Things were heating up at Goodwood Kartways Thursday as some of the world’s finest began hitting the track and one thing that instantly began falling apart… was the track record book for Rotax Max Challenge classes! All Thursday times are unofficial of course, but when things get going for real this weekend at the Eastern Canadian Karting Championship opener, the record book looks sure to be rewritten.
“For sure it’s a completely different track now,” said reigning DD2 World Champion Pier-Luc Ouellette after testing the new surface Thursday. “The track is very smooth, with a lot more grip, and it shows a lot of potential for the weekend. For us, the karters, what we hated were the bumps and now it’s completely different. The track is a lot more grippy than it was last year with the sealer to make sure the asphalt does not come apart and this is helping the chassis to work a lot better.”
Another veteran karter and multi-time National Champion agreed in speaking with ASN Canada’s Paul Cooke, who was trackside keeping an eye on proceedings. “It’s really fun to drive,” said SRA Karting/Birel star Christophe Boisclair. “It’s easier to drive now too. It’s not like you’ve got to pass where there is no bumps, now you just find a good line you like and go. It’s definitely better like that. When I walked the track I thought the grooves in the new curbing seemed really wide, but when driving it’s really, really good.”
The reviews are music to the ears of Goodwood Kartways Manager Daniel Di Leo, as he and a team of employees worked through the night Tuesday to ensure things were ready for Canada’s best. “It certainly is good to hear the karters are praising the track and that all the hard work we put in has paid off,” he said at the completion of Thursday testing. “We were literally working through the night this week to ensure the success of this major Canadian event, and give it the best chance of success. It will be great to welcome many of the top teams and drivers in the nation this weekend knowing we’ve overcome the challenges that were presented to us and are prepared to deal with anything that might arise going forward.”
This weekend’s racing at Goodwood Kartways is the opening event in the Eastern Canadian Karting Championship, a series that awards four berths on Rotax Max Challenge Team Canada. After a day of testing on Friday, full race schedules are presented on Saturday and Sunday with prefinal races beginning at 1pm and finals beginning at 3:15pm. For more information, please visit goodwoodkartways.com and eckc.ca
