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Joel Jens Racing - 2O11 WKA Triple Crown Winner!
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July 8, 2011 - Racing into Victory Lane: Manitowoc's Jens settles in on go-kart tracks
Article By: Scott Hansen
Original Article Link: htrnews.com
It’s been a little over a month since Joel Jens participated in his last World Kart Association Manufacturer’s Cup race, but as he heads into this weekend’s races at the BeaverRun Motorsports Complex in Wampum, Penn., something’s certainly changed about the 15-year-old racer from Manitowoc.
Back in March, Jens scored his first WKA Manufacturer’s Cup Series victory and followed that up with a weekend event in South Bend, Ind., in late April where he quadrupled his series win total by scoring three of the four Junior category wins.
Since then the 5-foot-6-inch, 125-pound ninth-grader from Wilson Junior High School was named the eKartingNews Racer of the Month for April, the youngest person ever to receive the distinction according to his father, Mark Jens. He’s also established himself as a title contender in each class and possibly a candidate for the famed WKA Triple Crown Club.
But while Joel’s impressive resume continues to grow, the one thing that hasn’t changed is his attitude and love for racing.
“The whole time I’ve been in (racing) I never have gone into a race to win, I go to have fun,” Joel said as he reminisced about his racing career which began when he was given his first go-kart, a Merlin Kart model, on his 10th birthday. That go-kart has since been retired and now hangs in the family’s garage as Joel now races a Tony Kart go-kart. “I’ve gone from (losing) and still having fun to now winning, which is more fun. But I think the best part is I have gone through so many losses and not finishing races that even a second is good for me.”
Joel races into this weekend’s action ranked fourth in the Komet Jr. Lite class with 656 points, fourth in the Komet Jr. Heavy class with 655 points, 12th in the Yamaha Jr. Lite class with 569 points and fifth in the Yamaha Jr. Heavy class with 688 points.
The Wampum race is the fourth out of five in the Manufacturer’s Cup series. The final race will take place at the New Castle (Ind.) Motorsports Park on Sept. 16-18.
Joel, who attributes his early love for go-karts to being around four-wheelers, dirt bikes and cars at an early age, never foresaw the success he is experiencing now when he first began driving his first go-kart. He started off racing in club races, then ran some national races and began to expand the number of races he was participating in. He got in touch with several regional racing groups and developed other contacts and began to race regularly.
“It took a year of just going out and driving and learning how to drive. The hard part was being nervous and starting up front and learning up front,” Joel said, mentioning that he doesn’t particular care to watch automobile races on TV or in person, just like his other favorite sport — hockey. “It takes muscle to drive it. I ran my first national and I had a hard time finishing. I was almost going to pull off, because it’s 20 laps and I never really knew what it was like. I just kind of jumped into it.”
But he wasn’t the only one who had to make adjustments along the way. Joel said his parents, Mark and Fay, had a difficult time dealing with the fact that the races were a lot faster and had more action than they initially expected.
“They had never really gone to a race and didn’t know what it was. You get there and it was totally different than what they thought. It’s hard for them to watch races. They get nervous,” Joel said, mentioning that his go-kart and competitors are regularly reaching speeds of 70 miles per hour. “When you say you race go-karts, right away you wouldn’t think of what they really are. But when you tell people they just don’t really know.”
Mark echoed those same sentiments, saying he wished people would get the chance to see film of Joel racing to better give them an understanding as to what it’s like.
“It’s all about momentum. You aren’t dealing with 800-horsepower racecars like NASCAR. These are low horsepower,” Mark said. “It’s all about the finesse and driving. You have to be as smooth as silk and hit your marks and that’s what wins races.”
Joel was a long-time Merlin chassis driver during his five years of racing. He scored a number of podium finishes in the Cadet and Junior ranks and in February made the move to the famed Tony Kart chassis while competing at the Florida Winter Tour and transitioned that into his WKA program. The move and continual increase in experience helped secure his first WKA national victory during the second race of the series at the Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, S.C.
Joel’s success has also garnered him several sponsorships. Currently he is sponsored by Stock’s Harley Davidson, Bank First National, GO Designs, TA Motorsports, WOMT Radio, Green Stone Farm Credit, Fricke Concrete and Braun Building Center.
And even with all of that Joel manages to credit his success to his uncle Norbert and aunt Joyce who help him out financially, his former mechanic Jason Matuszewski and his current mechanics Vic Matuszewski and Tiffin Willareth.
“He is very, very quiet about it and doesn’t tell people about it,” Mark said last week before Joel and his go-kart left on an 80-foot rig to scout out the track of this weekend’s race. Mark went on to explain that despite Joel’s regular success, it is difficult given that Joel is competing against about 40 other racers and kids who are using multi-million dollar go-karts. “He is a full-blown gearhead and lives for racing.”
Article By: Scott Hansen
Original Article Link: htrnews.com
It’s been a little over a month since Joel Jens participated in his last World Kart Association Manufacturer’s Cup race, but as he heads into this weekend’s races at the BeaverRun Motorsports Complex in Wampum, Penn., something’s certainly changed about the 15-year-old racer from Manitowoc.
Back in March, Jens scored his first WKA Manufacturer’s Cup Series victory and followed that up with a weekend event in South Bend, Ind., in late April where he quadrupled his series win total by scoring three of the four Junior category wins.
Since then the 5-foot-6-inch, 125-pound ninth-grader from Wilson Junior High School was named the eKartingNews Racer of the Month for April, the youngest person ever to receive the distinction according to his father, Mark Jens. He’s also established himself as a title contender in each class and possibly a candidate for the famed WKA Triple Crown Club.
But while Joel’s impressive resume continues to grow, the one thing that hasn’t changed is his attitude and love for racing.
“The whole time I’ve been in (racing) I never have gone into a race to win, I go to have fun,” Joel said as he reminisced about his racing career which began when he was given his first go-kart, a Merlin Kart model, on his 10th birthday. That go-kart has since been retired and now hangs in the family’s garage as Joel now races a Tony Kart go-kart. “I’ve gone from (losing) and still having fun to now winning, which is more fun. But I think the best part is I have gone through so many losses and not finishing races that even a second is good for me.”
Joel races into this weekend’s action ranked fourth in the Komet Jr. Lite class with 656 points, fourth in the Komet Jr. Heavy class with 655 points, 12th in the Yamaha Jr. Lite class with 569 points and fifth in the Yamaha Jr. Heavy class with 688 points.
The Wampum race is the fourth out of five in the Manufacturer’s Cup series. The final race will take place at the New Castle (Ind.) Motorsports Park on Sept. 16-18.
Joel, who attributes his early love for go-karts to being around four-wheelers, dirt bikes and cars at an early age, never foresaw the success he is experiencing now when he first began driving his first go-kart. He started off racing in club races, then ran some national races and began to expand the number of races he was participating in. He got in touch with several regional racing groups and developed other contacts and began to race regularly.
“It took a year of just going out and driving and learning how to drive. The hard part was being nervous and starting up front and learning up front,” Joel said, mentioning that he doesn’t particular care to watch automobile races on TV or in person, just like his other favorite sport — hockey. “It takes muscle to drive it. I ran my first national and I had a hard time finishing. I was almost going to pull off, because it’s 20 laps and I never really knew what it was like. I just kind of jumped into it.”
But he wasn’t the only one who had to make adjustments along the way. Joel said his parents, Mark and Fay, had a difficult time dealing with the fact that the races were a lot faster and had more action than they initially expected.
“They had never really gone to a race and didn’t know what it was. You get there and it was totally different than what they thought. It’s hard for them to watch races. They get nervous,” Joel said, mentioning that his go-kart and competitors are regularly reaching speeds of 70 miles per hour. “When you say you race go-karts, right away you wouldn’t think of what they really are. But when you tell people they just don’t really know.”
Mark echoed those same sentiments, saying he wished people would get the chance to see film of Joel racing to better give them an understanding as to what it’s like.
“It’s all about momentum. You aren’t dealing with 800-horsepower racecars like NASCAR. These are low horsepower,” Mark said. “It’s all about the finesse and driving. You have to be as smooth as silk and hit your marks and that’s what wins races.”
Joel was a long-time Merlin chassis driver during his five years of racing. He scored a number of podium finishes in the Cadet and Junior ranks and in February made the move to the famed Tony Kart chassis while competing at the Florida Winter Tour and transitioned that into his WKA program. The move and continual increase in experience helped secure his first WKA national victory during the second race of the series at the Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, S.C.
Joel’s success has also garnered him several sponsorships. Currently he is sponsored by Stock’s Harley Davidson, Bank First National, GO Designs, TA Motorsports, WOMT Radio, Green Stone Farm Credit, Fricke Concrete and Braun Building Center.
And even with all of that Joel manages to credit his success to his uncle Norbert and aunt Joyce who help him out financially, his former mechanic Jason Matuszewski and his current mechanics Vic Matuszewski and Tiffin Willareth.
“He is very, very quiet about it and doesn’t tell people about it,” Mark said last week before Joel and his go-kart left on an 80-foot rig to scout out the track of this weekend’s race. Mark went on to explain that despite Joel’s regular success, it is difficult given that Joel is competing against about 40 other racers and kids who are using multi-million dollar go-karts. “He is a full-blown gearhead and lives for racing.”
