Who are the members of the Club Executive?
Where do I get detailed information fast?
What is the history of Westwood Karting?
What is Roadracing?
What is Sprinting?
What about retired numbers?
Where are the Club level Sprint races held?
What are the Sprint classes and wieghts?
What is my (Archie) connection with karting?
Here is the 2005 Executive that were voted in at the November 2004 Club meeting.
Good Luck Gang!
These are the local Kart shops that advertise in the Club's newsletter, and they should be able to answer your specific questions. I will still try to answer any general questions sent my way, but if you really need information fast - like race information needed right away - call one of these shops. I sometimes go for several days without checking my email. Bad,eh? Thanks.
The Westwood Karting Association, was formed in 1961, where it found a home at the Westwood Mountain High Raceway. It was mostly a Road Race Club in those days, but also had a Sprint track out behind corner one of the Road Course. We shared the road course with the Cars and Motorbikes, each having some of the weekends.
In the late 1980's, the government of the day gave us all the boot from the racing home that we had (on Crown Land - that is, the government was the owner) so that they could sell off EVERYBODIES land (after all, we ARE the government, aren't we?) to a Real Estate developer.
Now Sprint racing is far more popular. Sprint races are local and more visible, while the Roadracers must travel to Seattle, Bremerton, Spokane and Portland to race. From 1991 until 1994 we were Sprint racing in a variety of parking lot locations, Lansdowne Mall, Willowbrook Mall, Bridgepoint, Rocky Point Marina and the Poco Recreation Center are the main ones that come to mind. We then got, from 1994 to 2001, a semi-permanent location at the parking lot of the Tradex facility in Abbotsford. With changes to the Tradex lot, as of 2002, racing was not possible there anymore. The CARTBC race track in Chilliwack was where the Club finished the 2002 season, with the first 3 races held at the Cultus lake Go Kart Track. CARTBC looks to be our home for Sprint racing for the future, but the Westwood Club still is looking for a track to call it's own. There really is enough support for 2 tracks in the Vancouver / Fraser Valley area. In 2004 BCKCA hosted the ASN National Championships at CARTBC.
...Roadrace karts are designed for longer straights and faster speeds than a Sprint chassis. Typically they are
less flexie, to reduce wander on the straights.
Roadraces are "timed" races, run only on "long courses", such as
Seattle's Pacific Raceways (was SIR), Spokane Raceway or Portland's International Raceway - home of the Portland
Indy Race. The "straight" is over a half mile long on these
courses and speeds of up to 150 mph (sorry, no Kph conversion yet) can be obtained from the 250 Unlimiteds.
Roadracers can run in either of the "Sit-up" or "Lay-Down" configurations.
The engine type of choice here is the 2 cycle, ranging in size from 80cc shifter
up to the Yamaha 350RZ class. (We pronounce that 'are-zed', while our American
friends say 'are-zee'.) The fastest tend to be the 250 Unlimited Class that allows modifications, as the
350 (local option) is a stock motor class. The most popular set-up right now looks to be the TaG karts - 125cc
water cooled, electric start (Touch and Go), and no shifting! Our racers go under the banner of Camp Canada.
Races can be either 30 or 45 minutes in length,
depending on the class being run, and the kart leading in laps is the winner.
With the lack of a Long Course locally (ours was closed forever by the
Provincial Government of 1990) we do not have any "Club" racing. All of
our Westwood RoadRacers run at the IKF Regional level, racing in the U.S. Pacific Northwest
(Washington and Oregon States).
PSRRA The webpage for the
Puget Sound Road Race Association - many Westwood racers are now members with this Club.
...Sprint Kart (Club) racing takes place at the
CARTBC (Chilliwack Area Race Track, B.C.)
facility. We moved there in 2002, after 10 years of running at the Tradex facility at the
Abbotsford Airport. Sprint karts were typically a 2 cycle 100cc motor, with
some classes running a centrifical clutch and some classes running a direct-drive
configuration - but now the 125cc water-cooled electric start TaG (Touch and Go) karts are very much the fastest
growing classes going. TaG karts run a clutch (no gears to shift) and are very fast. There are provisions for
shifter classes running 80cc and 125cc, but we are not seeing too many of those running locally now.
There are restricted 100cc, 80cc and 60cc classes for the Junior 1 kids (8 - 12 years old). Some
other kart clubs run 4 cycle karts (Honda, Briggs etc.), but the Westwood Club does not have any
4 cycle classes anymore.
Sprinting is a "parking lot" or short course type of racing. Westwood Club races have 2
heats of 12 and 16 laps. After qualifying for grid position in the first heat, the results of that first heat
determine the starting grid for the "Finals". The finishing position of the second
heat are the final positions for the day. Points will be as ASN Regional (modified
motocross; first=15, second=12, third=11, etc.). Trophies are awarded for each racedate, and at the year end
banquet for the final class positions.
As of March 2001, we now have three numbers retired from Westwood Karting Club races.
1 is the number of Bob Whitehead, founding
President of the Westwood Karting Association, who died in a racing mishap in the
mid-sixties. While racing States-side, a mechanical failure sent an engine part
through his helmet, something that todays safety standards would have prevented.
99 is for Greg Moore, a graduate of Westwood
Karting that was killed in an awful crash at the end of the 1999 CART racing season.
Greg was a 2 time IKF Grandnational Champion while a Roadracing Junior with Westwood.
96 is for Steve DaSilva, a popular Westwood member and
holder of the Senior Sportsmanship trophy. The trophy has been renamed for Steve. Steve
was killed as a passenger in a non-racing car crash.
2003 was our first full season at the new
CARTBC track in Chilliwack. This looks to be our
home for many more years, at least.
Practice time is available to those that purchase a Cartbc membership, or rented by individual racers
from the Formula 440
rental track in Tsawassen. If you pick up a membership in CARTBC, then you will have practice time available
there, but you do not have to join CARTBC to race there (you must join a Club - maybe ours - to race there), but it is a
good idea to get practice time on a full sized race track. Single day practice, without membership, is available -
but you should check the CARTBC website for more.
These, and many other links, are on my karting links page.
Junior 1 - A & B (depending on cc's and/or restrictors)... 8 - 12 years old
Junior 2 . . . 10 - 15 years old
JICA (Junior Intercontinental A) . . . 12 - 15 years old
Junior 3 . . . 12 - 15 years old
ICA (Intercontinental A) . . .15+ age
Club WKA . . .15+ age
TaG . . .15+ age
Leopard
Rotax Max
Masters . . .35+ age