Going Karting...

Solari

Solari

Solari

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Joined
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Kent
I've never driven a go kart in my life apart from the crap small ones when I was a kid. I've agreed to go for a karting day with work colleagues, what am I letting myself in for? :p

I know a few of the guys have raced competitively so am thinking I'll look a bit of a lamer, but it should still be fun!
 
Your wrists and arms are going to really, really hurt the next day! And if you get rammed, most probably your sides too! Thinking about it, your hands will also hurt when you try to grip things! Despite all that pain and suffering, it is definitely worth it, i can't wait until i go again.:cool:
 
enjoy it, its not difficult. did a teams of 2 6h marathon recently, and THAT really hurt - we were all physically drained at the end of it. Twins, 60mph, for 6h made people quit it was so tiring!
 
EVERYTHING is going to hurt in the morning lol, and as said if you get a shunt its going to hurt more, its surprising how much of your body you use in one haha, well I did anyway but because I was leaning over it going round corners like my bike :p
 
Hrm I do notice that one of my workmates is often coming in complaining of aches and bruises... must be fun in that case :) No pain, no gain, as they say!

I also got told that Karting is good for your spatial awareness so if that's true then it's a bonus. :D
 
Just remember you can probably take the corner faster than you think you can because its so wide, but treat with caution - as the rear wheel drive makes exiting the corner in reverse formation all to easy.

Brilliant fun.
 
Nomisf said:
Just remember you can probably take the corner faster than you think you can because its so wide, but treat with caution - as the rear wheel drive makes exiting the corner in reverse formation all to easy.

Brilliant fun.
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Wicked....

Might it be an idea to get someone else to pick me up and take me home.. ie: am I likely to be too battered to drive home comfortably?
 
Once went karting with 16 people from my work, Ive never been in so much pain the day after in my life, my arms hurt so much. Came 1st at least, excellent fun.
After jumping back into your car it feels like driving a soft fluffy cloud
 
based on my karting experience, id give you the following tips,

- Dont be afraid to take it easy for the first few laps, until the tyres get a bit of heat in you will be sliding all over the place, regardless what the Senna Jnr's here will say, this might knock your confidence a bit if you take a corner too fast and smack into a wall on your 2nd lap.

- Take your time to find a good way round the track, watch what people who have been round the track a few times do, chances are their lines wont be far off the ones you want, trying to go round fast using the wrong lines mean you'll be all over the place.

- Not sure on your build, but if your similar to myself (5'7 ish, 10st ish) you'll be quick round the track. Depending on the build of your mates, you might be significantly quicker coming out of slower corners when the karts really loose pace, use this to your advantage, and get a good line out of the corner over being all over the arse of the person infront. You'll learn which corners/straights have genuine overtaking places that you can exploit based on your weight, and taking it easy before these corners so you dont get a pants line through the corner, even to the point where you let the kart infront pull away so you can get a full speed run at that corner before the overtaking point will let you get past much faster

- also based on above, if your light you can brake later also, and your kart wont bog down as much coming out of corners, as such, cheeky dives down the inside are good options on hairpins.

- Being smooth and gently round the track instead of ripping the kart around will mean you can keep your speed up, ripping it round and sliding the arse all over the place might be fun, but it will slow you down.

- you might be limited by your kart, most arrive and drive kart venues will have a few dodgy karts that either pull to the right/left/have duff brakes/ dont accelerate as quickly etc, if this is the case dont worry and pull into the pits and ask for a different kart, otherwise you'll just get bored of the event quickly.

- the comments about aching are true, depending on your size you might bounce around in the seat a lot, and you can get a few bruises from that, so try and wear a hoody or something with a bit of padding.

- overall, just enjoy it, and if you are lagging behind, get the back end out and drift the corners ! :)
 
Haha quality advice. I'm 6'2 and 13st so can't see myself having any sort of advantages :) Padded clothing sounds good - thanks, I didn't think of that!
 
Don't wear your Sunday best. Every time I go my clothes come back stinking of petrol/fumes despite the supplied overalls, and go straight into the wash.

You shouldn't get that battered (although on the last trip one guy managed to flip it over :o, how we don't know, and hurt his wrists), the karts won't be evenly matched (live with it), and despite whatever current intentions you have you will become the most competitive, aggressive driver on the track, so don't forget to enjoy it!
 
I've been round our local track Knockhill quite a few times - many people on here have already given you fantastic advice, the only other advice i could give is enjoy yourself bud :cool:
 
Loowi_ashley said:
After jumping back into your car it feels like driving a soft fluffy cloud
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Yep, it certainly feels weird driving your car after driving a kart.

I'm very naff at karting but I absolutely love it.

There are some great videos of people karting on YouTube... including a video of Lewis Hamilton's first time karting. :cool:
 
Get the back end out if its wet, i remember that on friends birthday. His parents were taking pictures and one of the slides i was in was cool. For my standards that is. :)
 
Yeah things do hurt especially if first time. Best way to help prevent this is just to relax and not over grip the wheel. If never driven one before then the first thing will get you is how it feels when your turning. Obviously no suspension and as you may or may not know the grip comes from the chassis bending. This will feel really strange for a lap or so as you can feel the whole thing move/twist slightly. The other surprising thing may be how little you need to turn the wheel even for the sharpest hairpin. Obviously don't lock the breaks especially the rears, be a smooth a possible and most importantly have fun!!!! You will come back with a smile on your face :)
 
A few further thoughts to add to the good advice already suggested:
- The comments from Jackie Stewart are as true in kart racing as they are in normal racing, i.e. "don't start accelerating out of a bend until you know that you won't have to stop", that's how to maximise your speed down the straights.
- Weight can make a difference, but only when you're really at the serious level. At my age, I'm not that light (79kg), but was still able to outrun all but the pro-drivers at a recent event that I attended.
- Try to stay out of trouble. If you spot someone who's clearly just out to play dodgems, try to stay away from them as chances are they'll happily take out both themselves and whoever is near them at the first possible opportunity, meaning that you can happily cruise past whilst their in the barriers.
 
If you're tall like me, prepare to have blisters all over your back as the seats are rarely designed to accomodate larger guys.

That said, I usually have way too much fun to even notice that I'm in pain until afterwards.:)
 
As said, be prepared for pain!

You will see lots of people trying to "jockey" their karts off the line - this gives you no advantage other than looking like a breast - so don't do it!

Just try and concentrate on what is in front of you - you almost certainly will not have mirrors so just forget about what is behind you. If you have overtaken someone, get away from them by being as smooth as possible through the corners that you didn't gain on them. This will maximise your chances of staying ahead of them. Mistakes aside, if you stay ahead of someone you were gaining on for a whole lap, chances are that they wont bother you again that session so put them out of your mind and focus on the next person.

Your weight on the day will have an absolutely huge effect on your competitiveness - If you are 20kgs heavier than someone else, chances are you will be somewhere around 10% down on them in terms of acceleration, braking and cornering speed. This is massive and you really shouldn't expect to be able to keep pace with someone that is both more experienced and lighter than you - so don't let it bother you. Just enjoy the day :)
 
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