Marysville CA. Outlaw Kart Racing is becoming a family affair, and Marysville Raceway Park plans to fuel the need for a local track by holding races on Friday nights throughout the spring and summer.

The speedway just south of Marysville on Simpson Lane planned to build a kart track last season, but never-ending rains in March and early April forced promoters to quash the idea.

Newly appointed promoter Paul Hawes got the ball rolling on the project when he took over on Jan. 1, and said a track is in place and interest is high for the event. Hawes said his son, Jeremy Hawes, will be running the shows.

“Outlaw Karts give the ability to bring families and kids and get them involved in racing almost on a level like Little League,” Hawes said.

“We went up to Red Bluff and saw them running 160 kids in karts up there,” he added. “Mom, dad, grandpa, everybody was very involved. It looked like a way to give continuity and a long term expansion to racing. It gives drivers an opportunity to get experience before moving up to the upper leagues.”

A crew constructed a sixth-mile tri-oval track in the middle of the quarter-mile speedway.

The track will host four divisions, including beginner box for youth ages 4 to 7, box stocks for those 7 to 10, a 125cc class, a 250cc class and a 500cc open class, which some adults race in as well as a lot of very fast kids, Hawes said.

Cycleland Speedway in Oroville is the only other track within 30 miles of the Yuba-Sutter area that offers kart races in the summer. Prairie City Raceway Park in Sacramento offers racing in the summer, as well.

Hawes said offering kart racing on Friday nights will also benefit families with adults who race Saturday nights at larger tracks.

Interest is already growing for Marysville’s track, and Hawes said a recent test on the tri-oval drew more attention than expected.

“We had a very, very quiet test where we invited four cars out just to try out the latest configurations,” he said. “Just by word of mouth, we had 40 karts on a Sunday afternoon.”

Hawes said there will be no official race series, but there will be points standings and trophies and prize money will be awarded.

The first Kart Playday will be held March 30 with the first race is April 6.

Appeal-Democrat reporter Justin Miller can be reached at 749-4796. You may e-mail him at jmiller@appealdemocrat.com