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Superkarts! USA
| History of the Organization |
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In the world of American kart racing, Superkarts! USA is the outright leader in the shifterkart category and a dedicated supporter of TaG sprint competition, presenting both regional and national events that all lead up to the program’s crown jewel, the annual SuperNationals. As a privately-owned karting organization that is steadily expanding its reach, SKUSA is certainly stretching out its Southern California headquarters. The program now boasts five regional karting series situated in the Western half of the country, running two series in California (North and South), one in the central states of Missouri, Indiana and Wisconsin, one in Hawaii and, lastly, it’s newest region in Colorado. The organization will also be launching a new national series in 2010 – the SKUSA Pro Tour – with the debut of the SpringNationals in April and the SummerNationals in July. This pro series will look to bring the top drivers from all of SKUSA’s regions together in head-to-head competition. The SKUSA SuperNationals – the biggest and most prestigious karting event in North America – is the final stop on the Pro Tour and is held in Las Vegas every November, playing host to the best drivers from all over the world. SKUSA is owned by Tom and Patti Kutscher, but got its start on the East Coast in the mid 1990s. Now in its 17th year of existence, SKUSA was started in 1994 by motorsports announcer Ken Getchell, who was a big fan of the high-powered shifter karts that were being introduced to the American motorsports community. The program was then passed into the hands of Don Janowski, who nurtured the concept from a Midwest-based regional series into a larger entity before bringing Jim Murley on-board to take it to the next level. Murley’s energy and passion fueled the launch of a national ProMoto Tour in 1999 and the ongoing development of the SuperNationals, which debuted in 1997. The Kutschers took the reigns of Superkarts! USA in 2006 at a time when the organization needed new blood and an injection of enthusiasm, and Tom Kutscher was the perfect fit. Following Tom’s passionate support of the SKUSA ProMoto Tour in the late 90s and early 00s, where he was one of the top 125cc Masters drivers in the country, his love of the sport motivated him into kart shop ownership, and his LA-based Extreme Karting quickly became a leader on the track, winning the 2003 Shifter Kart Illustrated Team of the Year award. When he came to the realization that his shop needed a stronger series in which to run, Kutscher stepped up and launched his own program that would provide what his customers were truly looking for. The result was the SoCal-based ProKart Challenge, which quickly became the biggest shifterkart series in the region. When the opportunity to acquire SKUSA was presented to him in ’06, he made the leap to maintain the status of the program that was so much a part of his karting experience. With an intimate knowledge of the needs of both the racer and the business of karting – thanks to his past experiences – Kutscher has put together a program that gives the community exactly what it has been looking for. SKUSA is dedicated to customer service and providing an unparalleled experience at the race track. Partnered with the organizational expertise of his wife Patti, Tom’s vision of the future will continue SKUSA’s growth into a new decade, all the while mirroring the same zeal for karting that Getchell displayed back in 1994 when SKUSA dropped the clutch and grabbed first gear. |