Karting, do you do it?

"Nick Has an Exocet" (nickallain) 12/07/2015 at 00:20 • Filed to: None

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Karting might the most fun (and a rather expensive way) to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning. Thinking about getting some friends together to go ahead soon.

Props to my local track (Gokart Racer in Burlingame, CA) - they’ve got a pretty good operation.

And yes, my racer name is the “oh so humble” - 1337 SP33D.

Nibby > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 00:28

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I’m a pro.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 00:29

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A bunch of guys from my shop got together to do this a few weeks ago. Always good fun and the more the merrier.

SVTyler > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 00:48

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Wondered why that track looked familiar, I raced there when we went on vacation to San Francisco. It was a cool little facility and worth the money, but man did the track take it out of you. I raced for about an hour and a half and had to quit because I literally couldn’t turn the wheel anymore.

Karting’s a ton of fun but man it is expensive, especially if you race over in Europe. I went to a four tracks while we were in Spain and all in all it cost about 1200 Euro (transport to and from the tracks not included) for a combined six or so hours of racing. Everything about them was world-class, though: the tracks were extremely well-built and designed (two of them were a part of the European Karting Championship), the karts were well-maintained and super-fast (got to use an FIA-spec kart at one track in Madrid), and they had sector timing and top speed sensors and stuff on the karts so you could see how fast you were in different sections of the tracks. Like I said, extremely expensive, but it was something I could cross off my bucket list.

Blunion05 drives a pink S2000 (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST) > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 01:39

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I hate short/technical circuits because riders who weigh more have the advantage. Last time I went Karting was in July . And February !

Kailand09 > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 06:11

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I love it. End up going about once a month with friends to the indoor track.

I really want to get my own kart and race briggs at the local outdoor track now.

JGrabowMSt > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 06:43

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Stop thinking, go do it. You never know what you’ll see or who you’ll meet!

Electric indoor karting is freaking awesome.

yitznewton > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 08:59

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I try to go every couple of months, although I think I’ll save my moolah for autocross now that I have a proper car.

smobgirl > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 10:01

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Our local office went once with some clients and destroyed them. I wasn't allowed to go then because of some back issues but I'm hoping we go again soon...it's especially nice when someone else is paying.

Nick Has an Exocet > SVTyler 12/07/2015 at 10:33

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We did 45 minutes of racing last time I was there. It’s a pretty brutal track. I always wake up the next day with bruises in weird places and the feeling that my arms are going to fall off.

Where the tracks in Spain all outdoors? There’s one in Sonoma that’s probably more similar- I think it’s 3 of 4 hundred dollars to drop in for a race.

SVTyler > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 11:00

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Yeah no kidding, I’m skinny so the esses/bridge/right-hander section gave me this ugly pancake-size bruise on my left side because I was always sliding around in the seat. Gives you respect for real racing drivers and how in-shape they have to be to drive much faster cars, my arms and core were sore for a few days afterwards too.

And it really depended on where you were in Spain, the one indoor track I went to was in the middle of the Madrid but the other three were outdoors in the country (like this one an hour’s drive from Barcelona):

The outdoor ones were faster and longer than the indoor one so they were a lot less repetitive and more interesting as a result. The one at Sonoma looks really cool, it’s definitely worth trying to save up and go try an outdoor track if you can, it’s a whole other animal than the tight little indoor ones.

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Nick Has an Exocet 12/07/2015 at 12:45

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Took my girlfriend for our three month anniversary. Now she won’t quit bugging me to go back

Nick Has an Exocet > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s 12/07/2015 at 18:47

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You sir, picked the right girl.

Nick Has an Exocet > SVTyler 12/07/2015 at 18:49

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Oh man, that’s a great picture. I think Sonoma will be on the bucket list of things to do before I move out of the bay area.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Nick Has an Exocet 12/09/2015 at 09:40

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I have done indoor karting a few times. Generally when they have a special rate or something. I find it to be a ton of fun but for about the same cost, I would rather spend the day autocrossing (even though I technically get in less seat time for the money). I still need to try outdoor karting and shifter carts, that is supposed to be a whole lot more fun (while also a bit more dangerous).

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > yitznewton 12/09/2015 at 09:43

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I think the biggest difference is comfort. A go kart beats you up HARD. You end up with a sore back and sore arms after a few races. Autocrossing my nice and comfortable Miata makes me no more sore than any other driving.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SVTyler 12/09/2015 at 09:45

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Does that straightaway dump out into a highway at the end?? Makes that corner seem a bit intimidating lol.

SVTyler > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 12/09/2015 at 10:22

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Nah but that would’ve been a hell of a gut check, wouldn’t it. The track configuration that weekend was run clockwise with the bus stop chicane going under the bridge (exiting the corner onto the straight instead of the other way around) so you probably weren’t going any faster than 40 once you braked for that particular corner anyways. Even if you did spin off there was probably 60ft between the track and the tire-walled fence with a gravel trap in between so it’s not like you’d be in any real danger.

The scariest part of the track was the top left bit because you could take that double-apex flat out, but the cars were weirdly nose-heavy so once you committed you had to keep your foot down and countersteer, otherwise you’d end up in the concrete wall conveniently placed ten feet from the outside of the corner, which I nearly did the first time lifting off mid-corner. Learned my lesson lol. It was actually a pretty challenging track, good mix of technicality and (admittedly very low) danger.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SVTyler 12/09/2015 at 11:07

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That sounds scarier than I originally imagined lol. But also a ton of fun!

SVTyler > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 12/10/2015 at 01:31

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It was by far favorite thing about Spain for sure.