By Jeff & Sherri Brown Photos By Rolf Hill, Don Roll, Tony Cassata & Deo Curts
Newcastle, IN- If you drove past the Newcastle Motorsports Park (NCMP) June 17 -19 you would have seen a sea of multi-colored canopies filling the pits for the 13th Annual Vintage Thunder event. Over 168 vintage karter entries were part of this historic turnout for the three-day event!
The event was a huge success and included many activities for karters, pit crew, spectators, and guests. Thursday evening provided everyone an opportunity to socialize at a “meet and greet” social hour we provided, along with the employees and staff of NCMP.
Friday was a full day. Sunny skies and robust breeze made for a perfect day. Practice and demonstration Heats were spectacular and provided endless thrills for the drivers and spectators alike. Due to the threat of rain on Saturday, the schedule was adjusted to include two Heats on Friday. This necessitated moving the ever-popular Kart Show to Saturday morning, leaving time for a fabulous fried chicken dinner with all the fixin’s for over 200 hungry fans in the track restaurant.
Honored guests, Don Freber from Margay, Terry Traeder from Quincy (TNT), and Bill Jackson from North Carolina all received Vintage Hall of Fame awards. The chant of USA…USA could be heard, loud and clear. Old Glory Flag was present at the highest peak.
Peoples’ Choice of Rocky Buff … complete with tire temperature sensors!
They say, “patience is a virtue.” How true for those who stuck around. The rain stopped and the track was dry by 11AM. Heat 3 came off without a hitch. The final results, in many cases, depended on the outcome of Heat 3 … which, of course, made for some exciting demonstrations.
One more positive of this event … most everyone, including those at the trophy presentation, were on-the-road by 3PM … great for those with 5+ hour trip home. Thanks to all who came to “the greatest spectacle in vintage karting,” especially the Dismore crew. Hope to see you all soon. God bless you all.
New Castle Kart Show Results
The threat of rain necessitated an adjustment to the schedule on Friday. Instead of one Heat, two Heats were run. Despite the warm weather, the “snowball-effect” required the need to move the Kart Show to Saturday morning. Even with the horrendous, canopy destroying storm Friday night, the show was held inside the spacious café.
P.S. Thanks to “Mrs. Rocky Buff” for taking the “Class Picture” out on the track.
Dart Kart Club Brings Biggest Enduro Event in Decades to Mid Ohio
By VKA Enduro Director John Copeland
“Road racing’s dead” they say. “Nobody goes enduro racing anymore” they say. Well, tell that to the hundreds of Enduro Racing enthusiasts that flocked to iconic Mid-Ohio Sports Car course in mid June for the largest gathering of big-track karters in decades. There were, in total, 942 entries. That’s right, 942. These are numbers that haven’t been seen in more than 2 decades at any track; not even Daytona. The question on everyone’s lips was “Why?” “Why here?” ”Why now?” It’s likely a combination of factors: pent-up demand, creative promotion, collaboration between sanctioning bodies AKRA, WKA, KART, and CES. In the vernacular of the 60’s, this wasn’t just an event, it was a HAPPENING. Racers came from California, from Massachusetts, from Georgia, and from Oregon.
And while Vintage Karters made up only a small part of the enormous entry list, it was a wonderful opportunity to share our passion with many “modern” karters who had never seen a Vintage Enduro kart. And it was a chance to show that you don’t need fancy bodywork to be fast. In fact, in several races the Vintage Karts either led or were the outright winners.
Rain cancelled most of the practice time on Friday, but it stopped and the track dried in time for each practice group to get in a full session before the end of the day. Classes (and there were a lot of them) were grouped into 7 race groups each day, but only 4 practice groups, so there were A LOT of karts on the track at any given time. Rain returned Saturday morning but, by afternoon, the track was drying and racing began. The compressed schedule meant that races were shortened to fit the remaining time on Saturday. But Sunday was clear and comfortable all day and the races ran their full scheduled distances.
A quick shout-out to the folks from Dart Kart Club and the dozens of ordinary karters and their families who volunteered to get this event done. They did an incredible job. An event like this is powered by PEOPLE. From getting the crowd into the paddock (and the campgrounds, and the roads into the paddock), to registration, to the grid, to the scales, Dart Kart, one of the oldest Road Racing clubs in karting, outdid themselves. Well Done, one and all.
The first Vintage Class to grid Saturday was Vintage Piston Port, with 10 entries. With a total of 8 classes on the track at once, there was always someone to race with. Perennial front-runner Ben Eberhart blasted into the lead at the start and never looked back. Eberhart ended up turning the fastest lap of the race, a few tenths quicker than Makena Rice in a TaG kart. Other than Rice, no one else was within 3 seconds a lap of Eberhart. Woodbridge Kart Club stalwart Art McKinney was 2nd in Vintage Piston Port, followed by William Anderson. Unfortunately a red-flag incident involving vintage racer Herb Dickel, Jr. ended the race a bit early. Dickel suffered minor injuries, but his kart took the brunt of the damage.
Eberhart was back for the much-anticipated “Battle of the Twins” B-Stock race. He was 1 of only 3 Vintage Twins sharing the track with 15 of the best full-bodied B-Stockers in the country. Imagine the surprise along the pit wall when, at the end of the first lap, it was Eberhart, in his unbodied, twin LMR Vintage kart that led the field of modern B-Stocks. Eberhart battled with B-Stock ace Tom O’Reilly until contact with a slower kart put Eberhart out. Eberhart’s departure put Mike Schlager’s twin-B-Bomb Dart Mean machine into the lead. Schlager’s kart, with it’s overhead pipes and Goodyear Blue Streak tires (where does he get those??) always puts on a great show. Unfortunately, a lap after Eberhart’s departure, one of Schlager’s engines called it quits, handing the win to Tom Tretow.
While the twins were in the spotlight in race 5, Vintage Open was also racing. Fred Stoll was the class of the Vintage field, lapping in the 1:47’s. In a field of 59 karts that included B-Stock, 100cc Controlled, Open Sprint, TaG Enduro, and Vintage Twin, Stoll finished 14thOVERALL. Arthur McKinney ran 2nd early, but dropped out, handing the position to Terry Armstrong, a lap down at the finish. Tony Ellison claimed 3rd.
Sunday’s Vintage Piston Port saw the same cast of characters as Saturday’s race, and with the same results. Eberhart led from flag to flag and was, incredibly, almost a second faster than he was Saturday. Arthur McKinney was also quicker than the day before and beat William Anderson by 2.7 seconds for the runner-up spot. Anderson ran toe-to-toe with Fred Stoll, nipping him by less than 3 tenths of a second for 3rd.
The final Vintage race of the weekend was Sunday’s Vintage Open event. This one was a battle of attrition with Ben Eberhart running off into the distance before mechanical woes sidelined him at about half distance. By then Don Axe and John Konkle had already retired and Terry Armstrong took the lead. Armstrong’s day ended 5 laps later but, as the last man standing, he took the win, followed by Eberhart and Axe.
In total there were 36 Vintage Enduro entries. The weekend was a reminder of how enduro racing used to be, and how it can be again, if everyone just works together to help grow this important part of the karting scene. There are several more Road Race events in the coming months that will welcome Vintage Enduro racers. And the promoters at Pittsburgh Motorsports Complex are already talking about breaking 1000 entries at their event in September. So dust off those Vintage lay-downs and come join us.
Springfield VKA event had a great turnout with 74 entries. Thursday practice day was with a great turnout and weather!Friday was great weather again and with the threat of rain Saturday I had the VKA participants vote on whether they wanted to do all heats, kart show, and awards Friday. That was the overwhelming consensus.We had 12 races with plenty of breaks and time between heats and final. We had the pizza dinner after finals were completed around 7:30PM and was a great success. Kart show was during dinner with the awards passed out after the heat/finals awards were given.Everyone seemed very pleased with the event and a great time was had by all! Thanks to the outstanding job Jon Clem and the entire Midstate Kart Club crew did during the entire event.
By Rolf Hill Photos by Stephen Parker Jr., Michael Hofmeister & Rolf Hill
What a great way to kick off the Northeast VKA season. Great weather (thanks to the gentle breeze) and no rain, great friends and hosts, great karts, great demonstrations and show and … a great track. We had 38 great contenders on and off the track and quite a few wives and pit crew … and a “stray” dog or two.
Right up front I must say the attendance was not what we expected. But these are difficult times for all of us. As we might all suspect, the COVID virus kept some away. Hotel restrictions were still in place … masks, social distancing, fist-bumps, etc. But that wasn’t the worst of it.
Weeks before the event, TWO local universities CHANGED their graduation dates back two weeks and they ended up on our race date. The track had reserved a block of rooms at a reasonable rate, but all the local hotels raised their rates, and the track hotel did as well. It’s a cutthroat business.
The third factor, I feel, was the uncertainty of the availability of gas in the Northeast. The shutdown of the Colonial pipeline the week before the event affected many of us in the Northeast. I, for one, witnessed lines, fuel shortage and price gouging. When I was able to get gas, I filled-up (at $3 plus) and that car sat in the driveway. Then the question for me, and I’m sure others, was, I may be able to get there, but will I be able to get home? The answer was just not known. I considered not going.
Quite frankly, between COVID, room rates and gas uncertainty, it is a wonder we had 38 entries. But if they are like me, I’m glad I went. It was a great “opening day” for vintage karting in the Northeast.
Now, back to the event … although the schedule showed one Heat on Friday and two on Saturday, the track and the contenders decided to run two Heats on Friday. We had plenty of time for a kart show, local wine and cheese tasting and a fabulous dinner with all the fixin’s. Ya know, they make some good stuff in the Northeast. Just sayin’. (Sorry Jim.)
One Heat on Saturday worked out great for many of us with a 5+ hour drive home. We got out in time to get home before the sun went down. We loved it.
On the track there were no major incidents, but there were some exciting demonstrations … just like the old days … bumper to bumper. The first-place finisher in one Heat, came in second in the second Heat. The 3rd Heat was the cliff-hanger in more than one case. Some good “racing.”
Friday evening, nearly half the vintage crowd met at The View for a great evening of socializing and good food. (As an onion ring aficionado, I must say, they have THE BEST I’ve ever had.) The gathering with the fabulous food and drinks really makes for a memorable event. I’m looking forward to it (and the onion rings) next year.
Vectors Lite serenaded us during the wine/cheese tasting and dinner buffet. It was a wonderful evening under the stars.
Friday evening, nearly half the vintage crowd met at The View for a great evening of socializing and good food. (As an onion ring aficionado, I must say, they have THE BEST I’ve ever had.) The gathering with the fabulous food and drinks really makes for a memorable event. I’m looking forward to it (and the onion rings) next year.
Vectors Lite serenaded us during the wine/cheese tasting and dinner buffet. It was a wonderful evening under the stars.
@ Lamar County Speedway Barnesville, Ga. 3/25/21 thru 3/27/21
By Bob Barthelemy Photos by Don Roll & Forest Bass
The weather was beautiful all day Thursday with temperatures in the mid 70’s. Dicky Wilson and Eric McMillian started the safety tech inspections Wednesday, as many arrived early to get their pit spots set up, and continued throughout the day Thursday. Thank you to the GSKA workers and the entire GSKA team for a well-run event! I also want to thank Todd Shearin for making it exciting calling the races and a beautiful rendition of our National Anthem Saturday. Also, thank you to Aubree McClellan for leading us in the National Anthem Friday. A special thanks to Eric McMillian for his help throughout the weekend. Thank you to all the Vintage Karters with 89 entries participating at this event.
After a round of safety tech inspections Thursday morning, the track was opened for open practice at 9:30. We started with open practice for all senior drivers (40 minute session with a max of 10 karts on the track at a time). The junior drivers (9 entries) were then allotted a (10) minute practice session followed again by the senior drivers. We repeated this order throughout the day and closed the track for practice at 5:30 pm. I am very encouraged by the number of entries in the junior class as they represent the future of our sport.
Friday morning rain was forecasted and they were correct. From 8:00 to 9:30 it was a torrential downpour followed by steady drizzle till 2:00 pm. We worked over an hour to get the track dry with a shop vacuum and several blowers. After getting the track reasonably dry, we opened it for practice (approx. 45 minutes) to ensure the track was dry enough for competitive action. We then conducted our driver’s meeting including a brief devotional recognizing Mike Adkins, Pearle Gamble, and Lou Smiley who all passed since December of 2020. We were able to get the first heat races started by 4:00 pm. We had 20 classes represented and by grouping some of the classes together we were able to run all classes in 13 groups. We completed all but a few of our 1st heats when light rain delayed the program again. We called a quick drivers meeting on the grid asking the drivers if they want to dry the track and continue with most of the 2nd round of demonstration heat races under the lights or shut down for the day and pick-up on Saturday. The overwhelming majority wanted to continue into the night so we dried the track again and did just that. All heat races went smoothly. We completed all of the 2nd heat races for the day about 9:00 pm and proceeded with the banquet.
We all enjoyed a great finger food buffet prepared and served by Vicki & Glenn Forsyth in the concession/registration building and pavilion area. In honor of Mike Adkins, Pearle Gamble, and Lou Smiley, Bob Barthelemy acknowledged that “In memory of” plaques will be placed on the walls of the concession building.
Romero Llamas and his team of judges got the kart show judging activity going at 9:00 a.m. Saturday morning on the front straight. The Kart Show awards were presented a little after 10:00. We recognized Pete Lotz as the furthest traveled and awarded the plaque to him (Belgium, Wisconsin). We then conducted the 50/50 raffle presenting several GSKA & VKA T-shirts and calendars. The big money winner was Steve Mox, who graciously donated half of his winnings back to the VKA. David Luciani headed up the sale of 50/50 raffle tickets ($1220.00) a record high for our event. We then opened the track for 30 minutes of practice. We called a quick drivers meeting, prayed, and Todd Shearin sang the National Anthem and we started the third round of heat races before lunch. We completed the third round of heat races before 2:00 pm., then presented the awards for the demonstrations and finished by 3:00 p.m.
Kart Show Results
Historic Unrestored: Aubree McClellan 1968 Margay New Breed Restored: Rob Rizzuto 1961 Dart Mac 91B
Rear Unrestored: David Luciani 1960 Go Kart 800 West Bend 820 Restored: John McMullen 1961 Percival Hellcat SL Modified: Kevin Rice 1961 Fox West Bend 820
Sidewinder Unrestored: Rick Williams 1987 Coyote Bullet Restored: David Brock 1978 Hartman Modified: Dustin Merritt 1987 Invader