Anybody Go Karting?

[94Corolla5Speed]

Me and my friend are planning to go karting soon, there's a place near me ( http://mpgrandprix.com/ ) that has 9-hp propane powered Rimo karts, and it looks to be a sweet place to go, with specials in june for mon-wed for $20 for 3 races. Anyone have any experience in karting that can give me some tips and/or reflections on this particular karting area? Thanks in advance.

BTW, I weighed myself today, 118 lbs. with clothes on, so I think I have a nice advantage over the others

[Warner]

Holy crap you're tiny. I thought I was small.

I wish I could go karting, but the only place I knew about around here closed down before I ever got to go. I may start looking into it again.

[94Corolla5Speed]

I'm just a skinny mofo. 5'10" 118 lbs. I need to eat massive amounts of peanuts over the summer to gain some weight. I really can't wait to go to this indoor karting, I haven't been this excited about something for a while!

[noob5,000,000]

I need to eat massive amounts of penis over the summer

[RITmusic2k]

I need to eat massive amounts of penis over the summer

I can do it too.

On topic, there are a couple places around me that offer nice high-speed karting... Haven't been in a while. There's a place in town that has electric karts, and they are apparently a blast to drive because of that mountain of zero-rpm torque for launching

[ra64t]

I've done a lot of indoor karting in the past 2 years or so. Most of the basic racing techniques apply - 1st find the line, next work on exit speed, then cornering speed, then braking.

In corners, you want to be in a slight slide not too much - a lot of times the slide angle is very slight so it's barely noticeable. Watch the fast guys hands and see what inputs they are doing. There is a saying somewhere along the lines of - the less steering you do the faster you go - its pretty true. when your going through the corners a lot of times your wheel is strieght or slightly counter steering. Don't be sliding significantly on corner exit!

The track surface is very slick in indoor places, that place looks particularly slick, like my local place. Usually on line there will be more grip then off. Braking can be tricky and a big issue I see with new people. Generally, the speeds aren't too high so you can take most turns flat or breathing the throttle if you take them correctly. Where you need to brake, try strieght line braking first. Braking entering a corner induces significant oversteer and things happen very quickly in karts. Keep in mind the karts only have rear brakes. When you start getting a feel for it, you might want to trail the brakes a bit to help the kart rotate into slow corners. you can also help the kart rotate by lifting off the throttle or a more abrupt steering input on turn in. try these techniques if you start to experience understeer.

Biggest mistakes i see with beginners is sliding too much, particularly on corner exit and braking too much - particularly mid corner - that an instant spin!

I've heard the Rimo karts are pretty good - I've never tried them but raced a lot with the sodi karts, which are the most popular for arrive and drive. I heard the Rimo karts are lighter and more agile.

THats all I can think of for now. They are really fun. Also a great way to get your feet wet in racing and if you ever decide to move on to more serious racing its a good foundation. Let me know if you have any questions.

[watkins]

I need to eat massive amounts of penis over the summer

I can do it too.

You eat penis too?

[94Corolla5Speed]

I've done a lot of indoor karting in the past 2 years or so. Most of the basic racing techniques apply - 1st find the line, next work on exit speed, then cornering speed, then braking.

In corners, you want to be in a slight slide not too much - a lot of times the slide angle is very slight so it's barely noticeable. Watch the fast guys hands and see what inputs they are doing. There is a saying somewhere along the lines of - the less steering you do the faster you go - its pretty true. when your going through the corners a lot of times your wheel is strieght or slightly counter steering. Don't be sliding significantly on corner exit!

The track surface is very slick in indoor places, that place looks particularly slick, like my local place. Usually on line there will be more grip then off. Braking can be tricky and a big issue I see with new people. Generally, the speeds aren't too high so you can take most turns flat or breathing the throttle if you take them correctly. Where you need to brake, try strieght line braking first. Braking entering a corner induces significant oversteer and things happen very quickly in karts. Keep in mind the karts only have rear brakes. When you start getting a feel for it, you might want to trail the brakes a bit to help the kart rotate into slow corners. you can also help the kart rotate by lifting off the throttle or a more abrupt steering input on turn in. try these techniques if you start to experience understeer.

Biggest mistakes i see with beginners is sliding too much, particularly on corner exit and braking too much - particularly mid corner - that an instant spin!

I've heard the Rimo karts are pretty good - I've never tried them but raced a lot with the sodi karts, which are the most popular for arrive and drive. I heard the Rimo karts are lighter and more agile.

THats all I can think of for now. They are really fun. Also a great way to get your feet wet in racing and if you ever decide to move on to more serious racing its a good foundation. Let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks a lot! This is very helpful! I was wondering how fast these are compared to your average outdoor-everyone-can-ride amusement park karts. I find those fun, but I feel like 9 HP, 39 mph karts will be thrilling

[noob5,000,000]

Yeah that's a lot of good info. I need to get out to my local Kart 2 Kart soon. I think they have xceed meets there, hmm....

[ra64t]

they are significantly faster then the fun karts/amusement park karts/karts at the beach. Most importantly, they require real skill to go fast!

[94Corolla5Speed]

Kart places provide you with all the necessary gear right? (Helmet, head sock, suit, etc.)

[94Corolla5Speed]

Thanks, me and my friend that are going both have glasses, good tips Hope I get a clean head sock...ewwwwwwww thinking about it makes it kinda narsty...

[ra64t]

they'll provide what you need to race there, so at least a helmet. some places don't provide you with a suit or gloves. If they don't provide a suit make sure you wear a pair of jeans that you don't care about getting dirty - sometimes they might drip gasoline on the karts and it could get on your clothes. also although it's not super physical, you could still work up a sweat especially if its a hot day. If they don't have gloves, it wouldn't hurt to bring a thin pair of leather gloves or something, or motorcycle/karting/auto gloves if you have them, to help you grip the wheel for sanitary reasons.

wearing glasses under the helmet has never been an issue for me and I've worn several different brands of motorcycle and auto helmets. many people do it with no problem. However, I have had people tell me they couldn't put their glasses on comfortably under the helmet, so I guess it depends on the helmet, the glasses, and the shape of your head.

[94Corolla5Speed]

Well, the gasoline wont matter, since they're propane powered, and it shouldn't be hot because they are a large facility and I'm pretty sure they will have air conditioning. From the pictures, it looks like everyone's wearing a helmet and a suit, but no gloves.

[pmacutay]

-The place I go to (K1 Speed) is electric, 20hp motor, you hit about 45mph on the main straight. The only real danger is getting addicted, and at $20 a race it gets kind of costly.

-I am kind of interested to see if the propane karts will have all that torque. With an electric motor, you literally have full torque at every RPM.

-I now own my own DOT/Snell certified helmet, so I don't have to worry about any of the sanitary stuff because its my own helmet! If you're gonna be doing anything else alongside karting (like tracking your car, or just riding along w/ a friend in his car on the track) you're gonna need one of these anyway, so the investment might be worth it. Along with the peace of mind that comes with it being your own helmet.

-In my experience, karts will never have front brakes, and it teaches you a lot about proper braking technique. If you go enough, you'll probably learn how to threshold brake with em, and it's a nice feeling.

-You'll make leaps and bounds in terms of laptime improvement the first few times you go...but once you're seasoned on the track, it's funny how you'll be celebrating over a 0.2s improvement.