Run What You Brung races once more at Clark

THE late legendary car racer Kookie Ramirez started RWYB 17 years ago

IT WAS a nostalgic event at its best, but for the 112 participants who brought their cars to the Clark International Speedway last April 11, Run What You Brung (RWYB) was a fulfillment of a life long dream at the tracks.

The amateur bracket-racing event was a vision of the late, legendary car racer Kookie Ramirez. He started RWYB 17 years ago with the hopes to instill one’s love for speed, and discover hidden tal- ents among car enthusiasts through grassroots racing.

The mechanics of the race are quite simple: It places a premium on consistency of performance of the driver and car rather than on raw speed, and more dependent on mechanical and driving skill, such as reaction times, shifting abilities, and ability to control the car.

This format allows for a wide variety of cars racing against each other. Bracket racing classes can be simpler, and can accommodate any vehicle with basic technical/safety inspection.

The series proved not only to be very popular, but effective as well as. It was able to produce an exceptional breed of racers including Edwin Rodriguez who is now sponsored by Liqui Moly and competes in the national races.

The race, however, saw its last run in 2008 after the passing of the race’s passionate leader, as well as the closing of Subic International Raceway (SIR), the original home of RWYB.

Racing the dream

This year, however, with the hopes of the Ramirez family to continue the legacy of Kookie, and through the support of companies who believe in RWYB’s vision such as Liqui Moly, Run What You Brung once more conquered the tracks via the 2015 Liqui Moly Run What You Brung Event.

The race, now staged at the Clark International Speedway, once more fulfilled the dreams of participating drivers to race in a professional setting. One hundred and twelve different cars showed potential and skill as they conquered the racing circuit, each one doing their best to establish a record that they can call their own.

Cars of different brands, make, and models challenged their racing muscles as they pitted against other participants of the race. More than half of the racers were actually old participants of the original series held at SIR, so the event proved to be a nostalgic run for most of them as well.

The festive mood of the event was undeniable, with corporate support coming in to build the momentum. These groups included RhinoLip, GTRadial, Hyundai Paranaque West, Dynamics, ECW Perfor- mance, Rally Parts, Scuff Automotive, HP Racing, Rota, Mitsubishi Motors Philip- pines , Liquid Image, Cruven, Ton Cars, Brembo, Sabelt, Speed Lab and Romtek Automotive.

Adding meaning to the event, was the role of Kookie’s equally-passionate son, Stefan Ramirez, reprising the role of his father.

Stefan Ramirez, left, reprising the role of his father, at Run What You Brung.

“We were extremely surprised with the turnout, especially happy to see so many familiar faces of our old competitors who came just to show their support. We are also amazed with the number of new competitors and very happy to hear how much they enjoyed our event. Also if not for our partnership with Liqui Moly and our other sponsors, our event would not happen.