I think he meant that 206 was the highest weight to HP, not the other way around.
3 Likes
Also, Iâve seen conversations of sponsorship being bandied about. There is an entirely different conversation about bring business value to sponsors, thatâs separate to the racing, that weâd need to talk about.
Iâve had entirely sponsored seasons of karting before, but the value that I brought to my sponsors was more about the ideas I came up with the business that I drove towards them, not about what my race results were.
Thousands of people finish first every weekend, so unless your sponsor makes money directly through racing, you finishing first wonât be the thing that is of value to them.
Iâve got a ton of content/conversations about sponsorship and business, but Iâd make a different thread about that.
What everyone else here said is pretty on the money. Find popular classes near you. Get seat time. Have fun. Everything else falls into place after that.
Oops. I meant highest weight to power. I have corrected
HP/weight, weight/HP? What is it?
idk theres something about those shifter karts with the pure power and ability to blow through gears that just draws me in. When compared to a TAG or LO206 it just seems like the shifter absolutely blows them out of the water. Im still looking for a decent place to race but I also thought about getting back into dirt bikes since its way more accessible where I live.
2 Likes
As I stated shifter is the most wicked vehicle I have ever driven. Standing starts with a kart 8 feet in front of you and dropping the clutch at 12k RPM is next level intense. Some times I tell myself I want one to play with. For me though the racing was not as good, and not as good by quite a bit. If there had been 15 out there maybe it would have been, but there never was.
1 Like
I too would love the rush of a shifter, watching them everytime wants me to get in one.
For me one of the main reasons getting into karting was the racing aspect, although the 4 strokes are SLOW, the tight racing is a rush in itself. The field size unless at a national event seems to always also be much greater. So if you are a mid-pack guy lots more opportunity IMO for close racing.
Also headaches are much less. Ultimately the KA seems to be the best middle ground as far as cost, speed rush, field size, ec.
2 Likes
This is the direction Iâm trying to go. Just need the northwest to start to offer it everywhere
2 Likes
Northwest wonât start offering 100cc, until enough drivers decide to take the plunge and force a class creation. 
I am new with this being my first year but donât understand what the hold up is. Yes cost is slightly higher but seems to be the most universal class. Plus can race all the nationals, etc.
I am sure eventually my second class will be KA regardless of local turnout.
A large part of it will be the preference and politics of each of one of the dealers, and the premium brand engines that they want to service and sell.
Thatâs nothing against dealers. They shouldnât have to take the risk of purchasing engines that customers may not buy.
In karting, 99% of dealers are sole proprietor or very small businesses, that donât have the budget of a factory or larger company behind them. (No matter how well theyâre dressed at the track.)
So it would be a huge financial risk for them to buy a ton of engines that no one wants to buy, or donât have confidence in.
However, if customers come with engines that they want to race, then there is motivation for those dealers to be prepared to service them.
So itâs a chicken and a egg, if you leave it up to dealers and shops. (Granted, the racer doesnât want to buy an engine that might not have a class, etc.)
1 Like
If we had more KA in the area I would be on it in a heart beat. I agree it is great middle ground. The oops cost on shifters are higher also. I had an axle move on one once that I was running a TM on. Instead of breaking the chain or something like that with a 219 chain, it ripped the output shaft out of the motor destroying both halves of the case. It was $2000 damage just like that. And that was in 2002 or 2003. But I was having a blast right up until that point.
1 Like
Iâm about to buy a 100 and say screw it and race it where I can since places around do have a class for it. Then hopefully more follow suit and we get a class
1 Like
I am sorry if your thread has been hijacked with debates about the next growing class, but it is relevant to your initial question. At the local level here in the Dallas, TX area I have seen an increase in the KA100 class at North Texas Karters and an increase in VLR100 at Dallas Karting Complex. Both have seen a decrease in the TaG 125 classes which leaves me with very few to run with. I am still working on my driving in an older OTK chassis, but with out someone to run with in my similar skill set I find myself just turning laps in most races. When you have larger fields, you can usually find another racer that pushes you to improve and grow. When you have very few in your class, you are either at the top or the bottom with little or no way to challenge yourself. You cannot hang with the fast ones to pick up their techniques and you become a moving road block. Still fun, but not as fun if you have someone to challenge you. Competition drives growth and improvement. It is the Natural Order.
I am seriously considering moving to the 100cc class just to better myself. My question now is which product will I get better support for. These are all things that need to be taken into account. I know shifters have a dramatic appeal, but its like handing the keys of a 2020 corvette to your newly licensed 16 year old and telling them to be safe. Not likely to happen!! Experience always trumps fearlessness. Just because you can control a beast, does not mean you can wield one effectively.
Very few racers who start directly in shifter stay for every long. Itâs harder and faster than anything theyâve ever driven, and they donât gave experience to press through.
Ballache is too strong, so they quit. If you progress your way up through the faster karts, you acclimate.
1 Like
Literally nothing within a 2 hour radius for shifter class and the closest track for the briggs engine is an hour and a half away. Mx is wayy more popular around here and any type of karting is not really viable at all.
Yea I cant see my self actually racing one because thereâs little opportunity here
2 hours is pretty normal distance for a track. You went from being motivated for the top level of karting to not motivated to kart as the nearest track is 2 hours away. You will find itâs very common to drive much further to go race
1 Like
Two hours isnât really that far away to get to a kart track. Your kart doesnât really care how far away the track is.
Also like @highSRT said, if two hours is discouraging, then traveling for regional and national races wonât even get off the ground.
1 Like
Going to was not nearly as bad as coming from. All my regional races where an hour and a half to 2 1/2 away. Nothing local. You do what you have to do to put out that fire in your belly. 54 years later, I still llong for that monthly trip to the regional races. In between there was the 6 hour trips to Southern California for road racing And the Sprint winter nationals.