17 augustus 2009Countdown to the start of the 24 Hours: on and off track!
The 31st edition of the 24 Hours of Zolder is now knocking at the door. As from 8 o'clock on Wednesday morning technical scrutineering will take place at Circuit Zolder, and as from early afternoon the first free practice sessions will be held, followed by a lengthy and spectacular evening qualifying session which can be watched free of charge. The starting grid for this 31st edition is of a high quality level, with all top Belgians present, and the organisers hope to have some 30 odd cars registered by Wednesday.
Christian Lahaye (Speedworld Promotion): "The assignment was more difficult than expected, but we're still working at it. We had hoped for more cars, however the rather tardy agreement with SRO International meant that we weren't able to start 'working' on the event sooner and this obviously didn't play into our hands. In this difficult economic climate budgets are no longer that large and then adding a 24 hours race in the middle of the summer, is not ideal for any team. We look upon this edition as a transitional edition towards next season and we will try to gather as much experience as possible in order to make 2010 into a great race, with a well filled grid."
Regarding the starting grid, and as previously mentioned all the big names out of the Belgian GT, BTCS and Dunlop Endurance Cup are on hand. The trendsetters of these three championships have featured on the bill for a while, but in the meantime a few other reputable and less well known names have been added to the list. Amongst others Jean-François Hemroulle and Tim Verbergt, the numbers two in the intermediate Belgian GT Championship rankings, have found shelter with Speedlover, where they will compete together with Jurgen Van Hover in a Porsche 997 GT3 Cup, allowing them to score points for the championship. Ostend Racing, Erik Qvick's team is entering a BMW M3, whilst Recy Racing Team and Rudolph Racing will respectively be entering an economical, but fast BMW 120d and a Renault Clio in Zolder. MTE Racing is going for a Solution F S2. Quite a few teams have also completed their line-up and as such we note amongst others Henk Haane (First Motorsport Porsche), Eddy Renard (KS Motorsport BMW), Kenneth Heyer (AD Sport Viper), Kurt Mollekens (Delahaye Ferrari)... appearing on the entry list.
There is also interest being shown from abroad for these 24 Hours of Zolder. The entry of the BMW M3 GTR of Moore International Motorsport had been announced previously, but we now also need to add the entry of a British Mosler (Topcats) and a Dutch Renault Mégane Silhouette (Verschuur). It will be interesting to see how these foreign teams compete up against the Belgian brigade.
In addition to the 31st edition of the 24 Hours of Zolder itself, there will be a fair amount of activity and entertainment going on up and around the Limburg circuit on 22nd and 23rd August. On the sporting side there is the third meeting of the Belgian Renault Clio Cup, where true to form close racing is the order of the day, as also the fifth meeting of the thrilling GT4 European Cup, for the second time this season guests in our country, and last but not least the Euroseries 3000 where super fast single-seaters will be battling it out.
The spectators of these 24 Hours of Zolder will also be able to enjoy life to their hearts' content in the paddock. Marketing Manager of Circuit Zolder, Walter Goossens explains:
"Once again a great family feast, that's what Circuit Zolder is trying to make out of this 24 Hours of Zolder. In addition to the well-filled and top quality programme at the circuit this year we are also offering a wide panoply of musical and entertainment activities. The musical programme is extensive and varied (see under), but there is also a fairground with an amusement park and bumper cars, lambada, children's buggies, Benji Car Dropping as also a Playtrain for the smallest children. And because the eyes also need entertainment, the Belgian Bikini Car Wash championship is being organised on the Saturday. But there's more. During the 24 Hours of Zolder there are 31 x 24 prizes to be won, amongst which: tickets for the Truck Grand Prix, FIA GT, WTCC 2010, circuit christenings, and lots more. To compete in these you need to run through the event's programme paper in great detail!"
Should you wish to run through all this information at your ease, keep abreast of the action or enjoy the photographs of these 24 Hours of Zolder just check out the website www.24u.be. True to tradition the VZW 24u.be are pulling out all the stops in order to keep one and all up-to-date.
See you at Zolder this weekend!
Musical programme:
Saturday
19.00 - 19.30 Lasgo
19.30 - 20.15 Frères Deluxe - set 1
20.15 - 20.55 Sylver
20.55 - 21.40 Frères Deluxe - set 2
21.40 - 23.40 Zohra
23.40 - 01.40 La Fille d'O
01.40 - 03.40 Laston & Geo
Sunday
13.30 - 15.00 Axel Daeseleire
15.00 - 16.30 DJ Robert Abigail
16.30 - 17.00 AnnaGrace
17.00 - 18.25 Squadra Bossa feat Buscemi
