We began racing in the early summer of 1985 and continued to promote the track for several years. Then we made the mistake of believing that we had "done it" and that things would continue to move forward - with lots of entries at every race. Well, guess what? We were wrong and entries fell off continuously after that. Some of the original members had moved on and the new members never saw the work that had gone into making CKRA so successful and would need to be continued if the club was to remain a success.

In the mid 90's, the dragstrip changed hands and the club was eliminated. Kart races were still being run at Thompson but classes were changed, rules not enforced and at one point the new owner was considering putting in a dirt oval for sprint cars where the kart track was located. Fortunately, he put in a brand new kart track just three years ago that is basically a copy of the original track, just wider all the way around. There is nothing like running a kart on super smooth, fresh asphalt. Still, the facility continued to struggle. The races were being held on Friday nights, unlike most sprint tracks, and because of the forty minute drive for most people, that limited the number of participants able to run at Thompson.

Now, here's where it gets better. After several years of being absent from karting, during which I've been racing a formula car with SCCA, my son and I started taking a hard look into Thompson. My son is eight now and we wanted him to race at the best facility and the most convenient track available. While looking into Thompson, we realized that they needed help.

The gentleman that was going to run the kart track had no experience with kart racing or with promoting a racing event, so I called him up and got involved. Class structures and a race schedule were generated with the help of other karters. Then, after sharing our vision of a club racing facility and how we would like to see karting promoted in Northeastern Ohio, the track manager offered us the opportunity to lease the kart track facility and to run it as a club. After a few phone calls we put together a core group of enthusiasts, many from the original club, and reformed CKRA. We are currently on the ground floor, our goal being to get people involved with the new club. Our officers and trustees have put together a mission statement with a focus on creating the best kart racing facility in Ohio with strong core values for the betterment of our sport. We need good sponsorship support and are currently pursuing leads. We also need a strong volunteer system and hope that you, the karters, will help us with this.

We qualify as a "Master Track" with WKA and are putting together the things that we need - from flags to a PA system to concession equipment. Plus, we need to pay part of the lease up front, so there is a financial obstacle that we need to overcome, but with a club like ours, I'm sure that people will rise to the challenge and we are looking forward to our first race. One thing that is essential is getting as many members involved as possible while respecting the opinions of all. Our first priority -- THE KARTERS!