Teen motorcycle racers who had been creating a public nuisance by illegally taking over public roads now have a legal venue after former Buri Ram politician Newin Chidchob offered a standard track for them to compete on free of charge every Friday night.
About ten thousand of dek waen (street motorcycle racers) and sao sakoy (girls on pillion riders) across the country flocked to Buri Ram province on Friday night to race at a racing track behind the I-mobile International Race Circuit.
Mr Newin, the Buriram United president, offered teenagers the chance to race at his track as a way to keep street racers off public roads.
The track is opened for the motorcycle racing every Friday from 7pm to 11pm. Participating racers are required to strictly abide by rules set by the track management. All must wear crash helmets and boots or canvas shoes and refrain from getting into quarrels. Racing or lifting the wheels of their bikes outside the race track is banned.
Mr Newin said he opened the track so that the riders could show their racing skills on condition that they must not violate the law or cause a nuisance to others. He had done this for seven weeks on a trial basis and the number of racers joining in kept increasing. Most racers shared a common goal in that they wanted a venue for expression or to show off their racing skills.
He called on the public to understand the teen racers and give them a chance to prove their worth. He hoped that some might grow up to be professional motorcycle racers or gain racing championship titles in the future.
