AT NINE and 10 years of age respectively, Louis Brown and Jordan Sell are still years away from getting their driver's licenses, but that did not stop them from taking to the kart track on the weekend to raise money for road safety programs.
In their first endurance kart race at the Blue Datto Enduro event the pair took out the top prize in the Rotax Mini Max class.
Jordan, from Greenbank, and Louis, from Mount Cotton, took turns behind the wheel to complete the hour-long race at Ipswich Kart Club.
The inaugural event raised money for the Blue Datto Foundation, which provides road trauma support and education programs on driver safety.
Louis' mother Daisy Brown said road safety was vital for all karting families.
"One thing they really try to make the racers aware of is being safe on the roads," she said.
Louis and Jordan's partnership was born only weeks ago. Jordan had never driven a Mini Max before but had about four years' experience and was racing in the Cadet 12 class, while Louis had entered the sport just eight months ago.
As a team endurance event, it was very different from the individual sprint races the boys had previously competed in.
Jordan's father Matthew Sell said the pair had no expectations going into the race.
"They were really only doing it for a bit of fun," he said.
Jordan's brother Hayden - who is also involved in kart racing - worked out a strategy and Louis got behind the wheel to start the race. Eight laps in, a quick driver change saw Jordan taking over for about 30 more laps.
After a fuel stop and wheel change, Louis jumped back in the driver's seat and drove another 18 laps to close out the race, finishing with a four-lap lead.
Ms Brown said the boys were extremely proud of their achievement and appreciated the chance to rub shoulders with some of their racing idols like V8 Supercar drivers James Courtney, Shane van Gisbergen and Chaz Mostert.
Mr Sell said the race had formed a strong bond between the pair.
"Normally the boys would be competing against each other ... (but) they had a great time and will be really keen to team up again for some endurance racing in the future."
Both Louis and Jordan will be competing in state and national races next year, supported by sponsors including Ruiz Plumbing Solutions, I FIT4U, ADCC Greenbank, Plus Fitness 24/7 Underwood, MotiV8 Training and 9ine5ive Tuning and Euro-Aus Mechanical Workshop.
