Wow. Wished they had that when I was sprinting. The only wrong thing about that article is that most American karts have a centrifugal clutch and are started with an external starter. Very few push karts that I know of. I do know that the direct drive w/o a clutch was how it worked in the 60's when I started and was/is still popular in Europe.

Hmmm...

All this talk of Karting reminds me of my old Emick/Parilla reed valve sprint Kart. It really is tough to match the level of wheel to wheel racing one finds in Karting.

Milt:

You once posted a photo of your self racing an enduro Kart at Riverside International Raceway. That must have been quite a thrill! I cannot imagine the sensation of speed you must have felt. My hat is off to you for having the huevos to drive RIR in a Kart. Adams Kart track in Riverside was hairy enough for me.

I keep trying to ease my self into a track day with the Carrera 3.2. Really, it may make more sense just to buy a Kart. The Kart track at California Speedway looks like a load of fun. My brother has gone to Moran Raceway and says it is amazing too.

Mike

I bought a used tag kart last summer. It is a blast and, I think, relatively simple and cheep - once you have everything. The engine can go 50 hours between rebuilds. Some say more. Tires, like someone said above, can be new every outing or run the same ones for 5 outings. Regular pump gas and oil.

There is very much a physical side to driving a sprint kart fast. If you are older, like me, it will kick the crap out of you if you are not in shape (I'm not and it did).

Another big point is to not skimp on the seat - make sure it fits and is mounted properly. The seat is very very important.

Adams Raceway in Riverside rents karts a few nights a week. They are KTM100 powered and pretty decent. Old, crappy tires of course. But still a lot of fun for $25 a race if you don't have a kart and want to try them out.

Don't forget a rib belt... or you will pay dearly. I bought Robby Motts belt. Good stuff and saved me from FURTHER broken ribs.