|
|
|
|
| Author |
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 7,947
|
Have you tried karting? Please tell me about it.
Got to thinking about it as a cheap way to get my kicks on 4 wheels w/o having to worry about new tires, brake pads, rear wing and gas prices. Did you have a blast? I heard it's very demanding physically. Is this true? Do I need to bring my own helmet, gloves, etc? I want to bring my son along who's 15 y/o. Will they let unlicensed minors drive? Thanks for the info.
|
||
11-08-2005, 09:29 PM
|
|
|
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: On a boat in the Great NW
Posts: 6,145
|
I hear the experience, from a formula driver associate, that the experience aint much different from formula racing...0-100 in like 5.5 seconds...Cheap upkeep, cheap track days.
You can get a good used rig for 3-4,000, brand-spanking new with bells-n-whistles for around 8. edit: physically demanding?...Yes...buddy of mine cracked ribs due to G-force (don't let that dissuade you), rare I am sure. Quite a work-out otherwise. Last edited by Mulhollanddose; 11-08-2005 at 10:13 PM.. |
||
|
11-08-2005, 10:00 PM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 7,947
|
OK, how does indoor karting compare to above?
|
||
|
11-08-2005, 10:29 PM
|
|
|
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: On a boat in the Great NW
Posts: 6,145
|
Quote:
|
||
|
11-08-2005, 10:52 PM
|
|
|
Unsafe at any speed
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: East of Seattle
Posts: 662
|
A friend I race against let me drive his 80cc shifter kart one day until I broke it. The short answer is: Loud, fast, punishing fun.
First of all, to a snob like me, karting (at least around here) is kind of ghetto. But once you're actually driving on the track and hanging on for dear life, it's a blast. They're fast, the shifters, and feel like you're into nitrous or turbo boost once they're in their 2-stroke powerband (about a 1500 rpm range somewhere north of 12K). I thought the front end was going to lift up when the power came on. It was startlingly fast, and this wasn't even a 100 or 125 cc kart. Taking turns is brutal, you're fighting the lateral Gs, rough pavement without suspension, and making steering corrections through a wheel that doesn't want to turn. But if your seat fits well and you have a neck brace, you don't feel the beating you're taking until you're done. You roll into the pits breathless and laughing. And sore later in the day. I've known guys that got out of karting because it eventually costs almost as much as running a cheaper racecar (you go through a LOT of tires and engine rebuilds), and it became tiresome to compete against reckless kids. Indoor karting is fun, too. The lawnmower engines or electric karts demand smoothness and a clean line. And they have you race against the clock, and frown on close wheel to wheel racing. Unless you're in the nightly leagues. That's where the action is, cheaper too.
__________________
87 Carrera Coupe |
||
|
11-08-2005, 11:22 PM
|
|
|
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: On a boat in the Great NW
Posts: 6,145
|
|||
|
11-08-2005, 11:35 PM
|
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: N. Phoenix AZ USA
Posts: 28,943
|
I raced SCCA Production and open wheel for years then got tired of blowing $5,000 a weekend on fun and started racing lay down enduro karts. Most fun for the price I have had in years and very affordable. You can overhaul the engine (in those days) for $30 and a set of tires lasted most of the season for $200.
The sit up karts are fun but not as fast. None of these except the larger shifter karts are really heavy on the horsepower so drivers skills make or break a kart driver. Smoothness counts for a lot and you worry about 1 or 2 pounds and are right on the minimum limits if possible. Lots of fun and big for me was that I did not have to tow a frigging trailer. Put the kart in a van, back of a station wagon and head to the race. Joe A
__________________
2013 Jag XF, 2002 Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins (the workhorse), 1992 Jaguar XJ S-3 V-12 VDP (one of only 100 examples made), 1969 Jaguar XJ (been in the family since new), 1985 911 Targa backdated to 1973 RS specs with a 3.6 shoehorned in the back, 1959 Austin Healey Sprite (former SCCA H-Prod), 1995 BMW R1100RSL, 1971 & '72 BMW R75/5 "Toaster," Ural Tourist w/sidecar, 1949 Aeronca Sedan / QB |
||
|
11-09-2005, 03:08 AM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 7,947
|
Thanks for the link Mul.
Being able to haul around a Kart in my van will be convenient. Tires last a season, gas is cheaper, maintenance is cheaper. I don't see any negatives except the muscle aches and, maybe, sharing the track with a bunch of kiddies? |
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:09 AM
|
|
|
Registered
|
the track i talked to you about, the one my friend works at, the price includes laundered race suits. i would still bring my own helmet and gloves. i might go next sunday.
buying a kart, that is a diff story. i pondered it, but the cost still add up. they have these new ones powered by two stroke 250's!!! i think some race company is bringing them to the states.
__________________
poof! gone |
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:13 AM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Cameron Park (NorCal)
Posts: 779
|
I've got an 80 shifter. For a while I had two. Most fun I've ever had. It will squeeze every ounce of skills and talent you've got to offer, and then want more. Very inexpensive to run. Tires last a long time, and in stock configuration, the engines are bullet-proof. Top end rebuild costs about $65 and I have it down to about 15-20 minutes in my garage. I did that about every 5 hours of engine run time. Very physically demanding, and very rewarding when you get it right. I've raced SCCA in diff classes, but most fun and certainly bang for the buck is karting.
 
__________________
Mike '80 911SC Weissach Edition '87 325is '02 K1200RS |
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:24 AM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 2,052
|
Chris,
Talk to Toby, he an ex-carter and his Dad is still into it. Chris
__________________
1987 Guards Red Targa (sold) 2006 Toyota Tundra DC 4x4, the "man-e-van" 1998 CR500 Well on the fringe...... |
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:31 AM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 7,947
|
My only question now is, when you attend Kart school, where does the instructor sit?
 Cliff, let me know if you're going next Sunday. |
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:50 AM
|
|
|
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: On a boat in the Great NW
Posts: 6,145
|
Quote:
...Great bonding time with the youngin's.
|
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:50 AM
|
|
|
Dept store Quartermaster
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: I'm right here Tati
Posts: 19,858
|
Do they generally have a "Clydesdale Class" for us huge bastards? I would love to do this, but if I'm up against a guy half my weight or less I really wouldn't have a chance.
__________________
Cornpoppin' Pony Soldier |
||
|
11-09-2005, 09:23 AM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Cameron Park (NorCal)
Posts: 779
|
Quote:
Depending on the track/club, I run in a "Masters" class (35 y.o.+) or a "Grand Masters" class (45 y.o.+) and the weight minimum is 375, kart and driver. Kart weighs about 185lbs. There are some pretty big guys in my class, and they still do very well. Driving skill plays such a big part.
__________________
Mike '80 911SC Weissach Edition '87 325is '02 K1200RS |
||
|
11-09-2005, 09:28 AM
|
|
|
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: On a boat in the Great NW
Posts: 6,145
|
Quote:
|
||
|
11-09-2005, 10:00 AM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Calgary Alberta, CANADA
Posts: 2,113
|
My opionion is a bit different...
I used to race Karts and its a blast! but inherently really dangerous. I have seen Karts flying and landing on people's head, I've seen them going sideways crushing the driver against the wall and seen them upside down at speed... (yes broken bones) I'm sorry if I sound pessimistic but I wouldn't take my kid. I rather have him protected by a shell, the speed on those things are comparable to real cars but no seatbelt, no rollbar, no nothing... Indoors karting can be a bit safer because the tracks are usually a lot smaller and the speeds are not that great so its fun and safer... -Jasper
__________________
We're all in the gutter,but some of us are looking at the stars. -Oscar Wilde |
||
|
11-09-2005, 08:47 PM
|
|
|
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: On a boat in the Great NW
Posts: 6,145
|
Still safer than BMX, motocross, skateboarding, road-biking, snowboarding, skiing or mountain-climbing...IMHO
|
||
|
11-09-2005, 09:08 PM
|
|
|
|
drag racing the short bus
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Location, Location...
Posts: 21,983
|
Of course I just spent the equivalent of this...
 ...on my car.  Oh well, I guess the saving grace is I can't drive a kart on the 101 Freeway...
__________________
The Terror of Tiny Town |
||
|
11-09-2005, 09:36 PM
|
|
|
Registered
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: SF Bay Area
Posts: 7,947
|
Quote:
|
||
|
11-09-2005, 09:43 PM
|
|
