Fort St. John school to host first Go Kart Rodeo

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C.— A Fort St. John school will be hosting School District 60’s (SD60) first annual Go-Kart Rodeo. 

Dr. Kearney Middle School’s go-kart club will host other schools from the Peace region for its first Go Kart Rodeo scheduled for May 29th, 2026.  

William McColm, a teacher and the club facilitator, told Energeticcity.ca the rodeo will give students an opportunity to bring their go-karts out. 

They will race around different tracks while troubleshooting and repairing their vehicles as a team. 

He shared: “[It is] important for us to introduce them to trades-related skills and get them thinking about what a career in the trades would look like.”

The go-kart club focuses on teaching students fabrication skills, including machining, welding, designing and refining their designs. 

The club teaches students how to build three different types of go-karts – introductory, fully electric and fully autonomous. 

McColm also teaches metalwork and robotics at Dr. Kearney.

“[In order] to encourage them to come to the after-school club, I wanted their metal shop time in class and their after-school class time to be focused on something that they would find interesting, so go-karts,” McColm said. 

“I wanted to make sure they felt like there was a purpose to building all these go-karts. I decided it would be useful to have our own go-kart competition here in the north.”

McColm has invited as many schools as possible from the district and beyond, and he says North Peace Secondary School is already committed. 

He said: “Hopefully we can use this go-kart [event] to celebrate community involvement in [the] go-kart club and the things we’re doing…to promote trades.” 

McColm shared that he has received small donations from local businesses towards the program, including for the purchase of motors, steel go-kart components, welding supplies and testing. 

“Any support that I can get from the community is welcomed and greatly appreciated,” he said. 

Through Brian Campbell, district principal of careers and international at SD60, the club was able to secure a new milling machine. 

Additionally, the Dr.Kearney Parent Advisory Council (PAC) has agreed to buy a new lathe – a machine that rotates a workpiece around an axis to perform operations like cutting, sanding, knurling, drilling and deformation.

However, one of the challenges that McColm faces is the big machines don’t come with any tooling. 

The rodeo has been scheduled for May 29th from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Dr. Kearney Middle School, shop and field area.

In 2024, McColm took School District 60 students to compete in Edison Motors High School Go Kart Challenge.

To take part in the rodeo, schools can contact Dr. Kearney Middle School or email William McColm at: wmccolm@prn.bc.ca. Alternatively, schools can also register at: https://sites.google.com/learn60.ca/gokart-club/sign-up. 

To donate, cheques can be sent directly to the school or Interac e-transfers can be made to dkpayments@prn.bc.ca.