11/13/2025
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฃ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ:
๐๐ฐ๐ท๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ณ 13, 2025 ๐๐บ ๐๐ฏ๐ฅ๐บ ๐๐ข๐ด๐ด๐บ
Last Sunday, ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐๐ช๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ก ๐๐๐๐ ๐พ๐ค๐ข๐ฅ๐ก๐๐ญ in ๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ช๐ข, ๐๐ผ, closed its doors for what is likely the final time. Opening in the summer of 2002 as ๐ฝ๐๐๐ซ๐๐๐ช๐ฃ ๐๐ค๐ฉ๐ค๐ง๐จ๐ฅ๐ค๐ง๐ฉ๐จ ๐พ๐ค๐ข๐ฅ๐ก๐๐ญ, the original facility was home to a 12-turn, 1.6-mile road course as well as the 0.82-mile kart track known as the ๐๐๐ก๐จ๐ค๐ฃ ๐พ๐๐ง๐๐ช๐๐ฉ. The track was later sold in 2011 and rebranded to its current name, ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฉ ๐๐๐๐. The sale brought major upgrades to Western Pennsylvania as a 1.2-mile south configuration was added (opening in 2015), bringing the combined track up to 2.8 miles. These upgrades also included the facilities and garages, which really turned the track into a top-notch venue.
Karting has always been at the core of the facility, going back to its roots, as the Wilson Circuit has been one of the constants over the past 23 years. Starting with the introduction of the ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฅ๐๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐, many karters across the region began to call this place home. The club series throughout the years took on many names, from ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ฆ to the more recent ๐ฃ๐ฅ๐๐ฆ (๐ฃ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐), but one thing remained the same: the culture. Club regulars came from all over the region, with many traveling from the Midwest or East Coast to the melting pot known as Pitt Race, all sharing their passion for karting.
๐๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ต๐น๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ, who has been highly involved with the club and karting as a whole since 2004, put it best: โWhile the track itself and facilities were certainly as nice as any kart track in the country, what was really special was the community that built up around it. There were few club programs anywhere that could match the camaraderie among the racers and also the openness to new and/or traveling families and racers.โ Schlosser was a key part of the clubโs success through his welcoming business model that catered to both entry-level and veteran karters. Whether it was through the ๐ง๐๐ฟ๐ป ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฆ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ shop or later through ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐, Pitt Race provided an affordable arrive-and-drive program that did monumental things for keeping the sport alive and growing the karting community in the surrounding area. The impact these programs and Pitt Race had on the whole state of karting in the eastern region of the United States cannot be understated.
Besides the club series, BeaveRun/Pitt Race was a staple on many regional and national calendars over the years. The track held several ๐ช๐๐ regional series, including the ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐, ๐๐บ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐, and even ran the fast Tri-Oval configuration for their oval karting series. The ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ฝ ๐-๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ also frequented the track, bringing the top TaG and Shifter drivers in the region to the facility. Pitt Race was no stranger to national events either, as it hosted numerous ๐ช๐๐ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ณ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐๐ฝ events, serving as the series finale for a couple of years, as well as multiple ๐๐ผ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐๐ฝ rounds. The early years of ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐๐ฆ and ๐ฆ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฆ saw successful trips to Wampum as well. The final national event was in 2024 when the track hosted the first-ever ๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐๐บ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ก๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น๐, which drew over 250 of the best LO206 drivers. A combination of the fast, technical layout and the uncanny ability for the skies to open up at any given moment always created a challenge for drivers and mechanics alike, resulting in exciting racing across all categories.
While the majority of the karting took place on the Wilson Circuit, there were ample opportunities for karts to race on the full road course. Before the renovation, ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฃ ran events at the facility on the ๐ญ.๐ฒ-๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐ก๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ต ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฒ. In 2017, ๐๐๐ฅ๐ง ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐น๐๐ฏ hosted its first race on the full 2.6-mile track. The track's fast, flowy corners mixed with elevation changes turned it into an instant fan favorite. The end-of-September date became the ๐๐๐ฅ๐ season finale in 2019 and stayed that way until the end. The event quickly became very popular; it was considered part of the ๐ฅ๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด โ๐ง๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ปโ alongside the staples of ๐๐ฎ๐๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ and ๐ ๐ถ๐ฑ-๐ข๐ต๐ถ๐ผ. Throughout its history, the three-day event became a points race on multiple series, including ๐๐๐ฅ๐ง, ๐๐๐ฅ๐, ๐ช๐๐, ๐๐๐ฆ, and ๐ช๐๐. Despite being weather-affected nearly every year, it was still one of the most well-attended events in the country, peaking at over 850 race entries in 2021. From superkarts reaching nearly 140 mph into Turn 1 to LO206 drivers pack-racing 20 karts deep, this event will certainly be missed by many in the karting community.
On October 1st, 2025, Pitt Race announced that the facility had been sold and that it would cease all racing operations at year's end. This news shocked the community, as there had been no warning or signs beforehand. With all karting events already completed for the year, many thought their last opportunity to get on track had already passed. Thanks to the efforts of ๐๐น๐๐๐๐ฎ ๐ก๐ผ๐ฒ๐น ๐ฅ๐๐ป๐ฎ๐ถ๐ธ, the opportunity to get on track one last time was born. One final practice day open to all was scheduled for November 8th, and that morning, over 120 drivers took to the track.
While cold and wet for most of the day (a fitting send-off for the place nicknamed โ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ปโ), the sun eventually came out, allowing everyone to say goodbye. The paddock was packed full of regulars and old friends, and while the mood was bittersweet, there was plenty of fun, laughter, and memory-sharing. The day concluded with a ceremonial pace lap, with 104 karts lined up two-by-two and led around the track by none other than ๐๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ต๐น๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ and his son ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐, now an engineer at Arrow McLaren, who grew up racing there. After the pace laps, everyone parked on the front straight and posed for one final group picture in front of the iconic water tower.
While this marks the end for Pitt Race, the show will go on for ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ต๐น๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ and ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐. โWeโll all miss the best track in the country. But there is a concerted effort to keep the community intactโฆ Collectively we arenโt ready to throw in the towel yet.โ
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