The green flag waves on the Padholder Super Cup Series program this weekend in Richland, Washington (Photo: NWKASuperCup.com)

Over the past few years, karting in the Pacific Northwest has enjoyed growth and stability thanks to a stable circuit of tracks and the ongoing efforts of the Northwest Karting Association. The NWKA’s Padholder Super Cup Series has been bringing drivers together for an annual five-race calendar and the numbers continue to be strong. The series will go green with its 2024 schedule this coming weekend and all accounts point to the start of another fantastic year. We caught up with the NWKA’s Mike Schorn to get all the details.

eKartingNews.com: Mike, thanks for taking the time to chat with us about the Northwest Karting Association and the Padholder Super Cup Series. You guys had a fantastic season in 2023 and I’m sure you expect the growth to continue this year. The season opener is this coming weekend at the Tri Cities Kart Club in Horn Rapids, WA, so how are the current entry numbers?

Mike Schorn: Thanks, Rob. Yes, we had a great season and some really competitive races in all of the classes last year. The start of the season looks great so far and it’s shaping up to be another great year. The pre-entries look strong at over 160 at this point. Traditionally, there will be that last minute push of entries so we could be looking at 175 to 200 at the first sprint race. We had some great reports of racers testing for the first race season with new equipment and working on getting the cobwebs out as the clubs are now just starting the season.

EKN: It sounds like the new season will be getting off to a great start. If you dive into the pre-registration numbers, what classes are looking the strongest and is there a class with big growth from 2023?

MS: As of now, Chinn Construction Senior 206 is at 30 entries. It’s up a few from last year, which is a positive. There are a number of Juniors from last year who have moved into the Senior classes, so it will be some interesting racing this weekend. The pre-entries were a little bit slower earlier this year but the last couple of days have seen some great numbers. Another area that is seeing some growth is our Shifter classes. We will see over 20 in the Helmet House Shifter Light class for the first race of the season and we are at 12 entries in the Zimmer Motorsports Shifter Heavy class.

Our Junior classes are holding strong too. Neliton Race Concepts JR1 Briggs 206 currently has 11 pre-entries and we have 18 entries in Augie’s Fiberglass JRII Briggs 206. Veca Electric 60cc class is right where we were last year, so that means we are attracting new drivers in the sport.

Many different sponsors and supporter are returning in 2024 to help build the prize package this year (Photo: NWKASuperCup.com)

EKN: The Padholder Super Cup program has always had strong support from the Pacific Northwest karting industry and the families of the series as well. Can you give us some insight into the sponsors who are on-board for this year? And do you have anything new in this area?

MS: We’ve always been fortunate to have great support in putting on the Padholder Super Cup Series. We have some new sponsors this year as well as a new contingency program, along with some added cash prizes. Foggit Engine Treatment is one of our new class sponsors and they are offering a contingency program with their treatment products for all classes. Helmet House will be sponsoring the Shifter Light Class this year and they’ve added some excitement with cash purse for each podium finisher and a season championship bonus. This year, with two main events each weekend, the Shifter Light race winners will receive $150 cash, with $100 and $50 going to second and third, respectively. The overall champion will receive a bonus of $750, and second and third will take home $500 and $250. This is such an exciting addition to our program.

As for our incredible sponsor line-up, we’re thrilled to have a long of supporters that includes Padholder, Nᵒ1 Collision Group, Burly Products, Chinn Construction, Foggit Products, Veca Electric, Midnight Motorsports, Italian Motors USA, Huggler Race Engines, Odenthal Racing, Helmet House, Zimmer Motorsports, Madonna Racing, Neliton Race Concepts, Bryan Green Construction, Augie’s Fiberglass, CMC, Catalyst Driver Development, Kart-O-Rama, LeCont Tires, In City Prints, and Mike’s Kartstands.

EKN: Mike, can you tell us about the schedule for this year? We’ve seen on social media that improvements are continuing at Sumas International Motorsports Academy. Can you fill us in on what the Valiantes are up to and what about the other facilities on the calendar?

MS: Yes, SIMA has been working through the winter and is constantly improving their facilities. New and extended curbing is in progress, along with the improved and added RV and parking on the southeast side of the track where families can park their RV’s and get a front row seat in watching all of the action. The pit area had some additional paving completed last year and there have been some additional garages constructed for customers storage and pit spots.

Our Sprint season opener will start at TCKC’s track at West Richland, WA this coming weekend (April 19-21). TCKC is one of the favorites on the schedule. They worked all winter on improving an already great track to make the season opener one to remember.

The May 17-19 weekend will be our second stop on the Sprint Series calendar and we’ll be at PKA’s Mac Track in McMinnville, OR. The club has been working on improving the drainage and expanding the pit area for this year’s event.

Then we will head south to Medford, OR on June 14-16 for the third stop of the series with Southern Oregon Kart Association hosting our program. Augie Benson and crew have been working on the property with improvements on and off the track to expand their pit areas to make it more convenient for all of the Series supporters and racers.

Then it is back up north of the border to West Coast Kart Club’s Greg Moore Raceway in Chilliwack, BC on July 12-14. It’s one of the great tracks in the series. It is always fun to cross the boarder and race with the Canadians.

We will finish out the season at SIMA this year on August 2-4. Word on the street is that there will be a significant amount of participation from the Vancouver Island Kart Association (VIKA) at the series this year at all of our races, but especially at Chilliwack and Sumas. We are looking forward to having the Island racers to join us for our great series.

Shifter classes will again be a focal point for the Padholder Super Cup Series sprint and road racing programs in 2024

EKN: The schedule sound great and it appears that the series is prepped for yet another banner year. Mike, let’s move on to discuss the NorthWest Karting Association Road Race program for 2024. Can you give us an overview of the schedule and any significant developments for this season?

MS: Once again, we have a six-race series for 2024 season. The opening races was held at Pacific Raceways this past weekend and the season opener was a great event. The weather was perfect and the racing was very close. We had several new racers attend for the weekend, which is always great for the sport and the series. The Portland Karting Association did a great job in hosting the event. The next Road Race event will be June 1-2 at The Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton, WA, and will be hosted by Puget Sound Road Race Association. The Ridge is one of our popular tracks in the region. The event will have practice on Saturday and racing on Sunday. PSRRA will have a couple of activities to go along with the weekend. Next on the schedule is a two-race event at Oregon Raceway Park, hosted by Northwest Road Racers, on June 28^–29. The final event for the season this year will be held back at Pacific Raceway with a two-day two-race event to culminate the Padholder Super Cup Road Race series. We would like to thank both Augie’s Fiberglass and Catalyst Driver Development for their support and sponsorship of the Road Race program this year.

EKN: Once again, karting appears to be alive and thriving in the Pacific Northwest, and the long-time relationship with kart tracks and clubs in Western Canada can only serve to keep the numbers up. Is there anything else you’d like to communication to EKN Nation before we wrap up and let you guys focus on this weekend’s event?

MS: Rob, I would like to thank all of the racers, clubs, dealers, track owners, workers, and volunteers for their constant support and focus on the region. We are a big family and it shows. Without that focus and support, we would not be as successful as we are at this point in time and we will continue to work together to keep that steady growth for a strong region. As our NWKA motto states, our program is “For the Racers. By the Racers”. Thank you for taking time with us today.

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