Bill Sisley Kart School
Formed in 1974 and responsible for training twenty world and European kart champions - including F1's Jonny Herbert - the renowned Sisley Kart Racing School has relocated to the awesome Three Sisters Circuit in the form of the Bill Sisley Kart School. Bill Sisley discovered Lewis Hamilton at the age of 8, and was involved in the career of Jenson Button as well as many other up-and-coming British racing drivers.
ARKS Test
Three Sisters Circuit is a member of the Association of Racing Kart Schools (ARKS) and is recognised by Motorsport UK / Karting UK. Private one-to-one tuition with a professional ARKS instructor costs £99 and is run on either the Club or Valley circuits.
The ARKS test costs £98 including VAT, if applicable, and includes both written and practical tests. If you should fail one part of the ARKS test, the written test can be re-taken for £50 and the driving test for £60. The hire fee for a suitable Three Sisters kart is £40.
There are some exemptions for drivers who have had a National A licence before, or who have enough signatures from Tyro/Clubman events, and in some cases these people only need to sit the written test. Check with Motorsport UK or ARKS to see if that might affect you and whether you also need to purchase a Start Karting Pack which costs £69 from www.motorsportuk.org (includes the cost of the first licence).
Bill Sisley Kart Club
For many years, young kart drivers were only able to compete in races by purchasing their own kart, which was financially out of reach for many families. However, in the mid 90s, Bill Sisley introduced the Sisley Kart Club in the south east of England. For the first time, this allowed young drivers to compete on a monthly basis at a reasonable cost by way of the club supplying identical equipment.
Current Championship Standings
Starting from nothing, the Sisley Kart Club rose to regular starting grids of 100 per month. Participants have become better road drivers as they leave childhood behind and take to the wheel on public roads. Some particularly talented young karters have been spotted by owner/driver race teams and are now successful car racing drivers, including F1's Alex Albon and WEC racer, Jack Aitken.
A prerequisite of a driver being able to race in the club is that they should have completed all three levels of the Bill Sisley Kart School, achieving the required target lap times. If the instructor is happy, a driver can then take part in club events.
Club rounds take place during school holidays with points being gained at each round. The driver with the most points wins the championship. Points are counted from however many rounds there are in the championship, minus the lowest one (known as the 'dropped round'), which means that the driver could miss a round and still remain in contention. However, if there is a tie for the win then all rounds count.
The championship has classes for two age groups: 8-11 years (Cadet) and 12-15 years (Junior). Drivers are free to enter as many rounds as they like, with points being automatically scored as they enter. There is no registration fee to take part in the championship.
Prices:
- £75 per person per event.
Race Format
- Safety briefing
- Practice
- Three heats per driver
- Final.
Key Information
- For ages 8-11 years (classed as Cadet)
- For ages 12-15 years (classed as Junior)
- Biz 160cc Honda powered single-engined karts
- All equipment supplied
- Entries must be booked and paid for in advance
- Minimum height 4'2".
Please note that if a driver intends to wear a race helmet provided by the circuit, they are also required to wear a balaclava. All lessons include a balaclava.
All children must be accompanied by an adult who must remain on site and be responsible for the child during the period of the booking.