Racers Scrapbook
When you keep pictures from all those years of racing – here is where they end up!
Robby Robinson
Here’s a short story of how it started for me:”Its a Caretta” my friend Danny said. “Made by the guys that started go-karts” I guess it was 1964. It was the greatest looking thing I”d seen. It was a sprint kart. Disc brakes, black steering wheel and black upholstery. A real beauty. Danny was my best friend. He’d been into karts for a few years, not organized karting, but things were about to change. Danny had several kinds of Macs in his garage (Mac 6s, 9s etc) where he got them I don’t know. For the next couple of years we ran the parking lot races a (anybody remember the Noland Paper Company parking lot in Buna Park off Valley View???). Kinda of what you would call gorilla racing “run what you brung”. After awhile the police ended that. We’d go there on Saturdays, and practice. Danny was a great driver and could keep up with just about anybody out there. He gave me a lot of encouragement and I could hold my own.Then one weekend in 1966 we went to a enduro race at Riverside International raceway. That was it, we were hooked.
I had just graduated from high school and got a job and started saving money. In the mean time Danny started measuring and tinkering and said “I’m going to turn this thing into an enduro kart”. A few weeks later we”re on our way to Caretta Works in Echo Park. He talks with Lou Borelli and in a little while we were walking out with a bunch oh parts and a pair of tanks.
Now in the days before Jesse James and American Chopper, there was my friend Danny Ortega. He could do just about anything in my mind. Anyway he started measuring, cutting and tack welding. In a few weeks we were on our way to the welder. He was a Japanese guy named Fuji, he learned how to weld in one of the internment camps during WWll. He was one of the top welders in the area.
In the mean time while all this was going on I found my first Caretta. I think it was a 1964, bright yellow paint job, tri-angular shaped tanks, not quite a Laydown, but it was my kart. Bought a Mac 90, I think it was.
By now Dannys kart is ready, it’s awesome. Powered by a Saetta, outboard drive. Only thing original on it was the long rails and the Ingels/Borelli serial number tag. We called it the Caretta/Ortega Special. Before you know it we’re on our way to our first races.
As time went on I upgraded to a Hornet Allegro with a Saetta. We went to all the races in the area: Willow Springs, Riverside, Orange County Raceway, Carlsbad and even Stardust Raceway in Las Vegas. We’d camp out in the van on the places that weren’t close to home. We called them freeze nights.
After a while Danny got into moto-cross racing. I bought the Caretta/Ortega special from him and continued racing. However Uncle Sam had other ideas for me. I went into the service in June of 1969. While I was away somebody broke into my garage and stole all my tools. My racing days were over. I took my karts to IKS and gave the to Wally Baynes and he sold them for me. Who bought them and how much I got I’ll never know. After the service came marrige and kids, moved to Riverside.
I thought at least I could go to the races. That didn’t work out either, the place was torn down for a mall and a housing tract..
The memories will always be there: the people, the Friday nights to IKS, the local trips to Skips Kart shop (later to become Orange County Kart Supply), the trips to the races, etc.
I could go on and on but I’ve said enough. Enclosed are some pictures of my old Caretta and Hornet Allegro. Plus the Caretta/Ortega Special.. Also are some pictures of some races that I took at Carlsbad Raceway and Willow Springs Raceway taken sometime in 1967.
Hope your readers enjoy. Oh by the way, if anybody has seen or knows the where abouts of the Caretta/Ortega Special let me know.Robby RobinsonRiverside, Californiarobmel25@aol.com
The Beales
Some race pictures (old and newer) and a link to a video from Daytona 1979. Also a nice cover shot from 1968. Gotta love those dual carbs/ dual engines! Beales Daytona Video
Dan Chase
Below are 3 pictures of my mid era enduro kart, they are all the same kart. It’s a 1978 Van K left hand enduro. I raced it with a Reed Open motor in the Lite class and also with a Yamaha KT-100 in the lite class. Two of the pictures are of myself racing at Laguna Seca, I’m pretty sure that was one of the first NCK races about 1979. The other picture with the MAC engine on it was taken at the old Las Vegas Speed Drome in 1978 (I think).
Gino Giannoupolous
Lots of pictures. From Jet cars to Indy cars, Mac powered Sprinters to Dual TKMs to Rotax 250s. If you race long enough – and can remember to take pictures – this is what you end up with. Thanks Gino.
The Early Years
The Purdue Grand Prix / Little 500
Midwest Racing
The Invader Dual
The Laydown 125
The 250 Rotax
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Roger Mulkeys’ 1979 Laguna Seca shots
I was photographing the Can-Am race at Laguna Seca October 1979, and got a few shots of the enduro karts that were running that weekend. I just discovered these images wile searching my slide archives for a Can-Am car. I’ve been running vintage sprint karts the last three years (2 SAEs and a Margay) and got see Terry run, he is still the fastest. I raced karts from 1960 to 66, and ran some enduros at Mid-Ohio and VIR, I drove an A Modified lay down Lancer. 
More karts from the 1979 Laguna event. I don’t have any names, I’ll check around and see if anybody recognizes anyone notable.
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Matt’s Nice Enduro Karts !
I don’t know why but I just want to share something with everybody.Just within the last year my younger brother and I got interested in old go karts when a guy had one for sale in the corner of his garage. After I bought it we went to look at an old friends (Phil) go karts he has been restoring. He has redone 23 works of art and my brother and I are now flying close under his banner learning everything we can.We now have 14 including a Rupp Model J Chaparral Enduro and the 1977 Bug Wasp Enduro I just bought from the For Sale Section of your site.
Now a third friend has joined the bunch when he bought back an old Hornet Enduro from a swap meet. He also just found a Rupp Model K Enduro in as new condition with the knock off wheels. We just think the Enduro’s are much more of a racing machine and we are looking forward to this spring and our first chance to get out with them.
Don’t get me wrong, we love our Sprint karts also. We have traveled far and wide to get the one’s we were looking for. Here are a couple of pics.
My brothers just purchased from the original owner Rupp Model J Enduro.
Our friends just found Rupp Model K Enduro
Phil’s shop. He is the one with all the talent!
My first two restorations at this year {2008} World of Wheels Auto Show
My Margay Kart
My Buller Kart
We have 1968 Rupp Chaparral we are working on now and when my Bug Wasp Enduro finally arrives I will start in on it. I am very eager to do my first Enduro. I already have several idea’s for it.
The Wasp is here!
I thought I would send you some photo’s of my recently acquired 1977 Bug Wasp Enduro. I searched quite awhile to find a Enduro project. When I found this one on the LOST ENDURO web site, I knew it was the one. As I waited for it to be shipped to me I was planning the restoration process, but when it arrived I was pleasantly surprised to find it was in almost pristine condition. It was still wearing safety inspection stickers from the mid 70’s from such famous tracks as Watkins Glenn, Mosport and Pocono.
I decide to just take the kart apart, clean polish and reassemble it using all of the original hardware. The original owner who had stored the kart in his basement for over 30 years told me he first ran the kart with a Mac 91 motor. So I bought a Mac off ebay and rebuilt it for the kart, I also put in a new rear axle. Through help from a fellow Lost Enduro member I was able to obtain a period correct Savin Pipe, oil clutch with provisions to run the original belt set up.
I still have a couple of more parts to obtain before I take it out for the first time. It is sure to be a fun ride!!!
(Note from webmaster – I LOVE the sticker!)
A Rare Cates Enduro
Last year I found a rare Cates Enduro. It is currently the only one known to exist. It came out of Oklahoma.
With the help of my friend we restored it over the last year. It is a unique 60’s kart. The material to match the original seat upholstery is red metal flake. Just like the old dinner bar stools. The frame is square tubing, the rear axle is one inch hollow aluminum. Besides the Cates butterfly steering wheel another unique feature is the hand made aluminum seat frame. You can still see some hammer marks in it from when it was formed. Also it has dual Cates motor mounts. I tried to use all the original hardware in the restoration including the brass fuel block for the dual fuel lines. I had a lot of fun redoing this wonderfully simple kart with all of it’s unique features like rear suspension that made the Cates karts handle so well for the time.
My good friend Rich Lagasse who raced extensively back in the late 60’s and early 70’s back east with his father Ambrose “Amby” sent me these pics of them racing in 1968 at Bryar Motorsport Park in Louden, NH. The track is now named New Hampshire International.
Ian Williams’ Down Under Karting Past
I have raced karts all my life , and am just now turned 51, and back when karting started in Australia in the late 50’s my father was one of the first manufacturers.
I would like to pass on a couple of old enduro kart photos from out here.
The laydowns are 100cc of 1960’s vintage, and the 250cc is from about 1970. My father is in kart #34 , I remember it was a Margay with a McCulloch engine and a gear reduction box. I still have some of his old papers and one of my favourites is an offer written from Gil Gorstman to my father for him to order from the first ever batch of McCulloch engines produced by the factory with an output shaft to suit karts !!
I am still in the kart business , but sadly enduros stopped in our country in the mid 70’s and now it is mainly the 250 Superkarts like Zip, Anderson and PVP with twin cylinder 250’s , or the Rotax Max 125 that are used on long circuits, and only in 6 to 10 lap races.
Regards, Ian Williams.
Stan Walker and Danny Dodson
I am so full of emotions when viewing these old photos and articles. My name is Cameron Walker and I raced enduros in the late sixties early seventies.I had the time of my life, But I don’t want to talk about me!… my father was linked to Duffy Livingstone from way back, maybe hot rods and the GP Muffler shop, regardless of that I was able to go to Duffy’s shop on many a Saturday with my father, he would get all kinds of muffler work done on all his cars and trucks, and that is how I got into racing karts , I was12 years old.I wanted to let you know that I was so close to seeing Swede Savage at the GP Muffler shop, seems he and Duffy were friends and I remember Duffy telling us of the photo he got of Swede sitting in that FKE Mole of Duffy’s….he showed it to me. Tragically Swede was killed in the 1973 Indy 500.I just wanted to let those who did not know already that photo of the Mole with Duffy and the movie star looking guy sitting in it is the same photo, that is Swede Savage.
My Dad, Stan Walker raced also, he was so talented , he built many a kart for me, hence going to Duffy’s all the time to get the frame tubing bent on the pipe bender, he then built his own FKE’S , and onto some wild looking C-Open karts, one of which is on the cover of Karting Digest Feb.1979
Stan passed away Nov 23 2007, he lived a good life with many years of retirement under his belt.
I had a great friend and rival in these enduros, his name is Danny Dodson, we grew up together on and off the track, we raced at all those famous tracks that are mostly gone now, Riverside, Ontario, Carlsbad, Vacaville, Stardust in Vegas, Pomona, Orange County (my first win here!!) and of course many, many 2 hour long enduros at Willow.
I had lost contact with the sport for 30 years after moving to Idaho. I got all melancholy one day and found Danny on the internet, E-Mailed him and we sent a few great letters back and forth. We both agreed that those days we spent racing were the best days of our lives!!! It was a part of us, it formed us into who we became. He was so very proud of his talented son David, sent some photos of him in perfect sprint racing form.
I wanted to let Danny know of Dad’s passing, and I could not find the website, it was gone, he had a great kart business that his parents Jim and Louise built.
I did find his son’s MySpace page, I logged on to say hi and ask for Danny’s email address, now the hard part, I read along and saw that David’s friends were consoling him at the sudden loss of his father, boom, my dad and my best friend. Danny went to sleep on his couch watching TV, his son tried to wake him the next morning and he was dead. He was 51.
What I wanted to do here is credit Danny for the great man he was, I can’t talk to him, I can’t even find where he is buried to leave a burned piston on his headstone, but what I can do is eulogize him on your site, The Dodson’s were a driving force in early enduros in Southern California.
So was my dad.
Regards, Cameron
Ode to Creativity
Just got these pictures from Gary Smith.
John Gibbs Superkart getting ready to be refurbished.
Scary Fast!
John Gibbs Superkart
That creativity carries on in other karts as shown in the inline four cycle dual and a friends Sudam dirt karts.
Inline Four Cycle Kart
Sudam Powered Dirt Karts
More pictures from Terry. These are from 1970. It’s amazing how far karts had advanced since 1963.
Some nice early gearbox kart photos from Jeffery Shervington
I found these photos on a site that had a blog concerning the “best looking laydown enduros”. Coincidently they are all Canadian!! Al Wrights engineering expertese on display. I took notice that the rear wheels on Al’s 250cc laydown, like his C-Opens appear to be larger than a 5″ or 6″ wheel. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were 8″ Douglas wheels. The extra diameter would answer the extra speed Al generated at the big tracks like Mosport or Road America – 153mph+ up the Mario Andretti straight at Mosport and almost that fast going into Canada Corner at RA. Colm O’Higgins knows where these old karts are – so I’m on a mission to try and get my hands on some of them and if so bring them back as vintage C-Opens and/or 250cc laydowns.
Are You Next?