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| June 15, 2012 News |
| EKN Exclusive: The Young Guns of the Karting Industry - Part 1 |
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We’d like to take this opportunity to introduce a new segment in the eKartingNews.com editorial arsenal - ‘The Young Guns of the Karting Industry’ – where we will take the opportunity to profile energetic and dedicated members of the sport’s business community. This article series will be focused on profiling some of the younger industry players who are now making a big impact on the sport. Karting is lucky to have the experience and knowledge of many industry veterans, but we are also extremely fortunate to be seeing a new generation of experts building a foundation on supplying service and support to racers all over the country.
Each month, EKN will select a trio of ‘young guns’ to profile, members of the industry who are building solid reputations and will be trackside for years to come.
 | Ryon Beachner
(Photo: dromophotos.com) |
Ryon Beachner (2Wild Karting): One of the newest members to the industry in the United States is 2Wild Karting’s Ryon Beachner. A driver in the sport since he was just four, the 20-year old is no stranger to karting. As a pilot, Beachner has progressed up the karting ranks. In 2010, he won the ProKart Challenge S2 Semi-Pro championship and moved up to the S1 category in 2011. A neck injury has hurt his overall performance over the last few months, but now fully recovered; he’s looking to get back to the front of the field. Last month, Beachner was runner-up at the California ProKart Challenge event. While he has had dreams of climbing the motorsports ladder, he watched friends take the chance and see it end shortly thereafter. Beachner has now put his full focus on karting, as he believes completely that it’s more than just a step in the ladder, but a sport in its own right.
Beachner has stepped in to take control of 2Wild Karting, which was started in 1996 by his father Rhod Beachner and partner Wayne Kimball. After first dealing with the CRG brand, they later moved to the Kosmic chassis before changing to Tony Kart. They currently are one of the longest running Tony Kart dealers in the United States, with a solid relationship with the factory race team and OTK USA. 2Wild Karting has been an active member within the karting community, supporting a number of programs throughout California. Within the last year, Beachner has taken over the business full time, focusing on improving their trackside presence throughout southern California and expanding their inventory to support their online store.
 | | Mike Rolison |
Mike Rolison (Rolison Performance Group): Mike Rolison has been a familiar name in the paddock for the past two decades. ‘Roli’ began karting at the famous Pat’s Acres Racing Complex in 1990 and the 35-year old has been a major part of the sport in the Pacific Northwest ever since. As a driver, Rolison has earned a number of victories and championships throughout the region, and nationally as well. Victory in the 1997 WKA Formula Y Constructors Cup series, a win aboard a Margay shifterkart on the SKUSA ProMoto Tour back in 2002, and earning the Rotax Grand National victory in 2006 are three of his biggest accomplishments.
Since wrapping up his driving days, Mike has focused on the business side of the sport and over the past few seasons has developed Rolison Performance Group into a increasingly impressive operation. Rolison enjoys teaching and coaching drivers of all ages, helping them to achieve their goals in karting. Building up a strong resume of drivers who he has guided over the years led him to develop the RGP program. Focused on driver coaching, race event transportation services, and providing the best trackside service for local, regional and national drivers, Rolison Performance Group has become one of the top race teams in the United States today. RPG currently follows the Superkarts! USA Pro Tour, assorted ProKart Challenge events in the western half of the United States, the Northwest Gold Cup, and the US Rotax Max Challenge program. Rolison Performance is also a Kosmic chassis distributor and supports the OTK and Rotax product lines. When not at the shop or at the track, he does what most Oregonians do - fish and hunt. He also took up rock climbing a few years back.
 | AJ Whisler
(Photo: Autosports Media Group) |
AJ Whisler (Whisler Racing Services):
At just 33 years of age, AJ Whisler has nearly a quarter-century worth of experience in motorsports under his belt. Originally from Fremont, Ohio, AJ is your typical gearhead, ready and willing to get behind the wheel or wrench on anything that makes power. In 1988, Whisler began his karting career and, from there, established a solid resume as a driver. One of his most cherished victories was the 125cc Shifter victory at the Rock Island Grand Prix in 1999. During his years as a top pilot, Whisler was a competitor at a number of national events, including the SKUSA ProMoto Tour, SKUSA SuperNationals, Florida Winter Tour, and many others. Aside from karting, AJ has ventured into many other forms of motorsports, including open wheel formula cars, sprint cars on dirt, Mod Lites and other assorted stock cars.
In 2002, AJ established Whisler Racing Services to address the growing demand for trackside engineering on the national karting scene. Whisler has worked with a number of talented drivers over the years and has helped guide several pilots to victories and championships. In 2006, he expanded his program and began development and production of Holeshot Drive Systems. Beginning with a wide range of performance chains for the karting market, HDS has expanded into sprockets and other products and now has a dealer network that spans the entire United States and Canada.
At the start of 2012, AJ’s operation grew once again as he created an arrive-and-drive race program - Team WRS. Focused on the Challenge of the Americas and the Superkarts! USA Pro Tour, Whisler will also support local events from his Phoenix, Arizona based-shop. When not busy with his own projects, he works as a lead instructor at the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving. Off the track, Whisler is a family man with a set of 22 month-old twins - Asher and Ava - and to relieve a hard day at the shop, enjoys shooting any of his firearms in the Phoenix desert. |
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