The brainchild of the Qatar Camaro Club, the event, organised by Mawater, in partnership with Jaidah Automotive, gathered more than 240 Chevrolet Camaro owners from the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, Mawater executive secretary Mohamed al-Emadi told Gulf Times.
Al-Emadi said some of the highlights of the event included a motorcade of all participating Camaro automobiles starting from the Abu Samra border to Doha and a 400m ‘roll race’ (stock and modified categories) held at the Lusail International Circuit on Thursday.
Another motorcade was held yesterday morning starting from the Corniche to Qatar Sports Club. Special cars like the six-wheel Camaro from the UAE, which won in a custom show in the UAE last year, were instant crowd-drawers, including some vintage Camaros from the 1960s.
“We build stronger friendships while we talk about cars and we also try to hold competitions among the participants, including new events during the annual gathering such as the 400m roll race at Lusail,” al-Emadi explained yesterday.
Ask about road safety, al-Emadi stressed: “The reason why we organised the roll race at Lusail was because we do not want people to hold racing events on the streets. We also conduct open workshops where we discuss basic mechanics, types of engines, and car safety information, among other topics.”
This was reiterated by Qatar Camaro Club member, Omran Mohamed al-Abdulla, who owns a 2016 and a vintage 1973 Camaro SS, including a 1985 Chevrolet Camaro Iroc-Z.
“As neighbours, we all share the same culture however, we also have our differences. But despite these differences, organising events such as this unites us as a region,” he pointed out.
He added: “Hosting such events will discourage young people, the teenagers, usually, to go out and race along public roads, which is harmful not only to themselves but to the public. But if races are held in facilities such as a Lusail, everything there is legal and safe. No one, including the driver, is in danger of getting hurt.”
Al-Abdulla noted that ‘2nd GCC Camaro Gathering Celebration’, a “first-of-its-kind” in the region, aims to showcase Qatar to its GCC neighbours.
He said he hopes to see the celebration become an annual event in the country. According to its website, the club is first official Camaro club in the Middle East recognised by GM.
“The Qatar Camaro Club was established in 2014as a way for Camaro enthusiasts to share their love of the Chevrolet Camaro with others. We provides for our members camaraderie, technical assistance from other members, parts resources, discounts from local automotive businesses, and most of all, shared interest of the Chevrolet Camaro,” the website added.
