Chaves Sets Record as Youngest Skip Barber Scholarship Winner

01/14/2007

Sebring, Florida - At the age of 13 years old, Gabriel “Gabby” Chaves has been on a fast track all his life.

The young karter set yet another new record this week, winning a full season of Skip Barber Regional Race Series credit with his stand-out performance against nearly fifty other karters in the Skip Barber Karting Scholarship run-off in Sebring, Florida.

The scholarship award, worth nearly $25,000, marks the youngest any driver has been rewarded by Skip Barber, breaking the previous record set by Alexander Rossi, who won at the age of 14.

Gabby was quickest in his group in four of the six sessions run as he adapted quickly to the Sebring modified circuit, running against drivers who had much more experience than he did in the Skip Barber single-seaters.

Related links
http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=241467&FS=BARBER
http://www.skipbarber.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=1690
http://www.ekartingnews.com/news_info.php?n=7397
http://www.fedeautos.ws/Boletin/boletin%20prensa/Boletin-014.htm
http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/karting/34896/

“I had a great time in the Skip Barber cars in Sebring, and I’m really excited to get to racing with Skip Barber this year,” said Gabby. “I wasn’t even as tall as most of the other guys, but it didn’t matter because I was faster!”

The five finalists among the 49 drivers; Gabby Chaves, Jordan Taylor, Beau Debard, Timmy Megenbier and Kyle Longmore

Success is not a new experience for young Gabby, having sliced his way to the top of the USTA standings for his age as a ten-year-old tennis phenom. However, a brief ride in a kart thanks to “Grandpa Tito” in his native Colombia two years ago set Gabby on a different kind of winning path.

Adapting quickly to karts, Gabby scored his first National Championship in 2005, taking the Easykart 60cc crown before taking off to Italy to represent America in the Easykart World Finals, scoring fourth in the final against a field of over seventy karters from across the globe.

2006 was another strong year for Gabby, scoring championships in all four categories that he competed in—the Florida Winter Tour, East Coast Sectional, and South Florida Rotax Challenge in Rotax Mini Max competition. Gabby also took the East Championship running the Cadet Class in Snap-On Stars of Karting competition  

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