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That's Mike, Chris' dad, that you see through the rear window. He is an integral part of the Boersma Racing Team and helps keep the car running and Chris focused!2015 ended with Chris showing what the car was capable of with victories on both sides of the border – including destroying the street FWD record at Super Lap Battle. If you have not read that story, it is contained in the article 3.5 seconds. Then began the next race that all racers participate in during the off-season: preparing the car to be even better. Some drivers make little changes. Others, and Chris fits into this category, strip the car right down for a complete build. The main focus for Chris was two-fold: a weight reduction program and improved safety. Reducing weight simply meant if a part was not required, then it was gone. Safety meant that Eric designed and built a full cage for the car.
As driver's progress the speeds that are attained in Time Attack events become exceptional and safety equipment becomes a key to finding that extra little bit. Not only as it strengthens and stiffens the vehicle's chassis, but also as it provides a psychological benefit. Knowing that your car is well built and that you've got a safety cage around you removes that tiny bit of doubt. And you can go flat in that corner that you lifted in previously!The key guys who work on the Boersma Racing Civic are Chris' dad and Eric from R-Division. Eric is also the mechanical mastermind behind James Houghton's incredibly fast Integra Type R (We have to have an update on that car very soon.) Of course, Chris does a lot of work on the car too. But the key thing is that he now has years of working with Eric and a lifetime of working with Mike. He trusts them and knows that when he gets in the car and heads out to put down a flyer of a lap, that mechanically everything is going to be set up properly and that knowledge builds confidence. There have been some mechanical challenges – specifically the transmission – but there are always going to be mechanical challenges in racing. That is life. What Chris does not have to worry about are careless errors that sometime occur in the rush to get a car on the track. Eric and Mike make sure of that.
The Boersma Racing Civic is show quality material. Chris is meticulous and has high expectations about the appearance of his race car. He also wanted to simplify everything and, if it wasn't needed, remove it. That was the mantra that Eric had ringing in his ears went he went to town on the partially stripped car. Under the hood. In the cabin. The wiring harness. Stripped … cleaned up … simplified!
