Russian street racers turned into professional sportsmen
Published 31 January, 2008, 09:42
Despite the cold weather, slippery roads and tighter driving laws, there are drivers in Russia who can't wait to hit the streets. To help solve the problem professional racing teams are now trying to turn street racers into sportsmen.
For years Moscow's road police have been battling street racers. Illegal contests used to take place on quiet roads close to villages disturbing local people and increasing the number of car accidents. Local authorities even decided to legalize street racing and labeled it a sport. It became a competition controlled by road police, which some say removed the thrill.
However, it looks like for most of the drivers it’s more of a chance to show off than to compete. Professional sportsmen say that even though there are many talented drivers in Russia, motor sport is developing very slowly.
Russian Touring Cars championship
“The main problem is that Russia lacks tracks for all kind motor sports: off-road racing, rallying, touring car racing. More and more people are getting into motors port but there are no places to train,” professional racer, Andrey Sevastianov from B-Tuning Racing Team said.
Yet there some enthusiasts who are trying to popularize motor sports among Russians and take youngsters away from back street racing.
“After causing a serious car accident I understood that basic driving school is not enough to be a good driver. So I decided to take some extreme-driving lessons. I loved it so much that I ended up joining a sports team and I am hoping to start participating in racing championships,” former reckless driver, Yulia Ekimova, said.
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