6th October 2011

WHERE THE DREAMS BEGAN FOR BATHURST'S CLASS OF 2011

Mark Winterbottom during the early days of his career.

This weekend’s Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 will feature 58 drivers that hail from all parts of Australia and New Zealand along with a couple of international imports.

While they all have differing backgrounds, some followed their parent’s footsteps into motorsport and others were the first in their family to get caught by the ‘motorsport bug’, but the majority have one thing in common – they started their careers in karting.

In the early nineties the likes of James Courtney, Michael Caruso and Mark Winterbottom were ‘banging sidepods’ on karting circuits across New South Wales watched by family and friends.  Now they’re ‘banging doors’ with millions of people watching across the world.

When the trio filled the podium at the inaugural Sydney Telstra 500, James Courtney said “Today could have been the Combined District Kart Club Championship in 1992.”

“We all grew up karting together from when we were seven at places like Lithgow, Oran Park and Wollongong.

“Back then we were banging side pods and now we’re banging car doors.  There were a lot of us when we were younger, a lot of people dropped off along the way but I think just about everyone in the V8 championship raced against each other in karting.”

For Winterbottom, he believes the lessons learnt in karting are ones that stay with you for your entire career – as does your driving style.

“V8 Supercar racing is very much a technical game in this day and age, however, the basic driving principles are still the same as when we were all in karting,” said Winterbottom.

“Karting teaches you all about race craft and driving techniques, it really grooms you for your future, those guys who used to crash into each other in karts – still find themselves crashing into each other.”

Garth Tander (#51) leading Marcos Ambrose (#33) in the 1992 National Championships at Geelong.

For Garth Tander, a dual Bathurst 1000 winner, he believes karting is the only place for youngsters to start their motor racing career.

“I learnt all of my racecraft when I was racing karts, there is no question about that,” said Tander.

“You don’t learn how to race in a Formula Ford or a Touring Car, all of your knowledge comes from the purest form of the sport – karting.”

Dual V8 Supercar Champion Jamie Whincup has previously indicated that the interstate rivalry was also something that he thrived on during his karting career.

“It was a massive, massive battle between us Victorians and the Sydneysiders.  We’d come up here (to New South Wales) and try to knock these blokes off and be very proud that we could take the trophy away from them,” said Whincup.

While the state battles have somewhat disappeared in the V8 Supercar Championship and been replaced by manufacturer and team honours, the heritage of drivers in this weekend’s race makes for interesting reading.

Victorians dominate the entry list with the Garden State boasts no less that 24 starters in the 2011 ‘Great Race’.  Six of this group spent much of their formative years as a part of the Go-Kart Club of Victoria (Tood Road) with the Eastern Lions Kart Club, located at Puckapunyal, also appearing as one of the major breeding ground for future stars.  Hailing from this club is Whincup and his regular Team Vodafone team-mate Craig Lowndes along with Cameron McConville and the Davison brothers, Alex and Will.  One of the country’s longest standing clubs, the Oakleigh Go-Kart Racing Club, has five starters in this weekend’s race.

In New South Wales, the two dominant Clubs on the list of the state’s 13 drivers is the Combined Districts Kart Club located at Lithgow and the Sydney Kart Racing Club, which has been without a track since the closure of Oran Park Raceway.

There are currently more than 2,000 members of the Australian Karting Association under the age of 15 that race on kart tracks at various parts of the country as they learn their motorsport craft.  Many of these youngsters will be hoping to one day emulate the feats of today’s V8 Supercar drivers and make a start in Australia’s Great Race – the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.

2011 SUPERCHEAP AUTO BATHURST 1000 DRIVERS – WHERE THEY STARTED

Tim Slade leading Andrew Thompson at the Bolivar Raceway in South Australia. Pic: Paul Carruthers

Tony D'Alberto started his career as a member of the Go-Kart Club of Victoria. Pic: Simon Adams

Cameron Waters, seen here winning the South Australian Championships in 2007, will make his V8 Supercar debut in this weekend's Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000. Pic: AF Images/Budd

Michael Caruso in action during his karting days.