Snap-on Stars of Karting presented by the IRL: Gearing up for the Rock Island Grand Prix

By Roger Ruthhart, Rock Island Grand Prix, Rock Island, Illinois

Seattle, WA (July 7, 2005) – North America’s elite karting series brings its headline classes to the elite event in North American karting this Labor Day weekend, Sept. 3-4, when the Snap-on Stars of Karting presented by the IRL will sanction non-championship ICC and ICA races at the world famous Rock Island Grand Prix. The United States Street Championships at Rock Island will see races in the ICA and ICC classes sanctioned by the Snap-on Stars of Karting. The Rock Island event, which is on the CIK World Calendar, has one of the most diverse ranges of classes in North American motorsport. Presenting sponsors are SBC Communications and CJC Investments, a Homevestors franchisee.

“Throughout our history, we have worked with all of the sanctioning bodies in an effort to produce a safe event that would benefit kart racing in general and Rock Island specifically. Our goal has always been to allow as broad a cross section of the sport as possible to compete here, while putting on a professional program and giving racers such a good experience that they want to come back again. We share a lot of the same philosophies with Stars and working with them gives both of us an opportunity to enhance our programs,” said Roger Ruthhart, head of the Rock Island Grand Prix organization.

Paul Zalud, managing director of the Snap-on Stars of Karting was equally excited, “This is a great opportunity for the Stars Organization and all its sponsors. I have always been a huge fan of the event and the great job that they do every year. We are happy and honored to be invited to be a supporting element.”

“The opportunity to partner with an event like the Rock Island Grand Prix is very valuable for our series. This is the type of race that everyone talks about putting on, but very few can actually pull off. Roger and his group have established this event as much more than a race over the years and our series, racers, Snap-on, and the Indy Racing League are very excited to be heading to the Quad-Cities,” said series marketing director Jeff Swoboda.

Racers in the prestigious King of the Streets event can also run in the ICC class of the Snap-on Stars of Karting race. The only difference in rules is a 5 pound minimum weight differential and a Bridgestone tire configuration for the Snap-on Stars race. Racers can acquire a temporary one-race Stars of Karting license to compete in the event for $25.

Spectators at the Rock Island Grand Prix will be treated to the Indy Racing League Fan Experience which will be promote the following week’s Chicagoland Speedway Indy Racing League event. The fully-contained traveling units are usually featured at IRL events and feature the IndyCar Series Pole Position -- a full-size IRL racing simulator; IndyCar Series Pit Stop -- a simulated pit stop; and IndyCar Series Tech -- where you can look inside an open-wheel Indy race car. There will also be an IndyCar Series race car on display, as well as vendors, other spectator diversions and nightly outdoor concerts.

Participants interested in entering the Rock Island Grand Prix can go to www.rockislandgrandprix.com and either enter online or print out the Official Entry Packet.

Those with any media or promotional inquiries about the Snap-on Stars of karting can e-mail jeff@starsofkarting.com or learn more about the series at www.starsofkarting.com.