I just got done with a 45-minute endurance race in a standard rental kart, and I had one MAJOR problem:
About 15 minutes in, I started feeling intense soreness in my lower back during any long corner. Basically any corner (or series of corners) where I’m experiencing G-force in the same direction for more than a second or two at a time, it was unbearable… and on this track there’s a left-hand sweeper followed by another left which takes probably 6 seconds before the kart straightens out.
I was basically in survival mode the whole time after that, and my laptimes were all over the place. So, I’m just trying to learn something from this experience…
Is 45 minutes nonstop in a kart actually a lot?
Was my problem due to being tall (6’4") in a one-size-fits-all rental kart? I’ve driven these exact karts plenty of times before with no issues during shorter sessions
Or am I actually missing a fitness/technique element that would have prevented it?
Is it internal pain (like a pinched nerve)? Or is it external like from banging around? I suffer from the latter unless I wear a rib protector with a back plate
As a former wrestler who loved deadlifts, I get that reference! Haha
Are you flopping around in the seat? While mine rib protector was driven by bruising, it did have a secondary advantage of fitting much better in the seat, and I noticed less tension in my back. For the 45 minute rentals, my dominant misery comes from the extra weight I’m carrying though, so I didn’t pay much attention to anything else, haha
It does sound like your seat position might be contributing. Doesn’t sound like rib. 45mins is indeed a lot when not used to it. Most folks who aren’t “kart fit” will struggle with 20 and will feel it the next day. Even in rentals. Thats why the sessions at places like supercharged are 6mins and normal rentals, 10-12.
You also get tossed around a lot more than you’d think, especially on large rental seats. Knees, arms get banged up a lot when new, for example. How how brace yourself in a kart isn’t obvious but it’s something you do instinctually over time.
But, you do get acclimated to and you develop the muscles that are needed and aren’t so much along for the ride as you start compensating for the karts behavior.
It’s hard to tell from what you wrote wether you got injured or were just beaten up by a combo of bad seat position, getting tossed about, and aren’t kart fit.
If you feel really sore and your muscles hurt like from strenuous physical activity I’d say that normal. If it’s primarily in one area that’s likely due to some specific area being overworked (maybe sitting wrong). If there’s an actual pain that feels like something got torn/broke and it can be manipulated by touch or bending into a “hot” pain, that’s worth a visit to the doc.
At 185 you are on the svelter side of things as far as rentals are concerned. I would concur with the suggestion about trying some sort of padding. See if they have a seat insert that you can fit in.
I might have to go the sit-ups route, because I’m already doing 30 mins seat time at least twice a week, but with only 10 minute sessions before pitting, I’ve never experienced this kind of intense load before.
Hmm. So you should likely be kart fit such that a 45min stint shouldn’t kill you like that. Try a seat insert. That will snug the seat up, also they are foam rubber which might prevent you from having a specific pressure point cause agony. That can be the case.
I do get back pain on really long drives in the regular car, but not in the kart. Maybe it’s because I’m more active in kart and shift about a bit as I drive kart.
I wonder if you could replicate it somehow. Any chance you can get another crack at “drive till back screams” short of signing up for another enduro?
If in Jersey NJMP has 2hr races where stint 1 is 1hr then refuel and driver swap. Alternate weekends.
Not sure when I’ll get another shot at replicating this specific scenario. My local track is closed for the rest of the month for the upcoming F1 race. They might do another Enduro when it opens back up, but I’m kinda worried about doing 45 minutes again when the issue was hitting me hard by minute 15 last time.
Maybe if I travel further out to one of the smaller tracks outside the city, they’d just let me run 20 minutes straight without having to pit and restart.
Are you running a rib protector? I know it’s not a rib thing but it also protects the back a bit, at least it seperate you from the seat with some foam rubber.
Have you tried playing with the seat position/pedal position?
I’m 6’ approx 180, I tend to prefer seat slammed all way forwards, always. I also prefer having some knee bend as opposed to straight leg.
No rib protector. I have a Stilo on order, but it hasn’t come in yet.
At my track we don’t have seat adjustment, just pedal adjustment. I keep mine as far away as possible, because even then my knees are still bent way up at steering wheel level.
The rib protector might make a diff. How much lateral play is there in the seat? In long radius your weight is being sent to outside so it seems like maybe the lower back pain is compensatory.
If there’s a gap between seat and torso, that is likely a problem for you. The rib protector will make you wider. The idea of an insert will also narrow things up. But, you are tall. So you’d likely need a “bottomless” solution.
You’re tall, but I don’t think your size has much to do with your lower back hurting. My thought is that youre not sized correctly for the seat you’re sitting in, which is fairly common for rentals. I really think the addition of the rib protector like others have said will help you significantly. Keep us posted!
Honestly, rib protectors will make a difference, but if your looking for a cheaper fix then just a so called “booster seat” will help. There should be some at your local track.
The reason you are having that pain is because you are moving around in your seat tryna make yourself comfortable while driving. The key is honestly to be as tight as you can in your seat while driving. Also the karts only being pedal adjusted don’t help, and what’s worse is you can’t properly place your legs in the kart even at full extent.
Yeah and since he’s tall, he could consider buying his own and cutting the bottom off even, keeping the lateral width part top 2/3
Once you have your rib protector you will be able to lean out in turns, resting your torso on seat without pain. This will reduce strain on LB.
Don’t worry about looking like a goofy tryhard. When I started doing the SC league (electric indoor) I was one of the few experienced guys there and the only one with a RP. I got some wierd looks but by week 3-4 another 20 guys or so realized that they were necessary. One fella even showed up in his football equivalent.
