Setelah selesai bantuin seorang kolega di daerah Jakarta Selatan
(urusan otomotif tentunya), di hari Minggu yang cerah dan gak biasa ini, gue
dan Ario memutuskan untuk pergi ke Sirkuit International Sentul yang terletak
berdekatan dengan Kota Bogor. Kenapa gue bilang hari Minggu ini gak seperti
biasanya? Karena hari ini dimulainya kalendar balap 2018 Indonesia Sentul
Series of Motorsport atau yang dikenal juga sebagai ISSOM, sebuah seri balapan
selama 2018, terdiri dari balapan klub, kejuaraan dan kejuaraan nasional yang
dibagi menjadi beberapa kelas.
It was a bright Sunday morning when Ario and I were just finishing a favor for a friend in the South Jakarta area. It wasn’t your ordinary Sunday. It was race day at Sentul International Circuit, just slightly out of town near Bogor. This Sunday marked the start of the 2018 season of Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport, a circuit racing series consisting of club races, championships, and national championships of a variety of classes.
Setelah mampir ke pom bensin
terdekat dan mengisi 20 liter,
gue cukup bersemangat karena akhirnya bisa pergi ke sirkuit Sentul lagi setelah
bertahun-tahun absen. Perjalanan selama 20 menit menuju Sentul
ternyata menjadi peluang buat kita
berdua untuk melihat mobil yang gak biasa
sepanjang jalan tol Jagorawi, hampir semuanya menuju ke sirkuit, walaupun kebanyakan dari mobil tersebut cuma E36, Brio, atau Yaris.
I filled up my puny 20-liter tank and scurried onto the highway,
eager to finally get back to a race track after all these years . Sure enough,
the quick 20 minute trip became a small window of opportunity to spot unusual
and/or modded cars throughout the Jagorawi highway, all headed to the track,
though they mostly consisted of your typical E36’s, Brio’s, and Yaris’.
Antrian panjang mulai terasa
waktu kami memasuki gerbang sirkuit, akhirnya setelah cukup lama antri, masing
– masing dari kami membayar Rp. 50.000 untuk sebuah gelang / pass all access ke
paddock dan tempat untuk menonton. Cukup padatnya mobil di parkiran Sirkuit
Sentul bikin gue makin bersemangat lagi.
Coming up to the circuit entrance, there was a long line of said cars encountered on the way here, queuing up to pay for entry. Much to our surprise, we each only had to pay Rp. 50,000 for a bracelet pass for a full access of the paddock and spectating areas. The parking lot was quite packed that day, with a couple of cars here and there that tickled my fancy.
Saat itu sudah jam 11 siang dan
langit lagi cerah-cerahnya di Sentul, akhirnya gue parkir dan memutuskan untuk
langsung menuju area paddock. Setelah sampai paddock, apa yang terlihat
seterusnya adalah hal yang amat sangat gue kangenin selama ini, keramaian,
orang lalu lalang naik-turun ke pit, balapannya itu sendiri, mobil operasional
keluar masuk paddock dan suara pengarah balapan yang tenggelam diantara suara
bising knalpot dari segala penjuru. Suatu hal yang bikin gue senyum-senyum
sendiri.
It was already 11 o’clock by now, and the skies couldn’t seem to get any clearer, with the sun beating down on my head, I parked my car and we headed right into the paddock area. The scene before my eyes instantly put a delighted grin on my face, it was what I’ve been longing to witness: The market-like hustle and bustle of people going up and down the pits, race and operational cars driving up and down the paddocks, and the slightly inaudible voice of the race caller drowning in the non-stop wave of crackling straight-pipe exhausts coming from all directions.
It was already 11 o’clock by now, and the skies couldn’t seem to get any clearer, with the sun beating down on my head, I parked my car and we headed right into the paddock area. The scene before my eyes instantly put a delighted grin on my face, it was what I’ve been longing to witness: The market-like hustle and bustle of people going up and down the pits, race and operational cars driving up and down the paddocks, and the slightly inaudible voice of the race caller drowning in the non-stop wave of crackling straight-pipe exhausts coming from all directions.
Waktu jalan-jalan di paddock, gue
baru sadar bahwa dibawah tenda pit, gak ada yang namanya alat-alat dan crew
yang terlihat fancy, gak ada umbrella girls yang seliweran, gak ada liputan
media dan bahkan minimnya spanduk sponsor yang digantung. Apa yang gue lihat
justru Cuma ada tumpukan parts dan alat-alat, beberapa kursi plastic, pembalap
yang lagi ikutan bongkar dengan mekanik serta teman mereka dan beberapa anggota
keluarga, para istri dan anak.
As I made my way through the paddocks, I couldn’t help but notice the area where the tented pits were. No fancy equipment and crew members, no umbrella girls hanging around, little to no media coverage, and barely any sponsor banners hanging. Instead, in each pit, there were just a small pile of tools and parts, a couple plastic chairs sitting about, drivers working on their car alongside their mechanics and/or friends, and what looked like one or two family members, probably their wives or kids.
Salah satu penghuni tenda pit yang
benar-benar menarik perhatian gue
adalah seorang pembalap dengan Corona GL berwarna hitam dan mengikuti kejuaraan
Super Touring Divisi Pertama.
Sebuah hal yang cukup aneh dan gak biasa. Gue berharap untuk bisa ngobrol sama
pembalap tersebut dan mungkin suatu saat nanti dia dan mobilnya bisa gue liput
dan masuk di blog ini.
One of the tented pit inhabitants that really caught my attention would be the guy with the black Toyota Corona GL racing in the First Division Super Touring Championship. A true oddball to say the least. Really looking forward to having a chat with the dude when we get a chance, and maybe have him and his car featured up in here some day.
Habis lihat pembalap dan Corona GL tersebut, gue sempet berhenti dan mikir sesaat, apakah ini esensi dari sebuah balapan? Menghabiskan weekend sama
teman dan keluarga yang memiliki kesenangan terhadap mobil, saling
dukung satu sama lain dan berani
untuk ikut terlibat langsung. Setidaknya pemikiran itu jadi ekstasi beroktan
tinggi buat gue sendiri.
I stopped for a second and thought to myself, this might just be how racing is truly meant to be enjoyed, spending a whole weekend with friends and family who share the same joy in cars, supporting each other through thick and thin, getting your hands dirty and a bruised knuckle or two, just pure high octane ecstasy, well, at least to me.
Satu mobil lagi yang bikin gue
sangat antusias adalah Alfa Romeo GTV ini, yang dibawa sama pembalap senior
Robert Paul, juara bertahan kelas Super Retro tahun lalu. Mobil balap yang satu
ini sudah dilengkapi sama parts dari Alfaholics, gak heran Alfa Romeo yang satu
ini gak terkalahkan sampai saat ini.
Another car that absolutely tickled my fancy would be this Alfa Romeo GTV driven by Robert Paul, the reigning champion of the Super Retro Class. Fully fitted with Alfaholics parts, it's no wonder the Alfa stays unbeatable. At least for the time being.
Selain situasi di paddock, aksi
balap beroktan tinggi ini sudah berlangsung
dari 8.30 pagi. Kami berdua gak sempat untuk menonton
beberapa balapan yang
berlansung di pagi hari seperti Kejuaraan Balap Mercedes Benz Club Indonesia, Japan Super Touring Championship, Euro 2000,
Super Touring Championship Divisi 2, dan Honda Jazz-Brio Speed
Challenge, tetapi kami mendapat
kesempatan untuk menonton balapan Indonesia Touring Car Championship, Super
Touring Divisi I (dikenal juga sebagai balapan Pasar
Senggol buat kalian
yang sering nonton ISSOM), Indonesia Touring Car Championship 1600 Max,
Euro 3000, Indonesia Retro Race, dan balapan terakhir yang gak kalah penting, Old Skool
Racing Championship. Gue gak yakin kenapa dua kategori
balapan yang menjadi favorit gue, baru mulai
paling di akhir jadwal balapan hari itu, apa karena kurang seru untuk
dilihat, tetapi apapun itu
kami berdua tetap nonton semuanya sampai selesai.
Paddock situation aside, the high octane racing action had been well underway since 8:30 in the morning. We had missed watching the first couple of races such as the Mercedes Benz Club Indonesia Race Championship, The Japan Super Touring Car Championship, Euro 2000, Super Touring Championship Divisi 2, and the Honda Jazz Brio Speed Challenge, but we were just in time for the Indonesia Touring Car National Championship, First Division Super Touring Championship (also known as Pasar Senggol to Sentul regulars), Indonesia Touring Car 1600 Max, Euro 3000, Indonesia Retro Race, and last but not least, the Old Skool Racing Championship. I wasn’t quite sure if the committee deliberately saved my two favorite categories last in the schedule, or if they were just the least spectated classes, but either way we stuck around until the end anyways.
