This is Mark Loughren. Great Video. My dad and I traveling to Kart tracks together is the greatest memories and bonding experience a son can have with his father. Created 4 Duffy wins and 1 WKA national win. But all the time that was spent with my father while Kart Racing all over this great country of ours together is truly the biggest win of all time. Mark
We're so happy you enjoyed the video and that it helps being back such great memories. It's been so great hearing how much karting has meant to people.
My name is John Marble. My mother was Nancy Borelli (Lou Borelli's daughter). Some of this history is a bit abbreviated. Art and Louis actually built 8 carts of the original design. One can still be found in a museum in England. Originally, they would take their carts to the Hollywood Bowl parking lot, and race them their. Pamona was quite a bit later. Most of the earliest development of Enduro cart racing occurred at Willow Springs raceway. The track at Pamona was a parking lot (not permanent), and, therefore, not available except during scheduled races. The original "Go-Kart" was originally named the "Carreta", as Art and Louis were first generation Italian Americans. Carreta became a brand and Art took the name to Washington where he manufactured the Carreta brand. He was never really involved in the racing side of the business. Louis went on to be the mechanic for many National Champions and was still at the track well into his 70's. My family all raced, my mother, my Uncle, My father all drove Louis tuned and refined engines on Carrettas. When Louis had a phenomenal run of Stock National Championships, it was with Kathy Hartman as the driver. Not long after they named the mechanics award for the mechanic of the National Championship winning Kart, the Lou Borelli award. If anybody is interested in more about the history of Karting. I have pictures and stories from the beginning of Karting.
Louis lived on the corner of Baxter St and Avon St in the Echo Park hills of Elysian Heights. I lived on Avon. My older brother worked at Lous shop on Echo Park Ave.
Thank you for your excellent research and presentation. My father and I raced karts at Monza Raceway, in Gardena California starting in 1961. Art Ingel's and Lou Borelli were regulars there and my dad raced their Caretta brand kart for nearly a decade. We started out with a home made kart but soon switched to Go Kart 800 with a Mc Culloch Mc5. Art's shop was his two car garage at his home in Echo Park Los Angeles. My dad and I went to visit him there when I was 15. At 5:30 in your video the guy in the white overalls is Chuck Sterns and his engine is a Yamaha twin cylinder 250. The other guy with the Go Kart logo is Duffy Livingston, founder of Go Kart company and he's got a 250cc Koenig power plant. They're racing here at the Go Kart Company's track in Azuza, California during the 1962 National Championship. They put on a battle that had everyone in the grandstands standing up as they traded positions on nearly every corner. It was some of the best racing I've ever witnessed. Think of Valentino Rossi vs G. Lorenzo, on four wheels instead of two. Sterns was a Monza regular and his rear tires literally smoked. He had a muffler shop so his kart featured twin vertical, flared exhaust pipes that belched smoke and fire. No one ran mufflers in those days so the screaming two stokes were LOUD! Steve Mc Queen as raced at Monza and drove to the track in a very unpretentious Ford station wagon. I was standing there, star-struck in the pit lane one afternoon and he turned toward me and said, "Better watch out in that pit lane there!". I sheepishly moved my butt to safety. I quit racing when I turned 16 because I got my drivers license and took up surfing. My dad was such a hard boiled racer it wasn't as fun being with him as it was being at the beach with my buddies. Today I live in the Thai jungle and am building experimental full body, prototype shifter karts with Yamaha water cooled, two stoke engines and 6 speed gear boxes. Thanks again for bringing the history of this great sport to light. My kart is called the GXP-74. AKA Grit's Experimental Prototype at age 74. Best wishes, Grit.
Great story 👍😎🏁 my dad raced in S.Calif (riverside) 1959-62 I was only 4 or 5 yrs old.. but I remember it. Then we moved to Oregon. I started racing in 83, dirt and Sprint. Then I went to a Road Race at Portland.... I loved it. I raced 125 shifter for about 10yrs. 👍😎🏁
That's amazing! I'm so glad you enjoyed the video and thank you so much for sharing your personal history. We love those kind of stories! It sounds like you're working on some really interesting stuff now, too.
Ran karts back in the late 60's early 70's. Started with a used Fox kart and a West Bend 820 out of the box. Moved to a Margay in 70 with twin Mc 91B's I bought from Diz Dismore out of Greenfield, Indiana. Watched his son, Mark progress from karts to Indy cars.
We appreciate the feedback. We have a dirt oval kart team competing in Virginia and some other dirt kart drivers we support through our development program. We're working on some dirt-specific videos for the future.
K & P (BUG) go karts Founder Tom Pirson ( Azusa ca.) were in the ground breaking years of Karting ,,his wife Faey "lady bug" Pirson a fast kart racer. raced karts into her 80s in the vintage class at Adam's raceway Riverside ca. It's been there since the 60s..and still owned by the same family..
Great history! The son and I just watched. All this year 2023 our 5 year old has hit podium all but one race with a big wreck on the first lap. Old 99 or 2000 Italkart bambino/kid kart. Oldest one on the grid!
Jason I enj oyed your article. I love the shirt you have on the young lady on your shirt is my niece #9 Kylea New thanks for the picture of her in her kart. I love the way you explain the history.
I race the west bend / McCoullhg / Clinton e 65 Motor. Putnex frame. My two sons ran Briggs engine way back years ago In GA / AL / N C and SC we when on to race stock cars we all are retired miss both have two grand sons that race karts and now racing at a local dirt track now hobby division thanks for the video love it
@@jasoncamps77 Great work on this documentary. I would love to see one on how Karting evolved in the U.S. and how all the manufacturers took off i.e. Rupp, Manco etc. Coverage of like how Sears (made by Manco) sold Go Karts, Yard Karts etc through the catalog. It is sad that we had so many kart manufacturers in the U.S. and they are all gone now. What a great hobby as a kid and now older adult as I am restoring a Manco American Express Kart. All the best to you.
I have been collecting and fixing a couple miscellaneous frames to do some back yard racing with my family, I live on one acre so finding a spot for a track shouldn't be too difficult.
My son is so wanting to join this sport, its all he talks about. He messaged you on Twitter. Thanks for the video. 👍 and any help or advice you can give.
@@jasoncamps77 We both thank you so very much. It's people like you who make all the difference in the world to someone with the heart and dream of becoming a racer. Dog will be making a "shout out vidoe for you" soon. Also, what should one do 1st to get into this sport. Maybe you could make a video on this subject. What to do 1st to get in go karting, and next (so on) ty.
I was drawing Star Wars X-wing fighter inspired cross kart designs in the early eighties with cockpits like top fuel Hydo drag boats. Cockpit, motorcycle engine in back, 4 arms/shocks & tires. I wish I could have afforded to build what I had dreamt... supportive environment I had not. Sure would have been nice to have YT and patrons back then, eh? Public schools didn't teach you how to do business proposals for funding, smh.
IKF(International Kart Federation) was the National sanctioning body in the heyday of kart racing. I started racing karts in 1967. I remember having something like 110 entries in "one class"(American Reed Senior) at the IKF Enduro Grand Nationals at IRP back in the 70's. WKA, Briggs and Stratton, cheating and big money ruined karting in the US.
I ran the 1970 enduro Nationals at IRP. Had a Red Devil enduro with a Komet K88, in Stock Junior class. Ran against Ricky Rudd and Mark Dismore, both before they went on to professional racing.
Always happy to receive constructive input or corrections. We do try to verify our information with multiple sources when possible. If you have additional information, please share it for others in the comments.
"But before we start, if you like this video..." No, that's not how it works. If you haven't started I can't know whether I'm gonna like the video or not. Making a bad first impression here
We appreciate the comment. For clarification, we mean that if you like it, after watching, we'd appreciate if you liked and subscribed. Sorry if that wasn't clear. We hope you did like it, regardless, and if not, we'll try to keep making better and better videos in the future.
@@jasoncamps77 Well, that's something you should say AFTER you actually present your content. The video was alright, although it was a bit confusing when you said one date but show a picture with a different day on the screen. The music choice could've been better as well. To be fair, it IS the best karting history video on youtube, so I'll take what I can get
I do appreciate your feedback. We are limited to the visual and audio content due to licensing restrictions, but I'm glad you still enjoyed the content.
