K-Gene Racing

K-Gene Racing K-Gene Racing is a family based race team lead by Driver Karson Elkins.

08/29/2026

🏁 IT’S RACE DAY! 🏁

After today, we’ll have just 3 races left until Karson’s final Jr. Dragster season comes to an end! 🏆🔥(Video from final bracket points race)

What a season it has been. From the highs and lows, tough rounds, broken parts, close points battles, and championship pressure we’ve made memories that will last a lifetime.

Now it’s time to enjoy these final races and make every pass count. 💪🏼

The bracket racing championship may be locked in, but we’re not done yet! 😈🏁 We have one more points championship to win.

Let’s go, Karson! Get up there, stay focused, make clean passes, and let’s go racing!

K-Gene Racing Team #1423
🏆 2026 NHRA Jr. Lightning Champion
🏆 2026 No Box Nationals Champion
🏁 6 Wins on season

3 races left in the Jr. Dragster journey.

4 FINAL JR RACES BEFORE RETIREMENT. 2 MORE GOALS LEFT- WIN MIDWEST NATIONALS AND THE TRG HEADS UP CHAMPIONSHIP POINT SER...
08/25/2026

4 FINAL JR RACES BEFORE RETIREMENT. 2 MORE GOALS LEFT- WIN MIDWEST NATIONALS AND THE TRG HEADS UP CHAMPIONSHIP POINT SERIES.

Saturday August 29th -TGR Motorsports 7.90 Heads Up Mafia Index Points Race

Saturday, September 12-Sunday September 14th Skelton Raceway Jr Race

Friday, October 2-Sunday October 4th - NHRA Midwest Nationals Final

Friday, October 23-Saturday October 24th-Championship Finals for TGR Motorsports 7.90 Heads Up Mafia Index Points Race

08/24/2026

🏆 2026 JR LIGHTING CHAMPIONS! 🏆

KARSON DID IT! He is officially the 2026 Jr Lighting Champion! 🏆🏁

It wasn’t easy. Not even close. This video is one to remember. The very moment we 💯 secured the championship.

Saturday started with our time runs being cut short by what we thought was a coil malfunction. We managed to make it through a few rounds, putting ourselves in a great position to potentially secure the championship by winning two rounds.

But the current 3rd-place points leader had other plans. He went on to win the entire event, leaving only a handful of points between him and Karson heading into Sunday.

Sunday morning, we knew exactly what we had to do is stay a few rounds ahead and keep our focus.

Time runs went perfectly. Then came 1st round.

The car sputtered all the way down the track, and Karson lost.

Suddenly, the stress level went through the roof.

We went over the entire car and couldn’t find the problem. Then, during the first call for 2nd round, the car wouldn’t even start.

I decided to check the coil one more time.

And there it was.

The coil we put on Saturday was BAD. That was the problem all along.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have another high-performance coil with us. But giving up has never been an option.

I had a new coil that wasn’t even designed for a high-performance go-kart motor. I threw it on anyway.

The car fired.

We had no RPM reading, so Karson had to go strictly by the sound of the motor.

We made it to the 2nd round chip draw and saw something that immediately caught our attention—the 2nd and 3rd place points leaders were racing each other.

Karson pulled up to the starting line and did what he had to do.

WIN. 🏁

Then our biggest threat went down the track against the other points contender—and LOST.

That was an emotional moment.

We knew one more round would officially clinch the championship.

Karson went back up and WON AGAIN. 🔥

And then came the moment that makes a dad incredibly proud…

Karson drove himself into the Jr Lighting final.

Under all the pressure, with a championship on the line, a car that had fought us all weekend, no RPM reading, and everything riding on every pass—he kept his composure and executed.

He finished with 2nd place points for the day, securing the 2026 JR LIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP! 🏆🏆🏆

What a way to finish it.

This one is definitely bittersweet. This was Karson’s final season in the Jr Lighting division, and what a way to close the chapter.

He didn’t just win a championship.

He showed us what he is made of when everything went wrong.

He stayed calm. He trusted his car. He trusted himself. And most importantly HE NEVER GAVE UP.

I couldn’t be more proud of you, Karson. ❤️

🏆 2026 JR LIGHTING CHAMPION 🏆

One division down.

ONE MORE TO GO. (TRG 7.90 HEADS UP INDEX)

And in about 5 weeks, we’ll be heading to the NHRA Midwest Nationals to chase that next goal. 🏁🔥

Thank you to everyone who has supported or helped out Karson, K-Gene Racing Team, and our family throughout this journey. We couldn’t do it without you.

THE KING HAS BEEN CROWNED. 👑🏆

I present to you, the Jr Lighting 2026 Champion Karson Elkins. What an emotional day!
08/23/2026

I present to you, the Jr Lighting 2026 Champion Karson Elkins. What an emotional day!

08/23/2026

Yesterday was a day full of ups and downs! 🏁

During our first time run, we broke down on the track. Then, during our second time run, we broke right at the starting line. After going through everything and chasing the issue down, we finally found the problem — the coil!

We changed it out and got back after it, making it through the 1st and 2nd rounds. Unfortunately, we came up short in the 3rd round, which made the championship points VERY close! 😬

Today is the final day, and to secure the championship, we need to win 3 rounds. 🏆

Anything can happen in racing, and we know there are no guarantees. We just need to stay calm, stay focused, and take it one round at a time.

Time to put it all on the line. 💪🔥

LET’S GO KARSON! 🏁🏆

🏆 CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND IS HERE! 🏁🔥It’s finally here! The weekend we’ve been waiting for all season. Who will be crowned ...
08/22/2026

🏆 CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND IS HERE! 🏁🔥

It’s finally here! The weekend we’ve been waiting for all season. Who will be crowned champion?

Will Karson finally capture the championship? 🏆 Or will another racer make a late-season charge and steal it away? This weekend, we find out!

Karson has had an incredible final Jr. Dragster season. He has been sitting #1 in points all season long, but the championship is far from over. Several racers are within striking distance, and every single round this weekend could change everything.

We are running High School Division today as well. Karson is currently sitting tied for 3rd place!

We’ve also got more racing on the schedule with the Midwest Nationals in beginning of October and three more races for the TRG 7.90 Heads-Up Series.

This is what we’ve worked for all year. 💪🏁

One final weekend. One final push. Leave it all on the track.

Let’s see if Karson can finish his final Jr. Dragster season as a Lightning Jr Series CHAMPION! 🏆🔥

08/15/2026

Test & Tune SUCCESS! 🏁🔥

Last night’s test & tune was exactly what we needed heading into championship weekend!

Karson’s Jr. Dragster is running perfectly, and we couldn’t be happier with how it performed.

But the big milestone was the S-10! 💪 After all the steering issues, truck seems a little better but, Karson finally made his first full pass without letting off the gas and the truck ran a 7.002 in the 1/8 mile! 😳🔥

We were only .002 away from the 6-second zone! With better air, we definitely believe this is going to be a very respectable truck.

Most importantly, Karson made several passes that helped build his confidence and get more comfortable behind the wheel. That was a huge win for us.

The cars are ready. Karson is ready. The team is ready.

🏆 Next weekend is Championship Weekend!

08/14/2026

Friday is Test Day! 🏁🔥

Tomorrow we’ll be testing both Karson’s Jr. Dragster and his S-10 race truck as we make our final preparations for Championship Weekend and the final race of the points series.

We’ve battled through quite a few sputtering issues with his jr dragster and steering issues with the S-10, but we believe we’ve finally got both figured out. Tomorrow will be the big test to see if everything is dialed in and ready to go.

Most importantly, we’re hoping Karson can make his first complete S-10 pass and get that first official time slip! 🏁💨

I’ll post updates throughout the day and let everyone know how testing goes.

Championship Weekend is right around the corner. Time to get to work! 💪🔥

K-Gene Racing Team

08/03/2026

First ever door car pass. Karson took it pretty easy as it’s very loose steering.

08/02/2026

Friday night testing went well and gave us a lot to build on.

Cameron Thomas jumped in the truck first, and it went 7.21 right off the trailer. On the second pass, with Karson riding in the passenger seat to learn the process, the truck ran a 7.28. Not bad at all for the first night out.

Then it was Karson’s turn. Cam walked him through the entire process, step by step. On his first attempt, Karson took the beams, but the timing system malfunctioned, so he went ahead and made a partial pass to about the 330-foot mark before letting out. Back in the pits, he admitted he was pretty nervous and said, “Everything is so complex.”

He was excited to get another shot. On his second pass, he staged just a little out of the groove. The light dropped, the truck carried the front wheels, and it started drifting toward the wall. Karson did a great job trying to save it, but we quickly learned the steering is extremely loose and very easy to overcorrect. It was a great learning experience, and fortunately, the rain moved in shortly after and ended testing for the night.

We also found a few things that need attention before the next outing:
• The thermostat isn’t working properly.
• The fuel filter overflow is stuck open and pouring fuel.
• The steering needs to be tightened up.

Overall, we’re happy with the progress. Every pass is a learning experience, and we’re checking items off the list one by one. Moving from a junior dragster to a full-size race truck is a huge step, but Karson is learning quickly. We’ll make the necessary repairs and get back to testing soon. The future is looking bright! Videos will be posted soon!

Address

Alton, IL
62002

Telephone

+16183347278

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