Palma.—Later this year, at least one team of gokart racers from KartForce, a charity founded by Dave Player, to get injured troops into the exciting world of Motorsport through Karting, is going to be coming out to race in can Piacafort.
Dave is ex-Army, having served five years in the Royal Engineers and has been a wheelchair user since 1991 after suffering a spinal cord injury and yesterday he said that he would really like to bring two teams of lads to compete as it would be a great way to end the season.
And Dave contacted the Bulletin in an attempt to engage the British community here on the island and see if expatriates living there would be interested in helping the lads out by making donations to help us cover the costs or in any way which would make their stay on the island more enjoyable.
"The whole aim of this charity is to get the lads to focus on what they can do as opposed to what they can’t and racing gives tham a massive boost because we are always racing against able bodied teams, quote often professionals, last year, we beat a McLaren team, in their annual kart race.
"Unlike the Paraolympics, for example, we’re up against the best and the fittest and we’re currently running in third place in the Inter Services JKarting championship and our ultimate aim is to take place in Le Mans, Dave said.
In the meantime, either one or two of KartForce’s teams will be competing in a three hour race in Can Piacfort on 30 October and then a 12 hour race on 1 November.
Some of the drivers have a great deal of experience despite having suffered servere wounds.
The majority are aged between 23 and 29 and were wounded while of active service in Afghanistan, only one was wounded in Irak.
Driver Martyn Compton who served with the Household Cavalry Regiment, suffered 75% third degree burns,and two gun shot wounds to my right femur during an ambush in 2006.
Mark Allen served with the 1 Royal Anglian - "Vikings" .
He was injured in January 2010 in Afghanistan from an IED blast, however that has not stopped me from doing anything that I want to do like karting.
He is a double above knee amputee and is missing left thumb.
To help or more infomation contact dave@kartforce.org or visit www.KartForce.org