JU N E 2 0 1 8 PUBLISHED BY KARTING AUSTRALIA
CHAMPION ON A CHARGE AKC HEATING UP AS IT GETS PAST HALFWAY
THE PLUS 1 PROJECT
GRIDDED UP!
Karting Australia CEO outlines plans
Karting Australia signs an official
for club membership growth and
partnership with the Formula 1â„¢
exciting new initiatives
Australian Grand Prix
F UL L T HROT T L E
Word from our Chairman Welcome to the mid year edition of Full Throttle. It’s been a very busy start to the year for everyone at Karting Australia with a number of great achievements being accomplished – both on the track and behind the scenes in the administration of the sport. Released last month, the 2017 Annual Report has delivered more positive news for the sport (you can access the Report in this issue). For the fourth consecutive year, Karting Australia has turned a revenue positive year, but most pleasingly we have been able to deliver in excess of $700,000 to our clubs for improvements and developments. Any time that we can continue to invest in our clubs for betterment of their facilities, upgrades to safety or just generally making it more comfortable for their members to come to the racetrack is something that we need to continue to do. There is no shortage of ways in which we can all improve.
interview in full then start implementing the ‘Plus 1’ state of mind at your Club.
Also held last month was the Karting Australia Annual General Meeting, during which all of the required resolutions were voted on by the State Associations and passed unanimously – this included the re-appointment of Technical Director Rob Crawford.
The interest in the low-cost, low-maintenance 4SS Class continues to grow and it is certainly starting to gain some great momentum in various parts of the Country. I look forward to seeing more people coming into our sport through this avenue.
On track, the SP Tools Club Driver Rankings is something that I’m hearing great things about with people all across the Country watching their progress against drivers who are racing at other Clubs. The Rankings are providing an unprecedented prize pool to our Competitors and I encourage everyone to get onboard. One of the great things about the Club Driver Rankings is the fact that no matter the size of your Club, everyone has a shot at winning some great prizes.
Looking away from the track and behind the scenes, I’m please to confirm that we have partnered with the Australian Grand Prix Corporation. I don’t know of any other karting Federation in the world that has been in a position to announce such a partnership with a Formula 1™ Grand Prix organising committee. The Grid Kids and FIA Formula 1 Future Stars Program was a huge success this year and we look forward to expanding on this for our young members into the future.
In this issue, you’ll also read an in-depth interview with our CEO, Kelvin O’Reilly relating to the ‘Plus 1 Project’. It is something that Kelvin and I have spoken at length about. Rather than being a specific program for the Clubs, it is a mindset that is to be implemented among your Club and its community.
With the new year a little over six months away, we have started the process of reviewing the rules for 2019. We have received submissions from the Members and Clubs via the State Offices. These will all be assessed by the Rules Review Committee, and any other Committees where required, before a draft of the 2019 rules is expected to be released in early November.
All too often, we get caught up in our own racing and don’t think about people in your network that could be staring you in the face that might be interested in either getting involved in the sport as a Competitor, assisting the Club or with running events by becoming an Official.
I hope you continue to enjoy your racing - there’s lots of exciting stuff happening in karting in Australia at the moment and we’re delighted to have you as a part of our great sport.
It is uncovering those people and making your Club experience better for those members you’ve got now and those who will become members in the future that is at the centre of The Plus 1 Project. I implore you to read the
Mick Doohan
Chairman - Karting Australia
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It was an emotional afternoon in Newcastle for the Burns clan . Jason Burns with his three sons, Jaxson, Jenson and Jett. Multiple Australian Champion, Jason made a welcome return to Australian competition - and the podium in X30, while Jenson also grabbed a trophy in Cadet 9!
F UL L T HROT T L E
PAGE OF CONTENTS CLUB RANKINGS TAKES OFF!
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Check your scores and the latest from CDR
BUILDING BETTER KART CLUBS
16
Getting youth involved in your Club
MUST READ: DEVELOPING OFF TRACK
33
How can you push your profile forward?
QUICK LAP - REECE COHEN
38
JC Kart’s rapid youngster has a chat
MASSA’S MISSION
41
Ex-F1 ace now CIK President gives his views
IT’S GAME ON IN SP TOOLS AKC!
43
AKC hits its straps at halfway - all the action!
KENNEDY KICKS IT HOME
49
First Rotax Team Australia Member announced
AUSTRALIAN KART MASTERS
53
Age is no barrier in Coffs Harbour
SUPER IN SWEDEN
55
James Wharto n gets a double Rotax Podium
GET STARTED IN KARTING TIP
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How important is seat position? Find out!
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KA JOINS F1 AGP
TOP VOLUNTEERS
PLUS 1 PROJECT
08
20
25
After the success of the Grid Kids
Meet our Castrol EDGE Volunteers of
Plus 1 is a new initiative that is
at this year’s Formula 1™ Rolex
the Month from April and May - this
currently being discussed with Club
Australian Grand Prix, the Australian
time around from Western Australia
and State Presidents by Karting
Grand Prix Corporation has welcomed
and Queensland respectively.
Australia in an effort to build support
KA as an Official Partner for next
and numbers for kart clubs around
year’s event, providing even more
Australia.
opportunities for young Australian
To learn more about the Plus 1
karters
Project, we sat down with Karting Australia CEO Kelvin O’Reilly.
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F UL L T HROT T L E
KARTING AUSTRALIA’S F1 GP PARTNERSHIP Karting Australia is now an official partner of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation off the back of the success of this year’s Grid Kids program - Australia being the first country in the world to implement F1 Commercial Rights Holder - Liberty Media’s new initiative. The partnership will provide some great opportunities for youngsters to be a part of the 2019 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix.
opportunity for Karting Australia youngsters and we look forward to an even bigger event in 2019. “We met with Australian Grand Prix Management recently where it was agreed that the Grid Kids will be a key component of the pre-race entertainment – among other things surrounding the 2019 event.”
At this year’s event in Melbourne, 20 lucky Karting Australia members became the first to be a part of the FIA Future Formula 1 Stars while another 38 were also on the grid ahead of the start of the Grand Prix.
Details on the opportunities and how young Karting Australia members can be a part of the 2019 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix will be available in the coming months.
“We’re delighted to confirm that Karting Australia is now an official partner of the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix and that the Grid Kids will be back in 2019,” said Karting Australia’s Lee Hanatschek. “The inclusion of the FIA Formula 1 Future Stars this year added another element to what was already a very popular
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KA RT I NG . NET. AU
CLUB DRIVER RANKINGS HEATING UP The Grid Kids during a morning rehearsal
12 sets of tyres to be won in mid season random prizes The new for 2018 SP Tools Club Driver Rankings is making an impression all across the Country. In the first three months of competition, thousands of Karting Australia licence holders have lined up on the grid at their local Club and scored points towards their overall tally. More than $50,000 in prizes is up for grabs across four Competition Groups (Cadets, Juniors, Seniors and 4SS) along with 12 individual Classes at the end of the CDR ‘Season’. Drivers can enter a maximum of eight meetings at one Club, where the six best pointscores will go towards their Club Driver Rankings tally in their Competition Group and Class. To provide an even opportunity for the smaller Clubs and Drivers, some ‘grouped’ Clubs have been formed. Nearing the halfway mark in the season, there are four drivers who have scored maximum points in every event they have contested and sit a top the overall standings. Highlighting the ‘Race Locallly, Rank Nationally’ tagline is the fact that all four of these drivers are from different States and Classes. In the Cadet Group rankings, Combined Districts Jordan Shalala holds a slender lead over Oakleigh’s Liam O’Donnell
followed by Hurricane Kart Club’s Thomas Laughton from and Darwin’s Mitchell Kroonstuiver. A perfect record sees Oakleigh driver Steven Tsesmelis leads the Junior standings over Combined Districts driver Lachlan Ward. Go-Kart Club of Victoria’s Ashley Seward is leading the way in the Senior ranks with Jack Douglass is a mere one point behind in second. Eastern Lions’ Mitchell Branson’s consistency has him placed a top the 4SS standings. CLASS LEADERS: Cadet 9 - Hayley Zammit (Oakleigh, VIC) Cadet 12 - Jordan Shalala (Combined Districts, NSW) KA4 Jnr - Steven Tsesmelis (Oakleigh, VIC) KA3 Jnr - Reef McCarthy (GKCV, VIC) Jnr Performance - Luke Pink (Ipswich, QLD) KA3 Senior - Joshua Buchan (Combined Districts, NSW) TaG Restricted - Gianni Blatti (GKCV, VIC) TaG 125 - Ashley Seaward (GKCV, VIC) Masters - Peter Virgulti (Ipswich, QLD) Open - Connor Wroth (Eastern Goldfields, WA) 4SS Senior - Mitchell Branson (Eastern Lions, VIC) To check your score in Class and Group in the SP Tools Club Driver Rankings, prizes and all the information you need, head to the official Club Driver Rankings website at www.clubdriverrankings.com.au
As a mid year bonus to all participants in the Club Driver Rankings, all drivers who have scored points in one or more Club Driver Rankings events as of July 2 will go into the draw for a free set of tyres. There will be one set of tyres for each of the 12 Club Driver Rankings Classes.
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F UL L T HROT T L E
VALE: BRITTANY HALL
IN BRIEF DPE
Kart
Technology
has
announced it will launch a series of DPE Kart Superstores along the Eastern Seaboard. They are partnering with existing kart stores - Kerbrider and Master Karting in Victoria and Pacific Kartsport in Queensland with a yet-tobe
announced
NSW
location.
Kerbrider owner, Aaron Rintoul will move to a marketing and sales role at DPE Kart Technology, while Pacific Kartsport founder (and former DPE staff member) Dale Verrall will maintain the Queensland DPE Kart Superstore. The new OTK aero kit/Nassau Panel (pictured below) is one of the hot topics in karting right now. The bizarre kit sports a ‘scoop’ with a separately attached number plate component - which has led some to compare it to a slice of cheese!
Brittany Hall in action
The Victorian karting community was rocked in late May with the news of the sudden passing of former racer, Brittany Hall. Hall - a member of the Oakleigh Go Kart Club - had raced with some distinction at Club, State and National level. Her father, Tom, is a well respected official in the Victorian Karting Association ranks. A number of drivers carried special
stickers to honour Brittany’s memory, including SP Tools Australian Kart Championship KZ2 racer, Matty Smith - who was having his best run in his GP Racing Kart at Newcastle until a technical issue brought his final charge to a halt. Everyone at Karting Australia and Full Throttle sends their support to Brittany’s family, friends and Oakleigh Clubmates at this challenging time
STAR TRAINER VISITS GVKC Former trainer of Formula 1 World Champion, Jenson Button - Phil Young recently visited the Goulburn Valley Kart Club in Victoria. Now based on the Gold Coast,Young can be seen in the pit bunker at Virgin Australia Supercars events with James Courtney, while also working with Dunlop Super2 Series front runner, Garry Jacobson. It was an invite from Jacobson and the progressive Numurkah (just outside Shepparton) club that brought Young to the Goulburn Valley. Jacobson - who will join Rick Kelly in
the Castrol Nissan for the PIRTEK Enduro Cup this year - cut his teeth at the Goulburn Valley Kart Club. “The local karting kids certainly got a lot out of Phil being here. The club is a real asset to the area, it is where I started and many others that have gone on to do well in karting and other forms of motorsport. They are doing a super job and at the moment showing the rest of Victoria and other parts of Australia how to build their membership and create a club that is for the entire community to be part of.”
The land scoped for a motorsport training and karting facility in Pakenham
outside
Melbourne
has been placed up for sale. The original plans were developed by a team with a strong history in the sport. Garry Jacobson with Arnold Schwarzenegger at a sponsor event
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F UL L T HROT T L E
In 2017, Karting Australia released a new Portal for Clubs called Building Better Clubs which holds a wealth of information that is required to efficiently operate a Club. Detailed below is a sample of the information that you can find on the site.
GETTING YOUTH INVOLVED Young members are the future of any club and with junior karting being such an important contributor to sport Australia wide, it makes sense to get young people and fresh ideas involved in your club. By having young people involved, it delivers goals of having long term involvement, assists in developing pathways through sport for them, allows them to develop life skills through being involved and interacting with different situations and keeps your club relevant.
These are just a few ideas that Karting Australia has developed as points of discussion for clubs around Australia to get more of their younger members involved and ensuring the future of the sport. Karting Australia has developed a full toolkit for each club around Australia - with links to relevant Government agencies that allow Club Directors and Board Members to have all the information they require to be successful.
Some ways that young people could be involved in your club: • •
•
•
•
Junior Council – Juniors have their own mini committee to bring ideas to the Board/Committee Buddy program – an established Junior/young driver is buddied up with a sub-Junior (Cadet 9/Cadet 12) driver to welcome them to the club Press Officer – allow late high school/early University club member to build skills through developing press materials for the club. IT Officer – allow a late high school/early University student club member to learn CM:S, MyLaps Orbits and assist in the operation of a race meeting Volunteers – offer Club Championship points to young members to be involved in the operation of a race day
That website is at www.buildingbetterkartclubs.com. au and every club throughout Australia is invited to utilise that on a regular basis and provide the organisation with some case studies and areas of success they have experienced through implementing some of the Building Better Kart Clubs website.
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F UL L T HROT T L E
IN BRIEF Davide Fore has taken his first race win as BirelART Team Manager in the Italian KZ2 Championship at Sarno. After a lean period in 2016 and 2017, his last major victory came in the 2015 Race of Stars on the Gold Coast. A name synonymous with drag racing in Australia was at the top of the time sheets after Newcastle KA3 qualifying when Kurtis Read scored the pole. He’s the grandson of Top Fuel icon Jim Read and son of Australian Top Fuel Champion, Phil. Interest in the SP Tools Junior Sprockets
program
continues
to grow, with Karting Australia receiving requests from circuits and other venues around the country to host the sub-Junior introductory program. It has been rated by many parents as being superior to the programs offered by other sports and has welcomed a number of new competitors into karting competition. A Formula 4 test is up for grabs at the Queensland Junior Top Guns meeting at Warwick on July
ANNUAL REPORT ONLINE NOW Karting Australia’s Annual Report is now online (click image). Key outcomes include: • A trading surplus for the fourth consecutive year; • $700,000+ provided to Clubs and State Associations; • Increased sponsorship revenue; • Continuation of Junior Sprockets development program; • Launch of the Building Better Kart Clubs web portal; • Continuation of the Safety Grants Programs to support the enhancement of safety infrastructure, and • National upgrade of the event timing infrastructure for all Clubs. Above all - it has been another positive year for Karting Australia delivering more programs to karters and clubs to develop the sport and infrastructure.
BRIGGS & STRATTON ON TRACK The Briggs & Stratton 206 homologated for the 4SS 4-Stroke category is now available nationally. Hugely popular in North America and other parts of the world, the 206 was recently tested against its fellow 4SS engine, the Torini TC210 Clubmaxx by distributor - IKD - at Lithgow by IKD Race Department’s David Whitmore with great results. After waiting on shipments before distributing nationally, IKD has now been able to rollout through its dealer network, “The performance against the Torini on the same chassis saw the Briggs & Stratton turn the same times, so the
14 & 15. The winning driver will be decided on merit as opposed to the outright result. Entries are available across KA4 Junior Light, JMAX, KA3 Junior Light and 4SS classes.
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performance is something we’re quite happy with,” explained Whitmore. “The tyres for 4SS - Vega VAH - are also extremely good - after 200-odd laps we were still doing the same lap times as when we hit the track with them brand new. “Lap times were equivalent to the old Senior National Light times or Junior National Heavy by way of comparison.” IKD will be running a Bring-AMate day at Newcastle on Saturday July 14. Anyone interested should contact David at IKD on sales@ internationalkarting.com or (02) 4735 1344.
F UL L T HROT T L E
TAMMY FLYNN Western Australian Tammy Flynn has been chosen as April’s Castrol EDGE Volunteer of the Month.
Tammy is the Bunbury City Kart Club Secretary, and like many of the Karting Australia volunteers across the country she is the Queen of multi-tasking to ensure a smooth operation of the Club. Nominated by a number of people within her Club, Tammy is seen as someone who goes quietly about fulfilling many roles in the Club and never complains, nor seeks recognition. One nomination stated “I have owned a business for the past 15 years and I have never met someone so dedicated to Karting along with being a Mum to her two children that race and completing so many roles within the Club.”
Volunteer of the Month - April
It is volunteers like Tammy and Madeline that keep the sport going – congratulations on being nominated as our Castrol EDGE Volunteer of the Month both will receive a Castrol EDGE Merchandise pack and 20 to be used as giveaways at your Club. To nominate someone in your club as our Castrol EDGE Volunteer of the Month, CLICK THIS LINK.
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MADELINE THORBURN May’s Castrol EDGE Volunteer of the Month, Madeline Thorburn is a true pocket rocket for her club - the Whitsunday Moto Sport Club in North Queensland. With no background or interest in the sport, her now husband, Bob, introduced her to karting. “It wasn’t even something I had thought about, Bob introduced me - he actually helped me in learning to drive,” laughed Madeline. “When the track opened at Whitsunday, it just became the thing that you got in and started helping with race entries and so on.” An English and Humanities High School teacher by day, Madeline expanded on her commitment to karting to become race secretary, club secretary, then learning the timing system and then went on to officiate - becoming a Clerk of Course - not a bad rise through the ranks considering she started only in 2014! Being one of Queensland’s top young officials has presented opportunities for Madeline to travel throughout the State to major events and she has been a Steward at the last two Race of Stars. “It is always good to go to other events and something like Race of Stars, you get to see a totally different side again from that of a competitor and meet new people. The sport is great for that - I love it!”
Volunteer of the Month - May
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F UL L T HROT T L E
JOEY MAWSON DROPS INTO NEWCASTLE
Au s t ra l i a n Joey Mawson is cu r re ntly competing in the GP 3 Series with the A rd e n Moto rsp or t te am . W h il e bac k in Australia for a quic k trip, he took tim e o u t to d ro p by t h e Au st ral ian Kart Championship round in Newcastle where h e ca ug ht up w it h Lor rain e Far l ey for an interview (see above). Mawson was back in Australia unexpectedly for the funeral of fabrics czar and renowned motorsport benefactor, Tom Warwick - who has been instrumental in Mawson’s rise through the European racing ranks. Since winning the final round of the 2012 CIK-FIA World Under 18 Championship in Dubai, Mawson spent time as a factory driver with the Top Kart and Kosmic Teams in Europe. He then moved into the French Formula 4 Championship before focusing on German F4, where he became Champion in 2016. After spending last year in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, this year he will follow the Formula 1 schedule in the GP3 Series. His next GP3 race is at Paul Ricard June 22-24.
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ARTWORK FOR ALL CLUBS
To assist Clubs and State Associations in promoting their upcoming events while maintaining a professional and consistent message for the sport, Karting Australia has developed a number of electronic and print ready resources. Incorporating artwork to promote Club Driver Rankings, Bring A Mate, Junior Sprockets and Four Stroke Sprint along with a General Information brochure, the resources are now available for download and
use by Karting Australia Clubs or State Associations either as is, or incorporated into specific artwork, for their social media and other promotions. All of the logos and artwork is located on the Building Better Kart Clubs website at this url http://www. buildingbetterkartclubs.com.au/clubresources/membership-marketing/ logos-and-artwork/ The specific pages are password protected with the password provided to Club
Secretaries. The artwork will be updated over time as more are produced. All of the logos and artwork are able to be used copyright free by Clubs and State Associations providing that all logos and artwork are used as per the original file, no distorting the proportions or separation of any aspects of the logos or artwork is permitted.
SAFETY GRANT RECIPIENTS More than $60,000 has been distributed to various Karting Australia Clubs across the Country in the first round of Safety Grants for 2018.
One of the most notable recipients is the South West Kart Club in Victoria. The Cobden-based Club will receive the maximum $10,000 Safety Grant before combining this with $10,000 of input from the Club and a small Track Development Fund Loan to provide some significant safety upgrades for their circuit. Over the coming months, the Club will replace fencing around the circuit and also implement new gravel traps. The Darwin Kart Club will also be replacing some safety fencing while also installing a new set of Race America start lights courtesy of their $9,334 Safety Grant.
2018 SAFETY GRANT (RD 1) RECIPIENTS Bunbury City Kart Club Upgrade Two-way radios Cooloola Coast Kart Club Upgrade gravel traps, raise Starters Platform Darwin Kart Club Replace safety fencing, install new start light Griffith Kart Club Replace wood chips with gravel traps, install more tyre buffers South West Kart Club Replace existing fencing, install new gravel traps Tiger Kart Club Upgrade Two-way radios Whitsunday Moto Sport Club Earthworks for drainage and new safety light system
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THE PLUS 1 PROJECT
Pl us 1 i s a ne w in it iat ive t h at is currently being disc ussed with Club and Sta te Pre s i d e nt s by Kar t in g Au st ral ia i n an ef fort to build support and numbers fo r ka r t cl u b s a rou n d Au st ral ia. Th e p re mi s e of t h e Pl u s 1 Proj ect is that eac h c lub Australia wide should h a ve a m i ni mu m aim of ad d in g one new member (net) per month throughout t he ye a r - of cou rse ad d in g on e net member should be the minimum aim for ea ch cl ub . To l e ar n m ore ab ou t The Plus 1 Projec t, we sat down with Kartin g Au s t ra l i a C EO, Ke l v in O’Re il l y. Full Throttle: You’ve been talking with a lot of Club Presidents about the sport recently. What’s that about? Kelvin O’Reilly: We launched an initiative called the “Plus 1 Project” to all the State Associations through the State Presidents who attended our regular Executive Commission meetings early this year. It’s the follow-up to that launch and the next steps that we are taking to establish the project. FT: What is the Plus 1 Project? CEO: At its simplest, it’s a challenge to all our Affiliated Clubs to add a net one new licence holder to their membership each month of the year. By “net one”, I mean that they retain all the licence holders that they have and add one new driver each month. Attraction of new people
to the sport and most importantly, retention of current licence holders is of paramount importance. It’s a small target, it’s very achievable and the benefits are huge. If all our Clubs achieve that target, in twelve months there will be more than a thousand new members racing on our tracks. The second target is for each club to improve their Club Race participation by five entries for each race meeting.The overall benefit will add around 3000 individual participants to the entry tally nationally in a twelve-month period. FT: What is the strategy to achieve those targets? CEO: To start with, awareness is the key. The first step in solving any problem is recognising that there is one. What we are doing at the moment is talking with the Club Presidents and creating that awareness.Working with them
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F UL L T HROT T L E
to understand that everyone at all levels of the sport owns part of the problem and is also part of the solution. The challenges sound simple, but the problems are complex - just like the sport itself. There is not one single thing that will reduce the churn rate that has been high in this sport for a very long time. A lot of small changes can make all the difference and we are talking to the people at the coal face - the Club Presidents about the issues and solutions. Part of what we want to do, is to make it easier for the Club Committees to run their Clubs and their Race Meetings. FT: How is it being received so far? CEO: Very well indeed. We have had in depth meetings with the Queensland, South Australian and Victorian Club Presidents, we have meetings scheduled in Tasmania and the Northern Territory in the next few weeks and are looking forward to confirming meetings with the New South Wales and Western Australian Club Presidents soon. The bench-marking that we have been presenting that shows where each State Association sits on a range of issues including State and Club fees charged, and that also shows how each Club is performing on the membership retention and participation fronts is very powerful and I think that it is opening a lot of eyes. I think that the message that the Club Presidents have a responsibility to their Clubs and that it is the Clubs that have the capacity to engage with and look after their members and that they are not alone in the challenge is resonating with them. Henry Ford said: “If you think you can or if you think you can’t - you’re right.” We want to convert any negativity in the sport into positivity at all levels.
FT: What are the key messages in the Plus 1 Project? CEO: There are so many messages and hundreds of discussion points - that’s why each meeting lasts for prettywell a full day. Every Club and every State is different, and the issues vary in importance and impact from place to place. If I was to pick out the top ten key messages, in no particular order, they would be: 1. This is about club membership and club competition. It’s very much about retention of members – in particular, the new competition licence holders who race and the social members who all too often come and go from the sport very quickly. Make sure that it is on the agenda for every Club and State Association Management meeting so that these remain front of mind issues. 2. Take responsibility for and lead your Club - you and your Committee are the ones who are best placed to do so. 3. Adopt a customer first mentality in everything that the Club does. 4. Make your Club a “Community That Works Together”. 5. Look at what you can learn from other Clubs, karting competitions that are doing well, other sports and businesses and try to implement the things that make them successful. 6. Develop a plan and implement it. 7. If you’re a small country Club, try working with a Club that is nearby (if there is one). 8. Don’t be afraid to work with us and the State Association and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Work together, share ideas and collaborate with each other and with us. 9. Analyse the current situation in your Club. Look at what you do well and look at what you need to improve. There are plenty of great resources that are available to help you run your club more easily. 10. Replace negativity with positivity - “oh woe is me” never helped anyone. FT: How did this movement come about? CEO: Interesting term “movement”- that’s what this needs to become. I suppose the Plus 1 concept really started when our first Castrol Volunteer of the Month - Ben Dealey was announced last December. What his Club has achieved fits perfectly with the Plus 1 Project. At that time, he spoke about his Club - the Goulburn Valley Kart Club’s plan to develop their membership base
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by signing up three new members a month. Remember, this was a Club that just a few years ago was almost at rock bottom. Their racing membership was in single figures. From that foundation at rock bottom they have rebuilt the Club from the inside. They now have a solid membership base and they have a plan to build upon it every month. They have the highest average participation rate in their Club Race Meetings for their membership numbers of any Club in Victoria. Over the last year and half their Club Race Meeting entry list equates to an enviable 62% of their members racing at every Club day. You don’t need much more inspiration than that.With what this Club has achieved Plus 1 should be easy for all clubs. FT: What changes are you looking to make? CEO: The changes that we will be making will be pretty subtle from this point forward. We have already set about reducing the price point of entry into the sport. 4SS gives you the cheapest entry point imaginable. It’s much cheaper and simpler than anything that has existed for at least the past decade or more. It’s started as a bit of slow burn in the first few months of this year, but it is gaining momentum across the country. I am confident that it will take off in a big way in the next year or so. We’ve simplified getting a racing licence, joining a Club and renewing your licence - you can now do it in minutes - not days or weeks. We’ve set about simplifying Cadet karting for the novice and we are actively encouraging our members to race more often at Club level. The SP Tools Club Driver Rankings is a wonderful initiative that enables us to find the Ultimate Club Racer.The person who races locally, and no matter where in Australia they live, now ranks nationally. Getting towards the end of round 3 in the rankings we have Class leaders from Oakleigh, Ipswich, Go Kart Club of Victoria and Eastern Goldfields (Kalgoorlie). That’s drivers from big Clubs and small Clubs and Clubs from right across the country vying for Australian karting’s largest ever Club competition prize pool and the Ultimate Club Racer title at the end of the year. Shortly we will be polling all of our Drivers, our Affiliated Clubs and our State Associations as to whether or not their
preference is to use the current (Prime) tyres or specified Option Tyres in Club competition in each Competition Class. From there, we will be making decisions that will cover the final two years of the current tyre supply arrangements. We’ve done a lot of testing and we’ve got more work to do but that is the direction in which we are heading.
Shortly we will be polling all of our Drivers, our Affiliated Clubs and our State Associations as to whether or not their preference is to use the current (Prime) tyres or specified Option Tyres in Club competition in each Competition Class. FT: What do you expect of the Clubs in the Plus 1 Project? CEO: We have spelled out quite clearly what it is that we expect of our Clubs. We want them to work internally within themselves. We want them to be better engaged with us and with their State Associations.We want them to have membership attraction and retention on every Club Management meeting agenda from this point forward and to action things that will make a positive difference. We want everyone in every Club to be proud of their Club and we want the Clubs to be proud of and take pride in
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their members. We want everyone in every Club to be a walking, talking positive advertisement for karting and for their Club. At the same time, we want each Club to offer introduction to karting activities at every opportunity. Having enticed people to try the sport or to return to the sport, we then want the Clubs to make retaining them the top priority. They will do that by offering great race meetings that provide value for money and have people walking away saying “WOW - let’s do that again.” We want them to have a critical look at what it is that they do and to set down a simple plan that they can put in place to improve where improvement is necessary. The Australian Sports Commission has a wonderful tool called a “Club Health Check” that is available on our Building Better Kart Clubs web site. (www.buildingbetterkartclubs. com.au) It is an on-line survey that at least three members of each Club’s Management Committee should complete. It only takes about 15 minutes to do. At the end, the Club receives a report that is around 30 pages in length that tells them what they do well, what needs improvement, what their priorities could be and most importantly it gives them resources that help them learn and grow as Clubs. If they want and need help, we want them to put their hand out and ask for assistance. FT: What do you expect of the State Associations? CEO: It’s not much different to what we are looking for from the Clubs.We want our State Associations to critically
analyse their performance and that of the clubs in their State. Do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis, form a plan that will lead to improved service and State assistance. We really want every State to have a close, hard look at how they form their State Calendars. You can’t expect to have good competition at any level if the calendar of events is working against the events themselves. What worked in the past may have been great in the past, but we want the State Associations with their Club Presidents to evaluate that in today’s environment. So
“All Ipswich Kart Club Race Meetings are (now) run to a timetable. That one simple change has meant that the 15-hour Club Race days are now a thing of the past. They are looking at adding additional laps to their races and giving better value for money to their members – and it hasn’t cost them one cent.”
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much has changed in the last 10 to 15 years, what used to work then may not be working so well today. Too many karting calendars in this country put events in place that simply are destined to fail.At times they are either crowded together or are competing against neighbouring events - so nobody wins. We can all do better than that. Calendaring is a topic in its own right and I can’t understate the importance of getting it right. FT: In what you’re saying, I’m hearing the words “Club Presidents” a lot. That’s a bit of a change isn’t it? CEO: The Club Presidents are key players in this. They are the main person in their Club.Their personality, their drive, enthusiasm and leadership will chart the path to success in the Plus 1 Project and for their Clubs generally. If you look at the various karting Clubs around the country and if you look at the numbers, you can see the impact that a great President can have on their Club. I think that as we are talking to the Club Presidents they are seeing (if they didn’t already know it) that they are the most important driving force in their Club and that they will be able to make a huge difference. Our charter is to help them drive their Club to achieve its true potential. FT: It sounds like you are telling everyone what to do – how will that work out? CEO: It’s not that at all. We are making suggestions of things that we want the Clubs and the State Associations to look at, critically assess and then to form their own plans. We want them to look at their Brands. We want them to look at what they offer to their members and how they do things. We want them to ask themselves - are we seen as a Club, or are we seen as just a venue? Communications and feedback runs both ways. We want people to identify their issues and to think about solutions and to talk with us about solutions. Simple changes can make a massive difference. Since Scott Howard has been the President of the Ipswich Kart Club, their Club Race Meetings are all run to a timetable. That one simple change has meant that the 15-hour Club Race days are now a thing of the past at that Club. They are now looking at adding additional laps to their races and giving better value for money to their members simply because they run on time - and it hasn’t cost them one cent. In fact, it’s probably saving them money and making their members happier. They are now working on expanding their Club Officials register.
FT: When discussions like these are taking place you normally hear the “C” word come up – Communication. Has that be a point of discussion? CEO: Yes, it has. So much sinks or swims with communication. At every Club President’s meeting so far, we have been asked if I would write direct to the Club Presidents on matters of importance. That is a departure from convention, but I can do that under the current A1 communication process. I have agreed that we will do that. I can only see benefit in doing that because the Club Presidents have asked for it. I think that as we have held the different meetings it has become obvious to everyone in the room that sometimes things get lost in the interpretation from one level of the sport to another. If direct communications improve that, then that is a positive outcome. I am certain that all the Presidents that we have met with so far now have a much better understanding of what it is that Karting Australia does (and doesn’t involve itself with) than was the case before we met. That can only be a good thing. I think that the State Associations are on side with this approach and I am certain that it will go a long way to eliminating the ‘blame game’ and the rumours that are so rife in the sport.
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FT: What will you be doing to help the Clubs to achieve the Plus 1 Member and the Plus 5 Entries? CEO: We intend to support the Clubs and State Associations as fully as possible. The Board has approved budget allocations for Club development, mentoring and support and for Club membership activation support so that we can assist them on this journey of overall improvement of the grassroots level of the sport. We will have a focus on membership and Club support and in assisting them with their messaging and communications to current, new, potential and future members. This will be our number one focus for the next year or two at least. FT: It sounds like you’re excited about this. CEO: I am and so is the Board and my staff. I think that those Club Presidents and the State Associations are also excited about it and they should be. It’s been a lot of work for the past six or so months to just get this far but I can tell you that as we have been working through the headline issues with the Clubs it is quite energising. You can feel the Presidents in the room getting on board the Project as the day progresses. We have a lot of things that we will be doing to make the Plus 1 Project work. What we have talked about today is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. We will be asking people to look at the great karting success stories like the Victorian Country Series and the Australian Kart Championship to see what their Club can learn from them. We’ll be asking people to look at other sports and clubs in the community to see what we can learn from them and to work out how to apply concepts that have been shown to work there in our sport and in their Club. We will also be asking them to apply standard business and marketing principles that apply in everyday life to their Club. There is a very real opportunity here for everyone who is actively involved in the sport of karting today to make a positive difference and to set the sport up for the long term.You can’t help but be excited about that.
SUMMARY
The Big Issues A lot of grassroots sports are undergoing enormous change at the moment. For Karting, too many licence holders leave the sport and too many who join the sport leave too quickly – for a variety of reasons. The 4 Main Objectives The Plus 1 Project will set about addressing the issues and facilitate the development of Club and State Association level plans to reverse the trend and to obtain buy-in from karting stakeholders at all levels. 1. For each club to grow its membership base by 1 licenced driver (net) each month. • We must attract new members; and • We must retain our current members. Retention is vital! 2. For each club to improve its participation rate by 5 entries for each race meeting. 3. To effect a leadership and cultural change strategy that is sustainable and beneficial for our sport in the long term. • Developing the leadership and culture of the clubs, as this underpins the achievement of all Plus 1 Project goals. 4. To make it easier for club committees to do what it is that they need to do for their members. The Overriding Principles The key issues lie in Club Membership – attraction, retention and overall growth and Club Competition – fun, exciting WOW FACTOR competition. Club Committees are in control of and are responsible for their own Club! Club competition accounts for 63% of all karting competition nationally. Clubs need to identify and establish their real priorities that can make a difference. • Develop plans. • Don’t be afraid to ask for your State and Karting Australia for help. • Work together, be positive and collaborate. For your Club to become part of the Plus 1 Project Movement, to be properly informed, and to discuss and talk about solutions to your issues, make sure that they book in a Plus 1 Project meeting for your President with KA and your State Executive as soon as possible!
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DEVELOPING OFF TRACK
Want to advance your career in motorsport? You need to read this!
Aaron Cameron being interviewed by NBN News in Newcastle There’s more to racing than just going fast on the track that’s a fact.
“MotiV8 Training offers a more holistic approach to racing,” she explained.
In the modern era of motorsport, racing is about 25% of the job of a driver - there is so much more to it than that - and like the driving fundamentals, the personality, media and attitude fundamentals start in karting.
“MotiV8 offers guidance around everything on and off the track. From fitness, nutrition, mental prep to sponsorship and branding online.”
So, why do so many karters in Australia - especially at the elite levels of the sport - not get it?
Later this year, the MotiV8 - Motorsport Coaching Podcast will drop for the first time - Riseley has interviewed many leaders in the sport.
At a recent event for the JC Kart team, James Courtney outlined the importance of being good outside the kart/car as well as being good in it.
“I started the Podcast as a further resource for our customers. Each week, they can listen to experts in certain areas of the sport that can assist their careers,” said Riseley.
“You need to be good across the board,” Courtney said.
“I’ve been around the sport a long time and seen many drivers come and go - consistently the ones that can communicate to a broad range of people are the ones that will go on to be successful.”
“You have to deal with sponsors, with media, with friends - sometimes in situations where you least feel like doing it not to mention your team where you have to download on data and be ready to go in the next session, regardless of whether you were at the top or bottom of the timesheets.” Belinda Riseley from Motiv8 training is offering a full service training program and ‘toolbox’ for racers and concurs with Courtney.
The way forward regardless of whatever level of the sport you compete at is developing a profile for yourself with all your vital details (i.e. Who you are, where you live, your school/occupation and more importantly - anything interesting about you - other sports, a unique skill, something
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funny that’s happened to you away from the track) and use this as your personal promotional toolbox. Carry well printed copies of these (most home printers are sufficient these days or a nearby stationery or print shop can do them relatively cheaply) as well as an easily emailable copy.
“I head to an SP Tools Australian Kart Championship event with almost 300 competitors and I’m lucky to have three of them take the time to reach out to send me any information on them,” explained Australian Kart Championship Commentator, Matt Payne.
Learn who the commentator is at the events you are going to and contact them in the week leading up to your event with your profile - or forward to the Club or event organiser.
“I have more than 16 hours of commentary across a race weekend to tell stories of the sport and those in the sport - especially on a Sunday with the livestream that gets thousands of viewers and rates particularly well
against other forms of motorsport - so it is a great opportunity to tell your story, or get coverage for your sponsors - that lets face it - it is something that should take you no more than about 15 minutes in total to get it together.” Developing a personal toolbox of media contacts, commentators, sponsors and important people is imperative for racers of all levels - it is something that Payne says should become a weekly ‘habit’ - just like homework or study for the racer which will only take a short period of time one night a week for the racer. He outlines though that it should be the racer that drives it - not the parent - as if the racer’s doing it - they are learning the process of motorsport management, developing a network of contacts and how they can advance their careers. “Unfortunately, too many parents think they can be the spokespeople of their children, but the kids, if they want to pursue motorsport as a career - just like in business or in life, have to do it themselves. There are no handouts. Sponsorships only come through relationships and being involved.” Building media relationships at local level are critical for future success - having the experience of communicating with the sports editor at your local newspaper, your commentator or club’s publicity officer. The practice is also good for your career, or life in general. Potential employers want to deal with a driver that can’t confidently speak with people, potential sponsors and represent their team in the media.
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During a presentation the late Supercars driver, Jason Richards gave at a Rotax Pro Tour event in 2010, he outlined the importance of communication and what that meant to his career. He would make a point of sending a text message to his key personal sponsors in the lead-up to an event and then at the end of the days updating of his results. Sending a text to those closest to you is an important and easy direct way of communication, as is sending press releases with photographs and regularly calling them on the phone - it is also good practice for dealing with sponsors further up the line that - should you be one of the fortunate to make it - could be worth hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars. While in these days of social media, having a Facebook page and Instagram account is an easy way of communication, it means nothing if nobody knows who you are, what you do
or where to find you. From that point of view, social media is only a small part of the entire ‘machine’ that you want to build the hype behind you. Without working to build a media profile, nobody will find your Facebook page and with the continued changing of social media algorithms, chances are you’ll be lost among the social media ‘white noise’. There are a wealth of resources out and about on how to pull together your profile and promote yourself - but that is the key - PROMOTING YOURSELF! If you start with the basics with your club, your local media, commentators and organisers in the series you race in, you’ll be well on the way with your motorsport career. It is about learning at every step of the way - and the more you do from a young age, the better you become.
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REECE COHEN QUICK LAP
REECE
Name: Reece Cohen Age: 16 years old City: Sydney Occupation: High school student Home Kart Club: North Shore Kart Club First year of racing: 2012 Chassis: JC Kart Class(es): Rotax Light, X30 Sponsors: DMC Security, Massel and JC Karts
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Full Throttle: How did you get involved in the sport of karting? Reece Cohen: Funny story actually - my Dad did some work for someone and as payment he gave me a go kart - that’s where it really started and became something for me and Dad to do together. FT: What is it that you like most about the sport? RC: The competitiveness of it all, and how much of a puzzle it can be to get faster. FT: Aside from racing, what activities do you enjoy? RC: Apart from racing, I enjoy my swimming and rugby, just anything that I can do to be active and get out of the house. FT: Who do you admire or look up to - both in and out of motorsport - and why? RC: I look up to some of the best people in karting. Those which have a good relationship with everyone and know what they are talking about like my driver trainer and mentor Troy Hunt. FT: Do you have an ultimate aim from your motorsport career? RC: I think as every kid dreams I want to make it as a racing car driver meaning doing it as a job in a series like Supercars or GT racing. FT: Tell us about your most memorable race? RC: My most memorable race was my first race outside of Australia for the US Open finale in Las Vegas where it was a completely new experience and that I learnt so much for competing in it. Cohen during his most memorable race in Vegas
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MASSA’S MISSION
“Karting is, in my experience, the best category to compare F1 to,” CIK-FIA President, Felipe Massa
New President of the world Karting body, the CIK-FIA Felipe Massa - has outlined his vision for the sport. The 11-time Formula 1 Grand Prix race winner’s central tenet is to ensure each country is competing on a level playing field when it comes to equipment and the categories competed so that the sport is truly global. He also expressed a desire to simplify the sport. “My philosophy is first of all to try to make things a little bit more simple,” he explained. “I want to try to put all the ASNs (national motorsport associations - i.e. Karting Australia) together to try to simplify so many different things - because now we have so many different categories and so many different engines.” Using the example of his home country, Brazil, he paints a picture that is very much faced by Australian carters and the Australian karting industry and has implored the national federations to work closely together on the simplification process. “In a country like Brazil, for example, having the same engines and the same categories as we have in other parts of the world, to prepare the drivers when they come to Europe so they are driving the same engine, and the same material that they are using in different countries. “I want to give this message to all the ASNs that we need to be together and be very close and make things easier than it is.” Drawing on his own experiences, Massa feels as though there are too many elements to the sport and it is confusing. “In my view it was always a little bit difficult to understand why you have so many different things in karting. “Karting is, in my experience, the best category to compare F1 to,” he said. “When you drive this, it is the most similar in terms of the feeling of the driver, of sensation, of reaction, of speed, of G-force, of braking to F1.”
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The game changer of Max Verstappen - who was an exceptional Karter from very young days - to streamline his move into Formula 1 as a 17 year-old was another point addressed by Massa who warned that moving too quickly is not necessarily the best course of action. “We see so many drivers now where the mentality is they need to go as quick as they can to open wheels, which is wrong.You need to go when you are ready. “We see so many drivers of 14 years old, 15 years old already thinking of single-seaters. “We need to also show to the drivers, even to the fathers, that you have the right time to do it (make the move). “We saw Max Verstappen change a little bit the mentality of so many fathers after starting F1 at 17 years old. “But I think you need to move at the right time and you need to prepare yourself in the right time. “When you move the category then, you are going to be a lot more prepared to win straight away - which is actually what will give you the possibility to get as quick as possible to F1.” As part of the conference, which was a general FIA Sport Conference - conducted in the Philippines - Massa also took the opportunity during one of the forums he participated to address costs. “The time I spent most in my career was finding sponsors - it was the thing I was speaking about most every day, because I didn’t have the money to race. All I spoke about every day was finding sponsors to race - with the mentality that my dream was to arrive in Formula 1. “Definitely, finding the budget to race is quite difficult and quite expensive…But I think your talent is more important than anything. I think it is not only now that is difficult, it’s been like that for a long time. It was always difficult though - and it is in many sports - to achieve the best.”
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Champagne flowing on the KZ2 podium
DON’T DISCOUNT THE DOUBLE A u s t rali an KZ2 C ham p i on, J os hua Fife has rocket ed back int o calculat ions fo r t h i s ye ar’s Cham p i onshi p w i th a d ominant win at Newcast le t o back up his v i c t o ry i n A l bur y af ter m i ssi ng the first round of t he Championship. The battle lines in the premier competition have been drawn just after the halfway point of the Series, with 32 points separating round one winner, Aaron Cameron and Fife in the fight for the John Pizarro Trophy. After Fife’s return from Europe saw a cleansweep of the 75 points on offer at round two, the weekend at Newcastle looked going the same way as Albury after Fife took both heat races Saturday, then Cameron fired back strong - his JC Kart annexing both Sunday heats. In the SP Tools Final though, the class of racing a full season in Europe shone through as Fife’s Tom Williamson Motorsport Energy Corse entry pulled well clear of the field. He got home for his second successive round victory over Cameron - who looked stronger at Newcastle and Jason Faint - who made a welcome return to the SP Tools Australian Kart Championship podium. It was also the first podium for French-built SodiKart in many a year in the Australian Kart Championship. The Final featured a scary moment for Ricciardo Kart pilot, Troy Loeskow when he had a stuck throttle at the end of the main straightaway. He speared off the track and
over the ripple strip before coming to rest in the turn one sandtrap - fortunate to not collect Troy Woolston at very high speed. Former Australian Champion, Chris Hays had an up and down weekend, including a rollover in heat one, which he described as being the biggest crash of his career. PCR’s Rhys Smith got his second win of the season after a perfect weekend. This saw him assume a solid lead in KA4. Matthew Waters made a welcome return to the top step of the podium in KA3 Senior taking the win by 1.8 seconds. His Kosmic got to the front off the start and he had no major competition once getting into his rhythm. Boost Mobile Kosmic driver, Oscar Priest secured another AKC podium finish finishing second, while James Sera earned a hard fought third placing. Sera’s third place had additional meaning for the Victorian veteran with category rival and Championship leader, Matt McLean having a coming together which dropped him to a finishing position of 27th. It means the Championship has tightened up heading to the penultimate round in Emerald in July.
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LIGHTNING STRIKES TWICE Scott Sorensen and Pierce Lehane re-wrote the history books in Newcastle by both winning more SP Tools Australian Kart Championship Rounds than any other driver, edging past Neil McFadyen and Bart Price at the top of the all-time winner’s list. Lehane moved to X30 for the Newcastle round after starting the season as CRG’s spearhead in KZ2. After slotting into second off the start, he took the lead with a storming pass down the back straightaway and ended up winning by 2.4 seconds. There were emotional scenes on the podium as Lehane’s new record was celebrated with Brendan Nelson veteran James Sera in second and multiple-time Australian Champion, Jason Burns finishing third in his return to Australian competition. Burns produced a master class coming from the rear of the field. Sorensen’s aim was to arrest a round win and Championship lead after round three and he showed
Championship quality single-mindedness in joining Lehane at the top of the all time winners list. Early Championship leader, Josh Denton kept himself in contention by finishing second over Lachie Dalton in a hard fought finish.
NEW WINNERS EXCITE! Four new names found their way onto the record books of the SP Tools Australian Kart Championship at Newcastle, with Peter Bouzinelos (Cadet 9), Jimmy Piszcyk (Cadet 12), Cody Brewczynski (TaG 125) and Jaiden Pope (KA2) all taking maiden round wins. It was a double celebration for Piszcyk and his EVO Kart team - his win being the first for EVO Kart since making its entry to Australian competition last year. Sera Driver Development’s Bouzinelos produced one of the closest finishes of the weekend, winning by just 0.7s over a hard charging Jenson Burns with Kart Republic’s Lewis Francis.
COMPKART-mounted Brewczynski’s win came after he mowed down Championship leader, Brendan Nelson to take the lead and subsequently the win. Nelson’s frustration was compounded when Jace Matthews came from deep in the pack to steal second placing. Pope’s drive from the front row in KA2 was brilliant. He took the lead from the start and pulled away - opening a margin on the field. Eventually, he crossed the line 1.2s in front of James Wharton further down in the top 10. The win brought Pope to third in a very tight chase for the Championship.
Rhys Smith
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CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
KZ2 1. Aaron CAMERON 2. Joshua FIFE 3. Troy LOESKOW 4. Dylan DRYSDALE 5. Pierce LEHANE 6. Christopher HAYS 7. Jason FAINT 8. Mitchell MACKAY 9. Troy WOOLSTON 10. Henry JOHNSTONE
174 142 116 95 79 74 67 61 57 50
KA1 1. Scott SORENSEN 2. Lachlan DALTON 3. Joshua DENTON 4. Broc FEENEY 5. Mathew STENNER 6. Taylah AGIUS 7. Tyler HOWARD 8. Kyle HENRY-SMITH 9. Rianna O’MEARA-HUNT 10. Luke FLYNN
168 154 139 130 88 85 80 51 50 42
KA2 1. Kai ALLEN 2. Jai BROWN 3. Jaiden POPE 4. James WHARTON 5. Taylor HAZARD 6. Valentino ASTUTI 7. Jay HANSON 8. Callum BISHOP 9. Blake PURDIE 10. Jonathon MARCUSSON
125 115 113 91 89 87 78 75 59 55
X30 1. Cody GILLIS 2. Harrison HOEY 3. Cameron LONGMORE 4. Bradley JENNER 5. Adam LINDSTROM 6. Leigh NICOLAOU 7. Justin FRANCIS 8. Pierce LEHANE 9. Paul PITTAM 10. Jace MATTHEWS
160 124 119 96 75 74 70 60 53 52
TAG 125 1. Brendan NELSON 2. Cody BREWCZYNSKI 3. Kody GARLAND 4. Jordan NICOLAOU 5. Toby WEBB 6. Alastair LEE 7. Blake WORBOYS 8. Paul RODGERS 9. Elly MORROW 10. Joshua DAVEY
172 145 123 84 77 60 54 51 49 46
KA3 SENIOR 1. Matthew MCLEAN 2. James SERA 3. Oscar PRIEST 4. Benito MONTALBANO 5. J. SOUSLIN-HARLOW 6. Matthew WATERS 7. Tommy HARRADINE 8. Kody GARLAND 9. Jack BELL 10. Dean O’BRIEN
155 134 119 105 94 69 69 68 61 56
KA4 JUNIOR 1. Rhys SMITH 2. Fletcher HARRIS 3. Hugh BARTER 4. Kai ALLEN 5. Nicholas SACCO 6. James WHARTON 7. Bailey COLLINS 8. Kurtis TENNANT 9. Jobe STEWART 10. Kent FIAS-AYON
163 137 126 124 102 94 67 60 56 46
CADET 12 1. Marcos FLACK 2. Jimmy PISZCYK 3. Harry ARNETT 4. Alex NINOVIC 5. Joe FAWCETT 6. Max DEGUARA 7. Jesse LACEY 8. Carter MOBBS 9. Damon WOODS 10. Cadel AMBROSE
163 159 129 11 110 106 99 81 77 66
CADET 9 1. Lewis FRANCIS 2. Peter BOUZINELOS 3. Max WALTON 4. Rock HAN 5. Jenson BURNS 6. Jake RUTKOWSKI 7. Jaxson BURNS 8. Rusty PONTING 9. Cooper STAPLETON 10. Lewis CORDATO
165 131 110 109 101 93 65 61 52 47
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KING KENNEDY
Queenslander first to book a place to World Finals Off to Samba - Ryan Kennedy books his ticket to Brazil
Ryan Kennedy is the first driver to secure a position on the Australian team to the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals after dominating the DD2 category at Ipswich’s Rotax Pro Tour. It will be the Queenslander’s fifth opportunity to race against the best in the world after this year, the Australian promoter, IKD, elected to split the two DD2 seats into two separate competitions, awarding the first seat at the halfway point of the season. Kennedy has been the class of the category since the start of the season and while he will be part of the Rotax Pro Tour at the remaining three rounds of the season, the pointscore resets and another driver will have the opportunity to don the green and gold in Brazil come November. Securing a clean sweep of pole and all heat races on home turf, Kennedy took his Formula K to victory lane in fine style. 14 year-old Jac Preston had his most promising run of the season to finish second. Moving to seniors at the start of the year, Preston has chased pace all season long and even to Saturday night at Ipswich almost everything was changed on the kart to overcome electrical issues they’d been experiencing. Jordie Lindstrom scored a hard fought third placing and a much welcomed return to the Pro Tour Podium. The Mini Max Final was one of the best races seen this season in the Rotax Pro Tour - coming right down until the very last lap. Series leader Costa Toparis and Queensland front-runner, Ethan Feather had been fighting it out all weekend. Toparis won all three of the Saturday heats before Feather struck back winning Sunday
morning’s Pre-Final. The duo were never more than 0.3 of a second apart throughout the 17 lap Final. Toparis was the challenger and left it to the second last lap to make his move getting past Feather. Feather then mustered every piece of experience he had at Ipswich to slip through the inside of the Goulburn-based second generation racer to take the lead at turn one on the final lap. It also got his Rotax Pro Tour season back on track, although he is in doubt for the next round of the Series after injuring his wrist in a race accident in the weeks after the Ipswich event. Kiwi Sebastian Manson finished in third placing scoring his first ever Rotax Pro Tour podium. Seeing racers from across the ditch take podiums was a story throughout much of the Ipswich event, showing the continued improvement of the New Zealand travellers to the Pro Tour. The most dominant was Ryan Wood in Junior Max. Last round, he was disqualified as a result of a technical
Micro Max Podium
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irregularity - however struck back in the best possible way. He worked his way to the lead and then went on to build an unassailable 2.9 second lead. The battle for the minors wasn’t as clear cut. Jackson Rooney made the podium with a second placed finish behind Wood - his best performance since this year becoming one of the many on the exodus from Auckland Airport for each Pro Tour round. Rooney was pressured the entire distance by Jaiden Pope. Despite throwing all but the kitchen sink at Rooney, Pope had to be content with third. By way of consolation, Pope left Ipswich as Series leader. Second round Rotax Light winner, Josh Hart doubled up in his Manuwatu Toyota-backed Praga Kart. He didn’t feature during heat races however staged a flurry forward in the Pre-Final to start on the front row. The Final looked set for a Pro Tour classic before 15 yearold Reece Cohen made a slight mistake opening the door for Hart. From there he pulled away leaving Cohen to fight out the minor placings with Harrison Hoey and Ben Jurczak ultimately that fight falling the way of Cohen over Hoey. Troy Woolston continued his stellar performances in DD2 Masters - his World Title defence well on track. In an almost carbon copy of last year, but with reversed positions, Z-Corse CompKart driver, Kris Walton charged from 14th on the grid after not finishing the Pre-Final to insert himself in the fight at the front. Walton passed Scott Howard mid-race and then focused on Woolston in front. The gap ebbed and flowed in the second half of the race, closing to 0.3 of a second, eventually, Woolston took the win by 0.8 of a second. Howard took a well deserved third. Chris Farkas made a successful return to Rotax Pro Tour competition by finishing Rotax Heavy undefeated. A heavy turn two shunt between Lane Moore and Sam van Leeuwestyn on the opening lap cost Moore any chance he had at mounting a challenge to Farkas. Farkas with an open race circuit pulled clear to an 11.046 second win from Christopher Board and Mitchell Wall. Jake Rutkowski won Micro Max by three seconds over Jaxson Burns and Peter Bouzinelos. The next round of the Rotax Pro Tour will take place in Sydney at Eastern Creek International Karting Raceway over the weekend of June 22-24.
DD2 Masters
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SERIES STANDINGS MicroMax 1. Jake RUTKOWSKI 2. Peter BOUZINELOS 3. Jaxson BURNS 4. Max WALTON 5. Bradley MAJMAN 6. Jenson BURNS 7. Jay URWIN 8. James ANAGNOSTIADIS 9. Blaxx CATON
8,570 8,263 7,759 6,991 6,259 6,180 2,041 2,012 1,801
Rotax 125 Light 1. Josh HART 2. Reece COHEN 3. Ben JURCZAK 4. Leigh NICOLAOU 5. Joshua ROGERS 6. Cameron LONGMORE 7. Cody BREWCZYNSKI 8. Brodie WHITMORE 9. Tyler HOWARD 10. Michael MCCULLOCH
7,379 6,783 6,548 6,121 5,248 5,096 4,883 4,854 4,254 4,250
DD2 1. Ryan KENNEDY 2. Nikolaj THOMAS 3. Samuel WADDELL 4. Jac PRESTON 5. Damian WARD 6. Luke WANLESS 7. Jorge PESCADOR 8. Taylah AGIUS 9. Jorden LINDSTROM 10. Ray-Yu WANG
8,797 7,243 6,455 6,449 5,548 4,326 2,879 2,329 2,191 2,082
MiniMax 1. Costa TOPARIS 2. Ethan FEATHER 3. Kristian JANEV 4. Aiva ANAGNOSTIADIS 5. Carter MOBBS 6. Jack CHILDS 7. Cody MAYNES-RUTTY 8. Sebastian RUIZ 9. Coby GOVONI 10. Sebastian MANSON Rotax 125 Heavy 1. Lane MOORE 2. Mitchell WALL 3. Christopher BOARD 4. Zac VAN LEEUWESTYN 5. Benjamin MCMELLAN 6. Kory JENNINGS 7. Lukas JANEV 8. Jared NEINERT 9. Chris FARKAS 10. Joseph PASQUALE
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8,605 6,566 6,108 5,867 5,697 5,648 5,628 4,996 4,882 4,033
Junior Max 1. Jaiden POPE 2. Luke PINK 3. William SEAL 4. Ryan WOOD 5. Jackson ROONEY 6. Jarrod HUGHES 7. James WHARTON 8. Taylor HAZARD 9. Hugh BARTER 10. Jonathon MARCUSSON
6,851 6,716 5,834 5,376 5,271 5,153 5,093 4,558 4,546 4,127
8,108 7,086 5,917 5,728 5,316 4,658 4,637 4,447 2,975 2,524
DD2 Masters 1. Troy WOOLSTON 2. Jason PRINGLE 3. Scott HOWARD 4. Kris WALTON 5. Toby POPE 6. Matthew WALL 7. Barb ANAGNOSTIADIS 8. Trevor WHITBY 9. Danny WRIGHT 10. Ben LILLIS
8,118 7,076 6,321 6,150 5,997 5,841 5,277 4,882 4,529 4,362
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MASTERS SHINE IN COFFS HARBOUR The Australian Kart Masters moved to a National Cup status
third place.
in 2018 and the ‘more experienced in life’ flocked to the Coast New South Wales town of Coffs Harbour in droves.
Queenslander Peter Virgulti was victorious in Open Performance, as was Greg Ryan in KA4 Senior Light and
With a 20% increase in entry numbers, the event was
Robert Reid in KA3 Light.
supported by drivers from various parts of the Country as drivers lined up to do battle for the Grey Plate in their
The TaG Restricted wins were shared between Michael
respective Class.
Schiller (Light), Nicholas Crawshay (Medium) and Dale McDonnell (Heavy).
In the TaG 125 Light Class, Aaron Rabjones made a welcome return to the circuit with a dominant victory while local
Queensland veteran Denis Butler made the trip South
driver, and long-time supporter of the event, Troy Brown
a successful one with victory ahead of Crawshay and
was victorious in TaG 125 Heavy.
Canberra’s Bruce Otter in KA3 Medium.
A pair of Tasmanians bookended the KA4 Heavy podium
After another successful event, the Coffs Harbour Club is
with AWC Motorsport Academy Team Manager Johnathan
already planning on a bigger and better event in 2019.
Males taking the win as team boss Andrew Walter claimed
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2018 AUSTRALIAN KART MASTERS RESULTS: TOP THREE KA3 Light 1. Robert Reid 2. Mark Appleby 3. Andrew Walker KA3 Medium 1. Denis Butler 2. Nicholas Crawshay 3. Bruce Otter KA4 Senior Light 1. Greg Ryan 2. Amanda Branson KA4 Heavy 1. Johnathan Males 2. Grant Inwood 3. Andrew Walter TaG Restricted Light 1. Michael Schiller 2. Stephen Donley 3. Brett Llewellyn TaG Restricted Medium 1. Nicholas Crawshay 2. Christopher Nobbs 3. Bruce Otter TaG Restricted Heavy 1. Dale McDonnell 2. Shane Tate 3. Peter Sloan TaG 125 Light 1. Aaron Rabjones 2. Tony Bregonje 3. Craig Fuller TaG 125 Heavy 1. Troy Brown 2. Michael Osmond 3. Andrew Morgan Open Performance 1. Peter Virgulti 2. Gordon Wells 3. Bill Miller
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Todd Road GKCV - VIC
Australia Day Opener
DUBBO
LCRD - NSW
26 - 28 JAN ROUND 1
9 - 11 MAR
NSW State Championship ROUND 2
Ipswich
IKC - QLD
4-6 MAY
QLD State Championship ROUND 3
Eastern Creek NSKC - NSW
22 - 24 JUN ROUND 4
Albury/Wodonga AWKC - VIC
VIC State Championship
10 - 12 AUG ROUND 5
Tailem Bend (tbc)
14 - 16 Jason Richards Memorial SEPT ROUND 6 Dinner The Rotax Pro Tour is promoted by International Karting Distributors
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WHARTON SUPER IN SWEDEN
Australian junior, James Wharton has secured a double podium in the second round of the European Rotax Max Challenge at Kristianstad in Sweden, rocketing him into calculations for the European Junior Championship.
The Shamick Racing pilot is using 2018 as a ‘learning year’ in the premier Rotax Championship in Europe, however has moved himself into Series calculation with three rounds left to go. Wharton qualified 10th at the leading Swedish venue and after the two heats, where he finished sixth and fourth respectively, was fifth on points.
James Wharton and his team - including European-based Australian Ben George (centre rear) with Saturday winner, Mike Van Vugt
Going into the Sunday final, the youngster - who has been dynamic in the SP Tools Australian Kart Championship this year fancied himself for a race win. He will have to wait for that however after he finished the second final in third position. This left him third on points for the weekend.
Going into the first final, he rated his chances at potentially knocking on the door of a podium, however he didn’t expect that he would earn himself a front row start for Sunday’s final after finishing second behind Exprit driver Mike van Vugt.
Wharton is coupling Australian commitments in the Australian Kart Championship and Rotax Pro Tour with a full program in the European Rotax Series and also the European Championship in OK Junior. He is driving an FA Kart in Rotax competition and Parolin equipment in OKJ.
“This year was meant to be a learning year, but getting through to second into today’s final - it’s podium time,” smiled Wharton post the first final.
The next round of the Rotax European Challenge is August 3-5 at Bruck in Austria.
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SEAT POSITION
In this Get Started in Karting tip, we’re looking at your seat position. Seat position is one of the most vital things with kart setup. Moving your seat 5 or 10 millimetres forward or back can make a big, big difference with the way your kart handles.
they’ll give you a measurement that will help you get this in the right place.
It is really important to get the seat position in the right place.
I can’t emphasise enough that seat position can make a really big difference to the way that your kart handles, so if you find that your kart is unbalanced or you’re chasing a problem from front to rear continually, look at your seat position. Again, check with your manufacturer or local kart shop to check that you have your seat in the correct position.
To do this, get your tape measure, measure from the front of the kart to the front of the seat. If you check with your local kart shop or manufacturer,
The other measurement that you’ll need to do is from the top of the axle to the top of the seat.
For more Get Started in Karting tips from multiple -time Australian Champion Troy Hunt head to www.karting.net.au 56
! s e g a l l a r o f g n i Rac www.karting.net.au