Sending this to a few lists so pardon me if you get this report more than once.
We have been having our eleven-year-old son, Tyler
(http://www.microworks.net/dave/images/gallery/tylersmile-l.jpg), run some
practice days with his Junior 1 Kart but he had yet to do an actual race
and with this being the year he has to move up to a bigger kart as he turns
twelve in a couple months we have put his current kart up for sale. In the
mean time, while waiting for it to be sold, we decided to let him run a
Junior Race series that one of the local in-door kart facilities
(http://www.f1racefactory.com) has since their Junior Karts are the same
size and motor (although restricted) as the Adult Karts it will let him get
a feel for a larger vehicle.
While he has done four arrive and drive sessions (8 laps each time) there
over the past four months this would be his first time on the track with a
full compliment of karts (nine) and with kids that are experienced and in
an actual race format. We out yesterday for his first time (although they
are in the middle of a current five-week "season") and in his first five
minute practice/qualifying session he managed to place third on the gird
for the first 20 lap race. The two kids in front of him were pointed out to
me to be the two that always are either first or second and that everyone
else is really running for third. Those other two kids look like they are
probably fourteen years old too.
After the qualifying session the kids are assigned for the race the karts
on the grid in the order they were parked - meaning the likelihood that
they will get the same kart is almost nil.
The kart that he drew for the race was not very good at all. As he put it
"It sucked". It bogged coming off the line slipping him to fourth where he
stayed until two laps from the end when two karts got around him on the
longest straight dropping him to sixth.
It was discouraged but eager to go for the next and final race as he had
set his goal to at least get a podium spot for his first day.
Having to start that final 20-lap race in sixth spot out of a grid of nine
karts certainly did not bode well for his attaining that podium so he and I
talked about some of the trickier corners and then off to grid he went.
At the start he got a good jump and tried to take the fourth placed kart in
front of him at the first turn but that kid turned in early and pinned
Tyler to the inside wall. As the two of them slowly worked their karts free
from each other the rest of the field motored off.
Once Tyler got free however he put his head and foot down and began the
chase eleven seconds behind the leader.
The leader set the fastest race lap on lap two (won't count the first lap
as that includes the standing start) and Tyler answered back by resetting
it on Lap 4 and never gave it up to anyone as he proceeded to reset it
three more times (Laps 10, 14 and 17). While the leader was running mostly
29 second laps (29.167 Avg) with only the occasional 28 second lap, Tyler
on the other hand ran only 28 second laps (28.898 Avg) from lap 8 to lap 20
as he slowly reeled in the field (running 30.090 - 30.490 Avg) and moved
himself up to 2nd place!
Needless to say he was quite happy with his finish and the fact that not
only did he set the fastest race lap while passing almost the entire field
but he set the track record too (28.089)!
He is now chomping at the bit to give it another go next Saturday and keeps
saying he wants to run my Formula 500 when he turns sixteen. We'll see if
he is still interested cars at the age or will girls have moved into first.
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