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Roxby Downs mother of two Carolyn Mattner has decided to take on something new to keep her busy.
She is among a group of ladies who recently joined the Desert Dirt Kart racing, a competition dominated by men in her community.
Carolyn preferred doing something adventurous, not only for her, but something the whole family could participate in during their free time.
Kart racing is among a number of outdoor sports that the mining community in Roxby Downs enjoys given its geographical location and isolation.
Her husband Jack and son Tyler are both into the sport and have already participated in two previous meetings.
“We are totally new to the sport but after watching it a few times we have decided to involve the whole family to keep us busy,” she said.
“It’s an interesting sport with a lot fun.”
Carolyn’s seven-year-old son Tyler is one of the three young participants that the organisers wanted to introduce early into the sport to make it big while growing up in Roxby Downs.
Carolyn said participating in one of the deadliest sports was a huge challenge for her and she wanted to continue to excel in the sport as long as she could.
“It’s a good experience and I love it,” she said.
Carolyn said the decision to try out the kart race was like a dream come true.
“I want to try out something different and I’m glad that I’m doing it right with my first trial run,” she said.
Given the risk and dangers about the sport she said she would continue to explore it with caution.
“This is a family decision and seeing my husband and son participating gives me the encouragement that I needed most,” she said.
Carolyn said now that she would be participating in the monthly meetings she would love to learn the art of the sport and compete at state level.
Originally from Whyalla, Carolyn and her family came to live in Roxby for the second time this year.
“We had already spent 12 months here and going back to Adelaide and coming back here for my husband Jack’s second term with BHP Billion,” she said.
Carolyn said there wasn’t much fun in the desert but what attracted them back was the friendliness of the people.
“The people here are always friendly and we would love to continue living here,” she said.
Carolyn said kart racing was not as dangerous as she always thought and her first race had built up her confidence.
Carolyn said the kart race competition all over Australia was quiet interesting and she would love to see more women participating in the sport in the near future.
She said having seen her husband and son participating competitively in the sport was really a morale booster for her and she would love to represent Roxby Downs if given the proper guidance and training to help fulfil her dreams.