11-30-08 Emmick Enterprise Closes It's Doors

For Many years throughout Karting there has been one name that has been recognized by the greatest drivers and those who have been influential in Karting and the successes. Emmick. Started by the late Gary Emmick years ago, Emmick Enterprise has been involved in jump starting many great racers of the motorsports world including Jeff Gordon, Joey Hand, Ryan Phinny, Jamie McMurray and Buddy Rice. Also getting their start in Karting, Emmick has help Karting Champions alike such as the Bartolero Brothers Erik and Brian, Brendan “mini” Phinny, Neil Alberico, The Gwin Brothers Cory, Gary and Jesse, Chris Scribner and Mason Britton.

Through years of Karting Competition Emmick has helped support and Promote the Kart Races of Northern California. Back when the racing was out at Sacramento Raceway, before Blue Max had the add-ons of the track, and competition was fierce at Dixon with over 200 karts for a club race. Ron Emmick the son of owners of Emmick Enterprise Linda and Gary, competed against the best drivers around the country including Scott Pruett and other current Stars in Motorsports. The battling days of Emmick however will come to an end.

The Winning dynasty built by the Emmicks will be closing doors December 1st. Due to a struggling economy and a falling count of Karters in the area and around the country, Linda Emmick has made the decision to close down Emmick Enterprises and sell the remaining business to son-in-law Chris Gwin and Emmick Cobra Karts. Linda is very optimistic in her future as she is looking forward to retirement. Emmick has been a big part of Norcal Kart racing and its growth. Linda helped start Prairie City with the design and funding of the facility. She worked closely with Jerry Ahrens to build the club. Linda also volunteered for the NCTA off and on for 14 years and served 7 years with President Allen Faria (also drove an Emmick) when the series marked its strongest point ever. Linda Emmick has been an ambassador to the sport of karting especially in Region 11.

11-25-08 Emmick Enterprise Update

EMMICK ENTERPRISE

At this time we would like to inform our customers as to the rumors that we are closing up our operations. These rumors are not true. In fact we are starting a new program under the name of Emmick Cobra Racing. Also we were informed that Linda Emmick will be retiring after 40+ years in the karting business as of Dec.1, 2008. At this time because of the economic conditions today we are relocating to 2340 Gold River Drive suite E. Rancho Cordova, CA. We are hoping to keep the same phone number; but just in case, we have a back up phone number which is 916-852-8110. We will be in our new location the first week of December 2008.

Chris Gwin will be taking over as owner while continuing to be in charge of operations and chassis design. Chris originally started with Emmick in 1977 as a welder for founder Gary Emmick. Don Rodriguez will be in charge of parts and sales. Don has worked with Emmick off and on since 1968 and also raced for Gary Emmick. Mark Filkill, with his knowledge of race engines from AA/FD dragsters to top fuel drag boats, will be in motor development.

We will be doing engine repairs from complete overhauls to Dyno Tunning to Flow Bench testing on Comer engines, HPV’s, Yamaha’s, Parilla’s, 4-cycles, and Shifter engines. We will also continue building chassis’s as we already have new designs being planned. We will be providing service to all brands of Karts from repairs to alignments. Those of you who have Emmick chassis’s will still be able to get service with Emmick Cobra Racing. We are enthusiastic about the change to Emmick Cobra Racing as we hope to reinvent ourselves once again as a great Kart Manufacturer. Our main goals under this new program will be:

CUSTOMER SERVICE - COMPETITIVE PRICING - TRACK SUPPORT

See you at the track!

Chris - Don - Mark

EMMICK COBRA RACING

(916)383-2288

11-24-08 Reno Drivers 2008 SKUSA SuperNationals Recap

NNKC was represented very well last weekend by a handful of drivers that took the trip south to Vegas. Tag Senior was entered by Zach Derrico and Mike Botelho Jr. Dave Harwin and myself (Glenn McKinnon) in Tag Masters and Cody Kay in HPV-2.

They were claiming this was this biggest kart race ever in North America and I won't argue, 450 karts. I'm not talking about 100 drivers racing different classes for 4 days. There were very few people racing multiple classes. This made for some long days and some wildly changing track conditions. Not only were you racing anytime between 7:30 AM and 9:00 PM, but every time you went back on the track there had been another 450 karts on the track since the last time you were there. That is like a day of club race rubber put down every couple hours for 4 straight days. Now throw in very large, very heavy automotive type barriers that created the track. Touching them with a rear tire would instantly suck in the front of the kart and cause a spin. On most of the turn apex's, they used the kart type barriers so you had a chance to see over them. The problem there is if you clip them, you change the track, in one turn you could close down the whole racing line with the right impact. The track was about the same length as Reno but much faster and wider than ours. The shorter back straight was slightly longer than Desert Park Raceway and the infield straight was about 250 feet longer with a 180 degree hairpin at the end, great for passing under braking. Lap times were about 5 seconds quicker that Reno.

They did a pretty good job sticking with their time schedule, until the normal Red Flags knocked them off a little. We might look at copying some of there timing for our Nationals. Depending on your class, you could be on the track at any time. One day, my class started at 8:30 AM, another day I wasn't on the track until 11:00 AM.

The pits were full of team trailers and foreign accents. Anytime you think you spend a lot of $$$ on this sport, go to a race like this. Some of these teams spend more money on catering than we did on motors. I'm not convinced a tent on the side of a semi trailer makes any better shade than our easy-ups but to each there own. The only thing better than beating someone is beating someone who spent 10 times more money than you did.

Cody Kay had the best results from NNKC with a podium finish in HPV-2. They take the top 5 drivers and karts straight from the track to the podium for awards and interviews. Then to post race tech and tear down. Cody came off the track with and amazing 5th place finish and got interviewed by the announcer. One of the drivers ahead of him got DQ'd in tech, moving Cody up to 4th. They brought everyone back to the podium later to retake the picture. Great drive in a very tough field.

Dave Harwin was consistently in the top group of TaG Masters all weekend. Qualifying 6th he started all 3 heats in the 3rd row and moved up the 2nd row by the start of the main. After a Red Flag took out a kart ahead of him, he restarted the main event of the SuperNationals on the front row of a 41 kart field! The problem with TaG racing is sometimes you get beat because you have the wrong motor type for that track. Dave just missed a podium finish in 6th place in the main but was in the top leopard finisher.

Zach Dericco and Mike Botelho Jr. were in the largest field of the race. 99 Tag Senior karts entered the race. With only the top 40 entering the main event, the heat races quickly became filled with desperate drivers trying anything to move up. Red Flag pile ups became normal as each heat race had 40 karts. Unlike a permanent course were a crash usually makes its way off onto the dirt and grass, the spins here quickly go from 2 to 4 to 8 to 16 karts. There's just nowhere to go and no time to stop. Mike fought electrical problems all weekend and never quite got into a grove, and trust me, in this class you had no time to experiment, you had to go fast now. Zach qualified well and raced consistently through the heats. He made the a main and started in 27th spot. Just making the main in a race like this is quite an accomplishment. These are some of the best drivers in the country and some professional names as well.(some guy named Jamie McMurry (NASCAR) did not make the main) Zach was moving up the field in the main when a rookie in front of him lost power and Zach had nowhere to go but into a barrier ending his day. ~~Oh yea, the new guy that he was trying not hit, some foreigner named Dan Weldon (IRL) who won some east coast race called the Indy 500!

My weekend started OK but faded quickly when I was DQ'd in qualifying for a broken exhaust header. I started 41st for all 3 heat races. In the first heat I was passing karts as fast as I could but my pack got blue flagged off the track as the leaders were coming in behind us. A humbling experience that I did not want to let happen again. My second heat I passed 25 karts in a 15 lap race and did not get the Blue. I started the main 20th and worked up to 9th by the finish. I was on the bumper of 8th and could see 7th but 30 laps wasn't enough. I've never been happier with a top 10.

I'd like to thank all the help from NNKC that made the trip down.

Brant Family

Botelho Family

Wamre Family

Derrico Family

DeMent Family

Kay Family

And anyone else I was too busy to see.

NNKC should be proud of the quality of drivers and crew that comes from our little track in the middle of the desert. I truly believe that if you can drive and tune for our track, you have the basics to race anywhere in the country. If you haven't begun to race other tracks, I strongly suggest it's time to start getting out there and mixing it up at Regional races or for some to National events, but it is a blast.

2009 Jim Russell Northern California Rotax Challenge race schedule

The Jim Russell Northern California Rotax Challenge is pleased to announce the race schedule for the 2009 season. The ten race season will be seven races at Infineon Raceway and three races at the Kinsmen Kart Club track in Dixon. The season opener is March 1^st at Dixon in conjunction with the Kinsman Kart Club. Rotax racers can look forward to an exciting night race which will take place in September, over Labor Day weekend also at the Kinsmen Kart Club in Dixon.

Date Track

1. Sunday, March 1^st Dixon

2. Saturday, April 4^th Infineon

3. Saturday, May 2^nd Infineon

4. Saturday, June 6^th Infineon

5. Saturday, July 18^th Infineon

6. Saturday, August 29^th Infineon

7. Sept 5^thor 6^th Dixon **Night Race**

8. Saturday, Sept 26^th Infineon

9. Sunday, October 11^th Dixon

10. Saturday, October 24^th Infineon

Sunday, November 8^th Dixon Rain date (if needed)

“We are very excited to announce the race schedule for the 2009 Jim Russell Northern California Rotax Challenge,” said Adrian Szwarcburg, series organizer, “Once again we have a full ten race series with races at Infineon and Kinsmen Kart Club in Dixon. I am especially excited to be able to announce our first Rotax night race in Dixon, over Labor Day weekend which will be run in conjunction with Kinsman Kart Club. This will be an exciting event.”

This schedule allows for series drivers to attend the Rotax Grand Nationals in Norman, Oklahoma without conflicting with the local series.

2009 also sees the addition of Mini Max and Micro Max junior classes to the race series.

For up-to-date news and announcements about the Jim Russell Northern California Rotax Challenge visit www.norcalrotax.com

11-17-08 Dan Wheldon to Make First SuperNationals Start with Kartel Motorsports

Kartel Motorsports announced today that it will compete in this year’s SKUSA SuperNationals in Las Vegas November 20-23 at the Rio Hotel and Casino. The team will feature the most competitive driver lineup in the Northern California company’s history. Ten Kartel Top Kart chassis will compete in S3 and S5 125, TaG Pro, TaG Jr., and Jr. HPV. The event marks the culmination of Kartel’s breakthrough 2008 season that included seven championships among five drivers.

The Kartel Motorsports team will include 2008 JICA National Champion and NorCal IKF HPV 2 and HPV 4 Champ Brendan Phinny as well as the 2008 Stars of Karting Main Event Finale winner Neil Alberico, 2008 Stars of Karting West Champion Chris Scribner, 2008 IKF NorCal TaG Jr. Champ Kelsey Nilsson as well as race winners Cody Kay, Tyler Thomas, Devin Mauk and Kyle Wiegand. In addition, Panther Racing driver Dan Wheldon, the 2005 Indianapolis 500 winner and IndyCar Series Champion, has joined Kartel Motorsports to compete in the TaG Pro class and will be flying the National Guard colors on his kart.

“Everyone at Kartel is excited to bring such a strong team to the 2008 SKUSA SuperNationals” said Kartel Motorsports co-founder Joey Hand. “This is the premier event in the United States and we feel we have brought a premier lineup of drivers. With the combination of their talent and our rigorous testing program, we feel we will compete for the win in every class.”

The addition of IndyCar Series star Dan Wheldon brings star power to the lineup as well. “Obviously having Dan and National Guard on the Kartel Motorsports team is a big deal” Hand continued. “He’s won the Indy 500 and the IndyCar Championship and we’re going to do our best, as we do with all our drivers, to give him the most competitive package we can.”

“I told everybody at the National Guard and Panther Racing that anytime they give me the opportunity to race a go-kart, I’m going to do it,” Wheldon said. “And obviously I’m extremely excited to represent them and join Kartel Motorsports for the SKUSA SuperNationals. We’ve got a very competitive team and we’re going to do our best to help earn a victory this weekend. I’m excited to be a part of it.”

The National Guard will not only be the main livery on Dan Wheldon’s kart, but also the title sponsor of the SuperNationals. SFC. John Metzler Army National Guard Bureau NGB-ASM was quoted, “I am very proud to have Joey Hand and Kartel Motorsports support Dan Wheldon at the SuperNationals this year. Knowing that Joey and his team are going to field the Karts, gives the National Guard and Dan a good chance to win.

While Brendan Phinny will be the sole S3 125 competitor, Neil Alberico, Chris Scribner, Kyle Wiegand, and Dan Wheldon will all compete for TaG Pro honors. Kelsey Nilsson, Cody Kay, and Tyler Thomas will compete in both the TaG Jr. class as well as the Jr. HPV class and Devin Mauk will run the S5 class.

In 2007 Kartel Motorsports led a smaller contingent to the SuperNats with driver Brendan Phinny taking S5 honors while drivers Neil Alberico and Chris Scribner put in strong runs in the TaG Pro class.

11-8-08 Northern California Rotax Challenge adds MicroMax and MiniMax junior classes for the 2009 race season.

Following a very successful 2008 season with more than a 20% increase in Rotax members, the Northern California Rotax Challenge will add both MicroMax and MiniMax classes in 2009. The series will now run the full line up Rotax classes having run Junior, Senior, Masters and DD2 classes in 2008.

The decision to add MicroMax and MiniMax classes was made after listening to parents in these age groups who have been frustrated with complicated engine rules, the need to spend ever increasing amounts of money on engine maintenance/blueprinting and having to purchase complete new engine packages as their kids progress through the age classes in karting.

Rotax addresses all of these issues.

“The addition of these junior Rotax classes will change the karting landscape in Northern California. For the first time, parents can purchase a reliable motor package and use the same engine from the time their child turns 8 years old right up into the adulthood.” said Adrian Szwarcburg, Series Administrator and owner of Marin Karting. “We attended the 2008 Rotax Nationals to observe Mini and Micro Max classes first hand. We wanted to be sure that the addition of these classes was safe and the right thing to do for the junior racers and their parents. We discussed this with Jim Russell Racing and we both agree that we want to provide junior classes with very clear path into senior classes. This will appeal to racers and parents of racers alike. Spec racing classes are the way to go for the future of the sport.”

The Jim Russell Racing Drivers School cadet karting program is recommended as the place for young drivers to try karting for the first time. Jim Russell offers cadet karting schools and cadet arrive-and-drive racing. When a cadet driver has had some experience, the MicroMax and MiniMax Rotax classes will be the next step forward.

As in all Rotax classes, engines are sealed ensuring a level playing field where driver ability matters most.

For more information go to the official Northern California Rotax Challenge site: www.norcalrotax.com.

11-3-08 Prairie City Finale Action

I would like to start this report by saying thank you to the Lovotti's for a great race season and giving up their weekends and real life for us racers and families. Thank You for giving us something to do with all our spare time and money. Also, heart felt thoughts and prayers to families who are suffering with loved ones in the hospitals right now. I don?t' want to name anyone in this report without their permission, to the racer who has a very ill wife in the hospital.....we are praying for your family and our hearts go out to you during this painful and scary time of your life. To the Family who is faced with saying goodbye to a terminally sick loved one; we love and hold your family very dearly to our hearts your pain is our pain we love you.... God Speed to both of these families.

Halloween week had a fast approached to Prairie City raceway park where you felt the spooky vibes in the air, tricks and lots of treats for all.

Challenger- Hpv1 class:
fast time all day was Jay Teel with a 42.655, Teel picked up his first win against Cody "Fireman" Stillwell, Michaela La Spina had a tough day with a kart that didn't want to start on the heat but came back on the Main for a 3rd place finish

Hpv1- Bordogna’s Cole Davis working on his championship with only a 1 point lead against Kartel?s Rookie Jarred Campbell who made quite the showing for his first year in karting. Davis went out and picked up the pole position with a time of 39.779. Good thing he took off on the start and didn't look back because Nitro Nick Sommers who just moved up to Hpv1 class loved all that speed under his feet and charged towards the front. Sommers and Campbell had a great fight going on with The "Hitman" getting the first two laps and Nitro grabbing 3rd and chasing after Cole with fast times of 39.661. Taylor Jacobs had a great seat watching and chasing these drivers. Davis again got a great start and stayed out of trouble in the Final with Nitro again pulling out the fastest laps of the day but battles with Campbell left them both grinning and unable to catch Cole, although Nitro was glued to Davis's back bumper for the last laps as Nick raced clean as always and Davis picked up his well deserved win and championship. Davis 1st, Sommers 2nd, Campbell 3rd.

Hpv2-
Kartel’s Shelby Sander picked up fast time of 37.970, Bordogna?s Troy Buckman had faster times in the heat of 37.660 but Sander kept a great racing line and Buckman wasn't able to get around her. Sander again took off on the start of the Final leaving Buckman with faster times and having to follow with Anderson hanging out in 3rd having a nice view of them fighting for a win. Buckman was wise to hang out in 2nd place and not mess with his Championship goals.

Hpv3-
Jamie Sander was here to race, picking up fast time of 38.597. In the heat, Sander dropped back to 3rd on the start of the race leaving top spot open to Melissa Cole, Kerkhoff was licking his lips wanting a win for the season and was ready to jump into the mix. In the main, Cole dropped to 4th until lap 9 and moved back in front of Kyle Mau, ( I didn't see what caused that drop) Sander took first and didn't dare look behind her with Kerkhoff giving chase and wanting that top spot.

Hpv4jr- Ryan Rasberry was fast time with a 37.726, He took off on the start and didn't have to look back as he could feel Bordogna’s Troy Buckman breathing down his neck looking for the top spot running a 37.660 and Kartel’s Shelby Sanders glued to the boys. In the main, Flyin Ryan took off again for looking for back to back wins with Buckman and Sanders again giving chase. Zach Maclean could only watch and wait to see if he could grab a piece of the action as the battle heated up lap after lap. Troy Buckman again looked at the bigger picture of his Championship jacket and didn't push the issue with Rasberry and settled in for a 2nd place finish.

KK

These pint sized drivers are fierce on the track but all smiles and grins with each other off the track. Hunter Kelly was on the hunt for another win setting fast time but Blake Milton gave him a run for his money after turning faster times of 49.724 Wyatt Couch pulled a great pass against Aj Okazaki on the 3th lap grabbing a 3rd place finish for his big sister who smiled brightly at her brother on the fence along with Dad and mom. Also, New comer Jason D’arcy experienced his first race and quite well keeping up with the pack.

Now getting into these classes.......some had tight point races ( master tag only 10 points apart) to tight 2-5th place points battles that left people glued to the fences and holding cameras waiting for action.

80 Ltd. masters
Emmick's Tony Rodriquez set fast time of 38.234, From the start of the heat to the finish of the main these guys were driving fast and driving hard. Rodriquez must have been working on starts because when he let his clutch go smoke came from his tires as he took off like a rocket trying to get away from the points leader Rick Gutzke who was looking for one last win to cap off his season. Josh Cole popped in taking a look at the front of the pack for a couple of laps until Tim Bolen came to the party and took over 3rd place. Great race guys

80 Ltd:

Chris Yettito set fast time with a 38.651, these guys are always doing battle on the track and there is never a dull moment. They had Tim Mangini Racing and having fun since his brother Tony had the championship locked up prior to the final race. Yettito was looking for a win and Fornanek, Corbett and Wozniak wanting to stop them. In the main spots were traded and a visit to the barriers as well as a Dq coming out so the finish was hard to figure out until the officials were done with the racers. the final was: Yettito 1st, Mangini 2nd, Mike Corbett 3rd. exciting race for everyone to watch.

Super Sportsman:

Emmick's Curt Lopez sat out for the race watching and perhaps licking his lips watching and wishing maybe he was out there mixing it up one more time before old man winter sets in. The battle was going to be between Brian Gallagher and Andrew Kemp sitting only 10 points apart coming into the race. Kemp set fast time of 40.286 and was looking for some points. In the heat that battle heated up to a high simmer giving way to the main. a blast from the past Nate Lavery with late night motor help from Greg Bell, Leading Edge and Gallagher's spare chassis came to the party to hang with the top players and have a little fun. Kemp and Gallagher had a fierce battle going on drawing Kemp a number board and a black flag. On lap 7 Kemp exited his dreams of a 2nd place in the points championship as the Mechanical black flag flew for a Broken exhaust. Gallagher didn't feel Kemp behind him any longer and cruised to a second place finish in the points. Followed by Nickless who had a great run going all day and Lavery.

Tag. Masters:

Emmick's Crazy Ray Zarrick was only a few points ahead of California Kartworld's Mike Hays and expected another fierce fight out of Hays for the Championship. People lined the fence with cameras watching and waiting for the two tag classes to appear as they knew the battles and points were close in the next 2 classes. Zarrick set the fast time with a 37.436, He took off for the lead in the heat and the main with the rest of the field forced to follow and try to make a move on Ray Ray. At one point I had to laugh in the Main, the Birel fan club were giving Crazy Ray signs that Hays was closing in on him when he had a nice lead......Ray gave them a wave and a smile and cruised on by.

Tag Senior:

Jon Ban set fast time of 36.809. In the Heat a few parade laps to many to get the green as Andrew Kemp and Ban were 1 and 2 on the front row. Ban followed behind Kemp most of the race until the white flag lap. In the main, Kevin Brown was only a few points ahead of Jamie Sander for 2nd in championship points but lost a motor during the heat run leaving him on the sidelines to watch. The main had the fence lined, Cameras all ready for the Battle. Ban didn't have the start advantage since Phillips and Mau slide in unprotected in turn one. Ban had to struggle to get to past a few drivers before he sets his eyes on Kemp as Kemp had the lead for most of the race. Ban wasn't going to let Kemp get away with this one and completed 1 and 2 again.

I applauded everyone out there for using their heads today and racing some pretty tight points battles without anyone getting hurt.

Have a great off week to those who aren't racing next weekend

Story by: Bev Ban
pictures by bev ban

11-2-08 Jim Russell Sunday Series Finale

The seven race Jim Russell Sunday Series finished 2008 on a strong note with the second largest turnout of the year. 50 drivers showed up on a great day of weather to race and determine 3 class championships that were still in doubt. This race had a couple of special features. All 80 shifters were invited to join the 80 Grand Masters drivers on the track and for the second race in a row, a TaG Masters/TaG Grand Masters race group was run with the other Sunday Series classes.

Junior - Gazelle and HPV1

4 Gazelles and 2 HPV1 drivers lined up for this last race. With Maxx Marian locking up the championship last month, he chose to run in the Comer race. In Qualify, the two HPV1 karts were on the front row with Austin Thomas leading Austin Keller followed by the Gazelles of Benjamin Barudoni and Noah Hermansen. In the Pre-Main, Thomas took the lead from the split class start and lead for the initial part of the race. Keller then got by and led to the checkered flag. In the Gazelle action, Barudoni pulled away from Noah to take the win. In the Main, Keller took the initial lead but Thomas made the pass early on and held it to take the HPV1 win by 3 tenths of a second. In Gazelle, Hermansen made some changes that allowed him to stay close to Barudoni and eventual getting by Ben. Was this going to be Noah’s first class win? Barudoni stayed close and retook the lead and went on to take the class win by 7 tenths of a second followed by Hermansen and KT and Alysa Buckler who finished their first ever kart race. In the championship, Maxx Marian takes 1^st, Barudoni 2^nd, Hermansen 3^rd and Robbie Rodrigues 4^th.

Junior 1 Comer

The largest Comer class of the year showed up for Race #7 with the class championship still in doubt. In Qualify, points leader Doug Braddock Jr. took pole followed by Gazelle Champ Maxx Marian and #2 in Comer points Michael Avansino. In the Pre-Main, Braddock took the lead at the green and held for a slim lead hounded by Marian the whole way. Avansino was 2 seconds back with Garrett Dixon taking the 4^th place. In the Main, all Braddock needs to do is finish in the top 5 to win the class championship, but he wanted to also end 2008 on the top of the podium. At the green, Braddock took and early lead and started to pull away. Avansino got by Marian coming out of turn 1 at the green and stayed close. By mid race, Avansino got right up to Braddock’s bumper and looked like he wanted to take the win. But Michael put a wheel off a couple of times late in the race and Braddock went on to take a 2 second win followed by Avansino, Marian, Dixon and Austin Makeev. In the championship, Braddock takes the crown, Avansino 2^nd, Trevor Mathis 3^rd and Austin Makeev in 4^th.

Junior HPV2

The HPV2 class has been one of the most exciting classes in 2008 with an average of 10 drivers per race. 11 drivers took the green with Joseph Keaton taking pole over Conner Ford and points leader Kathryn Cornell. In the Pre-Main, Keaton took the early lead and was never headed. Ford stayed close and finished about 2 seconds back with Cornell 3^rd, Dain Davirro 4^th and Bobby Tifft in 5^th. Going into the Main, Tifft is the only driver who could beat Cornell for the class crown, but he will need a win to pull it off. But then disaster struck Tifft’s kart when he threw a chain on the warm up lap. Cornell is the champ. But there is still a race to finish. At the green, Keaton, Ford and Davirro broke away from the pack and had their own battle for the lead early on in the race. Davirro then put a wheel off and fell back a bit at mid race. Keaton and Ford continued to battle but Joseph eventually pulling away to take a 4 second win. Ford took his 4^th second place in a row followed by Davirro, Cornell and a strong finish by Daniel Langon to take 5^th. In the championship, Cornell takes the class crown without taking any wins but with no finish below 5t^hall year. Dain Davirro moves up to take 2^nd, Keaton 3^rd with 4 wins in 4 races, Bobby Tifft 4^th and Conner Ford 5^th place with 4 second place finishes in 4 races.

80 Grand Masters – Plus Senior 80 and 80 Masters

For the last race of the year, the invite went out to allow any 80 karts to run. Thus three Senior 80 and two 80 Masters showed up to run with the eight 80 Grand Masters drivers. This race was a view of what to expect in 2009 when the Jim Russell Series will offer all three 80 classes as part of their program. In the 80 Grand Masters race, Michael John comes into the race with a slim 5 point lead over Tom Nelson. In Qualify, Ron Tamba (Masters) took the pole followed by Steve Peterson (GM), Eddie Veyl (Senior), Marc Stanley (GM) and Tom Nelson (GM) in 5^th. Michael John qualified in 7^th. In the Pre-Main, Tamba took the win but was pressured the whole way by Veyl. Mark Stanley was 3^rd, Steve Peterson 4^th and Nelson 5^th. Nelson wanted to battle Peterson, but he also knew that as long as he was in front on Michael John he can win the championship. John’s title hopes took a hit when he spun off during the race and had to settle for an 11^th overall, 7^th in class. In the Main, Tamba set the pace out front, but Marc Stanley and Eddie Veyl hounded Ron all the way and that is how they finished with Tamba the Masters winner, Stanley the Grand Masters winner and Veyl the Senior 80 winner. But the class crown race was still be contested just behind. Again, Nelson had to chase Peterson and chose to stay close but not take any chances. Michael John was up a couple spots from his 11^th starting spot, but in the end he had to settle for a 9^th overall and 3 places in back of Nelson. In the Grand Masters championship, Tom Nelson takes the crown, Michael John 2^nd and Steve Peterson 3^rd and Ahmiel Freed 4^th.

TaG Masters and TaG Grand Masters

6 Grand Masters and 5 Masters drivers showed up to have some fun in this last race of the year. In Qualify, pole went to Larry Fraser (Masters) followed by Last month’s winner Mat Kattanek (GM), Randy Wetmore (Masters), Ray Wetmore (GM) and new comer Cameron Evans (GM). In the Pre-Main, Randy Wetmore used his experience to get into turn 1 first off the standing start and was able to control the race from the front, but just barely. Kattanek took 2^nd just 3 tenths of a second back. Joe Ramsauer (Masters) took 3^rd overall followed by Evans in 4^th and Dave Moody in 5^th. Fraser and Ray Wetmore had mechanical DNFs and will have to start the Main from the rear of the grid. In the Main, Randy Wetmore took the initial lead but Kattanek made the pass to take over the lead. From the back of the grid, Fraser and Ray Wetmore come through the field and by mid race they were challenging for the top 5 in the race. Ray Wetmore and Joe Ramsauer first went at it until they came together and Joe was off on the outside of turn 1. Then Randy Wetmore got by Mat . Mat then put a move on Randy and the two ran side by side through the fastest turn on the Infineon coarse with Mat on the inside. But at the exit of the turn, Randy ran out of room and took to the dirt and spun. Randy recovered, but joined the race in 3^rd. In the mean time, Larry Fraser made a clean charge through the field to take over 2^nd when Wetmore spun off. At the end of this wild race, Kattanek took the overall win and 1^st in Grand Masters, Fraser in 2^nd and 1^st in Masters. Randy Wetmore was 3^rd, Ray Wetmore 4^th, Cameron Evans 5^th.

The Sunday Series will return again in 2009, focusing on Junior classes, all the 80 shifter classes and maybe more. But one thing will remain in 2009, lots of morning practice, and a fun club race day atmosphere with lots of good competition.

Junior 1 2-Cycle

HPV-1

Jr. Puma Sportsman

125 Nat. Cup Light

125 Nat. Cup Masters

125 Nat. Cup Grand Masters

125 Nat. Cup Sumo

11-2-08 Jim Russell Sunday Series Finale