BUSINESS

Need for speed

Kartona Electric Speedway opens in PCB

JOHN HENDERSON
jhenderson@pcnh.com
Drivers round a corner Saturday at Kartona Electric Speedway in Panama City Beach. The electric go-kart track opened Tuesday on U.S. 98. See first-person video of the course at newsherald.com. [JOSHUA BOUCHER/THE NEWS HERALD]

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Scott Miller and Ben Hobson have been making an almost daily trip to Kartona Electric Speedway’s high-speed go-kart track in Panama City Beach each day since it opened Tuesday.

After tearing up the course Saturday morning, they still hadn't had enough and talked about coming back later that night to the track, a first-of-its kind indoor, high-speed track in the shopping center south of the Hathaway Bridge.

Hobson actually races in a drift car series in Texas and said the go-kart track, where cars go speeds of 45 miles per hour, does have the feel of being a real race.

“They’ve got the turns laid out good,” he said.

Miller is Hobson’s close friend and his mechanic.

“So we just hang out all the time,” Hobson said. “When they told us this was coming, we were pretty excited to check it out.”

The track, which requires riders to wear helmets, even has television sets showing what place racers are in and their average speed. The cost to ride is $20 per race, but someone who buys two races can get the third one free.

Most of the people racing Saturday morning were novices, and it was common for people to slam their cars into the track or each other.

Kart riders must watch a safety video before getting into the cars. And if someone hits the wall — or someone else — too hard, the race will be stopped. Employees have equipment that can slow down karts for people they can tell aren’t experienced, or speed up the karts for those with experience.

One car already was out of service after someone smashed it into a corner a few days ago, and the track itself also has also had to be repaired.

Track manager Jeff Stamper said he was at the track when a man crashed into the wall and put that kart out of action. He said the man was driving recklessly and will be responsible for paying for the repairs to the kart.

“That happens when people don’t know what they are doing,” he said. “There were two cars there, and he thought he’d drive right through (the turn). They weigh 500 pounds each without people in them, so 1,600 pounds he was trying to drive through, and it cost him money. You are responsible for things like that.”

The track was supposed to open on Memorial Day weekend, but that was delayed by construction issues.

The track, owned by gynecologist Timothy Ramsden, is filling the empty space in the shopping plaza at 7125 U.S. 98 that previously housed Lindsey’s Suite Deals.

By mid-day Saturday, Wes Hughson had one of the higher speeds on the board.

“I used to do motocross as a kid, so all of the lines you figure out,” he said. “Most people that have a motorcycle background are pretty fast.”

He said the secret to getting around turns quickly is to start from the inside left lane and go toward the inside right lane on the turn. “Try and make it as straight a line as you can,” he said.

Hughson, who works at a Navy lab, said he was pleased the track is here.

“I’ve been to ones like this in Jacksonville," he said. "It’s kind of cool to have one in your backyard.”