Family, racers keep Kwik-Lee’s legacy alive
THE family and friends of South African drag racer Leeshen Naidoo of Kwiklee Racing have stood by their word to keep his legacy alive.
In the 25 years he lived, Lee, as he was commonly referred to, earned a reputation for being one of the fastest drag racers in the country.
This was through his many heavily modified vehicles; ranging from a 2JZ mk4 Supra, and a Nissan R35 GTR that was banned from Dezzi Raceway for being too fast, to an old faithful VW mk1 Golf.
Kruben Naidoo, his dad, said Lee was diagnosed with cancer and died in 2019.
Naidoo, his daughter Yurisa, and close friends Myan Moodley, Shabeer “Scotty” Hoosen and Inny Khan have earnestly kept Lee’s legacy alive.
“Lee was my shadow from the time he was little. I raced a really fast 1400 bakkie that entered into the 8 second bracket in my day. Lee used to be my pit boy.
“His job was to strap me in and make sure everything was ready. He was on the race track from the time he was about five-years-old. That is where his passion developed," said Naidoo.
Naidoo and Yurisa continue to take part at drag racing events to honour Lee.
Yurisa, 25, also earned a reputation on the track, becoming one of the youngest and fastest female drag racers in her Audi TT RS in 2020. Her fastest time was an 8.8 second pass on Mkuze Airfield in October.
“It was Lee’s dream for me to become the youngest and fastest female racer.
“It was unfortunate that I only took up racing and accomplished that goal after he passed away. I am just blessed knowing that I’m always guided by him.
“My brother was my hero. Besides the adrenaline, my favourite part about racing is knowing I am racing for the Kwiklee name, for my brother’s name.”
Naidoo, who owns Kwikfit Glass and Aluminum in Pietermaritzburg, said they “built a warehouse filled with race cars” to choose from.
Most of the cars were once raced by Lee; placing sentimental value on them.
Lee’s reputation for being one of the fastest was solidified after an incident at Dezzi raceway, Naidoo said.
"The parachute on his R35 Skyline deployed 20 metres after the start but he still managed to make an eight second pass. That was something he got international attention for. That’s when Kwiklee Racing became a brand name, if you ask me. It was not something you saw every time on the race track, so that's what made him stand out.
“It was at Dezzi Raceway and he was racing the Skyline, which was silver at the time.
“The cable on the chute was not fastened properly and when he launched, the parachute deployed about 20 metres after the starting line.
“So he drove the car for 380m with a deployed parachute and still managed to make an 8.9 second pass. The car got banned from Dezzi after that for being too fast. If you pass the finish line below 9 seconds, you get banned."
Besides Naidoo and Yurisa, Lee’s friends continue to race in his name.
Naidoo chose Inny Khan to drive their VW Golf 1 with an ABF turbo set-up during a drag racing event at Dezzi Raceway. It was held on August 10, which was also Lee’s birthday, making it a difficult day for all those in attendance from team Kwiklee Racing.
After sitting in the family’s warehouse for seven years, Naidoo said the usual team, including Moodley and Hoosen, united to get the golf prepared for the event.
“Lee and Inny spent a lot of time together. They grew up next together and were always talking about cars. I take Inny as a son. I know he has a way with the Golf 1’s and the front wheel drive cars, so if anyone was going to race it, it was going to be him."
Naidoo added that it was emotional to be out on the track racing with Lee’s cars.
"Regardless of the event that we are in, it's hard for all of us to be there. His birthday was even more difficult to be there because I was standing around watching all these cars go by and thinking about my son who used to be in one of them."
The red Golf didn’t disappoint, neither did Khan as he came up against another formidable force in the South African race scene, Denzil’s Auto, out of Havenside, Chatsworth. Naveshan Pather, for Denzil's Auto, was on the line in a gold Golf 4.
Neck and neck from start to finish, Khan managed to pip the race by a 0.001 second margin.
Khan said they were now busy with some upgrades to the car. “It is going to be fitted with a fueltech management and a SQS shifter with some small supporting mods to get it right. The family wants to do a 9 second pass with the car.”
Now that they’ve seen the car’s potential, they plan on getting it “where it needs to be”, said Naidoo. “I made a promise to my son before he died. We all did. I promised him that I would keep racing and keep the Kwiklee name alive until my last breath."
Myan Moodley, owner of CPI Cars, said: “That red golf that we raced that day, it was not just the golf that we worked on together and built. It was every car he had from the time he started racing in that Scirocco.”
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