The Hotbuggy Company Announce Launch of the World Rally Kart Park at Donington in 2004

11.01.2004

The 2004 Autosport Show at the NEC saw the announcement of plans for a World Rally Kart Park, located at Donington and operated by The Hotbuggy Company Limited. Supported by East Midlands Development Agency and Production Car World Rally Champion Martin Rowe, the World Rally Kart Park promises to be an excellent venue for this new, rally inspired motorsport.

According to Rowe the recent launch of the Hotbuggy, a single seat high-performance rally kart designed by leading WRC engineers Octave Engineering, has opened up a number of new possibilities for aspiring drivers and professionals alike. “The Hotbuggy is a very exciting development. Although it’s termed a ‘kart’ in reality it’s a single seat rally car in a kart package – the performance of these things gives you a real idea of what it’s like to be behind the wheel of a factory spec rally car. They’re lightweight, responsive and powerful, totally exhilarating to drive and entertaining to watch as well.”

“Attracting young people into rallying and nurturing new talent is a high priority for a number of motorsport and government bodies,” added Rowe. “I think the Hotbuggy and the planned World Rally Kart Park at Donington present some very interesting opportunities on that front.”

The World Rally Kart Park is to be developed from what is currently the off-road track at Donington and will feature a rally-style stage laid out by world renowned track designer Bill Gwynne. Donington Park has a reputation for offering some of the best track day and corporate hospitality packages in the UK, and from early 2004 Hotbuggy driving sessions will be available as part of their programme.

Commenting on the new addition to their facilities, Donington Park operations manager Vaughan Edwards said, “This is a great opportunity for us to expand our programme of events at Donington. We’re very excited to see rally karting develop as a world class sport that the public can participate in without having to spend many thousands of pounds.”

Other planned events for the World Rally Kart Park calendar include a special fixed-formula championship series organised by The Hotbuggy Company, consisting of 8 open rounds and culminating in a flood-lit grand finale in the autumn.

According to Paul Williams from The Hotbuggy Company, the idea of the World Rally Kart Park at Donington came about as a result of last year’s Day of Champions, the annual fund raising event organised by motorcycle charity Riders for Health.

“We put together a Celebrity Hotbuggy Challenge using the off-road area here,” said Williams. “We had Kenny Roberts, Alistair McRae, Steve Parrish, Niall McKenzie and Jim Moodie, who were all there to support RfH, taking it in turns to race against the clock in a Hotbuggy – it turned out to be a lot of fun for them and the crowd! That event sparked off some ideas for us and led to our setting up the World Rally Kart Park as a permanent venue. The facilities at Donington are excellent and the off-road area has loads of potential for developing the profile of rally karting as a serious motorsport activity.”

This year’s Riders for Health Day of Champions event is to be held on Thursday 22nd July 2004 and will include the renamed World Rally Kart Challenge, featuring an all-star line up of motorsport celebrities helping to raise money for RfH’s vital transport programme in Africa.

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For further information, visit www.hotbuggy.com.