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As is our custom, the NHKA Racing Series banquet started with an open discussion about changes to rules and procedures for the coming 2019 season.
Big Improvements for the Hill Course We’ve made arrangements with NHMS for some needed repairs and improvements to the Hill Course ahead of the first race. These will include a much smoother main straightaway, curbs for the chicane, and best of all, a brand-new crossover section between the bowl and main straight. (No more hairpin!) To raise cash to fund our share of the costs, we’re offering racers the chance to pre-register for the entire season. Those who do will get all their pit passes for free. That’s a $160 bargain! To read more about the up-grades and how taking this deal will help us make them happen, please click here.
All Tires Now Sold by NHKA All MG and LeCont tires raced in the NHKA must be purchased directly from the NHKA. All tires will be specially marked, scanned and checked. You have the option to buy them at the track, or you can advance order sets or individual tires (click here for the order form.) Or you can order tires by the case by calling Mike at 617-448-0917.
New Spec for Rain Tires Starting this season, if your class races LeConts in the dry, you’ll be racing LeConts in the wet. Same goes for classes that race MGs. Also, last season we allowed racers to register previously purchased off-spec rain tires; those exceptions have expired and those tires can no longer be raced. However, you are welcome to burn through them in practice.
TaG Jr. to Race LeCont Reds For the economy, familiarity and challenge of taming more power on a harder tire, kids coming up the 2-cycle ladder into Tag Jr. will continue racing on LeCont Reds as they did in TaG Micro and Mini.
Changes Not Mentioned at the Banquet
New Spec for Rear Wheel Widths Karts running 7.10 rear tires are now required to have rear wheels with a minimum width of 7.75”/196mm, and a maximum width of 8.3”/212mm. This size range will result in this being a non-change for anyone racing wheels made for sprint racing by any of the major chassis manufacturers/suppliers.
Plastic Rear Bumpers Now Required Karts in all classes are required to be equipped with plastic rear bumpers by the third race of the 2019 season.
TaG Mini Weight Tweak Rotax racers will now need to scale in at 265lbs, per 2019 USRMC rules.
Briggs 206 Masters Age Correction As has always been the case, and is now stated correctly in our rules, you must be 32+ to race in Briggs 206 Masters.
Canaan Gates to Close at 9pm Friday Nights We fully realize and hate that this forces a good number of you to choose between rousing the family at 4am or burning precious vacation time to sit in summer traffic. Unfortunately, the track owner worries about upsetting the neighbors. So 9pm it is.
ROK GP is Now an Option for TaG Jr., Sr. & Masters Introduced 4 years ago, it looks like the ROK line of engines will be around for a while. Although typically raced in ROK-only classes, TaG USA has included it in their multi-engine TaG rules, thus we will add the ROK GP to our TaG Jr., Sr. and Masters classes. As always, our goal is parody, so expect tweaks to the minimum weight requirements during the season.
TaG Micro Gets New Engine and Gear We have added Micro ROK 60 as an engine option. The minimum weight will be 225lbs, and you’ll have a couple gearing options: 11/82 or 10/75. Also, in the interest of parody, Micro Swift will also be limited to gearing at 11/82 or 10/75.
Kid Karts Given Option to Run Transponders Kid Karts should be all about having fun, building confidence and learning. This is why we don’t charge entry fees for that class or score their results – nor will we. However, we will now turn on the scoring system while they are on track so those who wish to run a transponder can use MyLaps/Speedhive data as a teaching tool.
World Formulas Now 100% Box Stock After a season of transition, World Formulas now must have a blue NHKA Box stock seal to race. Additionally, we have named Dave “Archie” Archambault, a long-time widely respected promotor of 4-cycle karting, to be the sole Authorized Builder and Inspector for the World Formula Engine Program. Lastly, we’ve made the stock Champion spark plug mandatory.
From here on, all the competition will be driver to driver out on track, as it should be. So as we turn the page on blue printing and all the envy and suspicion it breeds, please remember this one key fact: In the last season blue printing was legal, both World Formula champions won with sealed box stock engines.
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