Hey all
I recently did the try a cart with some friends and I am incredibly impressed with the track and the people there. I'm thinking of buying a kart and joining the club for test and tune days as I live very close and my wife might join me occasionally. I just had a few questions that I didn't think of while I was there. I'm in my early 50's and love anything with an engine
1) would you recommend starting with a senior Briggs kart or would it be worth stepping up to a rotax for a bit more power
2) can karts be rented on test and tune days for my wife or a friend if they are members?
3)I definitely have friends that would love to be members but may not want to buy a kart like myself. If we take the course, can we take turns lapping in my kart as long as someone qualified is overseeing
Drag racing has been a hobby for decade or more but as I get older, the drive to the track is getting annoying and I think I have found a great hobby to scratch the itch that is local.
Thanks
Brad
Possible new member
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The forums are a place for open discussion of karting topics. Please respect the opinions of others. No name calling, abuse, bashing etc. of any sort will be tolerated and offending posts will be removed and offenders sanctioned at the discretion of the webmaster or the executive. All posted materials, text, etc. become the property of the CKRC and may be displayed or removed at the discretion of the CKRC.
The forums are a place for open discussion of karting topics. Please respect the opinions of others. No name calling, abuse, bashing etc. of any sort will be tolerated and offending posts will be removed and offenders sanctioned at the discretion of the webmaster or the executive. All posted materials, text, etc. become the property of the CKRC and may be displayed or removed at the discretion of the CKRC.
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JasonL
- Posts: 132
- Joined: Mon Feb 24, 2020 6:35 pm
- First Name: Jason
- Last Name: Luinenburg
- City/Town: Calgary
Re: Possible new member
Brad,
While I'm only one member, I'm comfortable speaking on behalf of the club when I say that we hope to see you and your wife at track next year. The following are my thoughts - and others may rightfully disagree with me.
For some background, my son and I are members, we started in 2020 - both in Briggs. My son moved into Rotax in early '21, and I did the same at the end of that year. He is a capable racer, while I just putt around the track on test & tune days as a rank amateur. I am in my late 40s and also a former drag racer. Karting has likely saved me money as I am quite happy with a much more vanilla road car as karting definitely scratches my itch - though going quickly around turns is a very different experience than hurtling down the 1/4 mile.
Briggs and Rotax are very different beasts. The Rotax karts accelerate pretty rapidly, and forces in many directions can be a lot for someone new. If you've got some aptitude and commitment, it's manageable, but for most, Briggs is probably a better place to get used to karting and the track, and build racecraft. There are, however, several members that have gone straight to Rotax. If you've driven Briggs already, and are seriously considering a Rotax, a seller may be willing to allow you a couple laps to get a feel before you commit to buying.
I suppose the feasibility of renting depends on how much you think it may be done. There would be a pretty narrow range in the number of trips one would make during the course of a year, where renting would make sense. By the time you've rented for what is the equivalent of five or six T&T sessions, you've probably spent the equivalent of what you would have on a kart. While owning a kart allows you to participate in the two Supervised T&T sessions the club holds each week and any additional sessions you & your wife may choose to do on your own. Furthermore, we are a very large club and have a pretty liquid used kart market, so even if you bought a starter kart and later decided it wasn't for you and resold it, you could very well have lost less on the transactions than you would have spent on just a few rentals.
There are no rules preventing you from sharing a kart with other members. There are a few members that have shared karts - it is usually short-lived. Karts are not like passenger cars with adjustable seating positions and steering wheels. They are set up for a specific driver and adjustability is limited - aside from attaching/removing pedal extensions, they isn't much you can quickly adjust to accommodate someone of different proportions. For an enjoyable experience, a driver needs to be snug in their seat. Sliding side to side in a loose seat while on track can quickly lead to discomfort.
Jason
While I'm only one member, I'm comfortable speaking on behalf of the club when I say that we hope to see you and your wife at track next year. The following are my thoughts - and others may rightfully disagree with me.
For some background, my son and I are members, we started in 2020 - both in Briggs. My son moved into Rotax in early '21, and I did the same at the end of that year. He is a capable racer, while I just putt around the track on test & tune days as a rank amateur. I am in my late 40s and also a former drag racer. Karting has likely saved me money as I am quite happy with a much more vanilla road car as karting definitely scratches my itch - though going quickly around turns is a very different experience than hurtling down the 1/4 mile.
Briggs and Rotax are very different beasts. The Rotax karts accelerate pretty rapidly, and forces in many directions can be a lot for someone new. If you've got some aptitude and commitment, it's manageable, but for most, Briggs is probably a better place to get used to karting and the track, and build racecraft. There are, however, several members that have gone straight to Rotax. If you've driven Briggs already, and are seriously considering a Rotax, a seller may be willing to allow you a couple laps to get a feel before you commit to buying.
I suppose the feasibility of renting depends on how much you think it may be done. There would be a pretty narrow range in the number of trips one would make during the course of a year, where renting would make sense. By the time you've rented for what is the equivalent of five or six T&T sessions, you've probably spent the equivalent of what you would have on a kart. While owning a kart allows you to participate in the two Supervised T&T sessions the club holds each week and any additional sessions you & your wife may choose to do on your own. Furthermore, we are a very large club and have a pretty liquid used kart market, so even if you bought a starter kart and later decided it wasn't for you and resold it, you could very well have lost less on the transactions than you would have spent on just a few rentals.
There are no rules preventing you from sharing a kart with other members. There are a few members that have shared karts - it is usually short-lived. Karts are not like passenger cars with adjustable seating positions and steering wheels. They are set up for a specific driver and adjustability is limited - aside from attaching/removing pedal extensions, they isn't much you can quickly adjust to accommodate someone of different proportions. For an enjoyable experience, a driver needs to be snug in their seat. Sliding side to side in a loose seat while on track can quickly lead to discomfort.
Jason
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Roadboy
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2024 11:23 am
- First Name: Brad
- Last Name: Reimer
- City/Town: Strathmore
Re: Possible new member
Thanks Jason
You have given me a lot to look at. I will probably look at getting into a Briggs kart to start and learn the track. I will be signing up for a membership in the spring, hopefully with a few friends as well. Hitting up the classified for a good deal on a good kart
Brad
You have given me a lot to look at. I will probably look at getting into a Briggs kart to start and learn the track. I will be signing up for a membership in the spring, hopefully with a few friends as well. Hitting up the classified for a good deal on a good kart
Brad
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phil
- Posts: 423
- Joined: Mon Sep 29, 2008 9:52 pm
- First Name: phil
- Last Name: haggerty
- City/Town: high river
Re: Possible new member
Alan Haggerty has Briggs and Rotax karts for rent if you, or your friends want to try either before making a final decision on what direction to go, or if they just want to play occasionally. His number is 403-652-8935
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Roadboy
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2024 11:23 am
- First Name: Brad
- Last Name: Reimer
- City/Town: Strathmore
Re: Possible new member
Thank you. I will call him
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Jen and Don
- Posts: 107
- Joined: Sun May 06, 2018 11:30 am
- First Name: Jennifer
- Last Name: Cheung
- City/Town: Sundre
Re: Possible new member
Hello Brad. Welcome to the club.
You will certainly find the Briggs class challenging, a lot of fun and very affordable. As we tell you in the TAK classroom session, smooth is fast and it is more true in the Briggs class because it is very unforgiving when you make a mistake. Accelerating after an "off" or a spin is frustrating as it doesn't have the power of the two strokes but that is what makes you a better driver. You really need to keep the momentum going. The grids are increasing each year as our membership grows and it makes for exciting race days.
Also, we went over in the classroom how seat sizing and pedal reach are very critical to comfort and to how the kart behaves. You will be very lucky if more than one person fits comfortably in the same kart. Practice nights you can get away with padding in the seats but it is not ideal on race days.
If you don't see what your looking for over the winter months, be patient because the Forum comes alive in the late winter / spring , as people start to ramp up their thoughts for the new season and posts will be added daily.
I am glad you had a good time at TAK so as to consider being a member! We all put a lot of work in that program and it is a very cost effective way of "getting your feet wet" to see if you like the sport.
Don Gibson
You will certainly find the Briggs class challenging, a lot of fun and very affordable. As we tell you in the TAK classroom session, smooth is fast and it is more true in the Briggs class because it is very unforgiving when you make a mistake. Accelerating after an "off" or a spin is frustrating as it doesn't have the power of the two strokes but that is what makes you a better driver. You really need to keep the momentum going. The grids are increasing each year as our membership grows and it makes for exciting race days.
Also, we went over in the classroom how seat sizing and pedal reach are very critical to comfort and to how the kart behaves. You will be very lucky if more than one person fits comfortably in the same kart. Practice nights you can get away with padding in the seats but it is not ideal on race days.
If you don't see what your looking for over the winter months, be patient because the Forum comes alive in the late winter / spring , as people start to ramp up their thoughts for the new season and posts will be added daily.
I am glad you had a good time at TAK so as to consider being a member! We all put a lot of work in that program and it is a very cost effective way of "getting your feet wet" to see if you like the sport.
Don Gibson
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Jen and Don
- Posts: 107
- Joined: Sun May 06, 2018 11:30 am
- First Name: Jennifer
- Last Name: Cheung
- City/Town: Sundre
Re: Possible new member
I wanted to add too , the importance of where you buy your kart from. As we discussed in the TAK class, buying off of the likes of Kijiji, can possibly get you a kart not worthy of running at our track. You just don't know how the kart was driven, or where for that matter. Maybe someone ran it up and down a dirt road. Buying form a club member, whether it's our club or another one, is a safer bet that you are getting better value and a kart that has traceable history. Joey at Overdrive Motorsports can be a huge help as well. He is in High River and runs a highly praised Kart business. Don