the lost then we’d like to hear from you. Contact details can be found at the bottom of this article.
Likewise, if you are a businessman with a brand or product to promote why not contact us to talk about how we can open up new markets for you, help develop a strong brand identity and at the same time further the work of the kingdom.
NOTES FOR EDITORS
CIM is a ‘not-for-profit’ organisation staffed by volunteers, all of whom are committed Christians. CIM work with existing Christian competitors to promote the gospel to a wide audience by using motorsport to reach people in the same way as the companies that sponsor racing cars. However, the outreach work of CIM is funded by the volunteers and drivers, rather than CIM funding the racing teams.
CIM can be contacted as follows:
Email: Sib@christiansinmotorsport.org.uk
Telephone: 07724 244202 (Finance & PR Director: Simon Butler)
