At home on circuit

He is on track in what is one of the world’s toughest sports. Twelve-year-old Shahaan Engineer, great grandson of India’s former Air Marshal Aspy Engineer, lives in Dubai with father Sharokh, mother Nina and little brother Cyrus. The 1.2 km long Kartdrome at the world class Dubai Autodrome, where track temperatures sometimes soar to 66° Celsius and tyre temperatures can reach 90°, is what he calls a "home circuit.” "Shahaan puts in on average 40 hours track time (translated to 2,400 laps or 2,900 km) per month,” reports Tracktalk on www.dubaiautodrome.com which gives motorsport news from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Into the serious business of racing, Shahaan is "the first Parsi and the first Indian to drive the European Challenge at the age of 12…wearing the Indian flag colors on his helmet,” Sharokh informed Parsiana via e-mail.

Accelerating steadily since he first revved a kart in April 2007, Shahaan shot into the limelight in the first round of the Rotax Max Challenge in Dubai in February 2008 when he posted the fastest lap times in the practice sessions. A month later, during the Middle East Karting Cup, the lad was consistently quickest in all five practice sessions. "In the Rotax Max Juniors, it was again two UAE-based drivers who took the fight to the foreigners… Engineer posted the fastest lap in the first session. He was a whopping 2.3 seconds faster than his nearest rival and existing UAE-based junior champion — an astounding achievement for a driver who started racing karts for the first time this season. Engineer’s chief mechanic Richie McLeod says, ‘the kid is good, he is fast and he is brave. His feedback is that of a mature racer, precise and to the point. He is a young talent with great potential,’” states a press release from the Dubai Autodrome.

Shahaan Engineer (inset): skilled and spirited; on track in Belgium (alongside)

Due to commitments to test with top European team TKP, Shahaan was forced to miss out on the final as he was flying to France to test in Salbris. Thrust into the totally professional environs of the racing fraternity, Shahaan was quick to learn. "The biggest surprise of my day in Salbris was Shahaan’s performance in the rain; you can really see that he has the feeling with the kart. I am looking forward to work with Shahaan and Richie. Shahaan’s driving style looks promising, with the drive he has already, things can only get better,” Ton Vink, Team TKP boss, is quoted on Tracktalk. The lad’s performance also caught the eye of seniormost Team TKP member and world champion Ricardo Romkema. "I really like Ton Vink who works like five people at one time and the awesome driving style of Romkema,” Shahaan remarked about his trip to Salbris.

Speaking about his son’s as yet fledgling career Sharokh notes: "Shahaan is confident, persevering, consistent in pace, cautious and enthusiastic.” "I need to ace my starts and overtaking, as I am driving with the best drivers on their home circuits. I need more rain practice,” Shahaan analyses the areas of improvement. "My life to an extent is for my children also and since Shahaan first said to me ‘promise you will always support me in driving,’ I am at his disposal emotionally and financially because I believe in him. I have ensured that he has a full time world class trainer (McLeod is reputed as one of Australia’s best karters) and mechanic (without which competitive international racing is fruitless) and is part of one of the best international racing teams with the best equipment and backing,” declares the father.

Almost 80 years ago, "when my grandfather (Aspy Engineer) wanted to fly from London to Bombay at age 16, his parents gave their lives to further his and his younger brothers’ dreams,” asserts Sharokh. (Aspy Merwan Engineer won the Aga Khan trophy in 1930 for being the first Indian to fly solo from England to India in a Gypsy Moth. At age 17, he was the youngest Indian pilot at that time. Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in 1942, Engineer was appointed Chief of Air Staff in December 1960. He passed away in 2002). "In those days it was totally unheard of buying a plane for your son and allowing him to fly at that young age. Today if Shahaan says to me that his dream is to go to Formula 1 then I will give him all my support, just like my grandfather’s father did almost a century ago,” Sharokh is decisive.

Shahaan’s sibling, nine-year-old Cyrus is just learning how to race in Belgium in the best training school there. "In his first race just two weeks after learning how to drive, Cyrus finished ninth out of 18. We were more than surprised as those drivers all have three to four years’ experience and he not only overtook them on their home track but held his position with a lot of pressure from behind. A top 10 finish in Europe is normally reserved for drivers with at least one year’s experience,” notes Sharokh who runs his company Carbonic International FZCO in the Jebel Ali Free Zone in the UAE. "After setting up the operations, I have professionalized my company and delegate all day-to- day activity so I can spend several hours each day with Shahaan along with his trainer on the track and several days each month abroad. I have wonderful dedicated staff and they treat it as their company,” he declares. Sharokh started doing his PhD in business studies after he left India in 1999 and has been living in Dubai since that time. Carbonic International, as states its website www.carbonic international .com offers eco-friendly dry ice solutions in cold chain management including packaging, transportation services and tracking systems, as well as provides industrial cleaning using CO2 as a non toxic alternative to chemical and other environmentally hazardous cleaning methods.

How does the family cope with the stresses/risks involved in racing, we ask. "We don’t worry unnecessarily about safety because the record is safer than horse riding, skiing and football. There is excitement before every race, but we make sure we don’t pressurize Shahaan for results. He does that on his own. Some parents do get very stressed but they hide it well,” says Sharokh.

The father also lays stress on track etiquette: "Since Shahaan is loving and gentle, he listens and learns from us. I am very strict about his attitude. The sport cannot tolerate any attitude problems like throwing tantrums and banging the steering wheel or kicking your kart and throwing your helmet on the ground because of an accident or a bad race.” A fallen bumper, axle failure and other technical gremlins test the driver’s spirit as well as skill, with funds taking some hard knocks too.

The Engineer family: Nina and Sharokh with sons Shahaan and Cyrus (in white); Cyrus driving in Europe

Come September and Shahaan will be in grade eight at the Dubai English Speaking College. "I can only race if I am in the top group in school. I do most of my homework in the school lunch break and on rest days. My mother teaches me interesting ways to learn, even when we have dinner or when we are in the plane or just while sitting on long drives to the track. Instead of playing regular games on Nintendo, my mother makes me practice educational games. Our homework is not like it was in India, my dad says, so it’s much easier for me, I guess,” the schoolboy says.

"Nina is fully supportive of him and ensures his school work is ahead of schedule. She provides me with emotional support and we work as a team,” Sharokh asserts. "Shahaan drives international races and not club races so the level is of the highest caliber. At 12 he is racing against 16-year-old drivers in their home tracks in Europe and is constantly among the fastest five in most of the races. I love to watch him drive; it is poetry in motion for me. I can’t wait to see where he goes next year,” Nina’s enthusiasm is palpable.

With racing providing a heady cocktail, partying does not find much favor "because we don’t have the time or the inclination. Almost all our time is spent together and we don’t go out in the evenings often except with the children when we travel. Our time is fully utilized and the schedule is exhaustive so we all need a good sleep at night,” Sharokh explains.

When in leisure zone, the brothers enjoy watching on DVD the thrilling speed and spins of Formula 1. Their knowledge of the history of motorsport and every race is great, says Sharokh. To an extent, each racing driver has it in him or he doesn’t, the father believes: "I can only teach him up to a point, and so can his wonderful trainer from whom he is inseparable. In the future results will speak hopefully. If they don’t, then it’s not the end of his world, but if he is not amongst the top drivers then he has no chance to drive for the best teams.”

Shahaan’s dream is to stand on the podium in Formula 1, declares Sharokh. For the present, he will continue in the Rotax Max Junior class internationally and participate in the best races in Europe for another year. Turning 13 on September 6th, Shahaan is eligible to drive the tough Euro Challenge Final round in Genk (Belgium) between September 24-28 when 88 of the world’s best junior drivers will compete and only 36 — the cream of the crop — will qualify to race. "If he is consistent in getting good results, then he can move on to the KF3 Junior class. By 15, if he is on the podium regularly, he will race in the six speed KZ2 shifter class for at least one or two years. After that he will move to Formula cars but not prematurely,” Sharokh maps the future.