CKRC Forums

Good evening Northern neighbors,

I am interested in racing in Calgary. Given the remaining time this season, I think this will have to wait until next year. In the meantime, what can I do to get ready?

I live in Montana and North Star Raceway is about 4.5 hours away. I have been moving my way from arrive-and-drive karting at a number of tracks, to 2 try-a-kart sessions and several 1-day rentals of LO206 karts. The next step is buying a kart and getting it ready. At this time, I have one in the works that should arrive soon. It hasn't been used much but it is 3 years old with a ROK VLR 100. Hopefully, that is going to be a viable option next year. I have read the getting started guide and rule books posted on the site so now I need some advice on getting ready to race.

Safety:
Things I know I need a helmet, suit, gloves and shoes and fire extinguisher. Neck protection is optional from what I read but I would feel better with it.
For the helmet I am thinking Snell 2015 or FIA 8859 are fine, correct? I am thinking that the suit should be FIA level 1 or 2, correct?

Kart:
The current motor has about 30 hours on it and has not been rebuilt so I am guessing that some work may be needed.
The Kart has two sets of tires but 1 set is worn out and neither are Max 1 Green or Max 1 rain. What is recommended here?
I am OK with buying a spare set of wheels and dry and wet tires if that is recommended; I actually really like driving in the rain so hopefully that is something you do in Calgary.
It doesn't have the push-back bumpers and I'm not sure where to get them. Advice?
I am pretty well setup with shop tools and equipment. What other items I would need? Kart cart? Spare chain(s)? Sprockets? Brake Pads? Throttle cable? Tire changer? Other items?
I can make the cart and tire changer over the winter but I'm not sure what is recommended.

General:
I only have an open trailer and I'm not sure how that might work because it can't really be locked so may need to do something there.
I saw something about a rookie course, is that something that you need to sit for in person?
Do I need any kind of license?
Medical sign-off of some sort, not certain what is needed here?
I am assuming I would buy a CKRC membership and need to pay the volunteer fee, which I am hoping I can work off some way, but it may not be practical with the long commute.

That is what I can think of right now; any guidance is greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

--David Morris

First off welcome,

The VLR will be a viable option for the foreseeable future and with the current ROK program in place it should see growth in the future. Helmets must be snell rated and closed face (motocross helmets are not allowed). As well you will probably want a ribvest as these are mandatory as well and will save you a great deal of pain. A proper fitting seat is also key to preventing rib injuries. At 30 hours you likely want to do a rebuild and start fresh for your first laps, this will prevent many headaches down the road. Maxone green is the spec tire for VLR in Calgary and in order to gain points in races you must use this tire, for test and tune you can use whatever. The pushback bumper is a 30$ piece that can be purchased from Joey at overdrive motorsports (he is our local dealer and the go to guy for all things Karting in Calgary). You will want a kart stand ( kart cart) for sure, makes life much easier. The bead breaker at minimum is a must for tires if your willing to change them by hand after the bead is broken, if not the scissors are an option. Do not use spoons or traditional tire levers as there is a chance to bend the wheel. The open trailer works if you want to haul it back and forth, if you plan to leave it at the track rental sea cans may be an option, or somebody with extra trailer space that will rent it out. If you want to leave it at the track in your own trailer an enclosed is a strong recommendation. The rookie course is supposed to be sat in person, yet due to your circumstances contact the club manager Fred causer. [email protected] I believe. Talk to him about the medical check as well. You will want a membership if you plan to do 8 or more test and tune days, or 5 or more races. The volunteer fee is post dated until October of every year, if the hours requirement is not met, your card is charged, however if it is met no charge is applied to the credit card, this replaces the old system of post dated checks. As far as spares are concerned I wouldn’t worry too much when you first start. Overdrive motorsports is at every race, and test and tune nights once a week. If your looking for new protective equipment, parts, engine rebuilds or anything else kart related in order to get started I would recommend contacting him and he can get you started on the right path. As well, the classifieds forum is a good resource and you can put an ad out as “looking for” and people will likely have what you need. Feel free to ask anymore questions.

Jack

Thank you Jack!

That is really helpful information. I was planning on the rib protector but forgot to include that, and the seat is a little up in the air right now. I believe the karts I have rented had a #2 OTK seat and it was really tight even with no padding installed but there is really no way to tell until I have something to sit in. I forgot to mention weight, I am about 185#'s (84 Kilos) in shorts so I am thinking I may be pretty close to the weight limit. Also, can you rent a transponder or is that something I would want to buy?

Thanks again!

Snug fit is what you want. Too tight or too loose will cause problems. The seat figment is the single most important thing in my opinion when getting a kart. Try the seat in the kart, if it doesn’t work, get fitted for one that does. So at 185 your probably going to run the VLR light at about 10 pounds over or the heavy with ballast added, I’m no expert in what the VLR packages weigh so don’t quote me on that. You can rent a transponder ( John kwong rents one for 20$ a day I believe), however in the long run you will want to own one, the old yellow non subscription based ones are the best if you can find one, if not the new X2 which requires subscription fees is the same but just requires buying a subscription every so often. The other thing I just thought of is you’ll probably want a mychron in order to see temperature and lap time as well as rpm If your kart didn’t come with one. The mychron 4 or 5 is what your after.

Again, thank you for the information. I had forgotten to mention another thing, the kart does come with a mychon 5 so fortunately that should be covered. The #2 seat on the rental karts was probably too tight and the new kart has a #3 but I am guessing I will may need to pad that out a little.

Welcome David!

Just a couple additional things to add.

The VLR is currently a small class, but we're definitely trying to grow it.
And yes, we do race in the rain. A set of Vega rains will come in handy.
If you plan on racing in the rain, a rain suit of some form will come in handy. I just use a motorcycle rain suit & love it.
For the pushback bumper, check your existing one. If the piece that connects to your bars is fastened on with screws & can be removed, then the $30 kit will work for you.
If it's an older bumper, you might need a new one. I know John Kwong has some kind of custom adapter that he's used.
The suit just needs to be a basic karting suit. You don't need anything fire-retardant. They're cheap on eBay, but fit can be hit or miss.
If the seat isn't a perfect fit, you could add some padding beneath your rib vest. That might just fill things out nicely, and save your ribs.
I've found that padding the seat doesn't work as well, and the damn stuff keeps coming off.
In the past, the volunteer fee is waived for first year members.

I think Jack nailed the rest.

SteveO