22nd October 2013

Juniors line up for a day of quality kart action - From the Townsville Bulletin

THE future of Townsville’s motorsport appears in safe hands after more than 50 competitors hit the Bohle’s Suncity Raceway across the weekend for the TownsvilleKart Club’s annual Rob Harrison Memorial.

A full racing schedule was held during the two- day carnival, which has a ‘‘ 100 per cent’’ focus on the development of competitors aged 12 years and under.

Townsville’s Raith Sheerans won the weekend’s Under- 12 years rookie division after leading for most of the race in a competitive field, while children aged seven years and under showed off their skills in the cadet division.

Cl u b s p o k e s man Gl e n Stewart said the weekend’s racing featured plenty of quality in both senior and junior competitions.

‘‘ There was some really good racing and most importantly it was a great weekend f or t he young kids,’’ he said.

‘‘ It wasn’t a massive meeting by our standards but the racing was still excellent, and in the end it was all about the kids. Rob ( Harrison) was very passionate about junior racing and he was all about junior development, so it’s great that we can also hold this event in honour of him.’’

One of the highlights of the weekend was the duel between Ingham racer Luke Grasso and Townsville’s Jarva Sheerans, with Grasso finishing just ahead of Sheerans in both the sportsman’s light and the junior categories.

The sport is a stepping stone towards a career in motor racing, with Formula One drivers such as Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna learning their trade in karts.

Townsville Kart Club will hold the North Queensland sprint titles early next year.