Route 66 Sprint Series opened 2023 at New Castle Motorsports Park (Photo: Nate Dean - EKN)

On any given weekend throughout the year, there are families at kart tracks all focused on having fun together. The racing itself is at the center, but it’s also a time for families to be together, working on their kart or karts, eating breakfast on the way to the track and lunch in the trailer or under the EZ-Up, and maybe grilling some dinner, all having fun as a ‘team’. This concept is not foreign to new Route 66 Sprint Series owner Chris Kardashian, a karting dad himself, and he’s putting ‘affordable family fun’ as a core ideology for this program. The racing at Route 66 Sprint Series has always been fantastic and, with four iconic tracks making the foundation of his 2023 schedule, Kardashian is investing money in making the weekend’s about more than just the racing. He’d dedicated to making the weekend the most fun a karting family will have at the track.

The series launched its 2023 program at New Castle Motorsports Park in May, and the weekend festivities included a ‘Fun Zone’ for the kids that included an inflatable castle, slide, basketball hoops, and games. Not everyone in the family is focused on making the kart fast, and the Fun Zone was busy all weekend. On Saturday evening, Kardashian and Joe Tovo of DNJ Intermodal Services hosted a cookout for all the families, and Saturday night was a Cornhole Tournament. The entire focus was to make the event fun for the entire family. The cornhole tournament returns for Road America, presented by Mills Pallet Inc., $200 up for grabs for the winner this time plus $300 in additional prize money, including a 40-foot ‘closest to the hole’ competition with $75 going to the best toss. Grab the ‘bags’ and see what you have!

Fun – on and off the track – is a focus for new series owner Chris Kardashian (Photo: Alyx Collins – Route 66)

“The mission for the Route 66 Sprint Series is to provide Midwest racers an affordable regional karting option in both 2 and 4-cycle classes, while also attracting the best competition in all classes,” Kardashian told EKN. “If we stay true to our mission, while also focusing on the weekend experience for the entire family, we believe the Route 66 Sprint Series will continue to be one of the strongest regional series in the country.”

Even the schedule was designed with purpose. The coming event on July 7-9 at Road America is on the same weekend as the Pirelli TransAm Series, along with the support series of F1600, F2000, F1000, Atlantic, and International GT, and with the kart track’s location alongside the run from Turn 7 to Turn 8 on the big track, and the paddock being located inside the Carousel, karters will be treated to a weekend that features some of the best road racing available. It’s an incredible pairing of a race weekend and a spectator weekend for the Route 66 participants.

Kardashian has also paired off the respective state events in Indiana and Wisconsin to form their own sub-series, and the season-opening race at New Castle started the Hoosier State Challenge.  In turn, the Road America weekend will launch the Badger State Challenge. The race at the Briggs & Stratton Motorplex at Road America will be the opening round of the Badger State Challenge and both the Badger and Hoosier State Challenges have some serious prizes for the winners of the Senior categories. In 206 Senior and KA100 Senior, the respective series champions will take home a trophy and $550 in cash. Second will receive $275 and third will win a set of MG tires.

Both 2-cycle and 4-cycle classes are offered for the Indiana-Wisconsin focused regional series (Photo: Nate Dean – EKN)

At the Route 66 Sprint Series, there is a dedicated focus on fun and it’s something that the sport of karting truly needs to aim for. If you haven’t participated in a Route 66 event in recent years, we suggest that you join them at Road America (July 7-9) for what promises to be an action-packed weekend with great racing on both the Briggs & Stratton Motorplex kart track and the four-mile big track where TransAm and a number of support series will be racing.  You’re sure to enjoy the ‘family fun’ atmosphere of the event – something the sport of karting truly needs – including the complimentary Saturday night cookout.

Complete details for the Road America weekend or the Route 66 Sprint Series can be found at route66kartracing.com

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