World Karting Association Announces 2000 Briggs & Stratton Pro Kart Tour
2 May 2000
HARRISBURG, N.C. (May 2, 2000) -- The World Karting Association (WKA) has announced the 2000 Briggs & Stratton Pro Kart Tour which represents three of the most challenging and lucrative kart races in the United States. The three-race tour kicks off Saturday, May 6, with the Raptor 200 at Lowe's Motor Speedway (LMS) at Charlotte, N.C. More than 50 of the top Pro Speedway Kart Series drivers will converge onto a paved 1/5-mile track behind LMS to race 200 laps at speeds topping 60 mph. "Briggs & Stratton wanted to work with the WKA to develop a league of upper-echelon races," said Dave Klaus, motor sports marketing coordinator for Briggs & Stratton. "We wanted to change the format to make it even more exciting for the fans, and we succeeded in developing three, one-of-a-kind kart races." Most karting races last 20 laps without pit stops or team assistance. The Briggs & Stratton Pro Kart Tour, however, sends racers off on hundreds of laps to deal with factors such as fuel economy and engine reliability, making it one of the most exciting kart races for fans and racers to experience. "This Briggs & Stratton Pro Kart Tour holds one of the largest purses in karting," said WKA president, Randy Kugler. "This year we have over $75,000 in combined purse and contingency prize money." The highlight of the contingency program is the RLV Winner's Circle Bonus. If a driver wins all three events, they go home $10,000 richer. If they win all three events while running selected RLV components, they pocket an extra $5,000. In addition to the RLV Winner's Circle Bonus, WKA will award $3,000 to the driver who can qualify on the pole and win the race; $1,000 carries over to the next event if the money is not awarded. "We want to bring karting, with all its exciting personalities, to the next level of success," said Rod Verlengiere of RLV Tuned Exhaust. "By building on last year's Pro Kart Tour, we can provide an avenue for those racers that are ready to compete at the most challenging level." Now in its second year, the Briggs & Stratton Pro Kart Tour also stops at Atlanta Motor Speedway Aug. 26 with the Intek 250, and ends the season at Lowe's Motor Speedway Nov. 4 for the 7th Annual Briggs & Stratton 300. This year's 300 will be the richest ever with the race purse exceeding $10,000. Expected competitors include last year's Raptor 200 winner Jonathan Cash from North Carolina, 1999's top money winner Chris Gabehart from Kentucky and past Briggs & Stratton 300 winner Tod Miller of North Carolina. The 2000 Briggs & Stratton Pro Kart Tour follows the announcement of a partnership between WKA and CART to provide racing opportunities for young American drivers with the "Kart to CART" scholarship. The scholarship will be awarded to two junior class participants in the WKA Constructor's Championship Series -- one male and one female -- at the conclusion of the 2000 season. Each will receive a $5,000 scholarship to the Skip Barber Racing School.