Nestled in the beautiful Waitara Valley and overlooking Waitara River, the SKS Raceway is a tight demanding track with 3 hairpins, a sweeper, and a chicane affectionately referred to as:
- "The Pit" hair pin - the first turn of any race on the SKS Raceway, and one which requires drivers to rotate the kart a full 180° before navigating a narrow kink on the exit. Drivers balance risk over reward here where every bit of speed carried onto the back straight counts. The karts' driving chains flirt with the curb on corner exit, and when drivers risk too much, that chain will inevitably lose in a battle of metal vs. concrete. The first turn of the first lap in any race invariably sees one driver retire, as they push the risk/reward envelope too far and shred their chain, the final connection between right-foot and rear axle.
- "The Sweeper" - Turn two when running in the SKS Raceway's default anti-clockwise direction. The Sweeper is punishing on the drivers neck muscles. G-forces sustained through The Sweeper, which in reality is a double apex turn combining two smaller corners, can exceed twice the force of gravity. Drivers are required to tolerate this force for 4 seconds a lap, amounting to 14% of the total duration of a lap. For endurance racers, the pain of this can be at times excruciating. If The Sweeper had an exit lane it would go straight to the bar.
- Turn Three - often described anecdotally as "The corner which connects the outfield to the infield which comes after the...", followed by "Yep, I know the one you mean" - there's a more succinct way of putting that - Turn Three. This hairpin has drivers braking heavily from high speed, furthermore the outer curb on corner entry loves to make the driver dance with their kart. The combination of a greasy curb and a front heavy weight balance due to deceleration really gets karts wagging their tails. Run wide as a result and you're sure to get overtaken - Turn Three is a key overtaking point, but only for the brave.
- "The Infield" hairpin - the SKS Raceway's only right hand bend. The pro's to this? It lets the driver relax their neck muscles for just 2 seconds before tossing it into the next turn. The con's? Well... The tyres on the left-hand-side of the kart don't get much of a workout - this culminates in a greasy entry which aims to have the driver glide wide of the apex while the tyres gather heat. There an obvious solution to this though - get a bit of slip angle in the kart from the moment you turn in - if the tyres are squealing, you're wheeling and dealing.
- The Chicane - vicious on the uninitiated, this corner rewards drivers who have faith in their machines, and tears to shreds those who are hesitant going in. The driver who has nothing to lose (or the biggest checkbook) wins every stand-off into The Chicane.
But beyond the 608m long track itself, a fully equipped motorsport playground exists with clubrooms and cafe, tech-shed and scales, grandstands, fully functioning site-wide P.A., and plenty of action packed racing. The track can be viewed from three sides, with the fourth overlooking the Waitara Jetsprint track. The valley can only be described as Taranaki's motorsport haven, so if that sounds like a place you should be, get your backside trackside - spectating is FREE!
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