 Lady Horsepower Farm Antigua, Caribbean Lady Horsepower Farm (LHPF) is the Caribbean’s first and only all-female drag racing team. Established in Antigua last year, the team is a division of Horsepower Farm, a Caribbean drag racing team which also has branches in Tobago, St Lucia, Grenada and Nevis. The team consists of drivers Renee ‘Buttaz’ Edwards-Ambrose and Lisa ‘Lisa Lis’ Abraham, and mechanic Jodi-Ann Joseph. LHPF’s Team Manager is Linisa George, while Sheroma “Brass Angel” Hodge-Philip is responsible for branding as the Image and Media Manager. In addition to competing in regional races, the LHPF aims to give back to the community and is very passionate about youth development programes and initiatives. The CrewRenee Edwards-Ambrose is a certified commercial and private pilot, and attained her Guyana Civil Aviation Engineering License as a past student of the Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School in Georgetown, Guyana. She is presently employed as an Aircraft Mechanic with LIAT. She competes in her car ‘Da Black Widow’, and holds the title of the 10 sec category on the St James Raceway in Nevis, and is also the fastest female to ever race there. Her personal best is 9.7 seconds. Tell us about your team and how you came to be? Lady Horsepower Farm established September, 2013, is a division of Horsepower Farm, which is a drag racing team in the Caribbean. Horsepower Farm has branches in Tobago, St. Lucia, Antigua, Grenada and Nevis. Lady Horsepower Farm (LHPF) is an all-female team mainly based in Antigua. Currently our members are Renee "Buttaz" Edwards-Ambrose from Antigua (Driver), Linisa George from Antigua (Manager), Sheroma "Brass.Angel" Hodge-Philip from the Virgin Islands (Image and Media Manager), Lisa "LisaLis" Abraham from Antigua (Driver) and Jodi-Ann Joseph from Antigua (Mechanic). As of July 2014, the team has two race cars under the LHPF brand. Renee’s V8 powered Mazda RX7 and Lisa’s Honda Integra DC2. I (Renee) have been racing since 2007 in Antigua. I was introduced to the Manager of Horsepower Farm, Mervyn Bonnett, by the then President of the Antigua and Barbuda Drag Racing Association, Anthony ‘Spanky’ Spencer, in 2012. A few months after meeting Mervyn, I was invited to join Team Horsepower Farm. I later purchased my current racecar in early 2013 and shortly started racing with it in Nevis in May of 2013. After racing for a few events, Linisa George contacted me and expressed her interest in becoming my manager. Jodi-Ann was finishing up her studies in automotive engineering in Montreal and was keeping a close eye on me while I started to make a name for myself. When she moved back to Antigua in early 2014, I jumped at the opportunity to have her on my team because I realized that she was passionate about Motorsports and mechanics. I’ve watched Lisa race while I was growing up and I fell in love with the fact that she was still very feminine and was a helluva driver. I had approached Lisa at one point to join, but she respectfully declined because she was at the time the newly appointed President of the Antigua and Barbuda Drag Racing Association. A few months later, she responded to my invitation and agreed to be a part of Team LHPF. The rest is basically HER story. What inspired your love for drag racing? From a very young age, I've always been fascinated with fixing things. Neither my mom or dad was mechanically inclined, but they have been very supportive with whatever it was that I wanted to do in life. During high school, I developed a love and passion for Motorsports (drag racing and car shows particularly). Before my graduation, my parents asked me what it is I wanted to do as a profession and I replied and told them that I wanted to be a mechanic, pilot and/or drag racer. They never questioned why and supported my decision to later enroll at the Antigua State College where I studied Automotive Engineering. There, my love for the sport grew exponentially and I said to myself that one day, I will own my own race car and stage against the big guys one day. At that time, there were not many women involved in the sport and the very few like Kay Knowles, Lisa Abraham and Diana Watt were holding their own very well. But I wanted to race against veterans like Mr. Harney, Broyce March, Mark ‘Motor Max’ DeSilva and Brian Kelsick if I were to venture deeper into drag racing. What are your accomplishments? - Creating the Caribbean’s first all-female drag race team - Titleholder of 10 sec category in Nevis - Fastest female to race in Nevis - Personal best: 9.73 seconds (1000ft in Nevis) & 10.9 seconds (1/4mile in Grenada) - 2nd Runner up of the 11sec category in Grenada - Fast female to race in Grenada What advice would you have for a female looking to be a part of/ start a race team? Showing interest and the willingness to learn plays a vital role in starting any venture. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, and even though the sport is dominated by men, do not be intimidated. Be confident with the decisions you make, and make sure you have a strong support team/system. What would you like to see in the future of women in the automotive industry? To be honest, I would love to see a lot more women getting involved in the automotive industry, whether it be as a racer, mechanic, auto body repair technician or even a volunteer at an auto related event. I also believe that every woman should have an idea how their vehicle works. I’m not saying that they should learn how to overhaul the engine, but they should have some knowledge of how to take care of their vehicle and cut down on the amount of times they would have to take the car to the mechanic; save some money. What is your message to women in the industry? Keep on striving for excellence in this unconventional and none-traditional industry. Be the role models that you would want your daughters to emulate. Lisa Abraham is a certified cosmetologist and owner of her own salon. She has always been actively involved in motorsports, and presently sits as president of the Antigua & Barbuda Drag Racing Association. Abraham is the newest member to LHPF family. How did your passion for the industry start? I would say I was born with the passion for vehicles in my blood. My father is a mechanic so I have been around vehicles from birth. I spent a lot of time at my Dad workplace which is a car dealership. I remember from an early age being the girl in school at the window with the guys looking at every vehicle that passed. I remember being angry if my Dad allowed another vehicle to pass him on the road, and since he worked at a dealership I had the luxury of being picked up from school every day in a different vehicle. On the weekend we would take a drive outside the city and I would sit on my Dad’s lap and steer; I always felt that I was driving. My first job was at a car dealership and from the time I got my first car I began racing; which is almost 20 years ago. What is your position on the team? My role in the Lady Horsepower Farm racing Team is Driver. What is your dream vehicle? My dream race car for over 20+ years was a Honda Integra Type R and my dream Sunday car is a Red Ford Mustang Convertible. What is your passion/message? My message to other females with an interest in vehicles especially Drag Racing is follows your passion and live your Dream. I am asked all the time if I am not scared as the sport is considered very dangerous and my answer always is “living is dangerous”. If we were to all think about all the dangers that life possesses, we would never live. Every other sport and everything we do in life, all pose some level of danger but we do them nevertheless; we just protect ourselves by following all the necessary safety requirements. One of my hearts desires is to one day race on an international track with thousands of spectators in the arena and millions watching me on TV all over the world, then after the race, being interviewed live by some major networks. In life I believe in following your passions and living your dreams, you just need to have faith and trust in God to see you through in whatever you set out for your life, providing it’s in his plan. Sheroma ‘Brass.Angel’ Hodge-Philip How did your passion for the industry start? I remember the first time I saw my dad's Nissan 300ZX back in the 80's. It would speak and let you know when the door was open etc. and I was so fascinated because I felt like I was in "Kit" from night rider (lol). From then on, I loved unique and beautifully engineered cars/vehicles. What is your position on the team? I am the Image and Media Manager. What is your dream vehicle? Wow, where do I start? I'm a lover of classic cars but on the futuristic end, I would have to say one of my biggest dream cars is the Audi R8. What is your passion/message? I always believe if you have a talent or gift, use it to help or positively impact others. God gives each of us a purpose, once you know what it is, use it to be great. Linisa George How did your passion for the industry start? Unlike the rest of the LHPF team I am not knowledgeable about cars and motorsports. However, I am very passionate and a strong believer in women going after their dreams while creating opportunities for others to do the same. It is that passionate that made me pick up the phone over a year ago and pledge my support to Renee. At the time she hadn’t publically started promoting and branding LHPF, so we were able to quietly plot the best way forward to ensure she achieved her goals. What is your position on the team? I am the Team Manager. I do everything behind the scenes, so the ladies can just concentrate on competing. What is your dream vehicle? I love the Range Rover brand, so if could, I definitely would get a black one. I think the colour black exemplifies power, strength and sexiness. What is your passion/message? My motto in life is ‘Define Yourself’. I believe that ultimately the things that will make us happy and successful must be the things we ourselves decide are worth the effort. While we need the support of others to really make it, it is crucial that we are always the driver on our paths to success. It is that passion and strong belief in self that will get you over every hurdle. It is that passion that dictates that you get up, dust off, and start running again after every fall. There is no award for playing small. Whatever you go after, go after it big. Aim for the outer limits, and make sure you get there. Never let the sky or the stars be your limit. Always seek to surpass what you did the day before. There is greatness within us all; we just need to conquer our fears to unearth it. Jodi-Ann Joseph at 21 years of age, is the youngest member of LHPF. She is a past student of Christ The King High School and the Automotive Technology Programme at the Antigua State College. She has completed courses with diplomas in Automotive Mechanics and General Welding at the Aviron Technical Institute in Montreal, Canada. For more information check them out at: Lady Horsepower Farm Facebook page #LadyHorsepowerFarm
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