Cfn Paul Weir poses with his impressive collection of go-karting trophies. Photo provided by Cfn Paul Weir

Top speed

By Cpl Alisha Welch
GO-KARTING is a sport rapidly gaining popularity within the Army according to recent South-East Queensland C-grade competition winner Cfn Paul Weir, who is trying to promote the sport to the wider ADF.

Cfn Weir said his win would enable him to step up to higher grades of super heavy go kart racing.

“Basically my win in the C-grade is a step up in the ladder to where I want to race,” he said.

“There’s no prize money involved – the competition is trophy-based. The adrenalin rush is my motivation for competing.

“My kart, which is about 6ft long and 4ft wide, is worth about $10,000 all up. The 100cc motor is worth $3000 on its own and the kart runs on high-octane fuel, which costs about $4.80 per litre.

“In a straight line I can get up to speeds of 110km per hour – it’s a lot more technical than people imagine.”

He said races generally consist of about eight competitors and there are between 3500-4000 races a year nation-wide.

“Competitors range from the age of seven to over 40, so the sport appeals to many people in the ADF. At my club in Ipswich 350 people are members and we have an internationally-recognised track, which is 1180m long.

“I used to be involved with the sport when I was in my late teens but then life took over. After I returned from East Timor cashed up, I was able to get back into go-karting and haven’t looked back.”

Cfn Weir said he would also like to thank his sponsor, the Global Karts Centre in Brisbane, and encouraged all members of the ADF to have a go and get involved in motorised go-karting.