Hamilton Has Time Off at Karting

As McLaren Mercedes have chosen Jerez as their base for the second test this year, Lewis Hamilton had an off week from testing this week. The reigning world champion decided to pay a short visit to the PF International track in Lincolnshire for the launch of the 2009 Formula Kart Stars (FKS) championship.

The visit brought him sweet reminders of his past experiences in the FKS, which he won in 1996. It was one of the many steps he had to make until finally seeing his dream of becoming F1 champion come true.

““It was fantastic for me to have the opportunity to catch-up with the latest crop of Formula Kart Stars. It’s really cool to see how determined and competitive they are, I can remember being exactly the same! I enjoyed my time in the championship massively and, more importantly, learnt a huge amount,” said Hamilton, according to Formula 1 official site.

“This is the real grass roots of the sport, and gives kids an opportunity to compete and develop as a driver, and also to get a full understanding of the dedication that is required. Hopefully I gave them some good advice - the most important of which is not to neglect their education in their drive to succeed in motorsport!” added the McLaren driver.

In addition, Hamilton has taken an active role in the development of the FKS programme, as revealed by series director Carolynn Hoy.

“Lewis is a patron of the championship and sponsors a special prize in our Mini Max class. He has always been supportive of the championship and has remained involved ever since he raced with us more than ten years ago,” said Hoy.