Chaguanas drag racer Rishi Kanick is hoping to make history next weekend when he becomes the first local to race a nitro-methane-powered Top Alcohol dragster in the United States.
The Enterprise resident, who leaves today for Virginia, earned his A-Fuel dragster license last year, after clocking 5.62 seconds during his license run.
Kanick was knocked by the critics when he then claimed to be the "fastest Trini" behind the steering wheel of a dragster after his sterling performance.
He said, "Come next weekend, the critics will have to stay quiet," since he plans to beat the 5.62 second time when he hits the drag strip at Richmond on the weekend of April 11-14.
Kanick not only plans to grab a few titles at the regional meet at Richmond but also advance to the national leg of competition hosted by the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association), the body that governs US drag racing.
"While there are other locals who have raced dragsters in the United States, I will be the first in the region to be racing a nitro-methane vehicle," he said.
Kanick describes the vehicle as very explosive. "You are sitting in front of an explosion that pushes the vehicle forward at speed upwards of 250 miles per hour," said Kanick, who purchased the car for $2 million from Sidey Frigio, a top Brazilian drag racer, he meet in 2005.
He said Frigo has moved up from nitro-methane racing and is now racing top fuel cars that can cover the dragstrip in less than 3.8 �seconds at more than 325 mph.
Kanick hopes to be racing top fuel cars in the near future.
He started racing in 2005 on the local tracks with the Llumar Rail, a $600,000 dragster that he imported from Miami. He attained a top time of 6.9 seconds for the quarter-mile run.
"When tracks at Wallerfield and Camden were closed, I looked outside and with the help of Frigo, I tasted racing in the United States."
He was the TTASA's 2008 Sportsman of the Year and champion driver in Open Class, after capturing 16 open-class trophies.
Kanick said after Richmond he plans to race in Charlotte, before moving on to several races in the next three months. He hopes to compete at the NHRA national meet at Las Vegas, Nevada, and carry a large contingent from T&T to see him in action in Sin City.
Schedule
April 11-14: NHRA regional race. Richmond, Virginia
April 19-21: NHRA national race, Charlotte, North Carolina
June 28-30: NHRA national race, Chicago, Illinois
August 2-4: NHRA National, Seattle
August 28 - September 2: NHRA national race, Indianapolis, Indiana
September 13-15: NHRA national race, Charlotte, North Carolina