Milwaukee Mile Partners With Badger Kart Club
by Jim Tretow and Mike Weaver

(West Allis, WI) March 25, 2004 - Grass-roots racing has found a home as the Badger Kart Club has partnered with The Milwaukee Mile to become the official karting club of the historic track.

This announcement comes on the heels of the approved retrofitting of The Milwaukee Mile infield road course, to be known as The Power Circuit.  Construction on the widening and resurfacing of The Power Circuit is scheduled to begin immediately.  The Badger Kart Club is scheduled to be the first group to compete on the new surface, a christening symbolic of this multi-year arrangement.

One of the most respected and largest kart clubs in the nation, Badger Kart Club has over 350 families involved, primarily in competition at Badger Raceway, a challenging 6/10-mile road course in Dousman, WI.  The raceway is a short 30-mile drive due west of The Milwaukee Mile on I-94.

"We are very excited in our new relationship with The Milwaukee Mile," proclaimed "Bingo" Emmons, President of Badger Kart Club.  "Roughly 75% of our members and participants are located in the greater Milwaukee area.  This will help expose our club to a great number of race enthusiasts right in our own backyard.  To get a chance to compete at such an historic facility, and in such close proximity for our club makes a great deal of sense.  We're pumped up!"
 
The Badger Kart Club, formed in 1959, has hosted and organized Enduro races annually for over 30 years, attracting in excess of 1,000 entrants from all across North America and abroad on a single event weekend.  According to Emmons, the club's goal is to host a major national WKA event as soon as 2005, as well as at least two of the club's Bridgestone Championship point series events at The Milwaukee Mile each racing season.

"The Milwaukee Mile has a unique urban setting.  We know this relationship will produce an excellent opportunity to develop the talent of drivers into our sport's future stars on The Power Circuit," stated Mark Perrone, Vice President & General Manager of The Milwaukee Mile.  "Karting is the grass roots of racing, and this will elevate the sport of racing both locally and nationally."
 
Competitive kart racing has been the foundation of many of today's top talents, including driving champions Tony Stewart, Paul Tracy, and Helio Castroneves.  The late Alan Kulwicki, a Milwaukee native and 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup champion, began his driving career with Badger Kart Club, and current Toyota Atlantic Championship standout Danica Patrick has competed at Badger Raceway.

Starting at the age of 5, drivers can compete in several classes based upon driver's age, engine, and overall weight of driver and kart.  Karting is one of the most cost-effective forms of motorsports.  To learn more about karting and the Badger Kart Club, log on to www.badgerkartclub.com. 

For more details on The Milwaukee Mile, log on to www.milwaukeemile.com.