LAS VEGAS - Nov. 12-15, 2003

"A Dream Comes to Life"

The TaG USA Festival event in Las Vegas from November 12 to the 15th was a major turning point toward fulfilling Tom Argy's dreams for karting. Sadly, Tom did not live to witness what will prove to be the most successful racing series in karting.

To Tom Argy Jr.

LAS VEGAS, NV - In 1956 Las Vegas was a rough and tumble dusty little town in Southern Nevada. Gambling, cheating and other illicit operations were the devil's daily fare. The New Gomorra was linked to reality via route 15.

At the other end of route 15 in Southern California, rested the peaceful little community of Glendale. There, a craftsman named Art Ingels lived and worked for Frank Kurtis the Indy Roadster builder of the time. One day, probably over lunch, Art's eyes fell on some scraps of tubing. He realized the crew needed a little vehicle to transport tires and to circulate around the pits. A call to some friends and Art located some surplus West Bend lawn-mower engines. The first ...well it had no name yet...was born. The practicality of the little carts was soon forgotten. The early races took place on the parking lot of the Rose Bowl in Pasadena California, and as they say "the rest is history".

In those early days Las Vegas was already gaining legitimacy. "Go-Karters", however, were garnering a reputation of hooligans. The races of the heyday of karting were held on private parking lots and when the authorities unceremoniously booted our forefathers off their properties they simply moved to another unauthorized location.

Well, things change. Vegas is now a prime resort enjoyed by millions each year. Karting has gained the moniker of the most popular form of motorsport in the world - and we still race on parking lots.

Under the reflection of the Rio hotel and casino in Las Vegas, basked the TAG USA Festival race where the mainstay of karting progress was displayed for all to witness. The TAG (Touch and Go) engines are all equipped with a user-friendly electric on-board starter. This may sound like a bizarre rationale for forming a class, much less an international association like TAG USA. ("What do you run?". "I run a four brush Hitachi starter with a twelve-volt Exide battery"). It turns out that the new engines equipped with electric starters are all fairly equal in power. Those which produce more power are handicapped with additional weight, and some are even limited in RPM.

The class is based mainly on two-stroke engines such as the Rotax, Sonik, BM, Parilla and ROK. In 2006 all the championships running under the CIK (the karting division of the FIA) banner must use four-strokes. Karting is the last form of motorsport which still uses predominantly two-strokes. A Swiss company, Team Biland Kart Power, headed by Rolf Biland a seven-time world side-car racing champion, manufactures a new 250cc four-stroke purposely built for karting to compete within the TAG and CIK rules.

At the Rio the new Bilands proved very competitive. Fresh from a win at the Rock Island Grand Prix in the hands of Canadian stand-out Matt Champagne the new 250s were the engines to beat. Matt and his Hurricane Racing crew went on to fifth place, the third Biland in the seniors' class.

The Bilands have the added advantage of a new form of oiling system in karting. The four strokes of yore did not use pressurized oil systems. The Briggs Raptors and the new Animals and World Formulas for example use a "splash oiling system" where the crankshaft splashes up oil to the bearings and the cylinder wall. The Biland uses a "dry sump" oiling system like those used on Indy Cars, Formula Ones and Winston Cup...hummm, NASCAR Nextel Cup cars, where the oil is kept in a separate tank and a pump siphons the oil out of the crankcase. The advantage is the engine can turn higher RPM safely and the system improves power output.

New-age political and economic dynamics have caused many countries to adopt a blanket ban on two-strokes. In the gentler, kinder environment the world order seeks, noise has also prompted concerns from rule makers. Due to their naturally "high-strung" genetics the two-stroke technology has become unreachable for many newcomers, in all forms of motorsports. By nature the two-stroke engine makes the bulk of its power at high engine speeds. This subjects the engines to considerable wear and tear, which can be quite costly.

So it is for good reason that the CIK (Commite International de Karting is a division of the FIA which governs most auto racing associations world-wide) will only recognize four-stroke technology in the 2006 World karting Championship. In the US, Briggs & Stratton is now producing two new over-head valve engines, the Animal with pull starter, and the "World Formula" which sports an on-board electric starter. These power plants are 200ccs and their low cost makes them an affordable alternative to the newcomer as well as the seasoned karter.

The Biland SA250 was designed purposely to fit under the new CIK rules. The new rules mandate a one or two cylinder construction, maximum of four valves. Other elements such as carburetor size and engine speed limits are also controlled.

The engines can be raced in the TAG USA© events, and many tracks and promoters are developing the Four-Stroke American Challenge© and Amerikart© for Briggs & Stratton and Biland engines.

TAG, you're it.

SIDEBAR
Features and benefits of the new four-stroke engines:
Dry sump oiling...............Offers more reliability and higher engine speeds
Over head camshafts.....More power with increased reliability, quieter
Electric starters................Easy starting and eliminates an assistant
Four-strokes....................Quieter, more durable, better economy, less tuning

The basic four-stroke design offers more reliable torque than do the two-strokes. The engines come race ready and they can be sealed. Bilands are equipped with the starter, battery, wiring etc. The initial higher cost of some of the engines is well balanced with the reduced maintenance, unnecessary blueprinting and added reliability. The TAG USA events run under a pocketbook friendly tire rule.

For event and membership information or sponsorship opportunities, contact:
DAVE LARSON @ 1-866-489-DAVE(3283) or by E-mail !

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January 1, 2005 - http://www.tagracing.net/news/0012104.html