WEEDSPORT, N.Y. (NCC News) — Drivers ranging from 19 to over 50 competed Sunday evening at Weedsport Speedway in the DIRTcar Big Block Modified Encore 50, with $5,000 on the line at the 3/8-mile track.
The roar of engines revving, drifting and being pushed to their limit filled the air as the sun set Sunday evening.
The event, along with the Sportsman Classic 75 and CRSA 305 Sprint Cars, had been postponed a combined six times due to rain. Fans were treated to numerous qualifying heats and over 150 racing laps across the three feature races.
Before the main events, the Karting Nationals showcased the next generation of racers. The talent on display that day could only be acquired through practice and seat time. Karting is a way kids as young as 4 years old can get in the driver’s seat.
Tim Axton Jr., just 14 years old, described what goes through his mind behind the wheel.
“Usually not a lot goes through your mind because sometimes it can be a lot of people are scared, but after you get in the kart for about four years then that fear starts to go away,” Axton said.
Axton raced head-to-head against his friend Joey Surman, highlighting another key part of karting: the community. Ryan Barry, another young racer, praised the atmosphere.
“The karting community is amazing, everybody is super nice,” Barry said.
Participants came from far and wide, even north of the border, to chase down victory lane. Surman, the current points leader, could only describe the feeling of winning one way.
“It’s just shock every single time,” Surman said.
For many drivers, karting serves as a stepping stone to bigger machines. Tristan Ladouceur, 19, is one of many drivers who travel from Canada to compete in DIRTcar events across North America. The Alexandria, Ontario native, like his father and grandfather before him, won the track championship at his home track of Cornwall, Ontario.
Watch Ladouceur discuss his racing journey:
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: In depth with a SuperDIRT driver
David Lewis: Hot laps for the sprint car class here at Weedsport Speedway are taking place behind me. But I wanted to get into the specifics of how someone so young in go-karts can get up to the bigger machines, even the ones bigger than the ones behind me. I spoke to one Super Dirt racer. He’s currently second in the points, and he details how he was able to move up to those biggest cars at just 18.
Tristan Ladouceur: Yeah, well, I started go-karts when I was 4. I think my first race was a couple days before my fifth birthday. It’s a really big step. The karting, it’s really, I can describe it almost as asphalt racing. You’re not sideways. A lot of bumping to get some moves going. With these things, we have a little bit more freedom. We can kind of run a little around everywhere on the track. I’m sure basically everyone will say it’s just a hobby, but I’m sure everyone in here’s goal is to make it a career. So that’s the goal, man. It’s just the thrill of it, honestly. Nothing beats it getting ready to go green or something like that. And I mean I’m a third generation racer, so my dad and my grandpa, they’ve got 50 years under their belt. So I feel like I can’t stop now.
Lewis: Kicking up dirt at the track in Weedsport, New York, David Lewis, NCC News.
Ladouceur started in go-karts at age 4, racing just days before his fifth birthday. He described the transition from karting to the SuperDIRT class he now races in.
“The karting, it’s really, I can describe it almost as asphalt racing. You’re not sideways. A lot of bumping to get some moves going,” Ladouceur said. “With these things, we have a little bit more freedom. We can kind of run a little around everywhere on the track.”
The complexity from karts to SuperDIRT requires significant preparation. Ladouceur explained the difference.
“When I did karts, you could not touch your kart and come back the next week and still compete,” he said. “With these, there is a lot of preparation involved with myself and the team.”
Despite the work involved, Ladouceur said the goal remains the same for everyone at the track.
“I’m sure basically everyone will say it’s just a hobby, but I’m sure everyone in here’s goal is to make it a career,” Ladouceur said. “It’s just the thrill of it, honestly. Nothing beats it getting ready to go green or something like that.”
As a third-generation racer, Ladouceur said he feels compelled to continue the family tradition.
“My dad and my grandpa, they’ve got 50 years under their belt,” he said. “So I feel like I can’t stop now.”
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: DIRTcar Next Generation
Brennan Finder: But if baseball is too slow for you, there’s another sport that might be more your speed. NCC News’ David Lewis hit the racetrack.
David Lewis: This weekend was action-packed with the Encore 50 at Weedsport Speedway. However, it was the roar before Sunday evening’s action that showcases the next generation of racing. Karting Nationals brought karting racers like Tim Axton Jr. to the track. Axton, at just 14 years old, expressed his thoughts behind the wheel.
Tim Axton Jr.: Usually not a lot goes through your mind because sometimes it can be a lot of people are scared, but after you get in the kart for about four years then that fear starts to go away.
Lewis: Axton raced head-to-head against his friend Joey Surman, highlighting another key part of karting. Each karting event that these racers go through is another opportunity to get faster, get a new victory under their belt, but for two racers, Lily and Ryan, it’s also an opportunity to make new friends.
Ryan Barry: The karting community is amazing, everybody is super nice.
Lewis: Participants ranging from as young as 4 years old to over 50 and coming from far and wide, even north of the border, to chase down victory lane and what Surman, the current points leader, could only describe as…
Joey Surman: It’s just shock every single time.
Lewis: Kicking up dirt at the track in Weedsport, New York, David Lewis, NCC News.