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| December 28, 2004 News |
| EKN TRACKSIDE: WKA KartWeek |
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Believe it or not, the 2005 racing season is here. Just seven weeks after the last checker at the Stars of Karting Finale in Orlando and only four weeks in the shadow of a handful of Thanksgiving weekend events, the new season has begun with the running of the World Karting Association’s annual Kart Week at Daytona Int’l Speedway. New teams, new pairings, new classes and new seniors will all highlight a program that will certainly kick-start the 2005 season in style.
After two flights to Orlando, a three-hour wait for baggage and a one and a half hour trip in the rental car, the EKN editorial duo of Rob Howden and David Cole has taken up residence in Daytona to begin a new season for our unparalleled Trackside coverage. We’re hooked to our hotel’s high-speed Internet port and ready to bring the EKN readership closer to the action. WKA KartWeek will be the first of many events that will enjoy our focused in-person reporting and we’re hoping that all those who cannot make it to Daytona for the event will enjoy being kept in the loop. We will be in the paddock and in the infield throughout the week working to provide the EKN readership with daily update on all the competition. We’ll then follow-up with an in-depth report on the race in the February issue of Super Kart Illustrated with stunning photography and behind-the-scenes stories.
By no means does our arrival in Florida signal the beginning of this annual event, however. Competitors began arriving at the DIS gates before Christmas and a full day of competition was already been put into the books on December 26th with the traditional running of 4-Cycle Day at the Speedway.
As we post this initial segment, the smell of two-stroke karting engines has already permeated its way through the confines of Daytona Int’l. The WKA put a pair of programs on track today, kicking off practice on both the 3.5-mile road course and the sprint kart track that is located in the infield between turns three and four. The National Road Race Series and the Manufacturer’s Cup each opened up today with practice session available to the expected 800+ entries for this segment of the event. An additional 2000+ entries are expected to pack Daytona’s Municipal Stadium for the opening of the WKA National Speedway Dirt Series, making this week the single biggest karting event in the world.
A special program running in conjunction with the NRRS will actually complete its season during the ’05 opener as Daytona also represents the final round of the 2004 Super Kart Illustrated Formula 125 Enduro Challenge for laydown 125cc road racers. A preview of the series finale ran on EKN last week and can be found here (full story). The point battle in this five-race program will come to head tomorrow as the WKA’s Formula 125 class will serve as the finale. Reigning series champion Scott Fiesler leads the points chase but with one drop available to the racers, he will need to step up his game to challenge the primary title contenders Mike Spear Jr. and Brian Wilhelm. We’ll include a report in this shootout in tomorrow evening’s report.
EKN will be providing daily coverage of the event throughout the week with pit notes, observations, photos, main event predications and race results highlighting our event package.
2005 WKA KARTWEEK – EVENT SCHEDULE
Dunlop Tire Road Racing Series
Elite Karting Championships
December 27 - 30, 2004
Monday, December 27, 2004
Registration and Practice
Year-end Awards Banquet
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
Race #1
Open Sprint 1
Spec 125 Sprint Final 1
Spec 125 Sprint R&D Final 1
WKA Sprint Heavy
Piston Port Can Sprint 340
Race #2
CIK 125 Sprint 1
WKA/ICC 125 Sprint 1
Race #3
Piston Port Can Lite
Jr. Enduro Lite
Race #4
Unlimited 1
250 Twin 1
B Stock
Formula 125
Formula 100
Race #5
Briggs Sprint 335
Briggs Sprint Over 35
Briggs Jr. Sprint Heavy
Race #6
Yamaha Sportsman Medium
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
Race #1
WKA Sprint Lite
Piston Port Can Sprint 360
Briggs Animal 360
Jr. Sprint Lite
Race #2
Unlimited 2
250 Twin 2
Controlled Limited
Spec 125 Enduro R&D
Race #3
Yamaha Medium
Piston Port Can Medium
Race #4
CIK 125 Sprint 2
WKA/ICC 125 Sprint 2
Race #5
Open Sprint 2
Spec 125 Sprint Final 2
Spec 125 Sprint R&D Final 2
Yamaha Sprint Heavy
Briggs Animal 336
Race #6
Yamaha Sportsman Heavy
100cc Controlled Spec
Jr. Enduro Heavy
Thursday, December 30, 2004
Race #1
Yamaha Sportsman Lite
Piston Port Can Heavy
Race #2
Yamaha Sprint Lite
Briggs Sprint 360
Briggs Jr. Sprint Lite
Race #3
100cc Controlled
100cc Piston Port Lite
Yamaha Heavy
Race #4
Piston Port Can Sprint 380
Jr. Sprint Heavy
George Kugler Manufacturer’s Cup Series Presented by Bridgestone
Margay Sprint Championships
December 27-30, 2004
Monday, December 27, 2004
Registration and Practice
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
1. Yamaha Masters
2. HPV Jr. .Sportsman
3. HPV Lite
4. Yamaha Jr. SuperCan
5. Easy Kart 125
6. Formula Yamaha Sr.
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
1. Yamaha Lite
2. Formula Yamaha Jr.
3. HPV Heavy
4. Cadet Jr. Sportsman - Final 1
5. 80cc Shifter Jr. - Final 1
6. ICA
7. ICC - Final 1
Thursday, December 30, 2004
1. Yamaha Jr. Sportsman
2. Yamaha Heavy
3. HPV Junior
4. Yamaha Sr. Sportsman
5. Cadet Jr. Sportsman - Final 2
6. TaG
7. 80cc Shifter Jr. - Final 2
8. ICC - Final 2
We’ll be back on Tuesday evening with a look at the primary players in each of the top classes on the big track and from the sprint paddock. Each individual day of our Trackside coverage from Daytona can be accessed via the WKA KartWeek Event Page in the Features section on the EKN homepage.
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