August - 2002

• Great weekend at Road America for inaugural Briggs & Stratton Motorplex Oval Championships participants
  You couldn't have asked for more, the brand new Briggs racing facility, oval track, sprint track, and 1/8-mile drag strip, surrounded by the 4-mile Indy car track, with SCCA cars doing 150+ mph. The rain stayed away and the temperature cooled down some for the weekend. With the park-like setting of the pits and camping area there isn't a better place for kart racing.
• MG Tires Championship Enduro Series visits New Mid-America Motorplex
  The MG Tire/Championship Enduro Series visited the new Mid-America Motorplex (MAM) located in western Iowa on August 2 - 4. This was the first time karts had raced on the track since opening last April. The facility is located near Council Bluffs, Iowa, which has a large Casino nearby that fills up all of the local motels. The track is located just off I-29 south of Omaha and is easy to reach by taking I-80 across Iowa. Large green grasshoppers were hopping everywhere about the facility, adding some local color to the large 10-acre paddock.
• Three-way Battle at SSC Racing/Shifter Kart Pro Series
  The fourth stop on the 2002 SSC Racing/Shifter Kart Pro Series was held at the new Mid America Motorplex in Council Bluffs, Iowa on August 3rd and 4th. The trip was well worth it for those that came to this excellent facility, with its challenging road course, paved pits, grandstand for the spectators, excellent food and spirits and one of the friendliest staffs around.
• Adam Carlson wins Road America
  Team ACR/Watercolor Group driver Adam Carlson won the inaugural oval race at the Briggs & Stratton Motorplex kart complex inside the famous Road America road course. The International Racing Association held the first race on the slightly banked one-fifth mile oval, part of the Briggs & Stratton Motorsports Oval Championships on August 10th and 11th. Arriving early on Friday morning Adam was the very first kart to ever turn a lap on the new oval.
• Drama and heartbreak show up for Burris Circle Tour at Rockford Speedway
  Midway through the season, five racers in three different classes have a real shot at the overall Burris Circle Tour Championship, the Midwest's Premier Speedway Kart Series. The Midseason Championship races at Rockford (Illinois) Speedway were full of drama, close wins, new feature winners and heartbreak for some of the traditional front-runners. Depending on the size of each class, the points will often change by as much as 50 each race. With 5 karts currently within 30 points of each other, the Championship is up for grabs.
• Saukville, Wisconsin's Jamie Bach & B-K Motorsports Score SCCA Central Division Championship at Road America
  For the fifth time this season, Jamie Bach and the B-K Motorsports Formula Mazda started on the pole. And for the seventh time this season, Bach and B-K crossed under the checkered flag for a victory. This win, however, was just a little bit sweeter as Bach and B-K scored their second straight SCCA CENTRAL DIVISION NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.
• Bach & B-K nab tenth win of the season and clinch the Central Division Star Mazda Series
  The road to the SCCA National Championship RUNOFFS continued today at Grattan Raceway near Grand Rapids, Michigan. And Jamie Bach and B-K Motorsports continued their plans for a "championship" season with a runaway victory, their tenth of the season, a result of their eighth pole position of the year.
• Special races to highlight 2002 Rock Island Grand PrixWill Alan Rudolph win his fourth straight King of the Streets title? Who will qualify to represent the Rock Island Grand Prix at the Rotax Max U.S. Nationals? Who will be the first champion of the Rock Island Cup series for gearbox drivers over age 35? Who will win the F1 Indoor Karting Center Charity Race as it returns to the Grand Prix race week schedule? And how will the new Swiss-made 250cc Biland 4-stroke be received by racers at its first major race in the United States?
• Showdown set for first Rock Island Cup
  After completion of the east and west zone SuperKarts! USA ProMoto Tour races, Craig Sender finds himself five points ahead of Kirk Jeffery in the battle for the inaugural Rock Island Cup series championship. With only six drivers completing a full three-race zone series, the race for the final series podium is down to just a handful of drivers. Drivers had to commit to racing one zone or the other.
• 2002 Rock Island Grand Prix - Schedule of Events
  The daily schedule is out for this year's Rock Island Grand Prix! All the events dealing with the race are laid out here. From the F1 Indoor karting Center Charity Race on Thursday, August 29 to the race on Sunday and the annual Rock Island Labor Day Parade on Monday morning.
• Leading tool maker lends support, television to karting series
  Stars of Tomorrow founder Bryan Herta announced that Snap-On.com has assumed the role of title sponsor for the national karting series. Snap-On.com is the Internet presence for Snap-On Tools, a leading professional automotive tool company. Along with event sponsor status for next week's Stars national race at Road America, Snap-on.com will also sponsor a television production for the Stars Grand Nationals to be held November 8-10 at the XPLEX Las Vegas in Sloan, Nevada.
• Kaczorowski takes third win of the season at ThunderHill
  The Junior I Division is made up of drivers who are in the age group of seven to eleven years of age. The age is young, but the level of competition is one of the highest at the small dirt oval. Logan Loesch from Hastings, Minnesota, is one of the young drivers, and on Saturday night Loesch won his fifth feature event of the season. The current points leader led all 12 laps of the main event and recorded his second win in as many weeks.
• Four score First-Time wins at ThunderHill
  The start of the Wang Memorial Race held at Thunder Hill Speedway in memory of Wayne and Dave Wang was delayed about one hour Saturday evening because of rain. With the help of some willing fans and competitors, track officials were able to dry the track and prepare it for a full slate of kart racing action. Awards for the top drivers were presented by Rayola Wang and Zeitz Construction while the fans received many door prizes provided by area businesses.
• Hauser wins in Jr. I, Hanson wins in Stock Medium at THS
  A nice crowd of fans and drivers assembled Saturday night at Thunder Hill Speedway for the second annual Menomonie Farmers Union Coop & Crossroads Ag kart races. Great weather and smooth track conditions made for an exciting night of kart racing action under the lights of the dirt oval. Second generation racers Grant and Blake Hauser make the trip from Winona, Minnesota, with their dad every week to compete in the Junior I Division at Thunder Hill Speedway.
• Badger Kart Club racers battle the heat, humidity and the competition
  The weathermen predicted another hot humid day for Sunday's racing and that's exactly what the members of the Badger Kart Club got for Round 11 in the BKC Bridgestone Tire Championship points series. Temperatures in the mid-90's with high humidity meant miserable conditions for all. As Badger Raceway quickly approaches its two special events for the summer, practice sessions with sticky-tire classes laid down so much rubber that the track was actually tight.
• Badger Raceway's track in prime condition
  With the recent running of the Midwest Sprint Series WKA Regional race at Badger, the track was in prime condition with lots of fresh rubber in all the corners. This helped spark another great day of tight racing action. Also, with the WKA Grand Nationals scheduled for the following weekend, the club saw a small influx of national drivers trying to gain more track time.
• 2002 WKA National and Florida Championship Series race reports for Dominic Scheer
  Consistency, setup, team effort, and a good engine lead Dominic Scheer to a first-place finish at Homestead Motor Speedway, and a first-place finish in the Championship. The #11 KartMini driver, racing a Woltjer Comer 80cc engine, kept in front at the start and in the lead for both races. Scheer's fastest time recorded on MyChyron was a 35.5. Smooth and fast driving is the key to this track.
• Great Racing in Week #9 at Mid-State Raceway
  The ninth week of club racing was completed at Mid-State Raceway on July 13. It was one of the best days yet for racing this season with temperatures only reaching the lower eighties. The afternoon sunset combined with the already cool temperatures made for some record-breaking speeds and great racing. The racing started out with the all-popular Kadet class. This class was designed for a fun learning experience for ages five to eight. The kids experienced it all this week.
• A scorcher in Week #10 at Mid-State Raceway
  The tenth week of racing at Mid-State on July 27 marked one of the hottest days for racing yet this year. Temperatures reached the upper nineties and the humidity was near one hundred percent. However, by the time the racing began, the heat was made tolerable by the setting sun, something all drivers and crews couldn't wait to see. The first class up was again the Kadet class. The five to eight year old kids put on a great show in all three races gaining that much needed experience.
• PDKA State Championship Kart Series Beats Weather in Round Four
  Defying heavy overnight rains, more than 220 of the top kart riders in PA and adjoining states converged on the Selinsgrove Raceway Park Sunday, July 14, for round four of the Pennsylvania Dirt Karter's Association (PDKA) State Championship Series. The PDKA riders also earn points toward national championships in the Burris National Speedway Series (BNSS) sanctioned by IRA.
• Path Valley kart rookie wins first feature ever
  While veteran young kart riders Alex Benda and Garrett Kuhns each won two features Saturday and repeat winners took the honors in other classes; the most excited youngster there was Bryan Hayberger of Duncannon. Hayberger is in his rookie year at age 12 in the caged rookie class, and he won his first feature ever in a close race just ahead of Richie Good and Jim Slaseman in second and third.
• Holland takes two at Path Valley
  Brandon Weyandt of Claysburg and Kyle Ebersole of Hummelstown won upset features over the points leaders in their classes as some 70 Burris karts and quads raced Saturday afternoon at the Path Valley Speedway Park. Weyandt won in the heavy class ahead of Kevin Sheaffer in second and Chris Orris in third.
• Bowers wins first in Path Valley Karts
  Chuck Bowers of Gettysburg won his first every Path Valley feature event in the extra heavy karts Saturday at the Path Valley Speedway Park. Bowers, in the #49, won both the heat and the feature event. He will be 49 years old in October, he said, and added, "the racing is so much fun I feel as happy as a little kid in the kid karts."
• Path Valley Kart Summer National nets Kirby $500
  Jim Kirby of Winchester VA got a lucky break on the last lap of the Burris Summer National and passed Danny Wiles through the final two turns to win the $500 feature Saturday at the Path Valley Speedway Park. Kirby is 28 years old and has been racing karts for 20 years. More than 100 karts and quads raced in the regular Saturday Burris points features.
• Path Valley offers 'FREE' August Kart Feature Races
  Kart and bike races at Path Valley feature free grandstand admission for all the regular shows, and slowly but surely the attendance is growing as families realize they can see a thrilling racing event that their kids will love without paying an arm and a leg. The young kart and bike riders learning on the tough Path Valley clay today are the stars of the future.
• Clardy Kart Speedway brings high-banked dirt racing to Paris, Texas
  Clardy Kart Speedway is a new oval dirt track just south of Paris, Texas. This is a high bank, 1/8th-mile, teardrop shape track with approximately 12-degrees of banking. The word is beginning to get out that there is a track in this area. There are several other tracks in this area that have all closed this year. A lot of hard work has gone into making this a top-rate facility. The track is lighted for night racing along with lights in the pit area. There is also a concession stand and restrooms available.
• MWSS Works the Groove at SBRP
  The Midwest Sprint Series visited South Bend Raceway Park on June 22-23 for round three of their 2002 trail. Kellen James picked up his third win in a row in the Cassity Racing Briggs Heavy class. The Horstman Manufacturing Briggs Restricted Jr. class was taken capture by Terry McDermott.
• Red River Kartway - Trenton, KY
  Results are in to us for the kart races at Red River Kartway on June 29, 2002. This week saw some stiff competition in the Stock medium class with over twenty competitors vying for the 1st place trophy. A fierce battle was also had in the Stock Heavy race as Jody Sullivan came out on top over the rest of the field.
• Capell breaks Bergfelt's win streak at Naugles Unlimited All-Stars event
  There's something about hot summer nights and dirt track racing, they just go so well together. A good crop of unlimited dirt kart racers seemed to think the same as they showed up for the Pittsburgh Circle Track Club's B.R.E. Small Engines - Unlimited All-Stars race at Naugles Speedway on Saturday, July 6. Naugles Speedway is located in Findlay Township, near Pittsburgh.
• The lights of Stafford Springs are coming into view
  It's gonna be Saturday Night, Under the Lights, Aug. 10, as EnduranceKarting.com makes its only 2002 stop at the historic Stafford Motor Speedway. With a course that uses the jug handle on the back straight, the connector roads to the pit lane and the Manaforte MiniMile going clockwise from 2 in the afternoon to 10 at night, the challenge will be there for all you hardened, road racing fans.
• Great day for the Rue Family at Flying Pines Kart Raceway
  The mid-season championship race was held July 14, 2002 at Flying Pines Raceway in Balsam Lake, Wisconsin. The last couple of events have been a battle against the rain and the heat but that hasn't stopped the racers from competing. The Stock Super Heavy class always has some major competition. Even though Gordon Fozie (#5) and Cliff Schill (#66) are tied in the points, the other racers are not sitting back and taking this lightly.
• Duranceau Grabs his first win ever at Monster World Speedway
  Warm weather and a smooth track brought a great night of kart racing to Monster World Speedway, where 6 classes of karts signed in to do battle Saturday night. The first on the track were the Stock Mediums, with a strong lineup of karts. #81 Neil Duranceau jumped out to an early lead, trying to gain as much momentum to carry him throughout the rest of the race.
• Formula Renault Birthday Party! Patrick Long Wins at Snetterton
  American Patrick Long celebrated his 21st birthday in style on Sunday morning, taking a dominant wire-to-wire victory from pole in Round 8 of the Formula Renault UK Championship at Snetterton. Later in the day, Long scored another impressive result, earning a solid second place in Round 9 in his Fortec Motorsport-prepped machine.
• Competition better than ever; Hornish regains points lead at Beterra Casino Indy 300
  The close competition of the Indy Racing League continued at the Belterra Casino Indy 300 on Aug. 11 at Kentucky Speedway when Felipe Giaffone edged Sam Hornish Jr. for victory. Giaffone held off Hornish by .0932 of a second to earn his first Indy Racing League victory in the No. 21 Hollywood Mo Nunn Racing G Force/Chevrolet/Firestone. The margin of victory was less than one-half of a second for the sixth time in 12 races this season.
• Lazier leads wire-to-wire; IRL drivers take five of top six spots
  2000 Indy Racing League champion Buddy Lazier led all 67 laps, and IRL drivers swept the top three spots and five of the top six positions in Round 3 of the True Value International Race of Champions XXVI on July 13 at Chicagoland Speedway. Lazier, the 1996 Indianapolis 500 champion, started on the pole and never looked back in the caution-free race, winning by 5.195 seconds.
• Ex-karter Sarah Fischer fastest on opening day of Gateway test
  Sarah Fisher, fresh from winning a historic MBNA Pole last weekend at Kentucky, was the fastest driver during the first day of Indy Racing League testing Aug. 13 at Gateway International Raceway. Fisher set the pace among five drivers preparing for the Gateway Indy 250 IRL race Aug. 25 on the 1.25-mile oval, turning an unofficial top lap of 26.58 seconds in the No. 23 Team Smart Blade/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing G Force/Infiniti/Firestone.
• FIA fines Ferrari $500,000 for podium infraction in Austria
  The FIA jointly fined Ferrari, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello $500,000 on June 26 because of actions on the podium after the Austrian Grand Prix. They are also on probation for a further $500,000 fine should a similar offense occur within the next 12 months. The FIA's World Motor Sports Council met in Paris to hear from Ferrari, Schumacher and Barrichello for their actions in the Austrian Grand Prix.
• MSSS visits Putnam Park
  The forth round of the 2002 Russell Karting / Dunlop Tire Mid States Super Series stopped at the very fast and smooth Putnam Park Road Course. During the Forth of July Weekend, the temperatures were in the 90's all weekend and took a toll more on the people rather than the equipment.
• MSSS runs a tough Grattan Raceway
  The fifth round of the Russell Karting / Dunlop Tire Mid States Super Series made it's second stop at Grattan Raceway battling the weather again. Friday was a clear day for testing and tuning but Saturday was a different story. Morning practice and the first race were finished before a downpour of rain halted the second race for about fifteen to twenty minutes.