Ok, this is kind of a placeholder for the present.
The Kalifornia Nyke, Second Edition, the "Palmini Special". By Jim Waltz
First of all, there is always attribution. I blame Terry Ives first, and I blame Matt Azzara second. Terry for being the inspiration for my getting involved in vintage karting in the first place, and Matt for encouraging me to make contributions to the VKCA newsletter.
So after attending a couple of vintage events in 2006 and seeing Terry on the track, I had the bug. Now, I’ve been an active racer for 20 consecutive years as of the 2017 racing season, but in 2007 I saw this interesting looking old kart on Craig’s list, and went to take a look at it. Turns out I bought it from Craig Owens, and it was my very first vintage kart. See photo posted below.
The upside was that it was pretty much all there. A “roller”. So my buddy Tim and I worked it over one Saturday, I mounted a 5-port V700 Bender and took it to Davis for a vintage event. Only problem was the carb didn’t work right, but Louie Figone lent me a carb for the day and we put it on the track – for 1-1/2 laps until the remains of the piston side puck in the Palmini brake unit gave up the ghost. End of that story.
Working two jobs and with a disabled spouse, I move at a very moderate pace, plus I’ve kept my modern kart racing going, so this kart sat, waiting for me. Ultimately I decided that this one would become a “Palmini Special”, for which I am still gathering parts. This is that story. See the "First Edition" story as another topic here on the Forum. The first edition is on the track as of February 2017.
By the way, no one yet has been able to identify these factory-built karts, but they look a lot like the n1ke karts from New York, so I finally decided to christen them “Kalifornia Nykes”.
The Kalifornia Nyke, Second Edition, the "Palmini Special". By Jim Waltz
First of all, there is always attribution. I blame Terry Ives first, and I blame Matt Azzara second. Terry for being the inspiration for my getting involved in vintage karting in the first place, and Matt for encouraging me to make contributions to the VKCA newsletter.
So after attending a couple of vintage events in 2006 and seeing Terry on the track, I had the bug. Now, I’ve been an active racer for 20 consecutive years as of the 2017 racing season, but in 2007 I saw this interesting looking old kart on Craig’s list, and went to take a look at it. Turns out I bought it from Craig Owens, and it was my very first vintage kart. See photo posted below.
The upside was that it was pretty much all there. A “roller”. So my buddy Tim and I worked it over one Saturday, I mounted a 5-port V700 Bender and took it to Davis for a vintage event. Only problem was the carb didn’t work right, but Louie Figone lent me a carb for the day and we put it on the track – for 1-1/2 laps until the remains of the piston side puck in the Palmini brake unit gave up the ghost. End of that story.
Working two jobs and with a disabled spouse, I move at a very moderate pace, plus I’ve kept my modern kart racing going, so this kart sat, waiting for me. Ultimately I decided that this one would become a “Palmini Special”, for which I am still gathering parts. This is that story. See the "First Edition" story as another topic here on the Forum. The first edition is on the track as of February 2017.
By the way, no one yet has been able to identify these factory-built karts, but they look a lot like the n1ke karts from New York, so I finally decided to christen them “Kalifornia Nykes”.
Jim Waltz, West Sacramento, CA