ALLENTOWN, Pa. -
For the first time in Daytona 500 history, a woman will start from the pole position. And two local girls are among those hoping to follow in Danica Patrick’s tire tracks someday.

When they rev the engines at Lehigh Valley Grand Prix in Allentown, it’s not just the guys on the go-kart track. Kalynn Stroble and Jessica Brey can teach you a thing or two about the need for speed.

“You get to race and pass people and you win sometimes,” said Stroble.

These girls are not only winning sometimes, they are two of the top racers at this indoor race track and in the state for their age group.

“There was a challenge between Delaware and here and I came in first,” added Brey. “And I won first for junior league.”

“I’ve won three trophies and two medals,” said Stroble.

The girls say they are into racing because of one person: Danica Patrick.

“She’s a girl race car driver and I like racing,” added Brey.

In fact, Jessica Brey doesn’t even go by her real name on the track. The mighty racer in the pink pig tails is known as Danica 10, a reference to her favorite driver and the number of the car Patrick drives.

“She’s one of the people that I look forward to and stuff,” said Brey.

Both girls say they hope racing here on the go-kart tack turns into a NASCAR gig. Some of the guys racing with them say they’ve got a very good chance at it.

“It was really crazy,” said Jose Mori, a person racing against the girls. “They’re really competitive, really out there, they know what they are doing definitely.”

There are only four girls racing in the junior league at Lehigh Valley Grand Prix. They have some good advice for other thinking about joining.

“I would tell them to join because it’s very fun,” said Stroble.

“Push down on the pedal as hard as you can and try avoid not hitting the walls,” added Brey.

Source: http://www.wfmz.com/news/news-regional-lehighvalley/Girls-on-the-go-local-drivers-influenced-by-Danica-Patrick/-/132502/18975772/-/pi78n6/-/index.html

When it came time to upgrade its fleet of gas-powered karts, Lehigh Valley Grand Prix President Mike McCreary had to make a decision. Should he go for the maximum speed the karts could hit and attract the growing number of racing professionals that visit the facility for fun and practice? Or should he keep the venue accessible for the corporate team-building events, social gatherings and private parties that also make up a major chunk of the Grand Prix’s business?

Ultimately, McCreary came to a conclusion.

“This is an entertainment venue,” he said. And while he said the Grand Prix is always looking to enhance the experience of its customers and provide a better product, he had to balance excitement with accessibility and safety.

As a result, the Allentown indoor kart-racing facility has upgraded its fleet of gas-powered karts to Super Karts. At a cost of about $1,500 for each $10,000 vehicle, Grand Prix replaced the existing 6 ½-horsepower engines with 9-horsepower engines on 20 of the 30 vehicles at the track. The remaining 10 are the smaller karts geared toward junior drivers.

The new engines will increase speed to 50 mph, making them the fastest indoor concession carts in the country.

Because the new engines improve the torque and handling of the vehicles – especially for larger drivers – the karts are now faster but safer, McCreary said.

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix is now one of just two facilities on the East Coast where people can drive Super Karts without having to pass pre-qualification standards. The other is in North Carolina.

He said keeping the vehicles accessible to the non-hardcore racer was an important part of his business plan. “Most people wouldn’t have the opportunity to try something like this if we didn’t provide it,” said McCreary.

He said the investment seems to be paying off. “We’re getting a lot of regulars that we haven’’ seen in a while and it’s attracted interest from a lot of the other karting facilities in the region who want to see what it’s all about,” he said. The venue’s first big public event featuring the Super Karts will be held Feb. 24. The Lehigh Valley Grand Prix 500 is being held in conjunction with the Daytona 500. The race is already sold out, but fans attend to watch the kart race and the Daytona 500 in the Grand Prix’s bar.

Source: http://www.lvb.com/article/20130215/LVB01/302159992/Grand-Prix-adds-horsepower-to-boost-appeal-as-business-entertainment-venue#.USVGoYVhJe4

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix has converted its fleet of karts from 6.5hp Honda engines to 9hp Honda engines. This change will give customers the opportunity to race the fastest indoor concession karts in the U.S. with no prior qualifications.

“We are always striving to offer the ultimate racing experience here at LVGP. We felt that the change was neccessary to continue to improve our product. We have tested the converted karts to make sure that there were no safety concerns and we are confident this will only enhance what we offer at LVGP,” said Mike McCreary, owner at LVGP.

The new 9hp engines will give better torque to drivers and will make the heavy guys a little happier with their lap times! The decision to continue to use Sodi gas-powered karts was made due to the fact that they are still the best product on the market. Sodi is the the top kart manufacturer in the world and its products can be found at all the major indoor karting competitions. Lehigh Valley Grand Prix offers indoor go-kart racing at 649 S. 10th St. in Allentown.

Source: Lower Macungie Patch.com

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix has converted its fleet of karts from 6.5hp Honda engines to 9hp Honda engines. This change will give customers the opportunity to race the fastest indoor concession karts in the U.S. with no prior qualifications.

“We are always striving to offer the ultimate racing experience here at LVGP. We felt that the change was neccessary to continue to improve our product. We have tested the converted karts to make sure that there were no safety concerns and we are confident this will only enhance what we offer at LVGP,” said Mike McCreary, owner at LVGP.

The new 9hp engines will give better torque to drivers and will make the heavy guys a little happier with their lap times! The decision to continue to use Sodi gas-powered karts was made due to the fact that they are still the best product on the market. Sodi is the the top kart manufacturer in the world and its products can be found at all the major indoor karting competitions. Lehigh Valley Grand Prix offers indoor go-kart racing at 649 S. 10th St. in Allentown.

Source: Upper Macungie Patch.com

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix has converted its fleet of karts from 6.5hp Honda engines to 9hp Honda engines. This change will give customers the opportunity to race the fastest indoor concession karts in the U.S. with no prior qualifications.

“We are always striving to offer the ultimate racing experience here at LVGP. We felt that the change was neccessary to continue to improve our product. We have tested the converted karts to make sure that there were no safety concerns and we are confident this will only enhance what we offer at LVGP,” said Mike McCreary, owner at LVGP.

The new 9hp engines will give better torque to drivers and will make the heavy guys a little happier with their lap times! The decision to continue to use Sodi gas-powered karts was made due to the fact that they are still the best product on the market. Sodi is the the top kart manufacturer in the world and its products can be found at all the major indoor karting competitions. Lehigh Valley Grand Prix offers indoor go-kart racing at 649 S. 10th St. in Allentown.

Source: Upper Saucon Patch.com

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix has converted its fleet of karts from 6.5hp Honda engines to 9hp Honda engines. This change will give customers the opportunity to race the fastest indoor concession karts in the U.S. with no prior qualifications.

“We are always striving to offer the ultimate racing experience here at LVGP. We felt that the change was neccessary to continue to improve our product. We have tested the converted karts to make sure that there were no safety concerns and we are confident this will only enhance what we offer at LVGP,” said Mike McCreary, owner at LVGP.

The new 9hp engines will give better torque to drivers and will make the heavy guys a little happier with their lap times! The decision to continue to use Sodi gas-powered karts was made due to the fact that they are still the best product on the market. Sodi is the the top kart manufacturer in the world and its products can be found at all the major indoor karting competitions. Lehigh Valley Grand Prix offers indoor go-kart racing at 649 S. 10th St. in Allentown.

Source: Easton Patch.com

A Lehigh Valley business has invested in speed – literally.

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix in Allentown, an indoor kart racing venue, has upgraded its fleet of gas-powered karts to Super Karts. At a cost of about $1,500 for each $10,000 vehicle, Grand Prix replaced the existing 6 ½-horsepower engines with 9-horsepower engines.

The new engines will increase speed to 50 mph, making them the fastest indoor concession carts in the country.

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix now is one of just two facilities on the East Coast where people can drive Super Karts without having to pass pre-qualification standards.

Source: Lehigh Valley Business

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix has converted its fleet of karts from 6.5hp Honda engines to 9hp Honda engines. This change will give customers the opportunity to race the fastest indoor concession karts in the U.S. with no prior qualifications.

“We are always striving to offer the ultimate racing experience here at LVGP. We felt that the change was neccessary to continue to improve our product. We have tested the converted karts to make sure that there were no safety concerns and we are confident this will only enhance what we offer at LVGP,” said Mike McCreary, owner at LVGP.

The new 9hp engines will give better torque to drivers and will make the heavy guys a little happier with their lap times! The decision to continue to use Sodi gas-powered karts was made due to the fact that they are still the best product on the market. Sodi is the the top kart manufacturer in the world and its products can be found at all the major indoor karting competitions.

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix offers indoor go-kart racing at 649 S. 10th St. in Allentown.

Source:Bethlehem Patch.com

A 9 horsepower engine and top speeds of 50 mph may not seem like the kind of oomph that’ll generate buzz among racing enthusiasts. But considering these are the specs of a newly upgraded fleet of go- karts being raced on an indoor track, there’s a good chance many enthusiasts are going to be talking about taking a test drive.

At least that’s what the owners of Lehigh Valley Grand Prix are hoping. The venue at 649 S. 10th St. in Allentown announced the completion of the upgrades Monday. According to a news release, the “super karts” put Lehigh Valley Grand Prix in the position of offering the fastest indoor karts in the country.

The venue also is now one of just two on the East Coast where customers can drive “super karts” without having to pass pre-qualification standards, the news release says.

Michael McCreary, a partner at Lehigh Valley Grand Prix, said in a statement that safety was a major consideration when deciding whether to go forward, but the partners ultimately determined that the upgrades wouldn’t pose any additional safety risks to drivers.

The karts themselves — Sodi gas-powered karts — remain the same; it’s the engines that were swapped out. Previously, the engines were 6.5 horsepower, allowing the karts to reach maximum speeds of 45 mph. With the additional horsepower in the new engines, the karts can travel up to 5 mph faster. The new engines also allow drivers to generate more torque coming out of turns, according to the news release. Lehigh Valley Grand Prix says the upgrades were done on its entire fleet of 19 adult karts, marking a significant investment by the owners. Each kart’s upgrade cost $10,000 and included changing fuel lines and the installation of new tires.

The upgrades are the second major investment in the venue in less than a year. In May, the owners completed a $200,000 project for the Octane-Adrenaline Bar and Restaurant, which includes 46 seats overlooking the quarter-mile track.

Source: The Express-Times

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix, one of the premier indoor karting venues in the country, has converted its fleet of Sodi gas-powered karts from 6.5hp to 9hp Honda engines, upgrading them to Super Karts. This change gives customers the opportunity to race the fastest indoor concession karts in the country.

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix is now one of just two facilities on the east coast where you can drive Super Karts without having to pass prequalification standards.

We are always striving to offer the ultimate racing experience at Lehigh Valley Grand Prix and converting to Super Karts gives our customers an enhanced experience, said Michael McCreary, partner at Lehigh Valley Grand Prix. Safety was one of the main considerations when making this decision and weve determined that converting to Super Karts does not increase any safety concerns, it only adds to the entertainment value.

Lehigh Valley Grand Prix made the decision to continue to use Sodi gas powered karts because they are the best product available on the market. Sodi is the number-one kart manufacturer in the world and their products can be found at all the major indoor karting competitions, including the Indoor Kart World Championship. These world-class gas-powered karts wont be found on an electric track.

Converting the Sodi karts, which cost $10,000 each, to Super Karts consisted of swapping out engines, changing fuel lines, configuring the throttle assembly and putting on new tires.

Source: Hollywood Industry