Ron Fellows Talks Hockey, Karting and Racing

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Ron Fellows Talks Hockey, Karting and Racing

Doug Kelly 5-18-2004

Taking a page from his own youth, ALMS driver Ron Fellows maintains an active interest in karting, which helps prepare Canadian youngsters to eventually become race drivers. Indy Racing League star Paul Tracy is a veteran of the karting ranks, as is Fellows himself, ABC’s race commentator Scott Goodyear and ALMS’s Scott Maxwell, among others.

Of late, Fellows has mixed his passion for the NHL with his involvement in the Sunoco Ron Fellows Karting Championshps. He visited with ALMS.com on each and other related topics.

Doug Kelly (DK): Let’s cut to the chase. How do you like the hockey playoffs so far?

Ron Fellows (RF): “Well, I’d never have believed Calgary would get thumped like they did after winning the first two at San Jose. Philly and Tampa Bay has been exciting as well.”

DK: Hockey is a uniting force for all Canadians. Why do you think that is?

RF: “I guess it’s probably like soccer in Europe. In the U.S., football is the biggest sport, whether it’s high school, college or pro. The passion hockey stirs up in Canada is like what football does to the U.S.”

DK: How long did you play hockey?

RF: “The team in Bramalea, the community I grew up in, was the Blues. It was a junior team. My goal way back when was to play for them. I played mostly local, house-league stuff up until the time I was 14 years old. Then I got into karting.”

“I did, however, go to one of those local area prospect tryout camps. [The consensus was] Too slow and hands of stone!! As it turned out, I got a lot faster sitting down [in a racecar].”

DK: What’s up with your karting series?

RF: “Well, thanks to the good people at Sunoco, we’ve negotiated a new contract that will take us through 2007.”

DK: How did you get involved on the managerial level?

RF: “I felt a couple of things needed to be done. There is some concern now as to where the next generation of Canadian drivers is going to come from. We’ve never had a really sound development program, and that should begin at the karting level. Karting is great for kids to have fun and develop the necessary skills to race.”

DK: What’s the growth of the series been like?

RF: “It’s been trermendous. We went from four classes three years ago to 10 now. We have a minimum age now of nine years old, with at least one year’s experience required.”

“All 10 classes are set up in such a way that it is all competition-driven, and there is a ladder system for skill development as well. I have been able to rely heavily on the sanctioning body in Canada, ASN Canada FIA.”

DK: What is your goal for the young drivers who show an aptitude to become drivers?

RF: “Every year we have been able to move some of the kids into the Bridgestone Racing School at Mosport and the Formula 2000 cars.”

DK: Are your own two boys involved?

RF: “Yes. Sam is just starting out, and Patrick’s been in it for a couple years now. I grew up karting. Did you know that Emerson Fittipaldi was one of the first drivers to come up through the karting ranks? A few years ago, I took a look at [the state of] karting in Ontario and quite frankly it hadn’t changed a whole lot from when I was doing it back in the ‘70s.”

DK: Did that bother you?

RF: “Let’s say I felt like it needed some changes to make it more along the lines of how car racing operates. The approach, in areas like officiating, safety, scheduling, marketing, needed to be changed. In Southern Ontario, within two hours of downtown Toronto, you have half a dozen karting facilities. We needed a plan that utilized all of the tracks and track operators.”

“That is where Sunoco has integrated a lot of the professionalism they’ve demonstrated in racing into the karting ranks. What we’re doing with Sunoco and the Toronto Star newspaper is getting more recognition for young racers, and providing them with better opportunities to compete.”

DK: How long does the karting season run?

RF: “It goes from the first of May untl the end of September. We have six events up here that last through the summer. Kids compete in other series as well, some of which are in the U.S., so we tried to schedule in such a way as to accommodate as many as possible.”

“Paul Cook of ASN Canada FIA is the vice president of competition and he’s a hugely experienced guy who ran the Formula One race in Montreal. Paul shares the vision and passion we have for karting and the development program for it.”

“Our challenge, once the kids are beyond the Bridgestone series, is what to do with them next. That is a marketing and sponsorship issue we have to get covered.”

DK: Wrapping up. The Flames, now all of Canada’s team, or San Jose?

RF: “Oooh, boy. Well, my heart’s with Calgary, but San Jose sure looks pretty strong. The Sharks might have had a little too much time off after the St. Louis series while the Flames were going seven with Detroit. It’s funny how emotion affects the home team. Sometimes players try too hard at home. I don’t think anyone would’ve thought these two teams would each lose twice at home. I think San Jose is playing real smart defensively right now and that’s going to be tough for Calgary to overcome. We’ll see !!!!”