Tag Archives: practice

Practice 8: a step backwards :(

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Just when it looked like our issues were behind us too! I blame Junior – he was the one who commented on how we had run trouble-free last time as we were enroute to Dunkeswell. We left at 7:20am; 20 minutes later than I was hoping and got to the track just before practice started at 9:00am. It took a while to get our ‘new’ awning up, on which I had gone ‘halves‘ with another Dad and which we were using for the first time. Once the awning was up, tyre pressures set (annoyingly, I had forgotten to do over-inflate the tyres the night before), fuel added, carb primed and the kart started on the trolley I had missed not only the first session but there wasn’t enough of the second session left to make it worthwhile going out.

As it happened, I wish we had: we lasted only one lap of the third session as Junior came in reporting that the engine wouldn’t rev over 8,000rpm. What do I do about that? I’ve learnt a lot in five months of ownership but troubleshooting is an area where I really need to improve. I started the kart again on the trolley and it seemed ok but I wasn’t keen on trying to rev it excessively to see whether it would get into the upper range. Changing the carb seemed like a reasonable option and that appeared to do the trick as we ran for the whole of the next session – our only real track time (a whopping 10 minutes) in the first three hours! Things then took another turn for the worse as Junior crashed in the next session, running wide as he accelerated out of a corner, hitting the plastic barriers and putting a nice bend into a track rod. My spares package saved me once again 🙂 I had what I needed to fix the kart although during the repair a helping Dad noticed we had a fuel leak. I had semi-noted this earlier but put it down to fuel being spilt when it was being poured into the tank without checking it out properly. Note to self: investigate everything unusual – you’ve done this before!!! The fuel was leaking from a hairline crack in the tank which appeared to have been caused by my previously refitting the tank without a spacer between chassis and tank and then over tightening the tank fixing bolt. Without a replacement, I ran the fuel below the fixing bolt to minimise any spillage – I did have a spare fuel tank at home but hadn’t envisaged any scenarios where I would need it trackside!

It was 2:00pm by the time we were back on track. With only 23 laps in the bag we then managed to string back-to-back sessions together although our day ended at around 3:30 when Junior lost power and pulled off the track (at the far end of the track too!). The carb wasn’t holding fuel – you could see it was just running back into the tank. My good buddy/advisor and fellow Karting Dad tested the carb with a pop-off tester – it didn’t look great. My other carb (replaced in the morning) had a loose spring although that might have been a result of my botched attempt at checking it out earlier in the day. With some tweaking, we got one decent carb together but the engine still would not start on the trolley and we concluded that we were losing pressure because of the crack in the tank. And with that, our day was done 🙁

There were a few positives: I took the camera and got some decent pictures of Junior and some of the other lads who ran with us (I was one of four Dad/lad JTKM combos who had headed down for the day), we ran the Action Pro for a few sessions (although suffered from some pretty bad vibration on the nassau) and I also started to make session notes so that I could gauge the effect of any setup changes (I was experimenting with different exhaust flex lengths). They were mostly outweighed by the negatives though: only 55 laps done, 0.8s slower than our only other visit to the track, a fuel issue to take home to troubleshoot and the realisation that we definitely aren’t ready to race at Clay next month. I was also bothered by my reliance on others to help me get to the bottom of the problems which, I felt on at least one session, meant their lads were sitting out as they tried to help (if you read this – sorry, mate!).

I need to work on my understanding of the carb and engine workings. I know you only really learn when you encounter a problem but I really want reduce my dependency on others generosity in helping. Mechanically inept? That is pretty much still the case – I’ve a still long way to go!

Cost of day: £18 petrol, £7 fuel for the kart (still plenty left from last time), £40 practice fee

Bits and pieces bought since last update: hose clips for exhaust end can: £2.50, 4mm self tapping screws for end can: £5, file for getting rid of deposits on axle (especially around my sprocket carrier!): £6, half-share of 6m x 3m awning: £30

Total spent so far (ouch – we’ve just passed £3k): £3,086

Practice 7: Engine run-in and new fastest lap (not at the same time, of course…)

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Today was our eagerly awaited practice day at Clay: having weighted the kart at Junior’s race weight and added the black restrictor (which is actually silver but, hey – it was a 99p eBay purchase and I took a punt, then subsequently discovered it wasn’t MSA legal having lost it’s anodised colouring!), I was really keen to see how Junior managed having picked up some good pace when unweighted last time. I awoke early as I seem to on every kart day – 4:55am this time, brain fully switched on running over the things I needed to remember to take and then all of the things to remember when we got to the track. Up at 6:10, out the door by 7:45 (just in case we hit Glastonbury traffic) and at the track at 9:15 – in plenty of time to get things sorted 🙂

Before we could really get going, our first business was to run-in the engine. This was our first session as a licensed driver 🙂 but Junior was driving up to 8,000rpm (or dangerously slow as it seemed) and there were a couple of close calls in our ten minutes on track. Afterwards one of the stewards suggested we continue running-in the engine with the cadets, which I was more than happy to do. This worked in the second session,when he moved up to 11,000rpm (and I bravely ignored a broken toe to resume bump starting duties ;)), but not in the third session where we were getting up to 15,000rpm and he got told off for racing cadets (and breaking my 40s lap rule!). Our job was done at that point though and, although he was still on a ‘not above 15k’ brief when back out with the adults, we could focus on the more intriguing part of the day.

It didn’t start too well – for the first time in our ownership the kart didn’t start and I was shattered, having ran myself into the ground well past The Kink! I am not sure Junior fully knows what he needs to when we are starting although, if I am honest, I probably didn’t fully understand either. It had just worked nicely previously. With some tips from friendly Dads (don’t pump the pedal, wait for the engine to spark then slowly and gradually accelerate), we got out again for three laps before the end of the session but, most importantly, it started fine.

After that things went just about as well as we could have hoped – the kart ran, we had no mechanical problems *at all* 🙂 (although Junior did spin into the tyres exiting the Top Bend), he was happy with the kart and preferred the handling with the extra weight on board (the back end seemed much less inclined to hop out as he accelerated out of the corner) and he knocked 0.7s off his previous best and recorded a 36.21. He was a little disappointed not to break the 36.0s mark although my biggest concern was the kart’s weight – Junior stood no chance of lifting the kart off the floor and I was reliant upon friendly faces to help me get the kart back onto the trolley. I don’t really want to keep putting on others so I might need to look at the self-loading trolley options. Chances are though, he’ll start growing by the time I finally get something sorted! All-in-all, it was a really good day; I think Junior is quick enough to race now (without being lapped!) although we have a lot on next month and I have promised him we’ll go to Dunkeswell for a practice day. August’s race meeting at Clay is the target 🙂

Cost of day: £12 petrol, £10 petrol for 7l super unleaded for the kart (session was free as we had a credit note after our accident).

Purchases since my last post: used set of slicks from the forums: £30

Total spent so far: £2,977

Practice 5: a mixed day at Llandow

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Having already had one practice day this month (although whether you can describe 12 laps as a practice day is questionable!) and an ARKS test booked for Friday I hadn’t really budgeted on another day out this month but there were quite a few reasons for us to make sure all was well with the kart ahead of the test: we hadn’t fired up the engine since the accident which had damaged the spark plug and cable, we had adjusted the front tracking, replaced the steering wheel and bled/adjusted the brakes. I needed to know that a) the kart worked and b) Junior was happy. Finding somewhere to test was a little difficult – Clay had Elite Karting on, Dunkeswell had their race weekend and Llandow had very patchy availability all over the weekend because of their arrive/drive commitments. It was a pleasant surprise when I called them on Saturday to find they were completely free on Bank Holiday Monday. Game on.

There were three Dad/lad combos heading over and we arrived to find some nice sunshine. The kart was soon set up and ready to start on the trolley when something unusual happened: it did not start! Fuel was being sucked into the carb ok but replacing the spark plug made not difference and it didn’t look like replacing the carb was going to  either but it did eventually fire up. Not sure why this was but, once going, everything seemed well – we had missed the first session but were set or the second session. It turned out we were sharing the entire day with arrive/drive karts which was a little bit annoying when we were hoping for an open track day.

The first couple of sessions were frustrating – Junior came in after five laps of the opening session reporting the brake pedal felt too stiff and that the back end felt loose and then after two laps of the next session reporting there was a hissing from the carb/engine area and the engine feeling ‘spluttery’. I don’t mind this having him come in if he has any concerns as we’d previously found that when Junior was reporting something, he turned out to be correct. The brake had been stiffened so this was to be expected. There was signs of oil escaping around the exhaust flex which was the only thing that might have explained the hissing. Everything else looked and another Dad gave the kart a thorough checking over. At this point I semi-joked to his son that he might like to take the kart out and see if there was anything amiss. Five laps later we were back in business: our test driver jumped out, Junior jumped in and instantly seemed much happier. Never underestimate the importance of a driver having trust and confidence in his kart!!!

At this point we were doing well – Junior was seeing out entire sessions and going quite nicely, hitting 47.61s in consecutive sessions (bear in mind his kart is not weighted currently). And then it rained. We stayed on the slicks at first: Junior was briefed to go out, be careful and just enjoy driving his kart. He looked quite at home in the damp, his pace was good and he span just the once at Raymonds as he pushed it a little too hard. We then switched to wets as the rain continued. He still looked pretty good but then we started losing kart parts on track again just when I thought we had seen the back of those (with the resolution of the engine mount problems) – this time it was the exhaust end can and silencer. I had noticed that we were down to two end cap screws at the weekend but had no spare screws and had forgotten all about it. A bunch of us set about locating the missing pieces. I was glad it was very quiet by this point as wandering around a track looking for your kart parts isn’t the best of feelings. As the shop had no screws, we tried using a rivet gun to fix the cap to the exhaust – that lasted another 5 laps before one of the boys noticed the end cap was missing again although the silencer was still present. I sent Junior to the pits and went hunting for the end cap again. At this point it was getting late and still raining so we decided on one more session. This time the end cap was fixed with some screws (that had been fitted inside one of the Dad’s vans!), covered with a metal tie, the some exhaust flex held in place with some plastic ties. It did the job and we ran for a good while before Junior came in with numb hands (he had been getting pretty ragged by this point too – not sure what had happened to the control he had shown earlier).

There were some notable positives though: Junior went quite nicely on the dry track – you could see him start to attack some of the corners and he was posting some reasonable times. He was also pretty good when the track got wet – initially when out on slicks as the track started to get wet and again when we went to full wets. His performance was tempered a little by his final session, where he didn’t seem to be able to adjust his pace and was clearly going too fast into the corner, ruining both his lines and his momentum (as he fought to keep the back end in place). I couldn’t really complain – having not had any wet practice since we bought the kart (when Junior was very, very slow), it was valuable experience ahead of his ARKS test.

Having approached the day hoping for an entire day’s smooth running and a little bit of wet time (be careful what you wish for), things didn’t exactly pan out as hoped but they say “There’s no such thing as bad track time”. Llandow was quite a different track from Clay and Dunks – it seemed more technical in terms of mastering the entry speeds to get the right lines and exit speeds and showed that Junior still has much to learn. The toilet facilities were pretty poor (soap and hand drier, anyone?) and, since I am moaning, I could have done without the torrential rain on the way home and the subsequent clean-up job once we got back (I just wanted a hot bath) but there we go. Oh… and the rain got inside all three layers of the visor protector and they had to be removed 🙁 I think this will be our dry visor from now on.

Fingers crossed for Friday…

Cost of day: £10 petrol, £7 petrol for 5l super unleaded for the kart, £40 track fee

Total spent so far: £2,575

Practice 4: Holy S#!t (our first accident)

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I had a feeling last night – one of those feelings; that I woke up with again this morning. There was never any chance of me calling the practice day off – if you are going to have those feelings then you need to find another hobby! I just shrugged it off as a stupid thought and got ready. Whereas my first couple of practice day mornings were stressful, outside-of-the-comfort-zone affairs (both from the point of view of towing and running the kart on my own), I am quite excited to be going karting nowadays even if I’m not the one doing all the fun stuff. Giving myself an hour was pushing it though and we arrived later than I had hoped, at around 9:45.  Clay was Clay – cloudy and windy with rain never looking too far away. Things were going ok – bolts checked, tyres pressures set, chain lubed [I realise now that I omitted to check the jet settings!] until, when I thought I’d take up some of the slack on the throttle cable, I noticed that the throttle valve wasn’t closing fully and wasn’t closing very quickly at all. It didn’t look like anything I had done in loosening the cable clamps and I couldn’t figure it out. I had to resort to the going to see Mike at the shop; I don’t really like looking like a noob but I have found the service to be excellent – you might pay a little extra for the convenience of having it there trackside but I’ve nothing but praise for Mike and his team. It turned out my cable had rusted inside the sheath (lesson #1 for the day – after a wet session, the cable needs to be cleaned/dried). I parted with £1.50 and had the part fitted 🙂 It turns out I had spare cables (I tend to learn what spares I got with the package as I find out I need them) and changing the cable wasn’t any great issue  but I didn’t know that at the time!

We missed the first 20-minute session but were set for the next one. I was unable to start the engine on the trolley as it looks like I have killed my remote starter battery but again the engine started perfectly in the pit lane and off went Junior. He seems to have developed a routine where the first lap is very slow – I think experience has taught him to take it easy and see if anything falls off! A couple of the corners were a tiny bit damp but his lap times were tumbling when it happened… one of the adult rotax drivers had been on Junior’s tail for a lap or so when, going into The Hairpin, it looked like Junior left the door open, the other driver seemed to go, then stop, then realised he was being let through. Unfortunately Junior decided he had waited long enough and turned in, they banged sides but instead of bouncing off the track together, the rotax flipped up over Junior’s rear wheel and both kart and driver continued up over Junior’s back/shoulder and helmet and down over the front of the kart. It looked bad and Junior was sat pretty still in his kart and the other driver and I legged it over. Neck ok? Check. Back ok? Check. Head ok? Check. At this point the only injury seemed to be his hand, which he couldn’t feel but he could wiggle his fingers somewhat. We walked him off to the reception to get some ‘treatment’ whilst a couple of drivers retrieved his kart (thanks, Gents!). I knew he was ok as he first asked whether the 37.6s lap he’d just done was his best lap at Clay (sorry, mate – that was 37.5s) and then told me the how the kart was broke. The ‘treatment’ as it turned out was some cold spray!!!

Our kart seemed to come off worse – bent bumper, damaged spark plug cable, broken spark plug cap and badly bent steering wheel. Junior’s suit had marks up the back, his neck support was split and his helmet had some fortuitously light marking – presumably from either the tyre or floor tray of the rotax. At this point it wasn’t clear whether we’d be heading back out so I gave Junior something to ease the pain (his iPhone) whilst I bought a replacement spark plug cap and started repairs. The steering wheel was a challenge – it resembles something like it’s original shape after some bending and a few smacks with a hammer but I think it’s probably beyond full repair. The rear bumper bolt was bent at 30 degrees and stuck fast. An hour or so later and Junior still wasn’t able to clench his hand so it was game over after only 12 laps! The staff at Clay were sympathetic enough to offer us a full credit note which was good of them. So, as the sun looked set for the afternoon, we left for home.

The bumper bolt took me another hour to remove at home! On the plus side, I got to clean more of the back end that had been less accessible with the bumper on. The bumper itself looks in need of a vice (which I don’t have) so I put on the spare. Yet again, I came to appreciate the completeness of my spares set as I had little hope of finding a bumper bolt – there were 3 or 4 in there 🙂

A steering wheel replacement looks costly – I’ll have to look into the options here. Most of the marks came off Junior’s helmet with a damp cloth and there is no sign of damage, which was a relief. We don’t seem to be having much luck at the moment!

Cost of day: £12 petrol, £7.50 petrol for 5l super unleaded for the kart, £5 parts (throttle cable, spark plug cap)

Total spent so far: £2,372

Practice 2: one to forget

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Our second practice session took place on Saturday. It was in doubt throughout the week; primarily because the weather forecast looked downright miserable. In the end, we decided to go for it and hope it didn’t rain the whole day. This was our first truly solo session – no friendly experts on hand, nor other noob Dads for moral support. We left late (again) but this time there were no stops for trailer adjustments; I had my cargo net in place to keep the cover on the kart and a couple of removable bits of ply wood to support the full width of the rear tyres with no overhang. So far, so good but then it started to go a little ‘pear shaped‘.

First, whilst the cargo net had kept the kart cover on the kart, it hadn’t stopped the front of the cover from coming loose and flapping around. Consequently, the kart cover had split and frayed in at least four places (does anyone make covers suitable to cover karts on top of trailers?). Then, during the pre-flight checks, I fired up the engine with the remote starter and Junior gave it a bit of throttle which duly stuck open – cue very loud, revving engine and lots of looks as Dad frantically tried stopping the engine. The brakes didn’t do it initially although what seemed like minutes was probably only 5 seconds. I don’t really know why this was – removing the airbox, I could see that the carb butterfly was open more than it should have been but only a little. The throttle was opening and closing ok although I subsequently realised that the throttle cable swivel assembly was upside down, so whether or not this played a part I am uncertain. Anyway, one carb change and successful remote start later we were ready to go. Pleasingly (and one of the few good things to have happened over the day) was the kart bump starting very easily once again – no waved yellows needed! Disappointingly, the kart decided it was going to head straight into the pits at the end of the out lap as the rear hub and wheel came off at the top bend and veered into the pit entrance. This was a little embarrassing given we’d had a wheel come off during our first practice day because I had negated to check the nuts between sessions. I put the wheel back on the axle and pushed the kart back on the trolley as discretely as possible. Junior pulled the wheel off as we were passing a couple of Dads in the car park but I scolded him and quickly put it back – I don’t think anyone one noticed 😉 Luckily the kart was undamaged and I added hub checks to my list of post-session checks… I cannot and will not let this happen again!

Then the real problems started – the kart stopped on track during our next outing with what had sounded like the chain coming off. It had but we’d also lost an engine mount clamp. I had been suspicious of the engine mounts during our first practice day as the chain was looser after every run and sometimes the engine would be flush against the engine restraining bolt when I had left a gap of a few millimetres prior to a run. I had a replacement bracket and bolt amongst the spares and fitted the engine once again, making sure the bracket was tight. Junior made it back to the pits complaining something felt wrong and when I looked, the chain had came off again. Getting a little bit annoyed, I started to wonder whether the front sprocket was worn but, as this was one spare part that didn’t come with the kart (and if I’m honest, I am not sure how the front sprocket is fitted), I changed the rear sprocket (it was getting colder/wetter again so I was planning this anyway) and fitted a longer chain before sending the kart out again. By this point, Junior had lost all trust in the kart; driving very hesitantly and a few laps in, he stops on the exit of Billies Blind once again. I find that the engine is once again mounted on a single clamp which this time has worked loose, leaving the engine rather precariously fitted to the chassis. I’ve now had it too!!! I pushed the kart straight to the shop to get an expert opinion from Mike, the shop owner. Mike took the engine off and checked everything over – bolt and engine threads, chain, sprocket – the latter is worn but still ok, as is the chain which has a tight spot but wouldn’t have caused the problem. We decided to fit some OTK engine mount clamps, which look much bigger/stronger and put everything back together. Mike had some contrasting views on the chain (tighter than I’d been running before) and the engine restraining bolt (flush against he engine – I understood this would put stress on the chassis but I was happy to try anything at this point and I’ll research this again later) and we went off for another go. Finally!!! We had arrived at 10:00, participated in only six of the twelve 20 minute sessions but at 15:40 we managed a full session with no dramas. It was nice to see Junior attacking things a little without actually looking fully committed (understandably so I guess).

And with that, it was time to go – there was a birthday party waiting at home! Unfortunately there was still time for one more hiccup – the trailer jockey wheel worked loose on the way home, dropped down and got wedged beneath the trailer. I could have swore *a lot* but I am very good in front of the kids; the last time I swore in front of one of them was when Nicholas Bendtner spurned a late chance to put Arsenal through against Barcelona at which point I jumped up and shouted in disgust “That was sh*t, Bendtner” in the direction of the TV although, to be fair, it was complete and utter sh*t! All he had to do was bring the ball under control and stick it past the ‘keeper, instead he demonstrated what is known on the terraces as ‘the touch of a rapist’. But I digress… 😉 the trailer wasn’t budging, my son had friends waiting for us at home and I had to call the AA. Then the hail came down, so we sat it out in the car whilst the kart was buried in ice. When the storm passed I managed to lift the trailer, free the wheel and cancel the AA call out although it was scant consolation by that point!

I never did think it was going to be easy…

Cost of day: £12 petrol to get there, £15 petrol for the kart (only 3l out of 10l used!!!), £35 practice fee, £30 engine mount clamps and bolts

Total spent so far: £2278

Our first test day!

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We had our first test day during the recent school holiday. I spent the evening before getting everything together. When I bought the kart, I was struck by how much harder bump starting had been compared with the Venom we had rented for the day. I had started the Venom with relative ease but the EVR was another matter altogether – the seller and his son had done all of the pushing after my initial lightweight effort merely repositioned the kart at the pit exit but it was hard work and the sight of them disappearing around the pit straight bend (a misnomer, if ever there was one) was a little concerning. Also concerning had been the need to lift the back end high, nose dragging, bumping it down hard and push harder for as long as it took! My previous starting experience had been so much nicer – lift a little, drop down and run 10 yards. Anxious to avoid any ball busting push starts, my friendly local expert (cheers, Mark!) had come over to check out the carb and recommended leaving the butterfly (throttle valve???) very slightly open to ease any starting woes. With the remote starter battery charged and my two 5l cans of fuel filled with Shell V-Power (after I had verified with the pump attendant that V-Power was the Shell Super Unleaded!), I figured I had everything set.

It’s funny how all karting preparation takes so much longer than you think; I had planned to set out at 08:00 so that we could get down to Clay by 09:30 and be ready to roll when the track opened at 10:00. My pre-flight trailer checks took an eternity and we arrived 45 minutes later than planned, making four unscheduled stops enroute: one to remove the kart and trailer covers, which were clearly not planning on staying on the trailer for much of the journey, and three to shift the kart after it kept hopping sideways on the trailer. Note to self: do the ratchet straps up as tightly as they’ll go otherwise the kart will move (I had been trying not to stress the frame overly). We got the track in glorious sunshine – it was probably the nicest day of the year so far and I was hugely relieved to see my aforementioned friendly local expert, who had decided to bring his lad after all – thanks again, Mark 🙂 It was a day for the noobs – my son has two other friends who have started karting this year and we arrived within 10 minutes of each other and set up camp. Fearful of screwing anything up, I had typed up the following list of things to do!

1. Fuel mixing (5l:300ml):
1. Add 300ml oil to 5l petrol and shake well
2. Put a paper filter into my filtering jug and fill the 3l tank

2. Carb settings:
1. Run the low jet at 2.5 turns
2. Run the high jet at about 10 mins past

Note: The low jet is screwed in at zero and then rotated clockwise in half turn movements. The jets screw IN clockwise then OUT anti-clockwise. Screw it clockwise until it touches, then just wind anti-clockwise.

3. Chain/sprocket:
1. Use the 82 sprocket unless he is passing 15k, 79 might be more appropriate in dry conditions

4. Tyre pressures:
1. 14psi for slicks in colder conditions and 24psi for wets
2. Go up a psi or two if it gets colder, down if it gets warmer/lap times drop
3. Minimum 9psi for both

5. Starting:
1. Remove the spark plug and sit it on top of the engine
2. Remove the airbox
3. Remove fuel pipe from carb
4. Blow the fuel through until it’s almost at the carb
5. Replace fuel pipe
6. Cover the carb whilst rotating the axle and hope to see the fuel being sucked into the carb
7. Replace everything
8. Start the engine on the trolley using the remote starter

6. Bump starting:
1. Lift
2. Run
3. Drop
4. Push
5. As kart starts to fire – light acceleration
6. Lightly choke if still not going
7. Couple of stabs on accelerator if needed

I know that some of the above would be considered sub-optimal – we ran a large sprocket when we bought the kart as my son really struggled to get the revs up on the straights and the tyre pressures fairly high as he wasn’t getting any hat into them.

Prepping a kart seems to take 90 minutes regardless – this was the case at the Clay Open Day where my son trialled a JTKM and Junior Max, when we rented the Venom and when we bought the EVR so I shouldn’t have been surprised that we weren’t ready to roll until 11:45. So on to the big moment (as per Section 6) –  I set myself up at the back of the pit lane to give myself maximum pushing time before I got to the point I’d be running around the bend under waved yellows! Lift – run – keep running – something isn’t right, it doesn’t sound like it’s firing – we stopped at the bottom of the pit exit. “Dad, the spark plug isn’t in”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oops! With the spark plug in, it started perfectly – minimal lift, 5 yards and he was off 🙂 I watched from the centre of the track with the *hugest* smile of satisfaction – all the effort, hours reading online, watching kart sales, hassle of towing, haggling, buying – were forgotten. It was open track and, with no more than eight karts on track at its busiest, we were able to kart, kart and kart. My son’s previous times were massively off of the pace – 10 seconds off in the Venom, 8 seconds off when we bought the EVR but his early times now were in the 42s. His revs were > 15k so we moved down to a 79 sprocket and let the tyre pressures down to 11psi as the track warmed. His best time was a 37.5 until he lost a wheel (Lesson #145: always check your nuts) and then things got colder and the wheel loss seemed to create some doubt in his mind as he never broke 40s after that. It was a fantastic day though – I only forgot to put the spark plug in one more time and he’d have carried on all night if he could have (as it was we used the 10l of fuel we brought and it was getting time to think about leaving). 140 laps in the bag, a kart than ran beautifully and started every time, no offs and 8 seconds quicker than his previous best. I even had a chance to take some nice pics too courtesy of Greg, who lent me a very, very nice piece of glass 🙂

Cost of day: £12 petrol to get there, £15 petrol for the kart, £35 practice fee, £40 Clay Pigeon Loyalty Card

Total spent so far: £2170