Santa Maria, CA, June 27, 2009: From the front of the pack to the top of the podium. That’s how AZ Kart Werx driver Nick Firestone’s day went at Saturday’s Pro Kart Challenge.
“I started each of my two heats from the front row,” said Firestone. “It was a dream day — a dream weekend. My kart has always handled well here. I got the pole for the main event, got a good start, stayed out of trouble and get to go home with the winner’s trophy.”
Firestone went on to win the G1 Division of the Pro Kart Challenge at the Santa Maria Karting Association’s (SMKA) track on the back side of the Santa Maria Airport. In all, champions were crowned in eight divisions on this stop on the Shifter Kart circuit.
“This was a great day of racing,” said Pro Kart Challenge promoter Tom Kutscher, the CEO of SuperKarts! USA. “These are the fastest, most exciting racing Karts on earth.” Indeed, the shifter Karts are capable of hitting speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour on the straightaways.
“For me, this is just like being back in Indy cars — the pace of the races, the G forces — it’s all the same,” said Firestone. “This brings the thrill of Indy car racing to a lot of people.” The 43-year old Firestone is no stranger to either Indy car racing or the Central Coast. He spent a year on the main Indy Racing League (IRL) circuit and 3 1/2 years racing Indy Lights.
While his home is in Paradise Valley, AZ, which is just outside Phoenix where he lives with his wife Jacqui and two children — 12 year old son Peter and 7 year old daughter Annabel — he never misses the chance to race at the Santa Maria track.
“This is like a homecoming for me,” said Firestone. Firestone, is the great nephew of former Santa Barbara County Third District Supervisor Brooks Firestone. “All my cousins came out to watch me race today which is cool. Winning today’s race makes it even better.” Handling Firestone’s crew chief duties was his 14 year old cousin Matthew who lives in Solvang.
“He really did a good job out there today,” said Firestone. “My clutch blew out during a heat race and we had very little time to get it fixed. Matthew really saved me — saved the whole weekend.”
Firestone outdueled P.P. Mastro and Fernando Diaz for the victory, crossing the finish line about 2 seconds ahead of Mastro and 2 1/2 seconds before Diaz. “I’ve come up here for the Pro Kart Challenge every year. This place is special to me,” said Firestone. “It’s always a blast. This place has just such a great atmosphere. I love it up here. This could be the last race at this 51-year old track and I really wanted to win this one. This is our Fenway Park. I hope they can save it, it would be a shame to lose such a wonderful race track.”
For more information, please visit http://www.prokartchallenge.com/.
