By Jehran Naidoo for Auto Rush
The KwaZulu-Natal racing community has stood by its word to keep the name and legacy created by Leeshen Naidoo of ‘Kwiklee Racing’ alive. In the 25 years he spent on earth, Lee Naidoo earned a reputation for being one of the fastest drag racers on the set.
This was through his many heavily modified vehicles, including a 2JZ mk4 Supra, a R35 Nissan GTR and even an old faithful mk1 Golf.
Lee passed away in 2019 from health complications.
A father yearns for his son
Five years later, his father Kruben Naidoo, sister Yurisa, and close friends like Myan Moodley of CPI, Shabeer “Scotty” Hoosen and Inny Khan of Joker Racing, have earnestly kept the flame that is Lee’s legacy alive and burning bright.
“Lee was my shadow from the time he was little. I raced a really fast 1400 bakkie that entered into the 8 second bracket in my day. Lee used to be my pit boy. His job was to strap me in and make sure everything was ready. He was on the race track from the time he was about 5-years-old. That is where he picked up his passion, “ Kruben Naidoo told Auto Rush.
Kruben occasionally takes part in race events nowadays and has “a warehouse filled with race cars” to choose from while Yurisa Naidoo drives a 9-second Audi TT RS.
EARNING HIS REP’
Lee earned his reputation for being one of the fastest after an incident at Dezzi raceway. Kruben said the parachute on his R35 Skyline deployed 20 metres after the start but he still managed to make an 8.9 second pass. The Skyline was also one of the first to make an 8.64 second pass at Tarlton Raceway.
“That was something he got international attention for. That’s when Kwiklee racing became a brand name if you ask me…
“It was at Dezzi and his Skyline was out on the day. It was grey at the time. The cable on the chute was not fastened properly and when he launched, about 20 metres after the line the chute popped out.
“He drove the car for 380m with a deployed chute and still managed to make an 8.9 second pass if I’m not mistaken. The car got banned from Dezzi after that for being too fast,” Kruben said.
KEEPING THE FLAME ALIVE
Inny Khan, who grew up close to Lee, was chosen to steer his 16v turbo Golf 1 on August 10, during the forward wheel drive shootout at Dezzi Raceway.
August 10 was also Lee’s birthday, giving the day even more meaning for all those in attendance from team Kwiklee Racing.
“It is always really emotional to be out there on the track racing with Lee’s cars. Regardless of the event that we are in, it’s hard for all of us to be there. His birthday was even more difficult to be there because its like I’m standing there watching all these cars go by and thinking about my son,” Kruben said.
THE RIGHT MAN FOR THE JOB
Kruben said Inny was chosen to drive because of his closeness with Lee and also because he is a magician (99% of the time) behind the wheel of a golf.
“Lee and Inny spent a lot of time together. They grew up next to each other from small and were always talking about cars. That is all they ever did or said back then. Inny grew up in front of me and I take him as a son. I know he has a way with the Golf 1’s and front wheel drive cars so if anyone was going to race it, it was going to be him,” Kruben said.
After sitting in the family’s warehouse for seven years, the red Golf 1 returned to the racetrack on Lee’s birthday. But not without effort, like a child, sometimes a car requires a village to get across the line.
Myan Moodley said: “This is a really emotional thing for me, for a lot of us. It’s actually something I shy away from talking about. That red golf we raced that day… it was not just the golf that we worked on together and built. It was every car he had from the time he started racing in that Scirocco.”
Kruben said the usual team, including Myan, Scotty, Inny and a few others all came together to get the golf prepared for the event. Leaving a race car in storage is leaving a Durban July winner in the stables instead of getting the wind in its hair.
Every race horse needs a jockey though. Enter Inny Khan.
“Lee was almost a bigger brother to me. I think because of how close we were, his dad didn’t want anyone else driving the car.
“It was the first time that Golf was out in 7 years. We all just wanted to get it going and now we are busy with some upgrades to it. It is going to be fitted with a Fueltech management and a SQS shifter with some small supporting mods to get it right.
“The family wants to do a 9 second pass with the car,” Inny told Auto Rush.
RED GOLF 1 SHINES AT FWD SHOOTOUT
The red Golf didn’t disappoint, neither did Inny, as he came up against another formidable force in the South African race scene, Denzil’s Auto. Naveshan Pather in a Golf 4 while Inny sat in Lee’s Golf 1.
For the first run, Inny shifted from first to second but then back into first gear so the race had to restart. On the second run, the crowd got to see what Lee’s golf was really capable of, as Inny and Naveshan took off and finished the race neck and neck.
Inny won the race by a 0.01 second margin. It was without a doubt, the race of the day.
Kruben said now that they’ve seen its potential, they plan on getting it “where it needs to be”.
“We have plans to get it, hopefully, into the mid 9 second bracket. The potential is definitely there.
“I made a promise to Lee before he died, in fact we all did, even my daughter Yurisa. I promised him that I would keep racing and keep the Kwiklee name alive until my last breath,” Kruben said.
Auto Rush