It’s been almost 30 years since planning began for the first Xtream Rock Island Grand Prix, the world’s largest and most prestigious karting street race. This will be the 28th year. The sport has changed a lot in that time and sometimes it’s hard to notice changes when you host one race a year. Rock Island organizers have taken a look at how they are doing and what might need to change. There are 2 major challenges and, in a sense, they go hand in hand: the racing needs to be safer; more support is needed from karters and sponsors due to growing costs to keep the event thriving.