New guy with 5 year old kid - North Mississippi

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

Hey everyone! I’m here because of a podcast from Ross Bentley and Davin Sturdivant. This got my interest piqued. After a quick search I found two tracks within a decent travel distance and that got the wheels turning. I don’t want to get into dirt oval, I want sprint karts. I would like to let my son try it out. If it sticks for him I will inevitably get a kart to race as well. So this is kind of a two folded question/post.

Where are you located?

Walls, MS just outside of Memphis, TN
I know of two tracks Rebel Raceway in Tupelo MS and Mississippi Karting Association in Jackson, MS

What age bracket are you in? Junior (<16), Senior (16+) or Masters (30+)

5 and 35

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your mechanical ability, or willingness to wrench on things?

10 - I do all my own work on my racecar. Small engines scare me, I will work through it.

Talk a little about your racing experience so far.

My son wants to get behind the wheel and he sees me doing track days in my racecar so I am wanting to get him into sprint karting. Along with this if he is there I may as well go karting too! I Auto x’ed for years and then started doing DEs about 3 years ago. Since then I moved to TimeTrial. Now I am aging my car and going wheel to wheel.

What’s the main thing you need help with to get you started.

Looking for other opportunities to race as well as looking at two different tracks that have different classes. Can one buy one chassis and swap engines? I’m a big dude 280# will I be competitive with or should I use this as a way to sharpen my own driving skill for track work? It seems that the two closest tracks run different classes can Ouse one chassis and run the different engines or are there more differences? Are there any other tracks within a 5 hour drive that are worth a look Nola and Dallas are on my radar as I have driven at both of them.

Most importantly what should I be looking for in a kart for a 5 year old? One group runs a predator 3.5 horse class and the other group does the LO203 karts for the little guys. Junior karts are they able to grow as the kid gets bigger or is it like everything else they outgrow it and you build/buy a new one?

When buying a used kart how does one know if it is set up for dirt(tires)/asphalt oval rather than sprints/road course?

Lastly where in the world does one find kid sized safety gear in one place?

[Bimodal_Rocket (Dom Callan)]

Can one buy one chassis and swap engines?

Yes. It is certainly possible but there are some issues going from lo206 to 2 stroke as the engine mounts vary a bit. Folks here have managed.

I’m a big dude 280# will I be competitive with or should I use this as a way to sharpen my own driving skill for track work?

Depends on field I would guess. If you are up against only skinnies and there’s no weigh-in, that’s gonna be hard to overcome. But, most fields should have guys just like you in it so you will probably have folks to race against. Can’t know till you go, really. Anyways, winning is nice but having a field that kicks your butt is even better.
Regardless of field, starting out in 4 stroke will teach you how to drive well and efficiently. It’s not powerful enough to allow for sloppy driving.

It seems that the two closest tracks run different classes can I use one chassis and run the different engines or are there more differences?

Yes, mostly. Shifter chassis make lousy tag chassis. But, a tag chassis can be used for lo and vice versa.

Are there any other tracks within a 5 hour drive that are worth a look Nola and Dallas are on my radar as I have driven at both of them.

I’m from NJ but I spent a day at DKC with Jake French wrenching for me. Great facility. I saw Mike in KARTKRAFT discord talking about the rather substantial facility improvements coming down the pike. Looks like big things going on there. Can’t go wrong with DKC, imho.

Most importantly what should I be looking for in a kart for a 5 year old? One group runs a predator 3.5 horse class and the other group does the LO203 karts for the little guys. Junior karts are they able to grow as the kid gets bigger or is it like everything else they outgrow it and you build/buy a new one?

My boy started older so I missed this bit. I am guessing that if there’s an engine choice at that age it must be budget related. I am guessing the lo is cheaper than the predator to buy and maintain.

When buying a used kart how does one know if it is set up for dirt(tires)/asphalt oval rather than sprints/road course?

Dirt oval karts are typically offset. http://www.tsracing.com/Assets/ProductImages/PhantomRecon.jpg

Sprint:

Lastly where in the world does one find kid sized safety gear in one place?

Try a major online retailer. I’ve never stuck to just one as finding stock or sizes gets tricky.

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

Dom, THANK YOU for taking the time to answer!

For me it’s about driver skill, for my son, I want him to get everything he wants out of it and then some. I don’t mind being at the end of the pack if I can mix it up with other drivers.

I believe from what I have learned so far the fields are all running 4 stroke karts. I don’t see moving to shifter karts, but that is a possibility later down the line.

Yes DKC is an amazing place, I stopped on a whim with two old spirit car drivers and we had a BLAST!

Thank you for the primer on the different chassis, I see what you’re talking about now, most ads around here are for offset dirt ovals.

Kiddo sizing is tricky, I think I’ve nailed down the suit and helmet I just hope the Helmet fits properly when it comes in! Gloves and a small enough neck brace are going to be the hard ones I think.

[Bimodal_Rocket (Dom Callan)]

You are welcome. Look for other parents whose kids are stepping up to a new chassis etc. The kid stuff makes the rounds, I’d think. You might be able to find some of this stuff used.

Helmet is tricky. It has to fit properly (not loose) so you can’t go one size up. Also, fit varies a lot! There are kid specific helmets.

I also recommend not going the eBay/Craigslist route. If you talk with a local team that is also a distributor, you’ll get a sorted, correct kart. And, you’ll have someone to service it too!

If you are brand new to all this you could end up like my pal who bought a shifter chassis with a welded on torsion bar for his 100cc engine. It’s too stiff and he’s too light for it to flex properly. So he’s unhappy. Don’t be unhappy. It might cost a bit more to source used through a team but it’s worth it, particularly if you aren’t saavy yet.

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

I’m meeting with the owner of the track closest to me in the next week or two to try out a kid kart with my son. A family bought and built the kart last year and put a few races on it and the kid moved up because he could due to age. I’ll learn more about it when we go see if this is for us. Helmets are VERY tricky. The number of people who show up to HPDE events with poor fitting helmets is scary. I imagine the same is true for Karting.

[Bimodal_Rocket (Dom Callan)]

Sounds like you are off to the races. Now to get your chassis sorted. Be aware that your sons lightness will be extremely frustrating in that he will pull away from you every time. I don’t know if you’ll get many chances to kart with him in race karts (as you are divided by age) but in rentals, he will have a ridiculous weight advantage over dad for years to come. It took till Nick was almost 16 for me to beat him on weight. Haha he’s heavier than me now. Revenge!

[da_sniffa32 (Eric Thivierge)]

I can relate with the pulling away on the rentals thing, my father had that issue with me pulling away all the time

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

@Bimodal_Rocket

Sounds like you are off to the races. Now to get your chassis sorted. Be aware that your sons lightness will be extremely frustrating in that he will pull away from you every time. I don’t know if you’ll get many chances to kart with him in race karts (as you are divided by age) but in rentals, he will have a ridiculous weight advantage over dad for years to come. It took till Nick was almost 16 for me to beat him on weight. Haha he’s heavier than me now. Revenge!

Agreed, once he gets up to speed it will be hard to keep up, but that is a proud Dad moment in itself. We can always get into race cars when he is 15 and be a bit more equalized. But Karting, I’m looking forward to working on my own skills and racecraft outside of the racecar.

[GregF (Greg Fine)]

@Pzary3233

Are there any other tracks within a 5 hour drive that are worth a look Nola and Dallas are on my radar as I have driven at both of them.

There are 3 tracks in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and I think 4 in the Houston area. I believe there is also 1 in Waco and 1 near Austin (Hill Country). Not much further than the DFW area from you. Atlanta is about as far away as Dallas is from you, so there is another option. If someone could help out, I think there are 1 or 2 tracks in Arkansas.

[Kutschca (Chris Kutscher)]

You’re on the right track meeting with someone from the track and club to try out a kid kart. As others have mentioned, figure out what engine package your intended club or clubs run before plunking down money on something.

For your son all kids up to 8 in most places will run a kid kart chassis. It’s the smallest kart chassis size and it made by many manufacturers. You adjust the kart to fit him with seat placement and pedal boxes if needed. Full SFI chest protectors are required by most orgs for kids and the Armadillo is the best solution as well as incorporating rib protection. Look to get your son a CMR Snell certified helmet as they’re required to use smaller shells and have lighter weight for kids.

For you competing at 280 is gonna be tough unless there’s a super heavy class around you. As long as you know that and are fine with it no issue.

[Bimodal_Rocket (Dom Callan)]

@Kutschca

For you competing at 280 is gonna be tough unless there’s a super heavy class around you. As long as you know that and are fine with it no issue.

Anecdotally, karting is a surprisingly vigorous workout. Be prepared for some pain at first. You will be sore. Also, do not kart without a rib protector. Just don’t. It’s very easy to injure your ribs. My first day karting was with no protector and boy did that hurt.

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

Guys thank you for all the great information!

@GregF

There are 3 tracks in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and I think 4 in the Houston area. I believe there is also 1 in Waco and 1 near Austin (Hill Country). Not much further than the DFW area from you. Atlanta is about as far away as Dallas is from you, so there is another option. If someone could help out, I think there are 1 or 2 tracks in Arkansas.

Austin is a good bit further as is Houston. Atlanta is doable as well. I wasn’t aware of any tracks in Arkansas!

@Kutschca

For your son all kids up to 8 in most places will run a kid kart chassis. It’s the smallest kart chassis size and it made by many manufacturers. You adjust the kart to fit him with seat placement and pedal boxes if needed. Full SFI chest protectors are required by most orgs for kids and the Armadillo is the best solution as well as incorporating rib protection. Look to get your son a CMR Snell certified helmet as they’re required to use smaller shells and have lighter weight for kids.

Kid Karts are what I am looking at. The issue is that the two tracks that are closes use two different “classes” the one in Jackson is a Cadet Kart class and then one in Tupelo runs a 3.5hp stock predator engine. So it looks like the engine swapping to race at each track. I’m ok with that but it does make a difference.

I believe I have a line on the Armadillo Rib/chest protector from a guy I work with who’s kid used to do dirt oval stuff.

That’s a good point about the Helmet. I will have to look into that.

@Bimodal_Rocket

Anecdotally, karting is a surprisingly vigorous workout. Be prepared for some pain at first. You will be sore. Also, do not kart without a rib protector. Just don’t. It’s very easy to injure your ribs. My first day karting was with no protector and boy did that hurt.

Yes, it is! A bunch of us made the mistake of racing karts all night at NOLA after a day or car racing, Sunday was brutal on us back on track.

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

Update: I am headed to visit two shops in Saltillo MS this coming weekend. I one shop is a Margay dealer but also has used karts coming in every once in a while. The other shop is the owner of the track and he too can source used karts. They both say they have been able to source karts for my son, however, I’m afraid they are the larger Cadet karts rather than the kid karts. How does one tell the difference having not ever paid attention to them in the past?

Attached are some photos of the first kart an OK1 with a clone engine which is what the kids run at the track in Saltillo, MS. Everywhere else they seem to run the LO206 in the kid classes but that just seems like too much engine for the moment. We are going to go take a look at it this weekend if the weather holds out maybe test at the track!

[Bimodal_Rocket (Dom Callan)]

Having started in adult size karts, I have no clue. However, the 19 doesnt look like a kid kart to me.

Here’s the birel kid kart vs cadet.The top is kidkart. You can see how much shorter it is.

Side view of kid kart:

[d-i-y80 (John Leah)]

,Wheelbase.

Birel B25 ‘kidkart’ 78cm.

Birel C28R ‘cadet’ 95cm.

Typical ‘adult’ kart 105cm.

[GregF (Greg Fine)]

I know scale can be hard to tell from pictures sometimes, but generally (at least most I have seen) kid karts will have both front hoops (bars the front bumper attaches to) welded to the chassis and in junior and up they (or least the upper) are bolted on.

Also Kid Karts do not usually have a fuel tank under the steering support. They use an over engine mounted tank. There may be very few exceptions to this rule for certain engines that do not support that.

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

@GregF

Also Kid Karts do not usually have a fuel tank under the steering support. They use an over engine mounted tank. There may be very few exceptions to this rule for certain engines that do not support that.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that is Cadet Kart I posted above.

@d-i-y80

,Wheelbase.

Birel B25 ‘kidkart’ 78cm.

Birel C28R ‘cadet’ 95cm.

Typical ‘adult’ kart 105cm.

Great thanks! I’ll measure the wheelbase and see what I come up with.

Thank you guys for the pointers I’m headed to three different shops tomorrow with my little buddy to see what we come up with!

[Kutschca (Chris Kutscher)]

As mentioned the wheelbase is different between cadet and kid karts. The one you posted seems like a cadet. Again check the rules for your clubs as some won’t allow cadet chassis in kid kart classes.

I don’t know much about 206, but I believe there’s a different throttle slide for kid karts that will further limit the power over cadets.

[Bimodal_Rocket (Dom Callan)]

I am gonna guess the 17 with your boy is a cadet kart with pedal extenders.

[Pzary3233 (Paul Zarychta)]

@Kutschca

I don’t know much about 206, but I believe there’s a different throttle slide for kid karts that will further limit the power over cadets.

Correct from what I understand there is a slide that really makes it quite tame for a little dude starting out.

@Bimodal_Rocket

I am gonna guess the 17 with your boy is a cadet kart with pedal extenders.

That’s not my kid on the kart but I bet that’s about how he is going to fit on that kart. I believe you’re correct that it is a Cadet Kart. I’ll probably pass on it.