Statement: Intrepid Kart Materials & Rumours
Official Statement (Thursday 31st March 2011)
Over the past week there have been rumours circulating regarding the materials used in the construction of the Intrepid range of karts.
We would like to take this opportunity to explain this situation for the benefit of Intrepid owners and also for all others that have made comment on the situation or have shown interest.
At the beginning of 2009 Intrepid entered into a 3-year homologation period with the International Federation. This is a very expensive and timeconsuming process and allows the manufacturers to compete at the highest
level internationally during the 3-year homologation period. At the end of that period the chassis is no longer eligible to run at these high level events unless they are re-homologated. This does not mean that the chassis are redundant, but are then ideally suited to use at club and recreational level.
When Intrepid set out developing their current V range of karts, the research on materials was exhaustive and they along with other manufacturers chose to use a very high grade Chrome Moly tube that we are told has a high chromium content which when formed eliminates a lot of the materials magnetic attraction properties.
This material was well within the homologation guidelines when the karts were put into production by Intrepid and other brands.
During the 2010 season the International Federation decided to redefine how they measure a materials magnetic properties and this was to come into effect at the 1st January 2011. This is not an ideal situation for manufacturers as it is mid-way through a current homologation period but will have limited effect for Intrepid as they had already ceased the use of the Chrome Moly in July 2010.
It should be noted that the outstanding results achieved for Intrepid including the International team World Championship wins in both KZ1 and KF3 are on new generation chassis that conform to the change by the International Federation.
Quote from Mirko Sguerzoni, President of the Intrepid/SKM Group, “We believe that this a poor decision by the Federation to make such changes midway through a homologation period, however we have moved to a new material and the result has been a change for the better. We have had outstanding success with the new chassis and top results in all countries.”
What this means for the Intrepid owner in Australia.
- For our Intrepid drivers competing at CIK-level events
- All of our karts attending this weekends CIK Stars of Karting event in Adelaide are from the new material that conforms to the International standard and there is no need for any concern for these drivers.
- For our Intrepid family racing at - Club level, Pro Tour, State and National titles.
- The rule regarding the frame can be found at Chapter 25.01 of your AKA 2011 Rulebook at point (f) and reads as follows “Frame: Shall be all metal and shall not extend sideways beyond the outside wall of any tyre.”
- For any of our drivers who own chassis that were manufactured pre-July 2010 we assure you that the material is metal and is of the highest quality and for racing at anything other than a CIK event your chassis is within the rules.
We wish all of the Intrepid Drivers around the country the best of luck over the coming months of racing and thank you all for your support of the product and also for the good results that you have been achieving.
