TWICE AS NICE: Herques brothers win national karting titles

When it comes to auto racing, Southern Louisiana might as well be the Sahara Desert.

A set of vulcanized Goodyear’s will always take a backseat to pigskin. In this region, football is king.

Nonetheless, Joey and Andrew Herques took a huge step toward putting Houma on the international go-kart racing map when they motored to championship victory at the World Karting Association’s 2007 Comp Cam Grand Nationals, which were held June 8 through 10 in Aynor, SC.

&#8220It was hard to put the weekend into words,” said Tony Herques, the boys’ father. &#8220We broke open bottles of carbonated apple cider that looked like champagne and sprayed it all over each other. We had a very good time.”

Joey Herques (12 years old) beat out 30 of the top racers in the country on the 20-lap, quarter-mile track to win the Sportsman One division championship.

&#8220It felt awesome,” he said. &#8220I was always close to winning in past (goat-kart) races, but couldn’t seem to get any luck.”

A rainout helped Andrew Herques (10) capture the Sportsman Two division title. Since he entered the race with the fastest qualifying time, he was automatically awarded the championship.

&#8220It was really, really, really exciting,” Andrew Herques explained. &#8220Not many kids do this well at nationals.”

Since the majority of the events they attend are on the east coast, the Herques brothers, aka &#8220The Cajun Boys” in many racing circles, spend a lot of time on the road with their father and Eric Picou, their crew chief.

&#8220We travel about three weekends a month, year-around,” Picou said. &#8220It’s pretty taxing.”

But the stringent schedule has definitely been paying off. Joey also placed second and Andrew fifth at the Dirt World Nationals in December, and this fall they’ll be setting their sights on another top finish at the next National Go-Kart Championship.

Their most recent wins, however, were particularly rewarding.

&#8220It’s a good thing they both won,” Tony Herques joked. &#8220It would have been a long, 16-hour drive home if one did and the other didn’t.”

Many NASCAR drivers have launched their careers in the World Karting Assocation, the nation’s largest sanctioning body for kart-racing. And the Comp Cam Grand Nationals is essentially the association’s version of the Super Bowl.

&#8220The boys put on a great show,” Picou said. &#8220They were recognized by a lot of sponsors and big race manufacturers.”

The Herques brothers will enjoy a much-needed respite from the track to attend summer camp in the upcoming weeks.

The time off will afford them an opportunity to savor the most thrilling victories of their livesŠvictories that might finally create some buzz about the southern Louisiana racing scene.

&#8220We were the talk of the track,” Picou added. &#8220Maybe I’ll see the boys on TV one day.”