The Kerpen kart track, owned by the Schumacher family and a place where Michael took his first steps, has secured a loan that will guarantee its long-term future.
In 2016, many doubts arose about the fate of the site thanks to the maneuvers carried out by the energy company RWE which had bought many parts of the surrounding area in an attempt to expand the extraction of lignite from the nearby Hambach forest.
Despite the opposition, the RWA continued its project which also included the demolition of the kart track and in January 2018 the company presented an offer that seemed to have definitively put an end to the history of the structure.
However, in 2020 the RWE retraced its steps by deciding not to further expand its opencast mines in the region following protests by environmentalists to protect the Hambach forest. On the basis of these, local laws were then adopted to guarantee its conservation.
At first, however, the fate of the Kerpen kart track remained uncertain because RWE still owned the land. Today, however, it emerged that a lease agreement was agreed between the runway managers and RWE. The company also ensured that the headquarters will not be demolished.
Thanks to the funds paid initially for the sale of the land, it will finally be possible to carry out all the modernization works of the structure.
Gerhard Noack, president of the local kart club, told the Kölner Express newspaper: “We have signed a lease with RWE for ten years, plus an option for another five, and we can now invest the money from the sale in the necessary renovation.”
“The access roads and the track will be paved again, we will build new curbs and double fences so that we can organize again international competitions such as the world championships, the European championships and the WSK”.
The last world championship race held in Kerpen took place in 2001, and on that occasion Michael Schumacher himself took part in the event fighting with very promising young people including Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Loic Duval and the title winner Vitantonio Liuzzi.
In addition to a major circuit renovation, there are plans to build a new track for electric karts.
#Schumacher #Kerpen #kart #track #renovated