Secrets of Kart racing
 

I have a race-night planned with my homeboys on Friday night at:

http://www.speedring-kartracing.com/

Im usually pretty fast out there, but I can't ever keep up with 2 or 3 of the guys I run with. I don't know how they do it! They are fat, old, weak, and drive fantsy-pants cars with power steering. They must be destroyed.

Can any of you karting guys out there toss up a few pointers on driving and kart-control? The old-guys reign of success must be stopped.

Mat,

The punks who work at those places are usually unbeatable... suggest you try to 'pursuade' some info from one of them with a twenny. ;)

Number one rule that I learned in karting: Never Go Sideways. Slow in - Fast out usually works, as long as you can block the entry.

rich- love your bikes.

If you weigh less, all you need to do is hold everyone off until the straight. If you weigh more, all your fancy-ass driving will mean nothing when some 80lb kid puts five lengths on you in 50 yards out of a hairpin. :mad:

Tip #1: Slide your seat all the way forward.
Tip #2: Stay off the brakes as much as possible.
Tip #3: Keep the throttle pinned as much as possible.
Tip #4: No matter what they say, the karts will vary in performance, sometimes dramatically. Ask one of the track punks for a fast kart.

Kart racing brings to mind a favorite saying of mine, especially since I have a 356 - "Horsepower is for those who can't keep their speed up in the corners".

Ha, good one! It's true with any low HP application (125 GP bikes come to mind as a good example). It's all about keeping your momentum.

Lean all your weight on the _out_ edge of the kart in curves. When driving without thinking of it, you would lean to inside and that means losing some of the traction in curves. Leaning out supports the outer tyres to get more grip thus faster cornering speed. At least that is my two cents on karting. :)