KART PRODUCT – Did you know we have a Karting Products directory here on KartSportNews? It lists all manner of karting related products and services provided by the site’s advertisers, from engines and chassis to race apparel and tools. Products are listed under various categories and include all the contact details if you have questions or require further information. Navigate to the main menu and choose Karting Products! (or click/tap HERE)
STREAMING – Here’s a nice addition to the Ipswich track! Two 65-inch TV screens have been installed on the out grid that stream the track cameras and speedhive timing. Now, can we get a third screen for Kayo? :p
SAFETY GEAR – the EVS R4 Race Collar, available in adult and kid sizes, via dpekartsuperstores
CONFIRMED – The change of date for the 2021 FIA Karting World Championship for OK and OK Junior classes has been confirmed. Originally set to take place in Birigui, Brazil, from 28-31 October, it’s now officially slotted in for December 2-5. Of course, there are still significant hurdles to overcome as Brazil is listed by several countries as a COVID-red region.
LOST TALENT – They say Lorraine Peck could have been the female Senna. Blindingly fast, she was runner-up in the 1974 Junior World Championship. With a move to car racing on the horizon, brake failure resulted in tragedy during practice for the following year’s title. Read more about this lost talent on the MotorSport website HERE.
HINT of GREEN – Karting (New South Wales) Inc says it is the first karting association in Australia to join the Sports Environment Alliance. KNSW Chair Ilona Meyer said, “what better way to lead, educate and inspire our karting communities on sustainability and environmental leadership, than from day one in a kart at a local club.” On joining the Sports Environment Alliance; “it allows us to collaborate with like-minded sporting organisations that have already taken steps to safeguard their sport for future generations. Our member clubs are largely made up of volunteers that are looking for guidance and assistance on how to improve in this space. For many clubs, these initiatives will be the first of their kind in karting.”
INDUSTRY – Precision Karting has announced it is the Victorian agent for DR Racing Kart. “We are very excited to be working with DR Racing Kart Australia and are now the Victorian agent for DR Karts, built and designed by 5-times world champion Danilo Rossi.”
TWINS – The richest twin-engined dirt kart event in the country is coming up this Saturday. There’s lots of preliminary racing including Pole Shuffle and Last Dance Showdown. But all the Wagin 1000 money rests on the 12-lap A-Main final…
DO IT with DID – DID Gold chain, multiple lengths available on the DPE Kart Superstore site and shops.
INDUSTRY – Tony Kart Australia has announced a new dealer for the green machines in NSW, Garage 94 based in Manning Valley. “Garage 94 is only new and will be servicing the Mid North Coast of NSW” the organisation posted.
VALE, Walter Newton Snr – Karters in North Queensland were shocked to hear of the passing of Walter Newton Senior in a multi vehicle accident on the Bruce Highway in July. Townsville and Whitsunday Kart Clubs expressed condolences to family and friends and wished Walter Jnr all the best for his recovery. Wally was an active member of the karting community, undertaking various official and executive positions in the sport.
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Karting Australia made the following statement: “It is with sadness that Karting Australia acknowledges the passing of North Queensland Official Wally Newton. Wally passed away on Friday July 16, he was aged 60. Wally was a great supporter of karting and the Clubs in the North Queensland having Officiated for several years at events in the region. Karting Australia on behalf of the entire karting community offers its condolences to the Newton family and friends.”
EVENT – It’s still full green in the NT, and the Alan Spooner Memorial is paying tow money!
PRO ADVICE – Marcos Ambrose was a recent interviewee on the V8 Sleuth podcast. His daughters, Tabatha (15) and Adelaide (13) are currently racing karts. Marcos, who was a top karter in his day, says “it’s a great sport for a family to be involved and I’ve got a lot of time and respect for it…. it’s a great community to be around”. Commenting about his girls racing; “We are not doing it on a national level, we do it on a club level, and that’s just the way we like it.” And what’s Marcos’ advice to young karters who’ve had a tough day at the track? “Get your chin out of the gravel, and move on to the next one. Not every day is a good day; it’s persistence that pays off in racing.” You can listen to the pod HERE.
APPOINTMENT – Karting NSW has confirmed the appointment of Carolyn Hume as its new Director of Financial Services. “Carolyn holds a Bachelor of Business Accounting, is a CPA with the Australian Society of CPAs and is also a Justice of the Peace” KNSW posted. “Carolyn has over twenty years of experience in senior financial roles and has held various senior executive positions with the likes of Wesfarmers, News Limited and Gloria Jeans Coffee. We welcome Carolyn and her financial expertise to the Board of KNSW!”
DAVE’S TOP TRACKS – David Sera has raced at various kart circuits around the world. “I’ve been fortunate to drive at some fantastic race tracks and challenge myself in different scenarios which made me think of compiling a list of the top karting tracks in the World” he said. In the video below, Dave talks of his top ten, admitting he hasn’t actually raced on all of them, but “from my research, feedback from other astute racing drivers and footage, I compiled this list.”
METRO MERGE – The final round of the Victorian Metro Series will be incorporated into the City of Melbourne Titles. The City of Melbourne was recently moved to October 22-24, and with the need to find dates for other postponed events, it wasn’t possible to secure a dedicated slot for the Metro finale. Drivers who competed at the first two rounds of the Metro Series will earn points towards their series score as they compete at the City of Melbourne. Further details on how the points etc will work will be announced closer to the date.
APP UPDATE – Not sure about the tuning of your Rotax Engine? The Rotax MAX Jetting App was recently updated and can be download from the App Store or Google Play.
ON HOLD – Organisers of the Rotax Pro Tour have decided to postpone the upcoming round at Geelong on August 20-22. “We have made the only realistic decision open to us” Pro Tour posted. “Once a clearer picture is in place we will reschedule our dates to suitable times. Thanks for your support to date and we will keep everyone informed as decisions are able to be made.”
EURO – The report, results etc from the final round of the European OK and Junior Championships were posted last week (see HERE), but now the highlights show is on YouTube – see below.
ROTAX DOTY – BRP-Rotax has again honoured its dealers with the annual Distributor Of The Year awards for 2020. The company recognised the large effect Covid-19 has had on sales strategies and planning, so “it is even more essential to recognize the outstanding work of our partners”. Awards were presented for three categories:
- Best in Sales: JAG Engineering/UK (This category measures the sales volume of Rotax engines and spare parts within the year or most significant sales increase compared to the previous year)
- Best in Marketing: Sodikart/France (In this category, BRP-Rotax analyses the compliance of marketing initiatives, the success of sales campaigns and the promotion of RMC events and series).
- Best in Customer Support: Sportstil/Slovenia (This award takes into consideration not only the technical support at RMC events, trainings to the network, temporary loan of an engine for the customers in case of technical issues during a race event but also the timely clarification of warranty or good will claims and significant improvements of the customer support compared to the previous year.)
KA DUFFYS – The winners of the nine classes at the 2021 IKF Sprint Grand Nationals next month will receive a coveted IKF Duffy Trophy on the third and final day of competition. A range of Briggs & Stratton and IAME categories will hit the track, including Senior & Junior classes for IAME’s KA100 engine. The event will be held at Prairie City Kart Track (Sacramento, California), a facility owned and operated by Donald Durbin Jr, a former IKF Duffy winner with decades of experience in the sport and the karting industry. The International Kart Federation was among the founding organizations of karting, dating back to the late 1950s. The IKF ‘Duffy’ is one of the most prestigious trophies in North American karting. Originally known as the ‘Joe Karter’ award, the 12-inch solid bronze statuette was re-named to honor Frank ‘Duffy’ Livingstone, one of the original pioneers of karting.
POLL RESULT – Here’s the result of the Karters & COVID reader poll we ran a couple of weeks ago. It should be noted that when the poll opened, that National average for fully vaccinated Australians was sitting around 10% and climbed to over 13% by the time the poll closed. Also, in the opening days the percentage of responders who had no intention of getting vaccinated was over 30% but as the week progressed that fell slightly to the figure below. Keep watching the site for a new reader poll soon!
GAMBLER CASH – Karting Australia has congratulated Queensland’s Gladstone Kart Club and Towers Kart Racing Club on their successful grant applications to assist in purchasing machinery as a part of the latest round of funding from the Queensland Government’s Gambling Community Benefit Fund. Their successful application follows the Emerald Karting Club receiving funding for new grandstands in the previous round of funding earlier this year.
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