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New kart makes racing more accessible for kids at local raceway

Posted at 5:40 AM, May 10, 2021
and last updated 2021-05-10 08:02:58-04

COLORADO SPRINGS — Buckle up! A new addition to the Overdrive Raceway in Colorado Springs, is making a debut around the tracks!

Thanks to the Rocky Mountain Americans with Disabilities Act Center, the raceway now has another, one of a kind electric kart, for kids with disabilities.

"This might be the first time that a person with a disability gets to race at a race track, because this option just isn't available very much," explained Emily Shuman, Director of the Rocky Mountain ADA Center.

The kart is built so that each driver can complete turns and other driving maneuvers, just like a real speed racer!

"It feels great to experience it," said James Mundle Jr., General Manager of Overdrive. "To be that close to the ground, it feels like you are going 1,000 miles per hour," he said.

The kart has the number 90 designed all over it. No, it's not how fast it can go, but instead the number signifies the year the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed.

"A lot of times people think of accessibility for people with disabilities, they think of parking spaces or curb ramps, or how to get in a building, but we don't always think about people with disabilities just want to have fun," Shuman said.