9-1-10 Gatorz / LAKC Shootout Race Report
 

Combining the two Southern California Rotax Max Challenge programs – the Gatorz Karting Cup and Los Angeles Kart Club – into a single August event produced large fields and rave reviews from drivers in both organizations. While all of the Rotax classes were run as part of the LAKC’s schedule of events, the Rotax racers would benefit from additional track time in the form of two eight-lap heat races and a twenty-lap final.

Spread over two days, the race included a fifteen-minute hot pit qualifying session on Saturday afternoon before a catered dinner by Blue Agave was provided for all of the LAKC racers. Sunday would kick off with morning warmup and the first of two heat races.

Gatorz, the title sponsor of the Gatorz Karting Cup, was represented by owner Kerry Lynch who was on hand to provide all the class winners with gift certificates for Gatorz Eyewear, as well as hats featuring the new Gatorz logo for the top five in each class. MLP Imaging also provided free photos the top five in each class, while trophies were also given to the top five in each class.

Micromax
The lone Micromax entrant was a third-generation driver, Jimmy Busby III, entering his first race. He shared the podium with his father, Jim Busby Jr, his grandfather, former IMSA GTP racer Jim Busby, his uncle David Busby, and sister Sadye Busby.

MiniMax
Things had gone well for Adam Iavelli throughout qualifying, where he qualified second, and in the two heat races, which he had won. Top qualifier Nicky Hays was right on his bumper at the checkered in each heat, and the grid for the final would be Iavelli leading Hays, Blaine Rocha, Nick Ramirez, and Gatorz championship leader Royal McKee.

Iavelli maintained his lead at the start of the final while Hays was shuffled from his off-pole spot back to sixth as Rocha, McKee, Ramirez and Michael Womack all got by him. Iavelli, Rocha and McKee all ran in a line, while Ramirez and Womack battled for fourth until Womack spun and fell to the back. Rocha latched onto Iavelli’s bumper and waited until the final lap to make his move for the lead, while behind, Noah Grey, who had started in seventh, similarly waited until the final lap to make a pass on McKee for third. It was a frantic last lap, with Rocha pulling off a very strong pass in turn four to take the lead and hold it until the checkered. Iavelli had to settle for second, with Grey getting past McKee for third and fourth and Ramirez crossing the line in fifth.

Junior Max
Dakota Dickerson had run the table on this day at Calspeed, qualifying on pole and easily winning the two heat races. Jake Craig, Carlee Taylor, Jonathan May and Breanna Miscione would line up behind Dickerson for the main, and had battled throughout the day for the final two podium spots.

Dickerson held his lead at the start while Miscione was the victim of contact and fell down the order and out of contention. Taylor jumped around Craig to move into second, but it was short-lived as Craig retook second position a lap later. After that, all the excitement was over as Dickerson slowly but steadily opened a gap over the rest of the field to take the win and sweep the day, with Craig second, Taylor third, May in fourth and Miscione working her way back through the field to fifth.

Miscione, however, was given LAKC’s Driver of the Day award after recovering from her first lap contact.

Senior Max
Senior Max was stacked for the Gatorz / LAKC shootout, with former Indy 500 Rookie of the Year Phil Giebler taking pole position ahead of Louie Pagano, John Crow, Matt Ostiguy and Scott Saunders. It would be Crow, however, that would take both heat race wins in what were two very exciting eight-lap races.
The main, however, would take a different turn as Giebler forced his way past Crow on the opening lap, with their karts coming together a couple of times before Giebler got ahead and began to pull away. Crow kept Adam Zeen, Louie Pagano and David Thompson behind him for nine laps until Zeen got underneath and past Crow, with Pagano and Thompson coming through as well. Thompson would lose third to Pagano a couple of laps later before he retired, putting Crow into fourth.

Behind the leaders, the field broke into several groups that battled for position throughout the race. Most of those drivers, however, fell victim to a charging Chandler Campbell, who started last after a spin in the second heat race. She charged her way up to seventh at the end of the 20 lap final, setting fast lap of the race in the process.

At the checkered, Giebler won with a gap over Zeen, who had a similar advantage over third-placed Pagano. Crow finished fourth, holding off a charging Jeremy Kane who was fifth.

Rotax Masters
Put a bunch of 405 lb karts on track together in a Gatorz or LAKC race and the racing is going to be entertaining. Combine the two and it was no surprise that the Masters final, which closed out the day’s racing on Sunday, had more spectators than any other. Scott Falcone, making the trip from Colorado, qualified on pole ahead of Jim Busby, Jr., Steve Dzurilla, Ron Rossetti and Larry Hayashigawa.

Dzurilla, however, would win the first heat, while David Busby would win the second, with Jim Busby Jr. second and Falcone third in both of those races. Anticipation was high for the final.

Things got off to an exciting start with plenty of contact on the opening lap, which sent fifth-starting Hayashigawa to the back of the field and out of contention. David Busby also lost several positions, falling from pole position to fifth, while his brother Jim Busby Jr. took the lead and began to pull away from Rossetti and Jarrod Bradley. David Busby quickly passed Falcone and Bradley to move up to third, while Falcone took another lap to pass Bradley and begin to work on catching the leaders.

Halfway through the race, David Busby and Falcone both passed Rossetti, as Busby, Jr.’s lead began to shrink. With two laps remaining, David passed Jim in the infield hairpin, the two karts coming together as both battled for the lead before David pulled ahead. The battle allowed Falcone to get close but he was unable to make an attempt on Busby, Jr.’s second place, and David Busby took the checkered flag ahead of Jim Busby, Jr. and Falcone.
The nineteen-kart field also had several battles throughout the final, and more than a little bit of contact, causing the race to be finished under waving checkered-and-black flags. The official results are still pending.

Rotax DD-2
Matt Ostiguy and Kelson Penn, the lone entrants in the DD-2 class, finished in that order in the heats and final which were combined with the 125 shifter classes. Impressively, despite starting on the last row, Ostiguy and Penn drove up to eleventh and twelfth overall in their two-speed Rotax karts.

The Gatorz Karting Cup has two events remaining in the 2010 season; October 2 at Calspeed as part of the Pan-Am weekend, and the finale on October 9-10 at the Streets of Lancaster Grand Prix.

 

9-1-10 2010 Machismo 500 Approaching! 500 Mile Enduro to run at Mandalay Bay Casino!

The magic in the air as the sun breaks on Le Mans, shedding light on those who have survived the night, is something few will ever be able to experience first hand. Feeling that same magic as YOU are the one who has just survived is something you can experience in less than two months when the 3rd Annual Machismo 500 team enduro takes to the track adjacent the famed Vegas Strip on October 23rd & 24th.

Teams from across the US, Canada, Mexico, and Europe are expected to converge on Sin City to take part in the 500 Mile, 10 Hour, overnight extravaganza that is the Machismo. Spaces still remain for teams looking to secure their spot on the grid, which in past years has featured such pros as Marco Andretti, Tanner Foust, Boris Said, Alex Tagliani, Rafa Matos, and Craig Stanton.

$500 deposits are being taken to lock in the preferred team rate of $2000 in the 270cc Sport Class and $3000 in the 390cc Pro Class. Teams of up to 6 drivers can come together and split the cost making this the most affordable and unique overnight Las Vegas experience that anyone could ask for! After the deadline of September 15th rates are scheduled to increase by $400 in each class so get those deposits in today!

Contact Brad Packard today at 951.241.3872 for more information on how to register for thisextraordinary event, or simply email him at brad@calspeedkarting.com.

2009 Machismo Results
Pro Class:

1. Russell Dunlop Karting
2. Team SBF
3. Young & Restless
4. RDD Motorsports
5. Solo Mexico
6. Sonoma Valley Racing
7. Team Gexpro
8. Lifeyo.com
9. K1 Race Gear
10. Viva Mexcio
11. Motor4Toys.com

Sport Class:

1. IKN All-Stars
2. Maui Karters
3. Flyin Elvis's
4. Senior Moments
5. Todo Mexico
6. Team Peligroso
7. Team Wine-O's
8. Roaring Lion Energy

 

8-29-10 Prokart Challenge north to Wrap up 2010 Over Labor Day Weekend in Sonoma

Series championships to be decided with round six at Jim Russell International Karting Center

Coming off the very successful 2010 edition of the ProKart Challenge West Coast Shootout, the ProKart Challenge North regional program will wrap up its 6-race season over the Labor Day weekend (September 3-4) at the Jim Russell International Karting Center in Sonoma, California. The event at the Infineon Raceway facility is sure to be a solid one, with it tapped as the final Superkarts! USA west coast regional race prior to the SKUSA SuperNationals in November. Above all, championships for all nine regional categories will be decided with the final laps around the National circuit of the JRIKC complex.

The headline S1 Pro Stock Moto category has been largely the domain of Fritz Leesmann since the opening round in February. The former ICC national contender made the move to the Stock Moto program this season and has not lost a beat. While he has not won since the first round, Leesmann has stood second on the podium in the last three events including the PKC West Coast Shootout. Barring any issues during the final round, Leesmann should clinch the title though he will have Brett The Jet Buckwalter lurking nearly. Moving from TaG Senior back to the shifter ranks, Buckwalter has had an impressive 2010 season thus far, with three podiums in five events.

Similar to Leesmann, Matt Alcorn has been head of the class in the S2 Semi-Pro Stock Moto division. Alcorn has accumulated three podium finishes, including two main event victories, in five races. Though he struggled at the PKC Shootout, Alcorn will look to bounce back with a victory to clinch the class championship. Neil Joseph and Cameron Pringle have been strong as of late, both recording two podium finishes in the last three events. Each have a victory on the season, as well, but only Joseph is close enough to pressure Alcorn for the title at the finale.

The fight in the TaG Senior championship is now a two-dog fight between Bobby Kelley and Larry Fraser. Starting the season with a victory, Fraser was the driver to beat early on; however, Kelleys four straight podiums after the opener including the victory at the PKC Shootout have propelled him to the top of the standings. Both will need to be on their game in Sonoma for the finale, with a host of others looking to challenge them for just the race win itself.

The tightest point battle heading into the finale is in the TaG Master class, with Jeff Deehan and Ethan Wilson looking to end their season-long fight. Wilsons absence at round four cost him the point lead, as he now sits just 25 points behind Deehan. Head-to-head virtually all year, Wilson who has won three features this season including the PKC Shootout has bested Deehan four times. Unless Deehan steps up at the finale it could become five, thus giving the championship to Wilson.

One title that has already been clinched is the S4 Master Stock Moto with Jeff Smith taking the honors. His five straight feature wins, including a big victory at the PKC Shootout, has Smith as the favorite heading into the SKUSA SuperNationals. The championship race for the runner-up spot continues with the fight between Alex Keith, Jim Inglebright, and Jack Arluck still raging on. The S3 Novice Stock Moto title has also been clinched, with Chris Yettito taking the honors prior to the finale in Sonoma.

The Junior competition has been stout in 2010 for the PKC North program, with the TaG Junior and HPV-2 Junior title chases expected to come down to the final laps. In TaG Junior, Deven Sanchez currently holds the point lead over Kathryn Cornell, who led the way until a disqualification in round four cost her valuable points in the championship. The gap is 190 markers, with anything possible at the finale. Cornell leads the HPV-2 Junior standings, thanks to her three victories on the year. She comes into round six with a 186-point advantage over Daniel Langon. No matter what happens in that division, Langon will leave Infineon with a championship in hand, as he will be crowned the first S5 Junior Stock Moto champ in series history.

The sixth and final round of the PKC North championship will begin on September 3 with a practice day, as on-track activities will take place from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Tentatively scheduled will be a Friday night complimentary BBQ dinner at the track (PKC is looking for a sponsor). Race pre-registrations are currently being accepted, with racers able to save $35 on their entry fees by submitting an entry prior to midnight on Wednesday, September 1. SKUSA memberships will be mandatory for the event, and forms are available on the SKUSA/ProKart Challenge website. Trailer parking is available starting Thursday afternoon. Camping on site will be permitted Friday and Saturday night at no charge. A tentative event schedule is posted on the website, as well with racers needing to understand that just one round of practice will be given on Saturday due to the addition of the Jim Russell Arrive and Drive racers to the event schedule. Additional details on this event, including host hotel info, can be found at the PKC event page: http://www.superkartsusa.com/regional/pkc-north/round-6-2010.html

The PKC North finale will have live timing and blogging provided for those not able to attend the race first-hand. Those looking to follow the action are asked to watch www.superkartsusa.com/live. For more information on anything related to SKUSA and the ProKart Challenge, visit the redesigned and updated www.superkartsusa.com website or call the SKUSA head office at 951-491-0808.

 

8-26-10 RLOKC Race #7 Preview

The hot summer weather has finally arrived in Northern California, but thankfully, the forecast for this weekend's Round #7 of the Red Line Oil Karting Championship is for slightly cooler, comfortable temperatures. The Northern California Rotax Challenge classes are returning to the confines of the Jim Russell International Karting Center at Infineon Raceway after a weekend of racing at the Kinsmen Kart Club in Dixon and will team up once again with the Italian Motors USA IAME TaG, 80 Shifter and 125 Stock Moto Masters classes for some great racing on the National track configuration.

The GoPro featured class for race #7 will be the combined 125 Stock Moto Masters/DD2 classes with the fastest kart taking home a GoPro Hero Camera.

With only four more races left in the championship (three more races remain for the TaG, 80 Shifter and 125 Stock Moto Masters classes), each remaining race becomes more important in the chase for the class championships.

With a win for Raymund Bustemante, Jr. in Senior Rotax at Dixon last weekend, the points battle tightens up with Carlos Calderon still in the lead but, Bustamante and Amber Friedberg are close behind.

Michael Michoff and Michael Avansino look to be pulling ahead in the Sanzaru Games Rotax Mini Max class after strong second and third place finishes respectively at Dixon.

With his win in the Rotax Masters Light class at Dixon, Steve Weiss is moving up in contention for a top finish in the class, but Mary Beth Wilson's second place finish in class at Dixon puts her in a hard position to be overtaken for the top spot.

Tom Nelson has a strong lead in the 80 Shifter class, but Roger Cornwall is on a roll with a win last month at the RLOKC Race #5 and his most recent win at Dixon this past weekend.

Racers will have the option to use VP MS93 or VP 98L for all classes except 80 Shifter who will use VP 110. Starting in September the spec fuel for all classes except 80 Shifters will be VP98L ONLY. The spec oil remains Red Line 2 Cycle Kart Oil.

Weekend Schedule:

Saturday
12:00 PM to 6:00 PM Open practice and Pre-Registration. Track fee is $40

Sunday
8:30 AM Practice
9:30 AM Qualifying
10:45 AM Heat Races
2:30 PM Main Races
Race Entry Fee: $100
Transponder Rental: $10
Pit Passes: 12 & Over: $10, Under 12: $5

Click to download the race day Schedule and Registration Form

Sunday morning registration for drivers and spectators without wrist bands is at the old Jim Russell building located outside the Infineon Raceway Main Gate on the right side of the entrance. Please look for the RLOKC sign.

For more information about the Red Line Oil Karting Championship and Northern California Rotax Challenge, go to www.cameronkarting.com  or www.norcalrotax.com

The Red Line Oil Karting Championship is supported with over $20,000 of prizes and awards from the sponsors below.
 

8-26-10 NASCAR Focused Driver Talent Search Launches

The national NASCAR focused driver talent search conducted by Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle launches today. Top young drivers will be selected to participate in driver try outs at the 2010 Shoot-Out in October. Winning drivers joining the development program will be raced, groomed, coached, tested, trained and molded into what NASCAR Cup teams want in their drivers.

The Shoot-Out application process is open to all drivers 11 to 20 years of age, with race winning backgrounds in race cars and/or youth racing series, specifically Kart racing.

Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle (RSWC) is known in racing circles as the largest, most comprehensive, most established and best connected NASCAR focused Talent Scout and Driver Career Development Program.

In the last year, RSWC has coordinated a Talent Combine in North Carolina with four top RSWC drivers testing with NASCAR Cup Teams, an individual RSWC driver test with a NASCAR Cup Development Team and guided a female RSWC driver successfully into the fully funded NASCAR Drive for Diversity program. In addition, two RSWC Drivers secured career building sponsors to sign with top NASCAR teams for 2011.

RSWC has developed many young racers to successfully make the transition from Karting and Formula Car Racing to winning races in USAC and NASCAR Oval Track series, including Jessica Brunelli, Joey Licata Jr, Beau DeBard, Bobby Grewohl, Benny Moon, Jimmy Moon, Jeff Oleen, Bobby Runyan, Nik Romano, Viktor Sinzig and Eli Schrock.

The Shoot-Out process is designed to identify talented, young, up and coming drivers from across the United States and Canada with the potential and commitment to achieve a driving career in NASCAR. RSWC is currently accepting resumes through September 20th, 2010. RSWC expects to receive over 700 resumes, as they have in the past, and narrow it down to approximately 40 drivers to test. The Shoot-Out is conducted in October, in three types of race cars, on a California paved short oval track.

Sutton said, As always ? were looking for talent. Not money, not a set number of drivers ? just young talent that has real potential to go all the way to NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Day one of the Shoot-Out includes a seminar for parents and drivers, "The Real World Good, Bad & Ugly of Driver Career Development" and a training course for drivers on driving strategies to succeed in the Shoot-Out and crew terminology. Three separate tests for the young drivers include body fat fitness, a written problem solving test and psychological analysis.

Days two and three are on track. Drivers get five 20-lap sessions, with coaching, in one of three types of race cars to show their talent. A dozen Judges evaluate the drivers on 45 points, with the key areas being coachability, accurate feedback, focus, motivation, training retention, communication skills, personality, aggressiveness, learning rate, confidence and lap times.

The talented drivers selected for the RSWC development program through the Shoot-Out will have a NASCAR career focused training program designed specifically for their age, experience and development stage, then be placed with a top team in the racing series that fits best, including various classes in USAC and NASCAR series.

The career development program consists of 12 veteran driver coaches, 26 classroom training topics, well known trainers and eight organizations fielding 24 race teams, all dedicated to develop talented drivers to a NASCAR career. The teams are a balance of Open Wheel, Stock Car and Road Racing to develop highly versatile and accomplished winning drivers.

Young winning drivers ages 11 to 20, and their families, are encouraged to get all the information and answers to common questions from the web-site, then submit their resume in time to be considered. The web-site is www.Winners-Circle-Racing.com

 

8-26-10 NNKC Rick Jerome Memorial Night Race August 21, 2010

Kid Karts were in full force as they started out the day with blistering times.  Nolan Wyman, Turbo Sombatsiri and Gavin Van Cott tore up the track and 2 of them even made it up to the podium at 1:15am.  The club thanks these kids for enduring the long day and we also are hoping to get a few more kids in karts by the end of the year.

Jr 1-2 Cycle again saw Jeremy Kay and Garrett Dixon battling for P1 all night with each winning a heat.  But in the main it was Kay finding his way through traffic and Dixon having to settle for 2nd.  These kids have fought hard all year and it will come down to the last 2 races.  Isaac Wyett, who has been getitng faster each race, would have a great night as well coming home in 3rd.  Dean Andrews, making his second race of the season would take home 4th.  Turbo Sombatsiri would have a great night as well, bringing his kart home in 5th.  Connor Van Cott would have some good battles as well on the track and take home 6th.  New comer to the class Buddy Browning finished in 7th. 

TaG Novice has 12 karts come out and again it was the Koerners taking control of the front rows.  Matt would win eventually win his 5th race in a row leaving his father Tom to think of a way to beat his son.  New drivers Raul Rodriquez and Bruce Garafalo would have a great time racing with this big class.  Dave Yochum would have to leave his sons (Chris, who races TaG Novice also) wedding and barely make it out to the track to race.  Dave said there was no way he was missing this event and he held true to his words coming home in 6th.  But it was 1st time driver Warrenn Linnell coming up big and taking 3rd place in his first race behind the Koerners.  Good job to all these drivers for racing a clean race.  TaG racing is back in full force at DPR!

F-125 drivers Mitch Kennedy, Mark Nason and John Morgan all had a epic battle in these speed machines.  At the end it was Kennedy holding off Nason at the line with Morgan following behind.  Morgan also races TaG Masters.  For a first year driver taking on the toughest competition in the club, Morgan seems to be handling it just fine.  Nason also raced in both 80 shifter classes so this F-125 main event was his 3rd on the night!  Good job!  The club would love to get a few more of these 125's on the track for next year.

Formula 80 Senior driver Mike Botelho Jr decided he had enough and took full control of the points lead in the Senior division.  When this guy (Botelho) has his equipment set up, he is very tough to beat on the track.  The rest of the class already knows this.  During the day, Cody McKinney would give him (Botelho) good pressure but just didn't have enough to get by him in the main.  Gerry Williams would hang on to 3rd with a very impressive showing, staying consistent as he has done all year.  Mark Nason would holeshot the main and lead two laps until Botelho made the pass inside turn 1 and Nason would spin (no contact).  He would recover and hunt down Dow for 4th but could get no further.  Dow would take 5th.

TaG Masters saw NNKC Race Director and IKF Expert driver Glenn McKinnon take pole.  McKinnon would win heat 1 over Dan Harris by a couple seconds.  The second heat saw a mixture of passes for the lead.  With the 2 leading karts getting tangled heading up to turn 7, Brian Rivera would squeeze by and check out from the pack winning the second heat.  The main event saw McKinnon and Rivera on the front row.  Rivera would grab the holeshot only to be passed by McKinnon a few laps later.  McKinnon would break giving the lead to Rivera.  Terry West, in his TaG debut, brought his #48 kart up to the front and would dice with Rivera for the lead.  At the end, Rivera would hold off West in 2nd followed by Harris in 3rd, who posted fast time of the main at 51.0.  Kerry Matthews, who traveled from over the hill from Sacramento, would have a very good showing coming in 8th place out of 14 karts, finally figuring out the nuances of DPR.  Austin DeMent, practicing for his upcoming National races, would have a great day (TaG Junior) and have a lot of fun mixing it up with the Master guys, going from rear of the field to 1st place every heat within a few laps.  Good job to him and he has shown the old guys that he can run with them anytime!

Jr 2 Box Stock Clone saw what we have seen all year.  Logan Wyman being dominant on the track.  He was mixing it up with Sr driver Terry West all night long.  L. Wyman would go on to win Jr Clone in convincing fashion.  His sister, Shannon Wyman (in her first race) would take home 2nd place followed by Nola Vella in 3rd.  The club hopes to have more Jr 2 Clone drivers next year.  Rumors are there should be at least 8 of them for next year!!

Sr Box Stock Clone had 17 entries yet again.  The speedster in this class no doubt is Terry West.  Drivers Dave Schilt and Travis Look try to keep up with him but find it very difficult to do.  Terry would go on to win the main event followed by Dave Schilt.  Ray Andrews, who has missed the last couple races, found out that a lot of these drivers have gained some speed since he's been gone.  He would finish the main in 3rd.  Becky Knapp, driving the florescent pink kart would finish the race in 4th with a great showing.  Christian Cerceau and Jamie West would finish 5th and 6th, respectively.  We're still trying to field 20+ Seniors in this class.  We're hoping we can do that the last couple races since we were misisng about 3-5 drivers for this race.

Formula 80 Masters had 10 karts trying to finish ahead of one another.  But it was the same old show, Mark "Big Head" Nason taking pole, winning all heats and the main event over Cody McKinney.  McKinney would have a pretty successful day racking up some big, much needed points.  Steve Dow would finish in 3rd with another solid finish for the veteran.  Former NNKC President Jeff Wamre would bring out his shifter and have a little fun with this pack as well.  He would finish a respectable 5th.

The NNKC would like to thank all the volunteers who made this race possible with the pick up of lights on Friday, the practice held on Friday Night, tearing down the lights on Sunday morning and staging them on the paddock, and the delivery of the lights back to their companies on Monday.  The BBQ put on by Emily Fernandez and Family and Becky Knapp was outstanding.  Give them a round of applause for making that happen in some windy conditions.  The Race Directing by Chris Scribner was excellent and the flagging by Dave Brant is always second to none!  Our registration girls and scoring lady were top notch as always.  It was a long weekend but a great one.  78 entries were recorded.  The club is hot right now and no other track in NorCal has better membership or participating numbers than the NNKC.  Let's keep the train moving in the right direction.  It's because of all the drivers and volunteers, why we are so successful.  Good Job to all.  See everybody September 5th, for Championship Points Race #6!!!!  For the event Photos visit http://scribnerracingpromotions.zenfolio.com/

8-25-10 RLOKC Race #6 Report

Red Line Oil Karting Championship's Northern California Rotax Challenge made its first visit of 2010 to the tight confines of the Kinsmen Kart Club at Dixon this past weekend with the largest Rotax turnout at Dixon ever. The weather was perfect on Sunday for some great racing. The host, Kinsmen Kart Club put on a great BBQ for the racers along with root beer floats in the afternoon and two pińatas for the kids to beat on and collect all the candy. All class winners were given a driving suit cleaning kit provided by Molecule. The Senior Rotax winner also took home a GoPro Hero Camera.

Senior Rotax & Cambrian Go-Karts Junior Rotax
With seven seniors and three junior entries, these two classes were combined to make for the most exciting race of the day. Senior points leader Carlos Calderon took the pole ahead of new junior graduate Sean McDonald and Amber Friedberg. Bobby Tifft was the top Junior in sixth with Brody Zink in seventh. In the heat race, Calderon and McDonald did some rubbing as they drove into turn one with Calderon leading into the turn. McDonald held his position to come home in second with Raymund Bustamante, Jr. overtaking Friedberg to take third. In the Junior class, Tifft held the Junior class point for most of the race with Zink falling back at the start. Brody worked his way past a few senior class karts and got by Tifft to take sixth overall and first in the Junior heat race.

At the green flag for the Main, Calderon went to the front with Friedberg getting a good start moving into second. Tifft also got a great start and moved into fifth, leading the junior class. Calderon and Friedberg went nose to tail for the first fifteen laps with Bustamante close behind and Tifft moving up to fourth overall right on Bustamante's bumper. With three laps to go, the two leaders battled so hard that they moved high on the track going into the last corner and left the door open for both Bustamante and Tifft to slip by. With too few laps left, Bustamante went on to the win and took both the Senior Class win as well as winning the GoPro Hero Camera. Tifft took second overall and first in the Junior class with his best drive ever, a fantastic run for the veteran junior driver. Calderon came home third (second in Senior), Friedberg fourth (third in Senior), Jarrett Lile fifth (fourth in Senior) and Joshua Feiber sixth (second in Junior).

Rotax Mini Max
The MiniMax class continues to grow with ten karts making up the Dixon field, the largest field in series history. Michael Michoff took the pole ahead of Blaine Rocha, Michael Avansino and Scott Huffaker. In the heat race, Michoff lead the entire race but was being chased by three drivers who have all won features this year. Rocha held his second place with Avansino in third, Gino Gigliotti in fourth and Justin Yanez in fifth. In the Main, Michoff took the early lead but Rocha found a way by and took over the race lead by mid-race. After two straight wins at Infineon, Avansino could not come up with the speed to overtake Michoff and had to settle for a well deserved third. Gigliotti came home in fourth with Colin Daley putting in his best drive of the year to come home fifth and take the last trophy spot. For his win, Blaine won the Sanzaru $50 cash first place prize as well as the Molecule driving suit cleaning kit.

Rotax Masters & Masters Light
With thirteen entries between the two classes, this race group was the largest race group of the day. The pole was won by Andrea Delfanti (Light), followed by Jerry Pretti (Light), Andre Eriksen (Masters), Mary Beth Wilson (Light) and Mert Solis (Light). In the heat race, Delfanti lead the front rows through the first turn, but some bumping would cause Steve Weiss to drop out with a bent axle. No one could match Andrea's speed as he lead the race flag to flag. But behind Andrea, a good battle was raging with Wilson leading Eriksen much of the race. Late in the race, Eriksen took advantage of a lapped traffic situation to get by and take second overall (first in Masters), followed by Wilson, Pretti and Corey Mitchell.

In the Main, Delfanti took the lead at the drop of the green and checked out again leaving the rest of the field battling for second. Eriksen charged into turn one right behind Delfanti and took over the second spot. But mid-race, mechanical problems hit Delfanti which ended his race. Now Eriksen was in the lead and the heavier Masters class driver pushed his kart to try and stay in front of three or four fast Light karts. While the leaders were battling, Steve Weiss came from his last place starting position and made one pass after another and by mid-race was lapping much faster than the leaders. As the laps counted down, Weiss passed the four top Light karts to take the class lead and was zeroing in on Eriksen for the race lead when the checkered came out. Overall win went to Eriksen as well as the Masters class win. Second overall and first in Light went to Steve Weiss, his first feature class win ever. Third was Light points leader Mary Beth Wilson with her best Dixon effort. Fourth went to Luca Delfanti (Light) and Fifth to Cory Mitchell (Light). Peter Breidinger finished sixth overall and second in the Masters class.

Rotax DD2
Five karts took the green with Michael Ostrowski returning after a 2 year absence to take the pole ahead of Andre Eriksen who was running his first DD2 race with points leader January Grove in third. In the heat race, Ostrowski took the lead at the green followed by Eriksen, Dave Moody and Grove. Eriksen hounded the young Ostrowski for the entire twelve laps and when the two were getting around a lapped driver, Eriksen took the best line and slipped by Michael to take the lead and the heat race win followed by Grove and Moody. At the start of the Main, Eriksen lead at the green followed by Ostrowski and Grove and the three went nose to tail for the first fifteen laps. Eriksen was not giving Ostrowski much of a look for making a pass so Michael used his experience to try a pass where few would ever go and he slipped by with two laps to go to take the win ahead of Eriksen and Grove, a great return race for Ostrowski.

The race day was a great day for the visiting Rotax racers, having fun with the challenge of the Dixon track as well as enjoying the hospitality of the host Kinsmen Kart Club. RLOKC's Northern California Rotax Challenge will return to Dixon on Sunday, September 19th. Next up for the Red Line Oil Karting Championship is a return to Infineon Raceway this Sunday, August 29th to race on the National track configuration. Results for the Dixon race will be posted at www.norcalrotax.com. For more information about the RLOKC's Northern California Rotax Challenge, go to www.norcalrotax.com.
 

8-25-10 Stock Moto Master Class Tops 60 For SKUSA Super Nationals XIV

Age and treachery along with youth and enthusiasm to shine in Vegas as S4s flock in huge numbers while TaG Cadet motor program extended

It would be hard to argue the fact that this has been a tough year for the sport of karting. The economic issues that are facing the country have affected kartings participation numbers all over the nation, which makes the current excitement surrounding the Superkarts! USA SuperNationals a potentially positive cap to the 2010 season. SKUSA is thrilled to announce that the continuing growth of the S4 Stock Moto Master category has demanded its expansion to a pair of race groups for this years SuperNationals, which will be held on the grounds of the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on November 17-21. After confirming that the S4 class had reached its 40-entry capacity back on August 10, SKUSA stated that it would begin adding new potential entrants to a waiting list. The response was rapid, as this list topped more than 20 drivers within a week. SKUSA will now be capping the S4 class at a maximum of 80 entries, and the current entry total in S4 is now over 60 entries (as wait listers were notified first). Furthermore, based on the fact that both TaG Senior and TaG Junior are expected to reach their capacity limits next, there will likely be no other class caps extended for this event, due to race day time constraints.

Its hard to express how great it is to see that so many veteran drivers are excited about SKUSA and the S4 program, admits Tom Kutscher, SKUSA president. The moto shifter class was where I started with Superkarts! USA when I was racing, and Im thrilled to see a full field for the SuperNationals. The big numbers are simply proving the quality and attraction of the Stock Moto program. I think this is also a little preview of what were going to see on the SKUSA Pro Tour circuit in 2011. The Tour is going to be big next year and the S4 grid is going to be packed!

Due to the limitations of the daily schedule, only two SuperNats categories can be extended past the 40-entry max, and with the race less than three months away, two additional classes are flirting with reaching their capacity. The TaG Senior class is expected to easily meet its 80-kart grid limit as it did last year, and TaG Junior will this year be limited to a 40-kart count. This may disappoint a few drivers who do not get registered in time, especially since TaG Junior hit 66 karts last year. TaG Senior has already reached the halfway point for its field with close to 50 drivers having secured their places at the SuperNats, while the Juniors are closing in on the magic 40 that would begin the waiting list for them as well.

The TaG community has certainly embraced the Superkarts! USA program and the SuperNationals, in particular and during the off-season the organization identified the need to extend their TaG program to the sports younger pilots. SKUSAs continuing focus on building its program from the bottom up has provided for the growth and development of the new TaG Cadet category, which is based on the 60cc Vortex Mini Rok powerplant and racers 9-12 years old. In a partnership program with Vortex, the class drew a total of 12 competitors to the SKUSA Pro Tour this year, and they are planned to be part of the SKUSA regional programs in 2011. An expanded field of close to 20 drivers has already entered for the SuperNationals, and excitement is building as this is the first time in five years that a Cadet level class has been offered at the annual event. In an effort to continue the support of the program, Vortex has decided to extend its offer to supply a maximum of 10 Mini Rok engines to drivers who would be interested in running at the SuperNationals but do not already have an engine package with which to race. Vortex will also provide with trackside support. (Note: the SKUSA claiming rule will apply for this event.)

I cant thank Vortex enough for the support that theyve given to our TaG Cadet program, Kutscher commented, enthused by this years debut of the newest SKUSA category. We clearly have our ladder program set in the Stock Moto classes, and the addition of TaG Cadet extends the road for our single-speed racers as well. Through the continuing engine offer from Vortex, we have the opportunity to provide more drivers the chance to run this great engine. The racing in TaG Cadet has been so fun to watch, and I cant wait to watch them go at it in Vegas this November. With the extension of the motor program, we may very well end up with a full field of 40. That would be awesome!

The Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino is once again ready to open the doors to the karting community, but the discounted room block is quickly shrinking, so those who have not yet booked their rooms for this falls SuperNationals should do so as soon as possible. SKUSA has negotiated special discounted rates for the weekday and weekend stays, with the rate average coming in at $81 per night. The group discount code when booking a room is SRNATS0, but the easiest way to get set up is through the www.superkartsusa.com website. Simply head to the SuperNationals section of the site and select the Hotel and Accommodations option in the Menu.


 

8-24-10 Schoombee and Giebler Clinch Prokart Challenge South Championships

Ten championships decided at West Coast Shootout event in Santa Maria

 The 2010 season for the Superkarts! USA ProKart Challenge South program wrapped up over the August 13-14 weekend in Santa Maria as part of the PKC West Coast Shootout event. All ten categories of the Southern California regional series took part at a North versus South event, pitting the top drivers from each area against one another. Aside from the bragging rights to be earned, the South drivers were competing for class championships, contesting the sixth and final round of the year.

The headline S1 Pro Stock Moto category came down to the final laps of the season. Clinton Schoombee entered the finale as the point leader, with a slim 55-point advantage over Tommy Thompson while Brad Dunford sat back in third. Things turned for the worse for Thompsons charge for the title in the opening moments of qualifying. Thompson was making his initial laps in the timed session when he ran across an oil slick and went off course. The session was stopped; however, the damage had been done to Thompsons machine, forcing him to miss the remainder of the session and the opening heat race. Dunford out-qualified Schoombee to sit third and fourth in the order. The two ran in the top-five in the opening moto while Schoombee ran into trouble himself on the final lap, experiencing a shattered front brake rotor to put him on the sidelines. In the main event, Dunford was primed for a podium finish until spinning while looking to overtake for the second position, falling out of contention. Thompson and Schoombee, however, both drove from the tail of the field to place fourth and fifth as Schoombee earned enough points on the day to claim his first series championship. Thompson would end up second, back 75 markers with Dunford holding onto third.

Phil Giebler made his return to full-time karting in 2010, and earned the championship of the season by scoring the title in the competitive TaG Senior division. The former Indy 500 Rookie of the Year ran up front all season, standing on the podium in each of the six events minus the opening round when a broken exhaust took him out of contention. Since then, Giebler went on to earn two wins, two runner-up spots and a third place finish. Giebler overcame minor issues early on in Santa Maria, fighting back to a second place performance. Two-time defending SKUSA SuperNationals TaG Master champion Billy Cleavelin had an up and down season running against the young guns. Recording two podium finishes on the season, Cleavelin held on to finish second in the standings, while Travis Lowe ended up third.

Coming into Santa Maria, the S4 Master Stock Moto category witnessed five different main event winners over the course of five events, leaving the championship up for grabs entering round six. Three-time SKUSA SuperNationals S4 winner Jeff Littrell came into the weekend with a four-point lead over Wayne Mello. The two qualified in the top-five, with Littrell holding the advantage. Through the first moto, the two remained near the front but it would be the second heat that would change the complexion of the title chase. On lap two, Littrell was looking to advance his position when he hit fluid on the track, which sent him off course. Littrell would end up 20th, losing valuable points to Mello who finished fifth. In the main event, Mello stayed the course as he placed fourth, while Littrell put in a phenomenal performance to end up eighth, up 12 positions in 15-laps. In the end, Mello would take home his first series championship by 50 points over Littrell, with Phil Dunford completing a successful season in the third position.

The difference between first and second in the S2 Semi-Pro Stock Moto standings prior to Santa Maria was 88 markers, with Bryce Miller holding the top spot over Ryon Beachner. Needing the maximum amount of points possible, Beachner had a shot at stealing the title. To the max is how Beachner ran at the West Coast Shootout, sweeping the category each session only missing out on the 10 bonus points for fast lap in the main event to earn the class title. Miller qualified in eighth place and gained two spots in the first heat. During the second heat as he was making his way into the top-five, Miller spun on the final lap to end up 14th in the order. In the final, Miller would be able to drive up to tenth; however, it would not earn him enough points to defend the top spot, dropping to second in the standings. Vivek Tandon completed a strong season, placing on the podium four times with two victories. His second place run at the finale moved him to the third spot in the final point tally.

Scoring his fifth title in six seasons, PP Mastro put his name into the record books in G1 competition. Though the season was a dog fight with Roy Montgomery and the rest of the field, Mastro was able to come out on top. With five straight podium finishes, including one win, Mastro was able to score enough points to secure the title. The finale in Santa Maria was not pretty, with Mastro and Montgomery falling to the tail end of the field in the opening lap of the main event. Mastro would be classified seventh, with Montgomery placing ninth. Robert Marks was in contention for the finale victory until lap 13 when he spun to avoid a wreck, classified 10th at the end of the race. His consistency on rest of the season, however, put him third overall in the standings.

Leading the way in the new S3 Novice Stock Moto category all season was Jason Attwood. Utilizing the SKUSA Stock Moto ladder system, Attwood moved from S4 to S3 over the winter and began the season in January at CalSpeed, standing second on the podium. The remainder of the season Attwood stood one step higher, recording five wins four of which were weekend sweeps. Jessica Sollberger ended the season second in points, with Tristen Orear in third. Luke Bianco captured his second straight S4 Magnum championship, thanks to his weekend sweep in Santa Maria. Bianco finished the season with four feature wins to edge out Marc Lewis for the title. In the S5 Junior Stock Moto division, Matias Podboj earned the series title over Scott Phillips. With three main event wins on the season, Phillips led in the victory column; however, Podbojs two wins and more consistent results throughout the season put him on top.

Ron Rossetti stood on the TaG Master podium at all six events on the season, helping him claim the season championship. Allan Svela and Kim Ryan spent the year chasing Rossetti, finishing second and third in the points. Andrew Wiener ended the season with the TaG Junior title.

With the PKC South program wrapped up, the drivers will be able to accept their awards at the season-ending banquet, scheduled for September 25. The ProKart Challenge staff is currently finalizing the details of the awards ceremony with the location to be announced in the near future.

Racing is not quite over yet for the season, as the PKC North program will hold its final event over Labor Day weekend September 3-4 at the Jim Russell International Karting Center in Sonoma, California. Once that weekend is complete, the PKC North champs will be crowned, and then the SKUSA staff and competitors will focus their full attention on the SKUSA Pro Tour finale, the SKUSA SuperNationals XIV, at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on November 17-21. For more information on anything related to SKUSA or the ProKart Challenge, visit the www.superkartsusa.com website or call the SKUSA head office at 951-491-0808.

 

8-19-10 RLOKC Rotax Race #6 Preview

Sunday, August 22nd will be the first of two races where the Red Line Oil Karting Championship (RLOKC) Rotax classes will visit the tough and challenging Kinsmen Kart Club track in Dixon, California. This will be the fourth year the Northern California Rotax Challenge (NCRC) will run as part of one of the Kinsmen Kart Club's normal events. The NCRC added two races per year at the Dixon track to give the Rotax drivers a taste of the uniqueness of one of Northern California's storied tracks and provide a change of pace from the Jim Russell International Karting Center track at Infineon Raceway. The track direction for the race this weekend will be the Reverse direction.

All six national Rotax classes will be on the schedule as well as the Northern California regional Rotax class, Masters Light. Since this will be NCRC's first time at the Dixon this year, Saturday practice should be a busy day for all the drivers. Sunday will be a fast paced race day with one round of practice, two lap Qualifying, one heat race and the Main events Sunday afternoon.

Three classes will feature a great deal of drama as well as strong fields.

Mini Max (ages 9-12 years old) should have a field of ten plus karts. With four different winners in the first five races of the year, Mini Max has proven to be a very competitive class. Points leader Cole Davis as well as Gino Gigliotti, Michael Michoff and Justin Yanez are all experienced Dixon pilots, but the winner of the last two Infineon races, Michael Avansino wants to continue his streak this weekend by besting the Dixon veterans.

The regional Rotax Masters Light class should have lots of great competition and drama this weekend. The Light class has had the largest class entries this year in the series. Nor Cal Masters drivers are liking the lighter weight of this class and new drivers have been coming out to each race this year. Points leader Mary Beth Wilson is having a breakout year with three wins to date, but the Dixon track has not been her best track over the last two years and she is focusing on making this weekend one in which the field is chasing her.

The Senior Rotax field will be a quality fast field with several drivers challenging for the win. Points leader Carlos Calderon will be looking for his first feature win, but will be challenged by the most recent winner Amber Friedberg as well as Raymund Bustamante, Jr., Matthew Weiss and Jarrett Lile who could all put their karts on top at Dixon.

Entry for this event is $75, payable to Kinsmen Kart Club. Saturday Practice is available 9 AM to 5 PM, costing $25 for non-Kinsmen Kart Club members. Drivers have a fuel option of VP MS93 or VP 98L for this race and the next race on August 29th when RLOKC returns to the Jim Russell International Karting Center at Infineon Raceway.

For more information about Red Line Oil Karting Championship's Northern California Rotax Challenge, go to www.norcalrotax.com.


The Red Line Oil Karting Championship is supported by the sponsors below with over $20,000 in prizes available to the racers. For information about the sponsors, please click the sponsor block below.



 

8-18-10 Speed and Kelley Claim First PKC West Coast Shootout Victories

South tops North in second annual event that draws 120 entries to Santa Maria

After the success of the inaugural Superkarts! USA ProKart Challenge West Coast Shootout in 2009, the concept of bringing together the best drivers from the North and South regional programs again proved worthy with an even bigger driver roster and fiercer competition this year. The Santa Maria Karting Association Kart Track played host to the second annual North vs. South title fight set as the final round of the six-race South championship chase while counting toward round five for the North. With 120 drivers from all over the west, the beautiful coastal weather greeted a packed paddock that was buzzing with excitement as drivers went head-to-head against their regional counterparts. In the end, the South would prevail over the North in the final tally, thanks to performances like Bobby Kelley in TaG Senior and despite the efforts of those like NorCal star and former national champion Alex Speed claiming the S1 Pro Stock Moto victory.

The driver lineup in the S1 category mirrored the roster of the SKUSA Pro Tour, with all three series leaders on hand. While Clinton Schoombee and Fritz Leesmann were looking to help control their fate in the regional championships, Alex Speed had nothing to lose as he continues to prepare for the upcoming SKUSA SuperNationals. The qualifying session for the headline category was ended after just one-minute on the clock, due to oil on the track. It would be one minute too late, as it collected championship contenders Jason Toft and Tommy Thompson, ending their session with kart damage into the barriers. After the clean-up, the remaining drivers were allowed a second qualifying session, and jostled the pole position back and forth until Speed claimed the spot with a 46.669. Leesmann was a close second, as Brad Dunford slid into third ahead of Schoombee. The top four were separated by just eight-hundredths.

Leesmann scored the opening 8-lap heat race win, as Speed had to fight Schoombee for second. Leesmann led early in the second moto, until Speed worked by with two laps to go, scoring the win. Schoombee, however, retired on the final lap due to a shattered front right brake rotor, costing him valuable points in the chase and moving NorCal driver Brett Buckwalter up to the third position. The main event was another thriller this time for 15 laps with Leesmann at the point early on. Leading the first five laps, Speed hounded the PKC North point leader until lap six, when he overtook the position. Leesmann looked to retake the lead, but would come up short as Speed picked up the pace in the late going, posting the fast laps en route to his first PKC West Coast Shootout victory. Dunford held the third spot for the majority of the race, staying with the top two until lap 12, when he spun in turn one trying to get around Leesmann. Buckwalter assumed the position and crossed the line behind Leesmann to complete the podium. Thompson recovered from his qualifying misfortunes to end up fourth in the final with Schoombee on his bumper up to fifth.

Victory at the PKC West Coast Shootout in TaG Senior not only has put Bobby Kelleys name into the forefront for the SKUSA SuperNationals pre-race banter, but it has also positioned him as the championship leader in the PKC North program heading into next months finale. The event began with Kelley ending up second in qualifying to his teammate Nick Johnston, who posted a 47.749 lap time. PKC South championship leader Phil Giebler had transponder issues during the session, forcing him to pit early but was able to clock in the third quickest time. Johnston showed the way in the opening heat race, until Kelley made his move coming to the white flag and going on to the win. Senior rookie Louie Pagano made his move at the same time, pushing Giebler back to fourth. Kelley was able to break away to score the win in the second heat, as Johnston fought with Giebler for the runner-up spot, eventually losing out and holding off Pagano for third.

It was a mad shuffle to begin the 15-lap feature, as Giebler came away with the point over Johnston and Kelley fell back to third. Once by Johnston on lap four, Kelley set his sights on the former Indy 500 Rookie of the Year. Four laps later, Kelley pulled the trigger and regained the lead. From there, the top two were evenly match, with Giebler unable to advance by Kelley. In the end, Kelley would score the victory by one second over Giebler, while Johnston earned the final podium position over two Senior rookies Adrian Starrantino and Pagano.

The largest class of the weekend was the S4 Master Stock Moto division with 22 primed, veteran drivers taking part which coincidentally is the first class to reach the 40-driver mark for pre-entries at the SKUSA SuperNationals. Qualifying was paced by the South contingent, with the first six spots held by drivers from SoCal entering their final round of the season with the championship chase up in the air. Leading the way in the timed session was Doug Hayashi, point leader Jeff Littrell and Phil Conte, as the top three would only be separated by seven-hundredths with Hayashis 48.070 lap time best of the run. The surprise of the session would be the position of PKC North point leader Jeff Smith, as the SKUSA SpringNationals winner was only 13th in the final tally. Conte went from third to first in the opening lap of the first heat, going on to the win over Hayashi and Littrell as Jason Campbell joined the fight from P9 grid position. Campbell continued his progression forward, leading all but the opening lap to score the win in heat two over Hayashi and Conte. Littrell would lose valuable championship points, getting shuffled back to 20th after attempting a pass for position and spinning around in what appeared to be fluid on track. Meanwhile, Smith continued to overcome his poor qualifying effort, placing sixth in the first heat and ended up fourth in the second moto, matching the pace of the leaders.

Campbell grabbed the holeshot to begin the main event, with Smith able to work by both Hayashi and Conte in the opening lap. Smith took only three laps to size up Campbell, making his move on lap four to take the lead. From there, Smith would post the fast laps of the race to score the victory, his seventh straight on the season including SKUSA Pro Tour and regional action. Campbell stayed with Smith for the remainder of the race, crossing the line second to complete a solid performance, while Conte ran on his bumper to complete the podium. Littrell drove forward to end up eighth. Luke Bianco swept the day in S4 Magnum, outrunning Marc Lewis and Larry Metter to clinch his second straight PKC South title.

Needing to gain maximum amount of points to have a chance at the PKC South S2 Semi-Pro Stock Moto title, Ryon Beachner did just that as he swept the days action to score nearly a perfect score for the event missing out only on the 10 bonus points for fast lap in the main event. Beachner posted a fast lap of 47.323 in the qualifying session to top the charts, with the top four split with North and South drivers. Fellow South driver Vivek Tandon was third, while North drivers Neil Joseph and Matt Alcorn were second and fourth. Joseph grabbed the holeshot in heat one, and led the first two laps before Beachner reclaimed the top spot. Joseph then fell back to third and Tandon advanced up to second with Alcorn, the North championship leader, holding fourth. Positions remained unchanged after the start in heat two, with Beachner taking the holeshot over Tandon while Alcorn jumped in front of Joseph. Battling to stay in the top-five, Joseph eventually made contact with Bryce Miller, who spun out in front of him while battling for position, finishing 10th.

Tandon began the 15-lap feature as the leader, while Beachner had to settle into second place with Alcorn on his bumper. The top three ran nose to tail until lap seven, when Beachner took over the top spot from Tandon. From there, Beachner would go on to take the victory by just over a second, as Tandon crossed the line in second. Alcorn was pressured late in the race by Cameron Pringle, and on lap 14 Alcorn was shuffled out and fell back to fifth in the order as Pringle took the final podium position over Nicky Freytag who posted fast lap of the race after starting 15th.

The S3 Novice Stock Moto category was also swept on the day, as South driver Jason Attwood paced the field throughout the event, claiming the class title in the process. Sure to be a great addition to the S2 division in 2011, Attwood drove away each session with PKC newcomer Austin Countryman placing second over Jessica Sollberger. S5 Junior Stock Moto ran on track at the same time, and looked to be a sweep as well heading into the final. SKUSA Pro Tour winner Daniel Langon led the way through the day until the first turn of the Final, when an S3 driver spun in front of him. With nowhere to go, Langon was collected - along with S5 driver Matias Podboj. However, all three were able to get restarted after the field drove by. This allowed Augie Lerch to take the point and score the big victory in only his third PKC start in the S5 category. Scott Phillips ended up second with Micah Hendricks completing the podium.

TaG Master was paced by the PKC North contingent with point leader Ethan Wilson coming away with the victory. After topping the charts in qualifying, Wilson was edged out for the first heat win by Peter Workum. Coming back to win the second heat, Wilson went on to cruise to the victory in the main event after Workum retired on lap three with mechanical issues. Jeff Deehan advanced to finish second to put the North 1-2 on the podium with South championship leader Ron Rossetti in third.

TaG Junior was anything but a breeze for the young rising stars, as they battled it out hard at the front of the field. Jake Craig made his first PKC start of the season, beginning the event as the top qualifier over another first-time PKC driver Carter Williams while PKC North driver Kathryn Cornell sat third. Cornell got the jump on the two newbies, as she came around leading the first lap, going on to score the win ahead of Craig and Williams. Cornell led things early in heat two, until Craig took the spot and went on to win with Kathryn falling to fourth behind Austin Dement and Williams. Craig and Williams went at it tooth-and-nail for 13 of the 15 laps in the main event, swapping the lead numerous times until the two made contact, taking them out of the race. This put Dement to the point, as he scored the victory over Cornell with Emmanuel Mestre completing the podium.

Craig nearly had a victory locked in the PKC North HPV2-Junior category, as well. Showing the way the entire day heading into the final, Craig was sidelined on lap two after dropping a wheel off track and then hade his chain pop off. This allowed Christian Rochester who was making his first PKC start to take the point, as he cruised to a 12-second victory over Daniel Langon and Jack Freese.

From the PKC South program, the G1 category completed its season in Santa Maria with a familiar driver out front. SKUSA Pro Tour championship leader Fernando Diaz swept the days action, earning the checkered flag by over four seconds ahead of Nick Firestone and Troy Butts. Diaz performance earned him the credit as the only driver to repeat his 2009 victory at the West Coast Shootout.

The new TaG Cadet category which debuted in the SKUSA Pro Tour made a one-off appearance at the West Coast Shootout, as drivers looking to warm-up for the SuperNats in November asked for inclusion at the event. Colton Brooks swept the days action with Colton Herta and Noah Grey completing the podium.

In the final tally, the South once again topped the North in the overall Regional Shootout, which took each regions best three finishes in the eight cross-over classes. Despite the fact that race wins were split between the two programs four each the South was able to capitalize with podium sweeps in TaG Senior, S3 and S5. The calculations show the South with 183 points to the Norths 123 markers, earning the title for the second straight season and gaining bragging rights for another year.

With the PKC South program wrapped up, the final championship points are still being tallied and the class champions will be announced shortly. The PKC North program will commence its final event over Labor Day weekend September 3-4 at the Jim Russell International Karting Center in Sonoma, California. Once that weekend is complete, the SKUSA staff and competitors will focus its full attention on the SKUSA Pro Tour finale, the SKUSA SuperNationals XIV, at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on November 17-21. For more information on anything related to SKUSA or the ProKart Challenge, visit the www.superkartsusa.com website or call the SKUSA head office at 951-491-0808.

8-18-10 "Battle at the Border" ! Round five of the NW Gold Cup/Rotax Max Chalenge Series at “GMR” Canada

Round five action played out this past week in Chilliwack, British Columbia. Once again competitors would find themselves north of the border in the land of the Maple Leaf. Hype going into this race was considerable to say the least, and as it would turn out, the event did not disappoint. This was an all-star event, with some national bragging rights up for grabs! Northwest karting news was there for the three day event taking in all the action.
The Place: Chilliwack B.C. At the beautiful Greg Moore Raceway.
The Track: 4015 feet in length, 26.25 to 36.5 feet in width, 12 corners 7 right 5 left. Comments: Fast, technical, passing opportunities excellent.
The Drivers: Excited, high energy, looking forward to some great racing.
The Weather: Mid 80’s full sun, in a word “Incredible”

Rotax Micro/ Tag Gazelle
In Heat 1 it was Edward Portz (cmc) who charged to the front of the Micro Max class,leaving Seth Appel, and Mason Morgan having to step up their game. Portz ran a great race holding onto first, followed by Appel in second, and Morgan in third, with Wick in fourth. Meanwhile, a very determined Sara Brinkac battled it out with Job Kandris throughout the weekend taking the win in Gazelle.

IAME Leopard Jr 3:
The man of the hour in IAME Jr was without a doubt Artie Carpenter, setting the pace from the beginning with an impressive pole position time of 52.24. Leading this pack of competitive racers on the start of Heat two was Kailia Walter, while Carpenter, having clutch problems in heat one had some work to do starting in the back of the pack. Half way through the session, Carpenter had made his way through the entire field and took the lead. At the start of the main it was Walter who again would take the lead knowing she had Carpenter right behind. Carpenter made the pass for the lead down on the inside of Turn two, and never looked back. Trevor Yip and Keegan Laithwaite battled throughout the main event for the second place spot, while Paige Wallin and Colton Schultz battled for the fourth place spot, no one giving so much as an inch. In the end, Carpenter took home the win, followed by Yip in second, Laithwaite third, Wallin fourth, and Schultz fifth.

Mini Max:
Jake Preston started off the Mini Max weekend by putting his kart on pole. It would soon become a heated battle for first however. The weekend would be determined by who had the lead at the very end. The number 9 of Kyle Wick and the number 51 of Jake Preston went back and forth all weekend for the lead, while a very determined Sting Ray Robb and Marco Eakins ran hard to stay up in the mix. Wick grabbed the lead coming out of the start in the main event followed by Eakins, Preston, and Sting Ray. Preston took Eakins down on the inside of turn two, and later took Wick on the inside of Turn one for the lead. This left Sting Ray and Eakins to battle for the third place spot as Sting Ray made a move down in turn one, but was not able to catch the leaders. What a show as Wick and Preston passed each other back and forth right up until the very last lap, as Preston dove down past Wick on the last lap to take the win. Wick came in second, Sting Ray third, Eakins fourth, and Franchini fifth.

IAME Cup Sr:
In IAME Sr it was Team Ital Kart’s Michael Valiante who set the tone for the weekend laying down a very fast lap time of 52.22 to take the pole position. By the main event it was Jurca who came out in front on the start with Ruscitti, Valiante, and Sandeen right behind. Devon Sandeen was determined to get into the mix as he dove down to the inside of turn one to get by Valiante, and then Ruscitti to take the second place spot. Valiante was then able to make a move on Ruscitti in turn three to take third while trying to get back to the front. In the end it was Ruscitti who would take the checkered, followed by Sandeen in second, Valiante third, Jurca fourth, and Hargrove rounding out the top five.

Jr 1 Briggs Gas Animal/ Jr 2 Briggs Gas Animal Hvy:
Sting Ray would take the pole on his Wildkart with a fast lap of 59.12. These competitors would drive the wheels off their karts all weekend leading up to the main event. In the main it was Zamora getting the jump on the start and taking the lead, with Bryce Peterson holding onto the second position, followed by Sting Ray, Kyle Adams and David Schorn. Sting Ray was determined to get to the front however, making a move on Peterson coming out of turn eight for position two. Sting Ray raced to catch Zamora and was able to dive down into the inside of turn one to take the lead and win the race. Zamora came in second, with Schorn in third, Adams fourth, and Peterson rounding out the top five.

World Formula Medium/ Masters:
What a day it was for these two groups. Daniel Cahill kicked off the WF Medium class by taking pole with a fast lap of 58.35. All weekend Cahill, Austin Moon, and Chris Genge would battle it out for the lead. In the main event however, after Cahill got the lead on the start, it was Austin Moon who would drive under Cahill in turn one to take the lead. Genge wasn’t ready to give up it would seem as he drove hard and was able to make his way up to second, with Cahill right behind. In the WF Masters class Gabriel Kajdy would yet again take the pole position laying down a very fast lap of 58.76. With Kajdy out it front, the battle for second would be a fierce one between Barlee, Mullins, and Schorn. By the main event, Kajdy took the lead on the start having his hands full soon after as Barlee would challenge him for the front. As the racers went around the track into the far back corners Kajdy disappeared off the track and was not able to finish the remainder of the race, as Barlee came out in front. The man on the move in this event however was Michael Schorn, driving hard making his way through the pack up to second, and boy did he earn that one, with Mullins and Green right there behind him.

Rotax Jr:
The rotax jr’s have been putting on a great show all season and this weekend was no exception. Mathew Moniz set the pace early putting his Mach 1 kart on pole with a fast lap of 52.09. As it would turn out, Moniz would have to watch his back this weekend as Marcus Brodie was never far behind; with Byers, Carpenter, Hudson, and Helmuth looking to come to the front as well. There were many battles throughout the weekend as these talented young drivers raced hard and never backed down while fighting for their positions. By the main event, Moniz and Brodie would begin their fight for first, while Carpenter was unfortunately collected up in an incident on the start placing him at the back of the field. It seemed that turn one and turn three were the turns of choice for Moniz and Brodie as they made multiple passes back and forth between the two for the lead. Meanwhile, Helmuth and Hudson (on his new Tony Kart) would battle hard for their positions, and as Delavergne and Beck got into the mix there were a total of five karts all within inches of each other duking it out for the fourth position. Carpenter was working hard to catch all the action and was able to make his way back up to fifth place. In the end it was Moniz who earned his win, with Brodie right behind in second, Byers in third, Delavergne who had a solid run up through the field to claim the fourth spot, and Carpenter in fifth.

Rotax Sr:
This would turn out to be the premier class of the weekend with more then 20 entries, two western Canadian champions, one U.S. National champion as well as several regional title holders made for a field deep with talent. Chris Glover would take pole with a fast lap of 51.90. With Glover holding a commanding lead on the field throughout the weekend, there was only Andrew Zimmer and Michael Hogg who had any real shot at catching him. The weekend was not without controversy as Sunday would find Derek Wang and local favorite Bryce Choquer positioned towards the back of the pack for the start on the main, this was do to an on track incident in an earlier heat race. Main event action would find Glover taking the lead on the start, followed by Zimmer, and Hogg. Meanwhile Brandon Cusack would work his way up to the fourth position. It wouldn’t be long however before the hard charging Choquer would make his way back up to the front and ultimately pass Cusack on the inside of nine with just two laps to go. In the end it would be Glover taking the checkered, followed by Zimmer second, Hogg third, Choquer fourth, with Cusack rounding out the top five.

Tag Masters:
Starting off the weekend in Tag Masters was Jayson Clunie putting his no. 3 kart on pole with a fast lap of 54.09. It seemed there was no beating Clunie as he dominated all heat races, while Jim Hargrove drove hard trying to make his way to the front throughout the weekend only to have a mechanical malfunction on his kart in the main. Helmut Buhl stayed consistently in second place throughout, it was Gabriel Kajdy who was able to make his way through the pack and get up to third in the main. In the end it was Clunie who took home first place, followed by Buhl in second, Kajdy in third, Cornwell in fourth, and Johnson rounding out the top five.

Shifters:
Remo Ruscitti would set the pace putting his kart on pole with a fast lap of 51.21. It was a long battle all three heats with these racers competing within only inches of each other. By the main event it was on, and the pack was three karts wide heading into turn one on the start. Jurca came out in front with Ruscitti right behind in second. The race now was for first between Jurca, Ruscitti, and Valiante. Meanwhile Hargrove, and new comer to the class Brandon Scheiber were in a battle of their own for the fourth spot. If there was any questions wether or not Scheiber would be able to run in this class he laid them to rest with a solid effort, and a fourth place finish for the weekend; In the end it was Ruscitti who would take home the win, followed by Valiante in second, Jurca third, Scheiber fourth, and Hargrove rounding out the top five.
That’s a wrap, Northwest Karting News will see you in two weeks at PSGKA for round six of the 2010 NW Gold Cup/Rotax max challenge.
 

8-18-10 Sean Rayhall Wins Legends Summer Shootout Championship

“Rayhall wins Young Lions in first year of Legends racing”

 At the ripe young age of 15 years old, Sean Rayhall from Winston, GA has been making a name for himself in the oval racing scene and made an even bigger step last Tuesday by winning the hotly contested Legends Summer Shootout Championship in the Young Lions division.  He did so by taking home yet another feature win.  Currently Sean is second in the National standings and hopes to take over the top spot by the end of the year.

On July 15, 2010 the largest Legends race in the world was held at Charlotte Motor Speedway.  One million dollars was up for grabs for the Pro division winner, so the who’s who of Legends racing gathered for an entry list boasting over 300 entries, including NASCAR star David Ragan.  Sean would compete in the Semi Pro/Young Lions division along with the Legends Million Pro division.  With a rain soaked track Sean dominated the Semi Pro race lapping up to fourth position and taking home the win.  More impressively Sean won his heat race in the Legends Million giving him a 6^th position starting spot for the Main.  After moving up to 5^th and running with the leaders, Sean started to experience some issues, which eventually forced him to retire.

Not only has Sean been having success in the Legends, he has also been dominant in the SCCA FE Pro car this season.  With four races left on the schedule Sean is leading the championship and has won the last four races in the series.  Sean has also qualified on pole for every race this season.  In one month’s time Sean will head to the SCCA Runoffs with Comprent Motorsports looking to become the National Champion in the FE division.

“I can not thank my dad and Dave Stevens enough for such an incredible season,” stated Rayhall.  “I am looking forward to what the future may bring, but right now I am focused on ending this season with more wins and championships.”

In the 54 total races he has competed in this year, including both Legens and FE, Sean has accumulated 35 wins and 36 pole positions, an amazing statistic for this young drivers career.  He also has finished in the top two eighty seven percent of the time in 2010.

For more information on Sean please visit www.seanrayhall.com.  Sean would like to thank 1^st Action Services, Doug Stevens and Advanced Technology Motorsport, Kevin Kloepher at Comprent Motorsports.

8-16-10 Important Fuel Announcement for RLOKC Rotax Classes

For the next two RLOKC races on August 22nd and August 29th, Rotax racers will be allowed to run their choice of VP MS93 or VP 98L. RLOKC is transitioning away from VP MS93 due to sales tax issues with this particular fuel. Allowing both fuels at the next two races will allow racers to use up any MS93 they already have. The spec fuel is being re-evaluated for future races.

Please note Cameron Karting will no longer stock VP MS93. VP 98L is available in five gallon pails at Cameron Karting's trackside shop location.

 

8-16-10 Gatorz Karting Cup announces makeup date with September Pan-Am at Calspeed

Gatorz Karting Cup announces makeup date with September Pan-Am at Calspeed August 16, 2010 (Orange, Calif.) – Making up its previously postponed June date at the Grange Motor Circuit, the Gatorz Karting Cup would like to announce that round five of the 2010 Gatorz Karting Cup will be held Saturday, October 2, at the Calspeed Karting Center. It will be held in conjunction with the Fontana round of the Rotax Pan-Am. On that Saturday, all Gatorz Karting Cup drivers will earn points for the series championship.

Round 4 of the Gatorz Karting Cup will be held August 28-29 in a joint race with the Los Angeles Kart Club, while the series finale will be held October 9-10 at the Streets of Lancaster Grand Prix.

The decision to partner with the Pan-Am was based on a variety of circumstances, including minimizing travel for teams located far from Southern California who also plan on competing at the Streets of Lancaster Grand Prix, which will be the series finale for the Gatorz Karting Cup. With the added hurdle of a crowded race schedule in September and October, and Pan-Am’s willingness to accommodate the Gatorz Karting Cup drivers, the decision was made to make Saturday a Gatorz points race.

“We looked at several different scenarios for making up our June round, but in the end this is the best solution for us and for the drivers, teams, and shops that support our series,” said Andy Seesemann, owner of the Gatorz Karting Cup. “Racing on back-to-back weekends will minimize the travel for our teams and shops that are based out of town that will be competing in Lancaster.”

“We appreciate that Joe Ramos willing to work with us and include us in his program, and we hope that our Gatorz Karting Cup drivers will race the Sunday round of Pan-Am as well. And now that our schedule is set for the rest of the season, we are looking forward to three exciting rounds of Rotax racing.”

Gatorz Karting Cup racers will be competing for free entries, including tires, to the 2011 Gatorz Challenge of the Americas. With three rounds of the six-round championship remaining, the final races at Calspeed and Lancaster will determine the season champions in each class. Drivers will have to compete in five of the six events in order to be eligible for the championship prizes.

For more information about the final events of the 2010 Gatorz Karting Cup, contact Full Throttle Karting at (714) 289-0432.

8-16-10 Raquel Martinez WKA New Castle Report
“Raquel continues busy summer”

Going on her fourth straight weekend of racing Raquel Martinez headed to New Castle Motorsports Park for the fourth round of the WKA Manufacturer’s Cup. Raquel competed in Yamaha Jr. Can Lite and Heavy along with Komet Jr. Lite and Heavy. The weekend’s events started bright and early Friday morning with practice, and Raquel was one of the fastest drivers throughout the day in both Komet and Yamaha.

First up on Saturday was Komet Jr. Heavy and Raquel qualified in third position. In Yamaha Jr. Lite the team missed the setup and Raquel ended up ninth. Starting in the third position for the final, Raquel was hit off the track in turn two and was forced to retire from the race. After an incident in the pre-final, Raquel drove a great race in the Yamaha final, avoided many wrecks, and worked her way up to fourteenth position turning lap times as fast as the leaders while passing karts every lap.

On Sunday the team hoped to rebound from the previous day. In Komet Lite Raquel qualified in sixth position in a very tight, thirty-five kart filled field. In the final Raquel got off to a good start, but lost the lead group after a hard battle for position on track. In the end she won the battle for the final podium position in fifth place. Qualifying in the twelfth position in Yamaha Heavy, Raquel knew she could move forward in the races and succeeded by finishing in the sixth position in the final.

“This was a tough weekend especially after how well practices went,” stated Martinez. “We showed our speed all weekend, but unfortunately did not come up with the result we had hoped for. The Top Kart and P1 engines were great all weekend and I cant thank everyone enough for all of their support.”

For more information please visit www.raquelmartinez.com. In one week’s time Raquel will be traveling back to Italy to compete in the opening round of the WSK Masters Series at the Circuito di Siena with Top Kart – Comer in the KF3 category. Raquel would also like to thank her sponsors King Taco, Pepsi, P1 Engines, Grand Products, Top Kart, RLV, Bridgestone, DWT, Alpinestars, MLP Imaging, Troy Lee Designs, Graphix Plus and PKS Kart Supplies.
 

8-12-10 IKF Region 7 Championship Series - Santa Maria

Racers in the IKF Region 7 Championship Series presented by Bridgestone headed slightly north this past weekend to Santa Maria for round # 3 in the Summer/Fall series. I have long been a great supporter of the track and its members for various reasons, most notably my well documented addiction to the Women of the Moose Tri-Tip sandwiches. Another one of my favorites is that all races held in the summer months should only be allowed to take place in the mild climate of the central coast's wine region. While many were enjoying the 100 degree heat index and sweating off parts of their body they didn't know they had back home in Indiana this weekend others were captivated by low 70's and a nice breeze.

On track action was fabulous with most of the entertainment provided by the Cadet drivers. The big feature of this weekends race was the $1000 bounty put on the heads of PRD drivers “Notorious” Nick Johnston and Bobby “The Killer” Kelley by RLV Inc. Notorious Nick and Killer Kelley were put on notice by RLV Inc. for their crimes of russlin Duffy’s, the collection of trophies without a permit, and excessive tagging of trailers with IKF win stickers. The rules were simple, dead or alive, but preferably alive. All the challengers had to do was beat both Johnston and Kelley in a fair effort on track. If any driver or drivers (up to 5) accomplished this difficult feat then they would collect the $1000 bounty. Now, should Kelley or Johnston win the race then all $1000 was theirs and theirs alone.

The combined KPV 4 / Pipe & PRD Jr classes were first out of the starting gate. With a pair of drivers in each class, odds makers were giving 50/50 or 1 to 1 payouts on picking the winners. Jason Hannegan went the fastest of all the classes grabbing a pole in PRD Junior with his time of 51.748. KPV 4 / Pipe was a little tighter as Johnathan Miller only out qualified John Wallace III by .082. Wallace and Miller stayed together in the prefinal with Wallace inching it out for the win. The 20-lap final was probably 15 laps too many as Hannegan ran to the solo victory in PRD Jr. Wallace led the opening circuits, but by halfway Miller had gained an advantage and went on for the win.

Kid Kart qualifying was close as usual with Luis Ortiz grabbing the pole from Wyatt Wyllie on their 3rd lap. Hudson Morrow stepped up his game in the prefinal running two seconds ahead of Ortiz for the win. Hayden Wagner got an impressive start to commence the Kid Kart final. He ran nine of the ten laps being hounded by Morrow with Bryson Waterman, Wyllie, and Ortiz all battling for 3rd. On the last lap Morrow struck like a coiled snake stealing the win right out of Wagner's grasp. At the line they were separated by only .017 in Morrow's favor. Ortiz clawed his way back up to 3rd with Braden Waterman and Dezel West rounding out the top five.

Chance Skaufel nabbed the KPV 1 pole by two tenths over some of the top Cadet drivers in the country. Jacob Drew, Christian Brooks and Colton Herta gave chase in the prefinal by Skaufel was too quick to be beat. The final was anyone's guess to how it would all unfold. Five drivers probably could have won this thing given the right circumstances. Herta was the first of the favorites to drop out on lap four leaving Skaufel, Brooks and Drew alone as the lead trio. The leaders changed positions every few laps and just as you figured it was all over and we had a winner they would pass again. Drew and Brooks kept Skaufel in check this time, both finding their way to the front. With two to go Lil Rookster made his move. It was good enough to earn him another IKF win. Drew fought hard the last lap but settled for 2nd place ahead of Skaufel. Wyatt May and Matt Million finished nine seconds back of the winner in 4th and 5th.

Spec PRD Sr. was the class everyone was waiting to see. Sporting new visor strips to reflect their wanted nature Johnston and Kelley set forth to challenge all takers. Notorious Nick drew first blood winning the pole over Killer Kelley by just under a tenth. Robby Harryman was the best of the posse hunting for the $1000 bounty in 3rd. Missing from the fray was Kolby Araki, who given his gunslinger ability in this class might have been up to the task at hand. The prefinal saw Kelley take the point with Johnston finishing in 2nd. Again the only driver able to keep pace was Harryman but he finished a few kart lengths back. Matt Johnson and Ty Matta, two drivers who normally can hunt wins with the best of them were just out paced giving up a lot of time in a short number of laps. Eye witness accounts describe the final as less of an OK corral shootout and more as a driving clinic. It almost looked rehearsed as the two Position 1 drivers passed and passed again. Clean every lap the duo shot down all others hopes of claiming the weekend's bounty. With two to go Kelley made his bid for the win, but Johnston countered and kept his #28 out front. With a defensive line on the last lap Johnston added a well earned $1000 bucks to his wallet. Kelley was a close 2nd as Matt Johnson found a little extra speed to finish in 3rd. With two more races left in the season and two more chances for drivers to claim the bounty I expect to see an all out war at Apex next month. Harryman dropped back a position to finish 4th with Brandon Campbell right there for 5th.

Jake Craig had a solid tenth on the rest of his fellow competitors in KPV 2 qualifying. Brandon Reed was the closest but it is never good to give Craig even an inch of breathing room. Craig really has had a breakthrough season but his luck ran out in the prefinal finishing down the charts. Jason Hannegan, Christian Rochester, Carter Williams, and Emmanuel Mestre all finished the prefinal in a close line with the win going to Hannegan. Rochester grabbed some pedal to start the final leading the opening circuit. He gave way for one lap to Hannegan before regaining the top position. It took Craig less than half the race to make his way steadily through traffic and take the lead. Once out front it was smooth sailing for Craig and he easily added another 1st place trophy to his collection.  Rochester was best in class, finishing two seconds down for 2nd place. Third place eventually went to Reed after he escaped the clutches of Kyle Blum, Hannegan and Carter Williams all fighting it out for the last podium positions.

The Cadet drivers were at it once again in the last final of the day, Junior 1. Colton Herta and Jake Drew led the way in qualifying, but come prefinal time Chance Skaufel crossed the finish line first. Five karts all finished together as one setting up a great final. With Wyatt May out of contention before the final even began, it left four drivers able to challenge for the win: Skaufel, Herta, Drew, and Christian Brooks. Skaufel led early as Brooks found his way around Herta and Drew. By lap seven Brooks was out front fending off Skaufel with Drew and Herta in tow. Brooks settled into a rhythm driving the pace and the race towards the finish at the end of seventeen laps. Herta and Drew traded 3rd and 4th as Skaufel set up Brooks in the closing laps. With two to go Skaufel was up front again with a hungry Brooks looking for a weakness. The quartette sped down the straightaway for the last time and Brooks tried a late braking attempt for the win. It didn't work and he spun off track dropping him back to 5th place behind Matt Million. Skaufel went on to victory over Herta and Drew for a spectacular win and a great way to close out the weekend.

Round 4 of the IKF Region 7 Championship Series presented by Bridgestone will take place September 11-12 at the Apex Karting Center in Perris, California hosted by the Pacific Association of Karters. Entry form is available online NOW. For information on that event check http://www.ikfkarting-r7.com and http://www.apexracing.com   The RLV $1000 bounty on the heads of Nick Johnston and Bobby Kelley will be in effect at the Apex and So Cal Sprinters rounds of the series so be prepared for anything, rumor is the bounty is going to double to $2000.

8-12-10 Phil Giebler Racing enters seven drivers in SKUSA West Coast Shootout at Santa Maria

Former Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year Phil Giebler will stay busy in the Superkarts! USA West Coast Shootout on Friday and Saturday (Aug. 13-14) at the Santa Maria (Calif.) Kart Track.

Giebler will split his time between driving in the TaG Senior class and coaching the additional six drivers entered by Phil Giebler Racing in the event, which brings together the SKUSA Pro Kart Challenge South and North divisions. Giebler will be assisted by father Everett Giebler, who provides mechanical guidance and advice to the team.

Giebler, of Huntington Beach, Calif., has a commanding points lead going into the sixth and final round of the South championship over Billy Cleavlin, 1,354-1,185.

I want to put a stamp on the championship in this best in the West shootout, Giebler said. I m leading the points, but I will not be driving conservatively. I am aiming for another victory.

PGR, based in Orange, Calif., will race in four classes. Brothers Shawn and Chris Cricca, of Simi Valley, Calif., join Giebler in TaG Senior. Steve Wiener, of San Diego, will race in TaG Masters, Andrew Wiener, of San Diego, and Mason Daughters, of Polo, Mo., in TaG Junior and Noah Grey, of Dana Point, Calif., in TaG Cadet. Andrew Wiener is the TaG Junior points leader.

Giebler, Shawn and Chris Cricca and Steve Wiener will be driving FA Karts powered by 125cc water-cooled Vortex Racing engines built by Daniel Patino s D Power Engines of Huntington Beach, Calif., on MG tires. Andrew Wiener and Daughters use Iame Leopard engines in TaG Junior and Grey will have a 60cc Vortex engine in TaG Cadet. They will also be in FA Karts on MG Tires.

I m competing, but I ll also be focusing my efforts mentoring my team drivers, Giebler said. I use these weekends as a college of racing. I like to lead by example and have them watch me while they are off track. I also follow them on the track and then we discuss everything between sessions.

My father is very experienced in karting and he helps with the mechanical preparation of the kart to help everyone understand adjustments and gives advice throughout the weekend.

Giebler has six wins, a second and two thirds in 10 main events this season. He s also the points leader in SKUSA s Pro Tour, which concludes with the SuperNationals on Nov. 14 to 21 at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas.

Giebler has lofty goals for his team on Santa Maria s .7-mile track, which is located at the Santa Maria Airport.

We have to show that we can win on any kind of track and against some of the best kart drivers in the country, Giebler said. I want to continue the momentum as we head towards the biggest event of the year, the SuperNationals in Las Vegas.

The West Coast Shootout has practice Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PDT, followed by practice, qualifying, two heat races and a main event on Saturday.
The main events begin at 2:20 p.m. PDT.

We re looking forward to the last event of the PKC South series, Giebler said. Santa Maria is a fun track and it should be good racing.
 

8-12-10 LAKC race 6 July 25, 2010 Recap

The Los Angeles Kart Club held race #6 of their series July 25th at their home track, the CalSpeed Karting Center. Even halfway through the year LAKC's participation remains the strongest in the area of all of the regular series and clubs. This weekend's race saw the racers take on the NUEVO track configuration, a favorite among many of the regulars. Micheal Reehl was this months winner of a free entry as the official safety test winner. The only minor snafu all weekend long was a lack of transponders. Sure enough the transponders never made it to the event so LAKC kicked it old school with pea pick and hand scoring. A little change of pace to shake things up never hurts and it is always good for the young drivers to know how we rolled back in the day. The membership really enjoyed the modified race format even if it was unintentional.

LAKC Race #6 by the numbers:
133 entries
32 laps of racing action per class
3 red flags – no serious injuries at the time
2 fence poles bent over
1 destroyed CRG
100% having a great time rain or shine

As always the driver's meeting kicked things off. LAKC members Jake Craig, Colton Herta and
Hudson Morrow all received recognition for their IKF 2 Cycle Grand National Duffy wins. It is always nice to be honored by your peers and even nicer to know you are racing against some of the best drivers in karting at your local LAKC race.

During the drivers meeting racers were informed on the new surprise race format for the event, two 8-lap heat races and one 16-lap main event. The computer would pea pick the first race and the order would be inverted for heat number two. Heat one kicked started by 10:30 and saw a regular shuffling of positions as the ebb and flow of the racers sorted things out. With the mixture of fast and slow all running throughout the field we did see a few minor incidents and drive overs, but we also saw a lot of passing. Heat two's low light was the unfortunate karter vs. fence middleweight championship fight. Always bet on the fence. Jesse Hauman took out 30 feet of fence wile “warming his tires”, knocking down two poles in the process. Jesse suffered a broken leg, but has a great story to tell. Get well soon Jesse.

TAG/PRD Sr. kicked things off with the first final of the day. Jason Bunch won both the TAG Heat races while Keith Dees and Devin Lindsey each won in PRD. Lindsey and Bunch tangled on the start of the final ruining both their chances of victory. Dees went on to win PRD over Michael Bowers and Brandon Campbell while the TAG win went to Billy McAllister. AJ Spagnola and Ken Manning rounded out the TAG top three.

Double D, Dakota Dickerson and Nicky Hays both were victorious in Rotax Jr. and Mini Max competition. Even with the pea pick fast always rises to the top and both these drivers were on their game this weekend winning each time on track. Jake Craig started in the rear of the Rotax Jr and worked his way up to finish 2nd to Double D with Breanna Miscione finishing a solid 3rd. Nick Ramirez and Anthony Sawyer gave chase to Hays, finishing 2nd and 3rd.

Kid Karts were next to take the grid and throughout the day drivers were trying to gain an advantage by jumping the starts. Early jumps added to the penalties but shows how competitive the LAKC Kid Kart class is and that every position counts. With 13 drivers lined up for heat #1 it was Dustin Hodge who scored the win. Four drivers were DQ'd, mixing things up for heat #2 even more. Hodge again set the pace in heat 2 and started the main from the pole position. Hodge continued in the final to sweep the class with a Kid Kart win. Hodge bested Hayden Wagner and Preston Anderson as they finished 2nd and 3rd. Carson Enright and Myles Farhan completed the fast five. The Hodge and Wagner battle was the best race of the day. They swapped positions many times.

Rotax Sr. was the “Crow Show” as John Crow scored the top honors in the final. Heat 1 saw Jeremy Kane lead them down to the checkered flag followed by Brett Sheffer and Race Liberante, but heat # 2 Crow flew to the top of the charts. Crow started the final from the pole with Sheffer along side in P2. With Kane and Vegas driver Zach Woodsford on row two the final looked like it might be a good one. Crow brought it home in the 16 laps final with Kane and Sheffer in tow.

Junior 1 had some of the best racing all day, not a big surprise since they usually put on a great show. Chase McDaniel and Jacob Drew split the wins in the heat races. With his first and second place runs McDaniel stated the final from the pole with Drew joining him on the front row. Christian Brooks and Ian Wesolowski gridded up on row two. McDaniel got a great start to begin the final, followed closely by Drew and Brooks. Drew was able to slip by first, but it was short lived with McDaniel taking it back. As the lead trio dueled up front a few feet back was an amazing race between Wesolowski, Anthony Sawyer, and Zack Kurtz. Unfortunately for the leaders lap traffic played a part in the outcome, not once but twice as each time drivers zigged when they should have zagged. Brooks was caught out the first time, but it payed off for him on the last lap, slipping by for a great win. Drew finished a close 2nd along with McDaniel in 3rd. Justice Lepe and Kurtz rounded out the top five.

Steve Dzurilla and Ron Rossetti set the pace in Masters Rotax heat race competition. Dzurilla with 5 points started the final from the pole as Rossetti and Larry Hayashigawa tied for second with six points. Rossetti's win was the tie breaker and he started P2 on row one. With sixteen laps in the books the top two remained the same. Dzurilla controlled the pace from the start and was able to gap the field in the end by a few seconds. Ron Rossetti came away with 2nd place on the day while Tony Rossetti drove his way from 8th to put two Rossetti drivers on the podium.

Jake Craig and Dane LaTorre had a sweet race in KPV2 heat one. They continued it for heat two with Carlee Taylor joining in the fun and splitting them up with her 2nd place finish. Craig, hot off his impressive run at the IKF Grand Nationals started from the pole with LaTorre starting 2nd. Taylor and Brandon Reed made up a competitive row two. Craig proved yet again why it is that he is a 5 time IKF National champion by besting all challengers in the 16 lap final. Unfortunately Reed suffered a DQ leaving only Taylor and LaTorre to give chase. At the checkered it was Craig with Taylor grabbing 2nd. LaTorre finished solidly in 3rd place with Alec Karas and Cory Davidson each running well in 4th and 5th.

LAKC's brightest stars were at it again in KPV1 with Jacob Drew and Chase McDaniel leading the charge. Drew scored two heat race wins setting him up as the pole sitter for the final. After a number of attempts at a start the green flag finally flew and the final commenced. It didn't last long as a turn one crash took out Drew and brought out a red flag. Once restarted McDaniel led the way and had no issues disposing of the remaining challengers. Zach Arthur turned a great performance starting 6th and working his way up into a solid 2nd place finish. Skylar Estrada and Christian Brooks finished in 3rd and 4th with Estrada moving up from 12th on the grid and Brooks driving it hard up from 10th. The best race on track was for 5th 6th and 7th between between Justice Lepe, Troy Wesolowski and Anthony Sawyer. Lepe led them home in 5th.

The final race group was the combined Spec Honda, Open Shifter and DD2 class. Kelson Penn was the only DD2 but there were eight Open 125 and eleven Spec Hondas that gridded up for the first heat race. Roy Montgomery won heat one in Open while Peter Abba did the same in Spec Honda. Heat two saw the running order get switched up a little as Troy Butts went to the head of the class in Open and Billy Musgrave rose to the top in Spec. The overall victory was on the line as well as the single class bragging rights and they lined for the final with Butts and Montgomery on the front row. Row two contained Abba and Corey Neveau. With the grid set and the green waving racers all got a great start heading down into turn one. Smart driving by the #28 Neveau earned him a well deserved overall victory and 1st place in the Spec Honda class. Butts finished in 2nd place on track and was the winner of 125 Open. Musgrave and Abba came away in 3rd and 4th overall making it three Spec Hondas in the top five. John Chott was 5th on track and the runner up in Open. Montgomery finished 3rd in Open. The Shifter Kal-Gard Challenge is shaping up really well. Come check out what it takes to bring home the money. Kal-Gard is a leading brand of Lubricants and has put up big money for this class's Champions.

While other clubs are struggling to get 50 entries LAKC leads the way with a constant 125 plus. With top notch club racing both beginner and pro drivers come to test their skills against the best racers In Southern California. LAKC regularly sees drivers from neighboring states like Nevada, Arizona and Colorado to name a few. They all make the long trip to race with the best.

“Come see what all the buzz is about” and join LAKC for their August 29th event at CalSpeed Kart Track in Fontana, CA. For information on everything LAKC please click on www.lakc.org.
Reminder that or next race is a Gatorz LAKC joint race. We will Qualify Saturday Night with BBQ after that. All the information is on the club website.
 

8-11-10 Central Valley Championship Race August 29, 2010 Fresno Fairgrounds

In 2005 Kerman Kart Club (KKC) brought the Central Valley Championship (CVC) Race back to life.  KKC planned the event as a Junior Only event, not knowing that the race would be the last race at Kerman Kartways .  Under wet conditions Alieja White won Kid Kart. In  Jr 1 Comer Kellen and Kolby Araki put on the best show of the weekend with Kolby taking the win.  David Vasquez got his first win in Junior Superbox at the 2005 CVC Race. 

2006 and 2007 the Tom Dash Memorial Speedway (in Atwater) played host track for the CVC Race.  Hunter Corbitt won Kid Kart in 2006 and 2007.  Kellen Araki redeemed himself by winning Junior 1 Comer in 2006. In 2007 Johnny Norris won both Junior 1 Comer and HPV1- during one of his Victory Laps he dropped the checkered flag, running it over and putting a hole in it.  At the end of the day all Cadet drivers signed the ripped checkered flag and gave it to Johnny during the awards.  This started the tradition of winning and taking home the checkered flag. Bradley Genseal, Scott Andresen, Thomas Merrill, and Joshua Veloz all became CVC Champions in Atwater. 

The CVC Race moved to Buttonwillow in 2008 and names like Justin Mankin, Jacob Drew, Jason Hannegan, Jake Craig, Cody Moss, Raquel Martinez, Tony Gammel, Donny Clark, and Jimmy McNeil all became CVC Champions at Buttonwillow Raceway. 

For the first time in years racing returned to Fresno in 2009 and the CVC Race was held at the Fresno Fairgrounds.  Saturday we ran an event with NorCal vs. SoCal, with NorCal taking home the Victory.  If you talk to anyone at the event they will tell you Saturday nights fireworks show was a great one.  Check out the 2010 CVC flier and see all the 2009 winners at www.kermankartclub.com .

Over the years we have had good racing, and 2010 CVC at the Fresno Fairgrounds will be no different.    New track (no home field advantage), new challenges, see ya soon!

Ron Perry
Kerman Kart Club

8-10-10 SKUSA Supernats Entry List Tops 200 with Three Months to Green Flag

KZ2 class to replace SuperPro, S4 Stock Moto Master filled to capacity

 Shifterkart racing is making a solid comeback this year under the focused efforts of Superkarts! USA, the racing organization that will once again bring the sports top drivers together in Las Vegas in November for the biggest race in the country the SKUSA SuperNationals. There is a definite evolution underway in gearbox karting as the shift to the Stock Moto engine package continues, and SKUSA is excited about being able to bring this cost-effective powerplant to the forefront. In addition to featuring the Stock Moto program at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino during this years SuperNationals on November 17-21, SKUSA will continue offering a category for the European-built KZ2 powerplant (formerly SuperPro), which will be opened up to more racers this year. This seasons SuperNationals the 14th running of the event is shaping up to be the best in its history, as entries have already surpassed the 200-driver mark. One class has already reached capacity (S4 Stock Moto Master), and a few others are closing rapidly on the limit. As such, the SKUSA room block at the Rio which features discounted rates is also more than half full, so racers hoping to stay at the facility should act soon by citing the special discount code when booking their rooms, as they will most certainly sell out.

The SuperNationals have been in a constant state of improvement since debuting at the Las Vegas Karting Center in 1997, and this year is no different. In an effort to maintain the organizations focus on a clear progression through the Stock Moto classes, SKUSA will be dropping the SuperPro name for the 2010 edition of the race, replacing it with its official CIK classification as KZ2. SKUSA has verbal confirmations from the top European manufacturers that will bring to the party drivers such as reigning SuperNats champion Bas Lammers, former winner Marco Ardigo, Intrepid hotshoes Norman Nato and Jeremy Iglesias, top Tony Kart talent Rick Dreezen and current CRG factory team driver Gary Carlton, making sure that the race is once again the largest KZ2 event of the year.

The U.S. schedule was very light on national racing opportunities for the owners of KZ2 engines this year, but SKUSA will once again feature the class at the SuperNationals, confirmed Tom Kutscher, owner and president of the organization. Weve got a lot of big names coming from across the ocean again for this November, and Im hoping to see all the American and Canadian KZ2 drivers on the entry list to challenge them this time around. This will easily be the biggest KZ2 field in North America in 2010. Weve heard a few rumors of Formula 1 and IndyCar drivers who want to come out, but well have to wait and see. Im just pumped to see another full grid of KZ2s! Like last year, well be capping the grid at 40 drivers.

In the past, the SuperPro class was reserved for the top drivers in the sport, but in an effort to provide all KZ2 drivers with the opportunity to run at the SuperNationals, the KZ2 category will be opened to both A and B license holders, pending SKUSA approval. In addition, KZ2 powerplants remain eligible in the G1 Master (30+ years of age and older) class.

As has been the case in the past, entries continue to arrive at SKUSA headquarters daily, and despite the fact that the race is still more than three months away, one class is already full with a few additional classes nearing their capacity. As far as pre-entries are concerned, the S4 Stock Moto Master category has led the way, as the class hit its 40-driver limit just before the release of this communication. The growth of the S4 category has been impressive, and SKUSA President Tom Kutscher has confirmed that he will be adding any new names to a waiting list. If enough drivers commit to this list, Kutscher has said that he will most definitely consider opening the class to between 60-80 competitors by splitting them into two groups. If youre an S4 driver who has not yet officially entered for the race, it would be wise to contact SKUSA immediately to state your intent on attending the SuperNats.

The S1 Pro Stock Moto class is the headline gearbox category at the SuperNationals and on the new SKUSA Pro Tour, which features four of the five SKUSA Stock Moto classes (S1, S2, S4 and S5). After debuting at the beginning of the year when SKUSA rolled out its new class structure, the S1 grid has been developing steadily. The addition of former SKUSA star Alex Speed kicked things up a notch at the SummerNationals, where he joined a highly-skilled group of drivers including Fritz Leesmann, Jason Toft, and new eKartingNews.com #1 driver Clinton Schoombee. SKUSA expects 20+ drivers for the class re-introduction to the SuperNationals. Last year, these drivers were part of the S3 class, which was effectively split into S1 and S2 for 2010 based on experience and success levels. With a potential of almost two dozen of the best shifter pilots facing off in S1, SKUSA is also expecting to see a full field of 40 karts in the S2 Semi-Pro category, which will feature the future stars of the SKUSA program. Last but not least, the S5 Stock Moto Junior category has enjoyed steady growth throughout the year, and a field of more than 20 drivers is almost assured.

The Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino is once again ready to open the doors to the karting community, but the discounted room block is going fast, so those who have not yet booked their rooms for this falls SuperNationals should do so as soon as possible. SKUSA has negotiated special discounted rates for the weekday and weekend stays, with the rate average coming in at $81 per night. The group discount code when booking a room is SRNATS0, but the easiest way to get set up is through the Superkarts! USA website - www.superkartsusa . Simply head to the SuperNationals section of the site and select the Hotel and Accommodations option in the Menu.

 

8-8-10 Prokart Challenge West Coast Shootout to Host North Versus South Battle

Second annual event set for Santa Maria on August 13-14 to decide PKC South champions

The title of Best in the West will be up for grabs next weekend as the second annual ProKart Challenge West Coast Shootout will be contested at the Santa Maria Kart Track on the grounds of the pacific coast city airport in California. The August 13-14 event will pit the ProKart Challenge North series against the ProKart Challenge South program in a North versus South battle on the permanent 7/10-mile circuit. For the North, the event will count as round five of the six event program, while the South competitors will have their championships decided at the completion of the event putting even more emphasis on the weekend.

The event will see a total of 12 classes competing when combining the two programs together. S1, S2, S3, S4, S5 Junior, TaG Senior, TaG Master, and TaG Junior are classes from both regions, while G1 and S4 Magnum competitors come from PKC South and HPV2 Junior from PKC North. Rounding out the categories will be the addition of the TaG Cadet class per an overwhelming demand from racers in the area. Those in that class, along with others, will be using the Shootout to gauge their expectations for the upcoming SKUSA SuperNationals XIV later in the year, with many of the heavy hitters scheduled to be in attendance in Santa Maria.

Following last years success with the Shootout, were certain to make this an annual deal for our ProKart Challenge programs, stated Tom Kutscher of ProKart Challenge and Superkarts! USA. The ability to put both programs together at one event allows the competitors to see how they stack up against some of the best in the western half of the country. Some of the top contenders from the SuperNats can be found at this event, as well, so what better way to warm-up for Vegas than in Santa Maria. And of course, it gives the winners a year to talk some smack to their racing buddies for winning the Shootout.

At last years event, the South topped the North in the overall Shootout which took each regions best three finishes in the cross-over classes. In the end calculations, the South had amassed 134 points to the Norths 114 markers. The bragging rights for this year extend to eight categories, giving both regions some extra ground to earn the top honors at the conclusion of the main events.

Making his bid for top honors in the S1 category is Clinton Schoombee. The new number one driver for the e Karting Stock Moto Driver Rankings heads into the event leading the points in the South program over season-long challengers Tommy Thompson and Brad Dunford. With the North joining the battle, the field will look similar to a SKUSA Pro Tour event. SKUSA PT championship leader Fritz Leesmann heads into Santa Maria leading the S1 standings for PKC North as well, being chased by Brett Buckwalter and Brett Felkins. Nic LeDuc, second place in the standings, will be forced to miss the final two events due to scheduling conflicts. Joining them will be SKUSA Pro Tour winner Alex Speed as the former national champion is priming up for the SKUSA SuperNationals among several others.

S2 has been the domain of Matt Alcorn in the debut of the new class. The point leader in both the PKC North program and the SKUSA Pro Tour is set to add another bullet point to his racing resume West Coast Shootout winner. Neil Joseph and Cameron Pringle have been chasing Alcorn all season, and they will be joined by a stout field of S2 drivers from the South. Bryce Miller is currently leading the championship chase heading into Santa Maria, with Ryon Beachner and Billy Musgrave in the challenge positions.

Back to karting full-time, former Indy 500 Rookie of the Year Phil Giebler has groomed himself into the same racing form he displayed before moving up to the open wheel ranks. Giebler has a solid lead over Billy Cleavelin and Kyle Shriver heading into round six of the South program. Larry Fraser currently leads the standings in the North as his fight continues with Bobby Kelley and Jess Peterson. With a number of top-notch drivers expected to join the party in Santa Maria, there is no telling who will walk away with the Best in the West title for TaG Senior. In TaG Master, Ron Rossetti has all but wrapped up the title in the South but would like to close out the season with the West Coast Shootout title. Hell have to do battle with the North championship contenders Jeff Deehan, Paul Hohlbein and Ethan Wilson.

As the case has been all season, the S4 Master category has been one of the most competitive groups in ProKart Challenge. The South has seen five different winners compared to just one in the North. Jeff Smith has been perfect in main events this season, winning his share in PKC North action as well as the two weekend events he has contested for the SKUSA Pro Tour. Alex Keith and a host of others will do battle to break Smiths streak. The South contingent has seen point leader Jeff Littrell at the top of the podium once, and he holds a slim 4-point advantage over teammate Wayne Mello -- who has yet to score victory this season. Phil Dunford, Willy Musgrave, Jonathon Allen, and Jason Campbell are the other four drivers to score victories on the So Cal season. In S3 Novice, soon to be PKC South champion Jason Attwood will go toe-to-toe with PKC North up-and-comer Chris Yettito.

The TaG Junior fight continues on in Santa Maria. Niki Luna and Deven Sanchez from the North have gone back and forth all season, heading into their round five event separated by just 18 points. A host of others from the North will join the top driver in the South Andrew Wiener along with other So Cal (and West Coast) drivers ready for competition in what is expected to be a solid driver roster. In S5 Junior, the Souths Matias Podboj and Scott Phillips will match up with SKUSA Pro Tour winner and PKC North class leader Daniel Langon.

With the PKC South program completing its season in Santa Maria, the G1 and S4 Magnum championships will also be on the line. PP Mastro is looking to claim another G1 title in the series, looking to hold off Roy Montgomery and Robert Marks in the final outing. Luke Bianco is going for his second straight S4 Magnum crown, as he will try to outrun Marc Lewis as well as a few others at the Shootout. The HPV2 Junior category will continue its chase for the PKC North championship with Kathryn Cornell still holding the top spot over Daniel Langon and Jack Freese.

The ProKart Challenge West Coast Shootout will begin on August 13 with a practice day, as on-track activities will take place from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. This practice day is highly encouraged, with only one round of warm-up for each class scheduled on Saturday morning due to the full days schedule. Race pre-registration is currently being accepted, with racers able to save $35 on their entry fees and also guarantee their fuel and tires by submitting an entry prior to midnight on Wednesday, August 11. SKUSA memberships are mandatory for the event, and forms are available on the SKUSA website. Pit spot reservations are available for $30, and those interested are encouraged to contact the SKUSA office directly. Camping on site will be permitted, starting Thursday night, at $50. Trailer parking is also available starting Thursday evening. A tentative schedule for race day, the host hotel information along with more information on the event can be found at the PKC event page: http://www.superkartsusa.com/regional/pkc-south/round-6-2010.html

For more information on anything related to SKUSA and the ProKart Challenge, visit the redesigned and updated www.superkartsusa.com website or call the SKUSA head office at 951-491-0808.
 

8-8-10 Raquel Martinez WSK New Jersey Reports

“Martinez has successful two weeks in Jersey”

Whittier, CA (August 6, 2010) – In preparation for the second round of the WSK World Series event at New Jersey Motorsports Park, CKI held the third round of the WSK North America series the weekend before.  Raquel Martinez and the team were on hand for both weekends looking to make it a successful two weeks in Jersey.

The CKI WSK North America series event was a big success for the team.  Raquel once again dominated the KF3 category aboard her Top Kart winning both prefinals and finals taking home maximum points and extended her points lead.  In Leopard Jr., Raquel once again was very close to taking home her first win of the season in the category.  With a second and a third in the two finals Raquel ended the weekend third overall moving her up to third in the points standings.

“I really can’t say enough about how hard Corey and Chris have been working this season,” stated Martinez.  “Our goal is to win both Championships this season.  It will be very difficult, but we have everything in place to do so.”

With two successful races under her belt in Europe, the 14 year-old standout was looking forward to having her best result yet on home soil.  Qualifying was a little disappointing with nineteenth position, but she quickly responded in the heat races consistently moving up each heat race giving her a fifteenth starting position for the prefinal.  Continuing on the same theme Raquel got off to a great start and worked her way up to ninth position and turning her fastest lap of the week.  Unfortunately as quick as the final started it ended for Raquel when she was hit from behind ending her chance at a top five.

“We never gave up this weekend and it showed.  Corey, Antonio, and IAME never gave up and we moved forward every time out,” commented Raquel.  “It’s disappointing that I didn’t get a chance in the final because I believe we were moving in the right direction and had a serious shot at challenging for the podium.”

For more information please visit www.raquelmartinez.com.  Next up for the team is the fourth round of the WKA Manufacturer’s Cup Championship at New Castle Motorsports Park August 7th.

8-8-10 Laguna Seca Mazda Raceway Kart Open Practice Track Day Thursday September 9, 2010

First & Only open practice track day for sprint karts at Laguna Seca Raceway in 2010.

Maximum of 30 entries and limited to drivers with at least one kart road race experience ONLY. NO drivers under age 18.

6-7 runs, 20-25 minute sessions, 3 run group: Kart, Car, Bike. Approx 2+ hrs track time!

$290 Entry fee. No other fees needed!

Standard road race open practice format, passing, common courtesy on and off track

Kart classes are limited to the following classes with strictly required spec:
-Stock Moto 125, Laguna spec silencer (RLV), airbox
-80 situp shifter, Moran spec silencer, airbox
-Tag 125, airbox
-No air cooled engines, Superkarts or laydown karts

Requirements above, plus the new RLV Laguna Spec silencer for Stock Moto is required. It has been tested and commended by Laguna track officials. This is the first time sprint karts will be running here since the 1980s and we must make a good impression for future kart racing here. Kart racing organizations will be requiring the spec silencer for future races at Laguna. Mention this newsletter and get $10 off the RLV Laguna Seca Silencer. Note it in the COMMENT box at checkout or phone in the order. BUY IT HERE

Mod moto w/ Laguna Spec silencer, ICC, & Rotax - RUN AT WILL only. (no sound testing has been done for these classes, all vehicles will not be allowed to enter the track after 3rd black flag. You would simply lose your entry fee. There will be no refunds) (Laguna dB sound booth is drivers right side, Right-side-exhaust-exit engines, although maybe noise-conservative, may trigger above db limits )

This is not an IKF, CIK, NCK, etc event. This is an open practice event organized with a private host/track renter.

Registration procedure: an email will be sent to emails on hand. Email will consist of Information, forms, and a link to Online registration form/ payment.
This is a pre-registration event. NO registration at track on trackday. Since there are only 30 maximum entries, we believe all entries will be spoken for by Sept 1st.

Please email if you want to be in this email list. lagunasecakart

8-2-10 RLV - IKF Region 7 PRD Senior $1000 Bounty

“Notorious” Nick Johnston and Bobby “The Killer” Kelley have officially been put on notice by RLV Inc. for the crimes of russlin Duffy’s, the collection of trophies without a permit, and excessive tagging of trailers with IKF win stickers.

“RLV Inc. is putting a $1000 bounty on the heads of Nick Johnston and Bobby Kelley for each of the next three IKF Region 7 Races at Santa Maria, Apex, and Adams Motorsports Park,” announced RLV’s Art Verlengiere.

Any driver or drivers who finish in front of BOTH Johnston and Kelley in the official results at the next 3 races will split the reward money of $1000 equally up to five positions. If one hot shoe takes them down, all the money is his, but if it takes a posse to pull it off the reward money of $1000 will be divided among them. Johnston and Kelley have plenty of incentive to evade the challenges of those out to steal their glory. Should Kelley or Johnston win the race the $1000 bounty belongs to them alone.

RLV is driven to provide thoroughly researched, reasonably priced products for the karting industry and competitors alike. RLV understands karting is a sport, not a leisure sport but a highly contested technically advanced sport and the products that support karting should be the same.

For more information:
RLV Tuned Exhaust and Racing Products
2363-A THOMPSON WAY SANTA MARIA CA 93455
805 925-5461 FAX 805 922-3321
 

8-2-10 RLOKC Race #5 Report

After an early morning overcast sky burned off, Race #5 of the Red Line Oil Karting Championship ran under sunny skies with a slight breeze to make the day perfect for racing at the Jim Russell International Karting Center at Infineon Raceway. Due to the continued large turn out of the Rotax Masters/Masters Light race group, they was split into two different races and the action in both classes made for great watching. The Trapeze Arts "Move of the Race" award went to Amber Friedberg for her multiple passes in the Senior Rotax Main and the Hard Luck award from Metal Mashers went to Steve Peterson.

GoPro / Sanzaru Game Mini Max
Mini Max was the GoPro featured class of the day with the winner taking home a GoPro Hero Camera. After taking pole and all the race wins last month, Michael Avansino continued his streak by taking the pole on the Sprint track layout ahead of Michael Michoff and Cole Davis. In both heats, Avansino took the lead at the green and was never challenged with Michoff and Davis taking second and third. In the Main, Avansino took the lead again at the green flag with Colin Daley getting into second going into turn two. Michoff worked his way past the improving Daily but was now far behind the streaking Avansino. Dailey held off Davis for several laps but eventually the veteran Davis was able to make the pass, but it was too late to catch the top two karts. In the end, Avansino took his second clean sweep in a row followed by Michoff, Davis and Dailey. In addition to the GoPro camera, Avansino won the Sanzaru Games $50 first place prize.

80 Shifters
With ten karts, the 80 shifter class continues to draw a good size field. In addition to being good size, the field was one of the most competitive fields in some time with six drivers running up front in the lead group. In Qualifying, Masters points leader Tom Nelson took the pole ahead of the fast improving Geoff Provo. The only Formula 80 kart of Justin Gald was third. In the First Heat, Nelson took the initial lead and held it for a few laps, but the young Gald got by late in the race to take the win over Nelson and Greg Richter. In the second Heat, Gald again had to make the pass on Nelson to take the win followed by Nelson and Marc Stanley. In the Main, Gald was on the pole and took the lead at the drop of the green with Nelson, Provo and Stanley right behind. But while all were watching the lead drivers, Roger Cornwall started his move through the field from his sixth place position. Stanley took over third with Cornwall moving first into fifth, then fourth. Cornwall continued his march when he got by Stanley near the end of the race and then he took off to chase down Nelson for the class lead. Going into the last 180 degree turn before the checkered flag, Nelson was not aware of the presence of Cornwall whodrove down into the bottom of the turn and surprised Nelson who had to stay wide allowing the hard charging Cornwall to take second overall and the Masters class win. The overall win went to Gald and with it the Formula 80 class win. Second overall and first in Masters was Roger Cornwall followed by Nelson, Stanley and Richter.

Senior Rotax and Italian Motors IAME TaG
Amber Friedberg takes her first win of the season.
The IAME Tag karts joined the Senior Rotax karts for this race. In Qualifying, Carlos Calderon took his second pole in a row with Jarrett Lile taking the off pole position for the first time this year. In the first Heat Calderon took the lead off the green and started to motor away from the field with Raymund Bustamante, Jr. trying to keep the smooth Calderon close. Amber Friedberg then started her afternoon of charges by coming from fourth on the grid to third, then worked her way past Bustamante and right at the end of the eight lap heat race, got by Calderon to take the win. In the second Heat, Calderon again took the lead at the green and again Friedberg moved through the field to move into second with three laps to go. With two laps to go, Friedberg made a pass going into the last turn and took the lead, but on the last lap, Calderon took the lead back with a strong clean pass. Going into the last turn just before the checkered, Friedberg made a pass attempt for the lead but this time she and Calderon tangle allowing Bustamante to take the win with Lile second, Calderon third and Friedberg fourth. At the start of the Main, Bustamante took the lead at the green flag, Calderon in second and Friedberg got shuffled back to fifth. This is where Friedberg's charge started and she first picked off Lile then Matt Weiss. In the mean time, Calderon took the lead when he got by Bustamante. Friedberg then got by Bustamante and with just three laps remaining, she made the pass for the lead getting by Calderon. In the end Friedberg took her first feature win of 2010, Calderon second, and Matt Weiss coming home third.

The Italian Motors IAME Tag class ran right behind the Senior Rotax karts in this race group with Jeff Deehan taking the pole, the win in both Heats and the class win in the Main over Michael Torrano.

Rotax Masters
For the first four races of 2010, the Rotax Masters had to run in the same race group with the Rotax Masters Light karts. In most races, the Light karts would run up front and thus overshadow the good efforts of the heavier Rotax Masters class karts. With ten Masters Light and nine Masters karts, it was decided to split the two classes.

Taking the pole and leading the class down to the green flag for both Heats was Cameron Evans, his first pole this year, followed by points leader Andre Eriksen and the young driver Barry Lee who was running his first Masters class race this year. At the start, Eriksen took the lead followed by Evans and Lee. Lee and Evans swapped places by the end of the race. The second Heat was a repeat of the first race with Eriksen taking the lead early and coming home ahead of Lee and Evans. In the Main, Eriksen took the lead from the pole and looked like he was not going to be challenged. Evans had problems early on and had to retire turning over the third place spot to Jerry Pretti. With less than five laps to go, Eriksen started slowing a bit and Lee got within one second of the class leader, but time ran out before Lee could make a serious challenge for the lead.

Rotax Masters Light
This Nor Cal regional class has continued to be popular since the drivers can run a the same 365 pound weight as Senior Rotax. Points leader Mary Beth Wilson took yet another pole ahead of 2009 champ Andrea Delfanti with Mert Solis in third. In the first Heat, Wilson took the early lead and went on to a convincing win with Luca Delfanti, taking second and Mert Solis third after Andrea Delfanti had kart problems and had to retire early. In the second Heat, Andrea Delfanti took the lead at the start and went on to a two second win over Wilson with Solis in third. In the Main, Wilson was on pole with Solis right next to her. At the green flag, Solis took the lead and for thirteen laps was driving his best drive of the year just ahead of Wilson, but right near the end of the Main, Wilson found the spot to make her move and took over and held the lead to the checkered flag. Solis had to settle for a well-deserved second with Andrea Delfanti taking third but having to hold off Steve Weiss the entire fifteen laps of the Main.

Rotax Micro Max
With only two karts in this eight to ten year old class, Annie Breidinger took the clean sweep over her sister Toni Breidinger by winning the Pole and all the races during the day. Toni did challenge Annie in the Main by leading the first half of the race, but in the end, Annie took the win.

Cambrian Go-Karts Junior Rotax
The Junior Rotax drivers took the track with Brody Zink taking pole followed by Sean McDonald and Bobby Tifft. In the first Heat, Zink controlled the race with Tifft in second and McDonald having to retire after three laps. Things heated up quite a bit in the second Heat with Tifft and McDonald both picking up the pace and staying right on the rear bumper of the 2009 class champ, Zink. McDonald wanted to repeat his Race #1 win on this day to close out his Junior Rotax career with a win. McDonald will be moving up to Senior Rotax next month now that he is quickly approaching six feet tall. The three karts went into the last lap nose to tail. As they entered the last turn, Tifft drove deep to the bottom of the turn and took over the corner and thus the race lead to win the heat race. In the Main, Zink went into the lead with McDonald right behind with Tifft on McDonald's bumper. As Tifft battled with McDonald, Zink was able to pull away to take a four second win with McDonald holding off Tifft to take second.

Rotax DD2 and 125 Stock Moto Masters
After their first class race last month, the 125 stock Moto Masters had no entries this month due to one blown engine and a last minute change of plans to another competitor. The Rotax DD2 karts held up their end of the class with some very good race action. In Qualifying, January Grove took the pole over David Palic and Bob Olson. In the first Heat, The lady DD2 driver took the initial lead for the first part of the race, but Palic challenged and took the lead late in the race and went on his first race win in the DD2 class. In the second Heat, Grove pulled away at the drop of the green and charged off to take a strong nine second win over Palic with Charles Duncan taking third. In the Main, something seemed amiss with Grove's kart right at the drop of the green flag. Palic went into the lead with Grove falling back and retiring on the second lap. Palic looked to be in position for an easy win, except that Charles Duncan continued to improve his kart as the day went along running laps over two seconds faster in the Main than he ran in Qualifying. Near the end of the fifteen lap race, Duncan got within striking distance of Palic but ran out of time to make a serious challenge.

All results can be seen at www.mylaps.com. The next race for the Northern California Rotax Challenge portion of the Red Line Oil Karting Championship will be at The Kinsmen Kart Club in Dixon on Sunday, August 22nd where the Rotax classes will join the Kinsmen Kart Club for the first of two Dixon events this year. All the RLOKC classes will return to the Jim Russell International Karting Center at Infineon Raceway on Sunday, August 29th where the race will run on the original National track layout. For more information about the Red Line Oil Karting Championship and the Northern California Rotax Challenge go to www.cameronkarting.com  or www.norcalrotax.com

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