RACING
BORN TO RACE
Racecar driver Andre Lafond has been on the move since he attended Rand Elementary WRITTENBYJULIA MARTIN
When Andre Lafond was at Rand Elementary , he “ wasn ’ t very good at sitting still ,” hesays . “ It was a bit of achallenge for my teachers and myself — Ialways wanted to run around .”
Born five weeks premature , Lafond was diagnosed with ADHD asapreschooler and craved motion , the faster the better . His first word was “ wheels .”
Rather than try to squelch their hyperactive son , Lafond ’ s parents supported his passion for motion , especially after aphysical therapist told them that speed made him “ feel normal .” When he was eight or nine , his father took him karting at Raceway Park in Englishtown , and alove affair with racecar driving was born .
This September , during his first full year racing as part of the Ammonite Motorsport team inBrantley , England , 20-year-old Lafond , whose father was born in Haiti , became the first Haitian-American to win a Formula Ford Championship race .
BEHIND THE WHEEL
As a Montclair High School student , Lafond worked at Montclair Bikery . At 16 , he pooled money he earned there with contributions from family and friends and entered his first kart race . He placed third in the karting state championship , and was hooked on racing . “ It just felt like the best thing in the world and still does ,” he says . “ Nothing else even comes close .”
COURTESY OF JAMES ROBERTS
6 HOLIDAY 2022 MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE