Gavin Puren (31) of Margate was first inspired to try the sport of drifting when watching an event at Dezzi South Coast Raceway a few years ago.
Since then, he’s come pretty close to reaching number one spot in the country, with a third place finish in the national SupaDrift Series this year.
Things wrapped up at Carnival City in Boksburg last weekend, where Jim McFarlane was crowned champion (won by Shane Gutzeit last year) with Paolo Gouveia in second place.
Gavin lives (and thrives) in a competitive world, as his father Trevor and brother Brendan also race.
One day his son Seth (2) will probably get behind the wheel as well, as nothing was going to stop him joining his father on the podium.
Although Gavin missed out on the national prize, he did win the KwaZulu-Natal regional championships, so this was some consolation.
In fact, getting third spot overall came as a bit of a surprise as he missed the opening race of the season due to work commitments.
He said that as a team, many hours had been spent behind the scenes on the car set-up and making it as reliable as possible.
“With the help of Steve Clark from No Sweat Racing we have been able to get the cars to perform like a dream, mostly. We’ve had our setbacks but that’s motorsport, there’s always a little gremlin to be sorted out,” he said.
Gavin is competitive to say the least, and his love of drifting, and wanting to push himself harder and harder, saw him climb the rankings.
His brother and father are his main rivals and also his biggest supporters, so there’s a lot of good-natured banter that goes on.
“I’m pretty easy-going and calm … until I get to the start-line, then sometimes the nerves kick in,” he said.
Looking ahead, he said his team was busy with some changes on the cars, and maybe even acquiring a new one.
“Unfortunately, at the last Dezzi event my dad crashed his car and is busy with the new build as we speak, so he will be all ready for the new season,” he said.
Brendan is still fine-tuning his new car that he built at the start of the season and will be stronger and better next year.
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Stuart Gregory of Port Edward, better known for his two-wheel skills, has also joined the team in his new S15 and is doing really well.
He received driver of the day at Carnival City, qualifying for the Gymkhana GRiD (a Ken Block Spectacular) in November.
Gavin thanked his wife Juanette, family and sponsors for the support, making it all possible.
He thanked his many sponsors, including LiL Rich Transport, Tyre Mart Shelly Beach and Vanos BMW Parts Centre.
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