Courtesy Adk Karting
By Paul Post
Jeremy Treadway has just the thing for people who feel the need for speed.
His new ADK Karting Experience attraction, scheduled to open this fall, will have a more than quarter-mile-long, indoor road race type track with cars that go up to 50 mph.
It will occupy the 80,000-square-foot former Sears store that closed in 2018 at the east end of Aviation Mall, near the Food Court.
“We’re going to be able to cover a wide range of people,” Treadway said. “We want it so an enthusiast like myself who raced professionally for years can get in and be excited, but we also want to adjust the speed of cars enough so a family can get in and not worry about the kids getting hurt.”
Competitive leagues will be organized for experienced drivers.
“We also want to be a tourist-type destination so that when people come to the area they can say, let’s go to ADK Karting, we can spend a rainy afternoon there and enjoy ourselves,” he said.
In addition to racing, the entertainment-themed complex will have six simulators that let people feel like they’re behind the wheel in a NASCAR race or competing in one of the world’s most famous international circuits. Future plans call for glow-in-the-dark string bowling and a café area.
Originally from Ticonderoga, Treadway lives in Fort Ann where he owns and operates ADK MX, a motocross facility at the former Country Meadows Golf Course on Route 149.
“It’s seasonal and it’s dirt bikes,” he said. “It’s not karts. That’s why I really want to work on a family entertainment that’s more year-round.”
He also owns Country Meadows Barn, a wedding and special events venue, in Fort Ann.
ADK Karting will employ about two dozen people.
Treadway is aiming for a Nov. 1 opening, ramping up over the winter before going full speed in time for the 2026 summer tourist season.
The next closest mall-based, go-kart attractions are at Palisades Center in West Nyack and Destiny USA in Syracuse. A firm called Elev8 Fun has similar centers at former Sears in Tampa and Orlando, Florida.
Go-kart racing is extremely popular in Europe.
The track, designed and built by 360 Karting of Slovenia, will be set up as a flat road course with left- and right-turns, straightaways, a vibrant coloring system, and special coating on the concrete surface that promotes traction, stability and safety.
The track has lanes so karts go along side one another just like a race.
Cars come from a Bulgarian firm and are significantly different from those found at outdoor summertime go-kart attractions.
“They’re a completely different animal, a different level,” Treadway said. “The technology is just so advanced over there (Europe) with these karts.”
Visitors will be required to watch a 90-second training video before getting outfitted a balaclava and helmet.
“We’ll do that with everybody who comes through the door unless they’re here for a league or it’s somebody who’s been here a lot,” he said.
“We’d love to stay here long term, whether it’s a lease or purchase, but right now it’s a lease with options,” Treadway said. “As a business owner I want to see how well we do. Once the buzz gets going and people see how professional we are, then it’s a different conversation in a couple of years. Maybe we put purchase on the table or sign off on a long-term lease.”