New Zealand Nationals Looking Good
press release
HEALTHY ENTRIES A BOOST FOR ORGANISING CLUB
Healthy entries - over 170 at last count - are a boost for the club organising the Easter weekend's Speedy Signs-backed KartSport New Zealand National Sprint Championships in Invercargill says KartSport Southland Publicity Officer Daryl Shuttleworth.
"At one stage just after the earthquake in Christchurch in February we thought we'd be lucky getting 120. But since then they've come back strongly, from Christchurch as much as anywhere else," Mr Shuttleworth said.
Above: Rangiora's Hamish Cross (#2) will be one of the drivers defending a 2010 class title at the 2011 New Zealand National Sprint Championship over Easter
This year's meeting at the club's newly extended Macaulay Ford Kart Raceway at the southern end of Sandy Point Domain is the 52nd Sprint Nationals meeting to be held in NZ with Karters travelling from as far afield as Auckland and - in expat Lane Moore's case - Australia, for it.
Ten class titles will be contested over the three-day event with Cadet, 100cc Junior Yamaha, 100cc Yamaha Heavy, 125cc Rotax Max Light and KZ2 on Saturday, and 100cc Junior Restricted Yamaha, KF3, 100cc Yamaha Light, 125cc Rotax Max Heavy and Open on Sunday.
Numbers-wise the most popular classes are 100cc Yamaha Light and 100cc Junior Yamaha with 23 entries each followed by 100cc Junior Restricted Yamaha with 21 and 125cc Rotax Max Heavy with 20.
One of the main reasons for the strong 100cc Yamaha Light entry is the incentive of a trip to a major event in Japan for the winner courtesy Yamaha Motor New Zealand.
Last year New Zealand's representative, Christchurch driver Matthew Hamilton, dominated the Japanese event, qualifying on pole and winning the Final.
This year, however, Hamilton is not defending his 2010 New Zealand Senior 100cc Yamaha Light title meaning it will be up to someone else to see if they can repeat the feat at the 35th Toyota All Japan SL Kart Meeting at the Biwako Sportsland track near Lake Biwa in Japan's Shiga Prefecture later this year.
Hamilton is one of a five 2010 New Zealand and nine 2010 North or South Island champions heading to Southland next week for the 2011 National Sprint event.
Three - Taranaki's Michael Kiser (100cc Yamaha Heavy) and Rangiora drivers Hamish Cross (125cc Rotax Max Heavy) and James Penrose (100cc Junior Yamaha) - will be defending their titles while the other two - Hamilton and 2010 New Zealand Cadet class champion Thomas Ingram - turn their talents to other classes.
KartSport fans who can't make it to the meeting will not miss out either, with confirmation today that Southland TV channel Cue TV will cover the event with two one hour shows on Cue TV (Sky digital channel 110 and Freeview satellite channel 23).
The first will air on Saturday May 7 at 8.00pm with repeats on Saturday May 14 at 3.30pm, Saturday May 21 at 3.30pm and Sunday May 29 at 2.30pm.
The 2011 Speedy Signs KartSport New Zealand National Sprint Championship meeting is being run with the assistance of class sponsors, Invercargill Oil Shop, Kiwi Karts, Macaulay Ford, Mainland Karting, SBS Bank, Southland Brakes and Driveline, The Southland Times, The Rock and Transport Engineering Southland.
Action starts at KartSport Southland's Macaulay Ford Kart Raceway at Sandy Point Domain on Easter Friday and continues through Saturday and Sunday.
