PHOTO COURTESY MB2 RACEWAY
MODESTO — Driving enthusiasts of all ages, get ready to rev your engines. MB2 Raceway will open an indoor electric go-kart raceway on Modesto’s east side in time for the holiday season.
The course is under construction in the 60,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by Gottschalks department store in the Century Center at Oakdale Road and Orangeburg Avenue.
MB2 operates raceways in Sylmar, Thousand Oaks, Clovis and Des Moines, Iowa. The success of the Clovis facility, also located in a vacated Gottschalks store, motivated the company to add a fifth raceway at Century Center.
“People are anxious for us to come in, so we decided to go with that location,” said MB2 Raceway Marketing Manager Gary Custer.
The company expects to hire 25 to 30 part-time employees to work the front counter and to fill track assistant positions.
Neighboring businesses at Century Center are pleased the long-vacant space soon will be occupied.
“I’m very excited that a new business is coming in, and I believe it will help out the entire shopping center,” said April Williams, a server at The Ice Cream Company, which is situated directly across the parking lot from the new raceway. “Parents with older kids can drop them off at the raceway, then go workout at Planet Fitness, and then they can all come over here afterwards for ice cream.”
Andrea Zarate, manager of Ciao Bella Ristorante, also hopes the raceway will bring more customers to Century Center. While the Italian eatery, located next door to the raceway, caters to fine diners, Zarate believes she will see an uptick in business as well.
“It’s a great idea, and we’re looking forward to seeing how it works out,” she said.
The available space wasn’t the only thing that attracted MB2 to Modesto.
“The truth of the matter is we like small towns,” Custer said. “We want the locals to really get involved.”
MB2 has already joined the Modesto Chamber of Commerce and plans to use local restaurants to supply food for birthday parties and other events held at the raceway.
“We will ask the Chamber for recommendations on where to go for pizza, sandwiches, Italian food and BBQ for our events,” Custer said.
Once MB2 finishes building party rooms, bathrooms and front counters, the track can be set up quickly, transforming the former department store into a raceway.
“We hit three buckets,” Custer said, referring to the types of customers the raceway attracts. “We’re open to the public, do birthday parties for all ages and then corporate events. We bring in any large company in the city that wants an outing and we do a corporate event.”
The raceway can also serve as a venue for charity events, fundraisers and other special affairs.
“It’s not uncommon for us to put on a car show with hundreds of cars out front,” he said.
Public admission will be on a first come, first served basis and the course will accommodate 10 drivers at any given time. Admission for riders at least 4 feet, 9 inches tall and 12 years of age will be $23. That buys 14 laps of driving. For youngsters who are 4 feet tall there are smaller “30 percent” vehicles available at an admission price of $20 for a nine-lap course.
MB2 Raceway will offer weekday specials along with other periodic discounts, and frequent drivers will be able to buy a year-long membership that includes a free birthday race and tee-shirt. Raceway gift cards also will be available for purchase.
Each go-kart race will start with the wave of a green flag and end with checker flags in keeping with the raceway theme. Lap runs will alternate between adult and junior racers and those attending booked birthday party or other party events.
The go-karts can go up to 45 mph on the quarter-mile track. Drivers control the steering, acceleration and braking of the vehicles, but safety will be of key importance at the raceway.
“Everybody goes through a safety orientation,” said Custer. “They all wear a helmet provided by us. We do all the instructions for racing. So basically we give them all that information. They’ll get out there and they’ll drive.”
Still, in the event that a maverick driver becomes reckless, a track marshal will be able to reduce an erratic cart to walking speed with a remote control device. And because the go-karts are operated electrically, a flip of a switch can stop all vehicles in case of an emergency.
Custer is excited for the raceway’s opening and believes MB2 will be widely popular in Modesto.
“It’s easy to sell fun,” he said.
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