Go-kart fans in the Royal City will soon have something to cheer about when the G-Zero Championship Racing Series comes to town.
The three-day event is set to take place June 10 to 12 on Columbia Street and will feature kart races around downtown. The hook? The karts are zero-emission electric vehicles.
The go karts are powered by battery electric engines that are comparable in power to fossil fueled engines. They can even reach speeds of 140 kilometres an hour, according to Dan Spalding, spokesperson for G-Zero Championship Race Series.
“We tune it down a little tiny bit on that particular course because there is a lot of hill climb and also then coming back down the hill. So we’ve focused on having it more aimed at acceleration and really, really skillful challenging corners,” Spalding said.
“We’ll have drivers driving on the streets of New Westminster, like on Columbia Street and Sixth and Eighth. They’ll be going up to speeds of over 100 km/h,” he added.
Last weekend, New West residents had a chance to check out the electric go-karts when the G-Zero crew stopped by with a few of their vehicles. The public will have another chance to check out the electric karts during the June race event. Plus there will be food vendors, merchandise and other activities for people to check out, Spalding said.
“We’re trying to bring a pure form of motor sports that’s also guilt free to the Metro Vancouver region,” he said.
For more information on the G-Zero championship racing series, check out www.gzeroracing.ca.
The event info is expected to be posted online in the coming weeks.
