I am doing some reaserch and I would like to know and get some awnsers to these questions. If you have the time it is much appreciated if you could awnser one or more of these questions
What was it like to become involved in the Go Karting community?
What was the best part of being a part of this community?
What challenges have you faced as a member of the Go Karting community?
How do you feel about the camaraderie and relationships within the community?
What brought you to the world of Go Karting?
Can you share any surprises or unexpected experiences you’ve encountered within the community?
In what ways do you see similarities or differences between the Go Karting community and other communities you’re part of?
I would think to some degree some answers will be similar and some will be vastly different.
I started when my son was 12 and wanted to try it (I think I was late 40’s). I have always been interested in cars, racing and such. I raced R/C cars for many years. I have found karters in general to be welcoming and helpful. I think the best part is typically karters have similar interests in motorsports, which can be hard to find in other circles. When I first started with karts I had an internal struggle where I didn’t feel like I should be there which kept me from being as aggressive as I needed to be. I got over that but it took about 2 seasons.
What was it like to become involved in the Go Karting community? It was daunting at first because you had to know someone who is into it, but once I connected with my local club, I’ve found all of the folks to be very helpful and supportive.
What was the best part of being a part of this community? Learning from everyone - tuning and driving tips.
What challenges have you faced as a member of the Go Karting community? Figuring out how to evangelize this awesome sport and get more of my friends and their kids involved. As much as we want to make this easier, there are still true barriers to getting into it. Buying a kart, figuring out where to store it and how to transport it, how to work on it - all of these things can be hard to figure out and even once you do, they represent a sizeable investment in time and money, which can deter folks from getting into it.
How do you feel about the camaraderie and relationships within the community? This has been the highlight - everyone is extremely helpful and supportive. I’ve learned tuning tricks, tips on driving, and many in the community have given me spare parts for my kart or my kids’ karts.
What brought you to the world of Go Karting? A love for motorsport my whole life, coupled with my desire to share it with my kids. We got my oldest son a kid kart before he turned five and it wasn’t long before I got one and got my other son into it as well.
Can you share any surprises or unexpected experiences you’ve encountered within the community? My biggest “aha” with karting has been how in-depth of a sport it is. You can spend a lifetime fine-tuning your tuning and driving, and there will always be ways to chase a couple tenths/hundredths here and there.
In what ways do you see similarities or differences between the Go Karting community and other communities you’re part of? There’s a lot of crossover with other motorsport communities, like car-folks and motorcycle-folks. Many of my karting friends used to race motorcycles or do track-days in their cars, but were drawn to karting for the accessibility of it and the unparalleled sensation of speed.
Thank you soo much for your input as I have been reaserching the go kart community in order to teach and give insite to how this amazing community allows for people to enjoy life. this is for a college project as I am making an ehnography. And this seemed like a fun, active, and respected community.