With much certainty I can say that racing as we know it today would be very different if not for the efforts of Ed Bertram and Mike Mitchell.
Since you are reading this, there is a good chance that you have ventured out to the GSR Kartway in Clintonville, run by Bertram, or the Hi-Go Raceway in Cecil, run by Mitchell.
The racing scene in Northeast Wisconsin is littered with racers who cut their teeth racing as youngsters on the area’s dirt go-kart tracks. Take a look at the Shawano Speedway point standings. IMCA Modified points leader Marcus Yarie is a graduate of the dirt go-kart circuit as is IMCA Sport Mod point leader Lucas Lamberies.
Also, IMCA Sport Mods racers Jordan Bart, Jason Jach, Brandon Nygaard, Tristin Peebles, Weston Frenche, Brock Saunders, Austin Carter and Wyatt Block got started in go-kart racing.
Drivers Brandon Long, Josh Long, Johnny Whitman, TJ Smith, Ben Stumpf, Alex Stumpf, Brett Swedberg, Mike Schmidt, Cody Schroeder and Hunter Parsons have all become feature winning racers after their careers got started in go-karts.
It is not only dirt racing, though, that has benefited from the go-kart tracks. Pavement racers such as Ty Majeski, Reagan May, Wyatt Blashe, Ryan Hinner, Brandon Reichenberger, Sawyer Effertz, Tanner Bohlen, TJ Spierowski and Colin Refner are tearing up the asphalt nowadays.
NASCAR champion Matt Kenseth’s son, Ross, even raced on our area go-kart tracks before moving on to bigger things. The younger Kenseth now resides in South Carolina and races on the ARCA/CRA tour.
Today, go-kart racing is alive and well. Whether it is a Wednesday night in Clintonville or a Friday night in Cecil, the stars of tomorrow continue to perfect their craft.
In the coming years names such as Aaron Zegers, Adam Radtke, Will Timmers, Jeffery Teske, Brooklyn Bauer, Jayden Schmidt and Tyler Martinson may well show up in the racing results of area dirt or pavement tracks.
As a fan of racing, I tip my hat to Bertram and Mitchell for the countless hours spent preparing race tracks and recruiting the young racers needed to keep racing going strong.
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