Champion racer Inshan back on track this year

ON entering the home of champion car-racer Inshan Mehaboob at Barrackpore, one thing stands out: the sight of over a dozen huge trophies  for winning races in TT and Barbados. Inshan smiled proudly as he pointed out the trophies that he won for being the TT Drag Race Champion in 2001 and 2002. After a break of four years, Inshan is revving to get back on the racetrack with his recently remodelled car and is preparing to drag race this year. A mechanic by profession, the 40-year-old has assembled his race car from scratch. Inshan has been experimenting with various equipment to get his engine running at a faster speed. He thinks he now has the right car to win drag racing in TT.

How did it all begin for Inshan? “I had a passion for cars even as a child. I was always fascinated by the way the engine works and by the different types of engines. I started off by gathering materials from various books and other car related documents,” he said. It is no wonder that Inshan is now one of the most sort-after mechanic in Barrackpore, having spent 25 years in the field. He owns and operates one of the largest car repair business in the southland. Through the years he has dedicated himself to learning mechanical engineering and can  deal with almost any kind of problem.

Reminiscing, he said when he approached his parents Kazim and Slyvia Mehaboob about being a racing driver they were devastated. “I guess they feared for me getting involved in terrible accidents,” he said. It was over 12 years after breaking the news to his parents that Inshan was able to get into a race. “I knew what I wanted and I knew I could do it. I got behind the wheels of my car and I drove as if I did it all my life,” he said. The very serious-looking Inshan said that he does not support drag racing on the roads of TT and has never been involved in this type of racing in his life. “Drag racing is for the tracks not the public roads and most times drivers end up dead or in a serious accidents when they take the chances on the public roads,” he said.

Commenting on the number  of road accidents, he said that there are too many young drivers who are not capable of controlling their cars. “They go at high speed taking all sorts of chances of being a ‘pro’ at driving and they end up in the ditch,” he said. With respect to  the maintenance of your vehicle, he advises every driver to service the vehicle every three months as this will allow the mechanic to pick up any thing that might be faulty with the vehicle. “Let’s face it there are bad roads everywhere in this country and cars will go bad within a given time. Drivers should check their vehicles often, in order to maintain a good working vehicle,” he said. He also said that owning a car is one thing but maintaining it is another thing. Inshan advised drivers to take charge of their vehicles and its maintenance in order to drive on the roads.