February 02, 2010
Team odkarts.com takes on Fontana for the Challenge of the Americas
Overdrive Motorsports’ Team odkarts.com preps for the second race of the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas at Fontana, California’s Calspeed circuit.
On the heels of Nascar’s Fontana event the four Team odkarts.com/PCR drivers look to copy Jimmy Johnson’s first win of the year, at the same facility.
With 2 senior drivers firmly in the top 10 in championship points team manager Joey Guyon is focused for this race “We came on strong in race #1 with a 4th and 10th place in Sr Max last month, with our additional research and development leading up to Fontana we will contend for the win”
The Junior division will also 2 of the yellow machines in action, “being a semi-temporary circuit, having 2 junior drivers will help us achieve the ideal setup even quicker. Emily (Maddison) did a great job last race but got pinched off a few times. With the addition of Austin (King) our roster is complete”, commented Guyon from the Calgary, Alberta headquarters.
Overdrive Motorsports is your first choice for Rotax Max engine tuning and can be reached by calling Monday to Friday 9-5 GMT at (403) 270-0160 and anytime by e-mail info@overdrivekarts.com
February 02, 2010
odkarts.com in Phoenix for Gatorz round #1
The storms cleared and the track was dry for the first round of the 2010 Challenge of the Americas presented by Gatorz eyewear.
Friday practice saw PCR’s Tyler Wheeler at the top of the time charts in Rotax Senior. Fellow odkarts.com team mate Bobby Wallace slotted into 6th place. Emily Maddison was the team’s lone junior pilot as Austin King focused on school exams and will re-join the team for round # 2 in Fontana.
The odkarts.com Sr Max pilots qualified 2nd and 9th with Wheeler leading the way. The pre-final was a hard fought battle as Wheeler finished 5th and Wallace was not classified because he was ½ pound underweight at the scales. Both drivers were on a charge in the Final as Wallace made the best of his 25th position start for an amazing 9th place result. Wheeler advanced to 3rd mid race but battled with Quebec’s Phillip Gelinas, and finished 4th.
Emily Maddison started the day strong in JR Max with a 5th in qualifying. Contact would plague the talented Calgarian and she would come home with results of 8th and 13th.
Sunday would be a slightly different story and the senior duo started out strong again timing in 4th and 15th during warm-up. Just 0.4 and 0.5 seconds off of pole sitter Mason Marotta Wheeler would start the heats in strong fashion but made contact with Brendan Phinny while after having passed him for 8th place and falling back to 18th.. The prefinal was eventful for Wallace finishing 10th. On lap 1 of the final Wallace advanced to 5th, and some contact followed for a final result of 13th for Bobby Wallace and 14th for Wheeler after an 18th place start, later diagnosed with a low voltage issue as power would drop as the races went on and the power supply drained
Emily Maddison started the day with a new machine and knew she could have good pace if she avoided carnage. The junior class kept status quo and she was once again collected in wrecks for results of 11th in both the prefinal and final.
Team odkarts.com will be off to Fontana for round #2 at the end of February. The team will look to regain its form with some pre-event testing.
November 11, 2009
Team Odkarts.com tackles Las Vegas
From November 17-22 the Overdrive Motorsports PCR team invaded Las Vegas with 4 Calgary based drivers looking to challenge the World’s best at the 13th annual SKUSA Supernationals.
Coming off a successful first season in the Senior ranks, Tyler Wheeler was entered in the stacked KF2 class taking on a star-studded field of international competitors. After spending the practice days getting acclimatized to his KF2 power plant, Wheeler managed to qualify his PCR 10th in the field of 31 karts. In the heats, he was twice the victim of a first lap incident which resulted in him starting the final in the 21st position. Once again, Wheeler was on the receiving end of contact, putting him at the back of the field as they completed lap 1. From there he put his head down and delivered an impressive drive to 16th position.
Junior drivers Emily Maddison and Austin King were both making their first trips to the Supernationals, while at the same time adjusting to the unfamiliar Leopard motor used in the TagJr class. In the field of 65, Maddison and King both qualified just inside the top 50 as they came to grips with the tricky parking lot circuit. Both drivers knew they would have their work cut out for them to get into the top 34 and transfer directly to the main. Maddison had an impressive run to 15th in her third heat, however she would still have to start 12th in the Last Chance race where only the top 6 would transfer to the main. King on the other hand would have a disastrous run of bad luck, ending up with two DNF’s, and would have to start the LCQ from 28th place.
In the LCQ the PCR drivers would show their best speed of the weekend, with Maddison getting inside the top 6 at several points as she was part of an intense battle for the final transfer spot. In the end she would end up 7th, missing the main by one heartbreaking position. King would manage to improve a massive 14 positions in the 12 lap race, setting times fast enough to run in the top 6, however his 28th place starting position proved to be too much of a handicap and he was also left on the outside looking in.
S3 Driver Jake Thompson headed to Vegas looking to run up front, but like his teammates he was running in an unfamiliar class. After qualifying mid pack, Thompson ran well in his heats finishing 10th in heat 1 and 12th in heat 3. A DNF due to a broken ground wire on the coil in the second heat pushed him further back although still transferring to the “A” main. On Sunday morning, they were finally able to put everything together and showed the potential of the PCR chassis by clocking in 7th during final warm-up. However, any hopes of a charge through the field were dashed by a first lap incident. A fast push start after the crash got him get back in the race, albeit half a lap behind. Despite the gap caused by the first lap incident, he continued on to bring home the kart in 29th position.
In the end Team Overdrive was able to draw lots of positives from their first trip to the Supernationals, and everyone is already excited about a return trip in 2010. Team manager Joey Guyon summed up the weekend by saying “The Supernats was a great experience. I am fortunate to be surrounded by such a great crew of drivers and mechanics. We showed up well prepared and will build off this year’s experience to make sure these drivers are competing in the top 10 next season”.
August 08, 2009
WCC Final event
With a host of competitors throughout almost every class, Overdrive Motorsports had great success throughout the 2009 Western Canadian Championships including this past weekend’s final event at Varsity Speed Park in Calgary, Alberta. Scoring multiple podiums and race wins almost every weekend, the PCR drivers could be seen consistently at the front of the pack.
Racing under the Overdrive Motorsports banner in the Rotax Senior class was hot shoe Tyler Wheeler and the always fast Bobby Wallace. The duo would share setups and help each other as much as possible as they both ran inside the top five throughout the weekend. Scoring the best results of the weekend was Wheeler, as he managed to score a third place result on Saturday and backed it up with a solid fourth place finish on Sunday.
Wallace would show the speed to run with the leaders and would claim a third place result in Saturday’s prefinal before coming home sixth in the main event. Sunday would prove to be a little tougher for Wallace as an opening lap incident set him scurrying through the infield as he plummeted down the running order. Closing the first lap of the 16 lap main event in 19th, Wallace would have his work cut out for him but managed to battle all the way back to a seventh place result.
Wheeler would do double duty on Sunday only as a race day morning decision saw him enter the DD2 division. With help from already crowned champion Kyle Stevens, Wheeler went on to sweep the day taking the pole position, heat race win and main event victory.
Overdrive Motorsports would have four entries in the Rotax Junior division as Emily Maddison, Austin King as well as Privateers Alex Glysen and JR MacNeil would all battle for the win. The young female would score the best result of the quartet with a second place finish on Saturday but an opening lap incident on Sunday took her out of contention early. Austin King would score two top five results including a podium on Sunday and garner enough points to take the third position in the series title chase. Glysen and MacNeil would both score consistent finishes as both drivers came home with fifth and sixth place finishes.
Parker Thompson and Gianfranco Sartor were Overdrive’s lone two entries in the Rotax Mini Max class, but between the two of them scored two victories and four podium results through the weekend. Taking home the win on Saturday was Sartor while Thompson chased him throughout the main event to come home second. On Sunday, the fierce competitors but great friends switched roles as Thompson took the win just ahead of Sartor.
“The WCC program has been great for the whole Overdrive Motorsports team,” stated Owner and Team Manager Joey Guyon. “All the guys from the young kids to the senior level drivers did a great job and I couldn’t be more excited about the future for our team, Overdrive Motorsports and the series.”
While PCR pilots were running upfront in North America, across the pond at the European Championships, Finnish driver Simo Puhakka was competing in the Super KF class. The Championship Karting International race winner scored two third place results as he battled with some of the world’s best factory drivers.
February 02, 2009
Gatorz Round #2 - Fontana
The California Speedway in Fontana, California held round #2 of the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas series from February 27 to March 1. Team odkarts.com was in full force again and walked away with 3 top five finishes in the two most important categories – Rotax Junior and Rotax Senior (Rotax International). After a solid day of Friday practice, race setups were finalized and all machines were ready for Saturday morning qualifying. The Senior Max Duo of Tyler Wheeler and Jake Thompson qualified 7th and 9th respectively in the stacked field of drivers. In the pre-final Thompson gained a spot, moving into 8th position with Wheeler in tow finishing 9th. The main event was a chess match and after a few adjustments on the chassis and gearing, both drivers were involved in great battles with many passes for position. In the end Thompson advanced to finish in 5th place with Wheeler finishing in 8th position aboard his MXK8 chassis. An evening of kart prep was necessary prior to Sunday as the parking lot circuit changed dramatically with increasing grip levels on the tarmac. Qualifying saw Thompson take 9th position in qualifying and Wheeler in 13th. A great start and clean racing would see the odkarts.com duo finish 7th and 9th in the heat race. Both karts were very strong at the end of the race and some minor changes were made to have the karts come in early on in the Final. In the opening stages of the race Wheeler and Thompson charged to the front and were among the fastest machines on track. As Wheeler made his way through the pack, he was collected by Michael Self and had to retire with a broken radiator while in 6th position. This left Thompson, driving his PCR Advance chassis to move up through the grid. By lap 5, Thompson was in fourth position and was all over Garrison Masters for 3rd spot. A bump and run by Joey Collins moved Thompson back to 7th on lap five. With 20 laps remaining the odkarts.com pilot put his head down making up a few meters per lap on the tight field. On lap 22 of the race, Thompson was once again all over Masters and made his move to take a 5th place finish in Sunday’s main event. Leading the way in Rotax Junior for the odkarts.com team was Dexter Hucal aboard his MXK8 machine. On Saturday Hucal qualified in 7th position. Some minor adjustments were made to the machine and Dexter advanced to 6th place in the pre-final. In the main Hucal earned a solid 5th place finish after some great battles with Starrantino. Tuner Riley Will went to work on Hucal’s #81 kart trying an alternative setup for Sundays qualifying session and it paid off. Hucal set his fast lap immediately and held the top spot until Orcic and Delao squeezed past, giving Dexter the inside of the second row for the start, beside Taylor Miinch. The heat race was a battle and Hucal finished 5th. Dexter got a good start in the Final and moved into 4th position on lap three. On lap 19 Starrantino made his move and passed Hucal for fourth place – just one lap later Hucal struck back and took the spot away, holding it until the last lap when the duo of Miinch and Starrantino pushed Hucal back to 6th in corner 1. Also representing odkarts.com Emily Maddison showed great improvement and was in the top 10 for much of Sunday’s racing. After a great 11th place finish on Saturday she was the victim of a few bump and runs but kept focused and finished 14th in the main. Austin King was running well in his second Gatorz event and finished 16th on Saturday and 15th on Sunday. Running in Minimax was team odkarts.com pilot Parker Thompson. It was a weekend of learning on the tricky parking lot track at Calspeed for the pilot with guidance from his driving coach Joey Guyon. The odkarts.com Team will race next at round 3 of the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas on March 27th to March 30th at the famous Willow Springs Kart track.
January 01, 2009
Gatorz Round #1 - Phoenix
Team Odkarts.com/PCR headed to Phoenix for Round 1 of the Gatorz Challenge of the America’s held at the PKRA circuit.
Familiar faces were ready for action, lead by Minimax driver Parker Thompson. Entering his second weekend of Minimax competition Parker was confident and eager to learn. With a Friday practice under his belt, he used Saturday to get comfortable with the higher speed wheel to wheel racing of these machines. Sunday morning Parker qualified 2nd and was excited for a great pre-final. Off the start he filed into 3rd place and followed the leaders waiting for an opportunity. A bump-and-run by one of his competitors forced Parker off track and he went on to finish in 12th position. Starting the final Parker knew he had nothing to lose. He went to work immediately and advanced spot by spot, ending with a terrific 6th place result.
In Rotax Junior, Dexter Hucal lead the way for team Odkarts.com/PCR along with drivers Emily Maddison and Austin King. Hucal was on point early and was in the top 5 on Friday’s time sheets. Saturday morning Dexter qualified as the top Canadian in 3rd position. A solid pre-main would set him up for a strong run in the final. After a race long battle with Miinch, Starantino, Pagano and Orcic, Hucal was in 3rd position with two laps to go. A small error forced him off track coming onto the straight and Dexter re-grouped to finish 6th. On Sunday the field tightened up and Dexter qualified 8th. A solid drive in the pre-final would see Dexter start the main in 4th position. His hopes would end on the first corner when he was sent off track after being collected in an incident with Dakota Dickerson and Colby Yardley. He would re-join and climbed back for a 9th place finish.
Travelling to his first Gatorz event, Austin King had a superb weekend. He started with a 16th place in Saturday qualifying and finished 14th in the Pre-final and 13th in the Main. Austin qualified 12th on Sunday morning, he finished 15th in the heat and struggling with sore ribs placed 17th in the Final.
Emily Maddison did her best at the challenging PKRA track and Saturday would see her qualify 17th, finished 16th in the heat, and 18th in the final. Sunday Emily improved to qualify in 16th place, 14th in the pre-final and after some contact finished 18th in the final.
Odkarts.com Rotax Sr Driver Jake Thompson started 12th in Saturday’s pre-final, and moved up to 8th position after 15 laps. A good start in the main and some solid passes would allow Jake to climb into 4th position, only to be taken out when the duel heated up with Michael Self. With Saturday’s DNF behind him, Thompson qualified in 7th position on Sunday. A hard-fought pre-final got Jake into a 6th on the grid for the main event. By lap 18, Jake was in 5th position and was on the tail of Nakeel and Wimsett’s battle for 3rd. Things got tight in the fast banked corner at the end of the straight and Jake got the worst of it suffering another DNF due to accident.
Fresh off a 15th place finish at the Rotax Grand Finals in LaConca, Italy Tyler Wheeler’s first run as a Rotax Sr pilot was promising on Saturday as he qualified 14th in the tight grid. The pre-final was full of contact and Tyler finished 20th. Consistency and smart driving let Tyler claw his way back for a 12th place finish in the final on Saturday. A few setup changes were made and Tyler qualified in 18th position. In the prefinal Tyler advanced to 16th place and in the final he finished in 15th position.
The Odkarts.com/PCR team heads to Los Angeles for the next round of the Gatorz series on February 27th.
May 05, 2008
ROK Cup Round #1 - Chilliwack
4 drivers represented Overdrive Motorsports/PCR at Round 1 of the Western Canadian ROK CUP, held at the CARTBC circuit in Chilliwack, British Columbia. In the Junior category, drivers Tyler Wheeler and Dexter Hucal were primed for competition after a great winter of racing at the Gatorz Challenge of the Americas. In Senior, they were joined by pilots Joey Guyon and Sean Macdonell – currently the 6th ranked Rotax Sr. Pilot in North America.
Sunday morning greeted the racers with warm skies and first up was Final 1 for ROK Junior. Wheeler secured a close win over Marcus Brodie, while Hucal showed patience, moving up to a 3rd place finishing position.
The second final for ROK Junior was much the same as Wheeler pulled away for a comfortable 2.5 second victory while Hucal had a great 3rd place finish after spending much of the race in 2nd. Overall ROK Junior Points show the PCR drivers of Tyler Wheeler and Dexter Hucal in 1st and 3rd positions respectively.
In Final 1 for ROK Senior, Macdonell followed Hucal’s strategy and used his patience to move up to a 2nd place finishing position, setting himself up for a front row starting position in Final 2. Starting in 22nd in the final row due to issues in qualifying, Guyon had an exciting race to finish in 10th position.
Team Overdrive made a few adjustments to their karts for the Senior Final 2. When the Green flag waived, Macdonell leaped ahead of Eddy Tinini and commenced their race long battle for 1st position. They dueled for 18 laps and Macdonell finished 2nd – a great achievement against such an experience racer. Guyon knew he had to make some moves early to make the podium and set up his kart appropriately and managed a 9th position result.
The overall ROK Senior points have Sean Macdonell in 2nd position and Joey Guyon in 9th position.