A few comments from a not-yet-racer who drove out to just to watch:
First of all, I heard there were 72 entries total, not 44 (right, Stacey?).
This was the first kart race I’ve seen, period (at least in the last 20 years). I was quite surprised by the contrasts. On one hand, there was great commentary, champagne awards ceremonies, trophy girls, a nice hospitality tent for sponsors, and a SOBE promotional tent handing out free drinks. On the other hand, there were only a few spectators (I’d guess maybe 20-30 that weren’t associated with one of the teams). Aren’t these events supposed to be a big show? I thought alot of us grass-roots local racer types would love to go at least go see the pro teams at work, but that wasn’t the case.
I had a great time. The racing was top quality, with some excellent battles (watching Alex Doman get the jump on the national Junior field, and Austin Farley working his novice shifter through the TaGs, for example). And Darren and Stacey are great hosts, taking time out to introduce themselves, living up to their reputation.
Seems like the PMT is a great product, but few customers.
So, on top of the discussion about why y’all didn’t race, I’d like to know: why didn’t you go watch?