Brand new to karting. Just pick up my margay k3. This sport needs to be more popular. The excitement and fun I had just on a test day was second to none. Just wish I was 10 years younger. I’m 33.
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Same pinch couple of years ago at 48. It just gets better
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We used to market to adults mate back in the day, then we took the F1 coolaid.
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Not sure on your fitness levels but I got into karting at 35 (38 now) so out of shape 5 laps burnt me out!! Been working at crossfit for a couple years now and I feel younger than I did in my twenty’s. You can get that feeling back!! Welcome to the sport.
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My fitness is alright. Never got an arm pump while out there. The only time I got any cramps was actually on my drive back home in my left forearm. Will be doing more cardio at the gym.
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If your cardio is good, should be easier. Most of us get wiped out initially by the G forces and sticky tires. You get kart fit pretty quickly though.
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Feeling like an old fart when my shins start cramping later that night. I always drink plenty of water, but for some reason I get wicked leg cramps. It doesn’t help racing in the Texas Heat! BTW turn 46 this year.
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At 54 my cutoff is 90+ F. I simply won’t race when it’s that hot, it’s not worth it.
I need a high alpine track for summer. Leadville Colo anyone?
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Last enduro I brought these hydration packets you pour into a water bottle. Big difference as compared to just water, staying power wise.
I need to look into that. What brand?
I’ll take a pic tonight
Liquid IV advertises on basically every podcast I listen to. Similar to what Dom’s talking about. Interested in trying it, more to prevent hangovers since I don’t race much anymore. 
im 17, very athletic, and would struggle in 90+. highest ive raced in was 94, and I felt like fainting the entire day. drank like 2 gallons of gatorade as well. a driver passed out due to running 3 classes in a day. at least thats what I heard
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Elias,
Gatorade is a bad choice. I learned this when I was in the finals of a tournament in florida. Me and the other guy were tiebreaker split sets (all of them) in summer Florida heat.
The tournament was a regional big one and sponsored by Gatorade. They had Gatorade for us on court in a cooler.
Since it was such a fierce match and so hot I drank a bunch of Gatorade.
At the 4.5 hour mark, tiebreaker of last set I had to retire due to massive leg cramping brought on by the sugar in the Gatorade.
Don’t drink Gatorade for sports. Don’t put yourself in a position to retire from a race lol.
I’ve moved to G2 or even zero calorie Gatorate. But yeah the full sugar stuff is a LOT of sugar.
Everything in moderation. You need to replenish electrolytes in some way and if you have a small Gatorade during the day you’ll accomplish that without too much sugar. You should probably supplement your water intake in some way to get actual nutrients back into your system.
But yeah if you’re slamming sugary sports drinks all day you’re going to have a bad time.
We raced in Phoenix once for a Pro Tour race and it was like 115°. People were having a tough time in the paddock, let alone on the track. Passing out in the scale line… Not a good time. The Midwest humidity is awful too. 90° and sticky in the summer here is like being in a rainforest.
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Makes sense, never thought of that. I generally resort to water and salty foods but similar to you I had a bunch of free ice cold gatorade available
Most days I go to the track I take a cooler full of waters and one or two powerades. I usually drink half of the bottle, then fill it back up with water. Might do that once or twice throughout the day and pounding water the rest of the time.
Here in the DFW area this year has been surprisingly humid. Combining that with High’s in the Mid 90’s it feels worse than normal. The worst is late July into August when 20 plus days over 100*F. Its brutal!
Sorry for high jacking your thread Shawn. Welcome to the community. Where are you from?
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Big fan of Pocari Sweat, when I first arrived to the sand pit it was the company’s drink of choice for us working out on the apron, it really helps me to keep focused at the track.
If you can find it, try it.
If you were cramping that bad, Gatorade or any other sports drink would have not helped at that point. If you’re at the cramp stage, your electrolytes are most likely off. At that point, you should be taking sodium tablets to retain water.
You should never be at this point while karting unless you’re doing an endurance race. If so, you need to plan calories and hydration. Always start with solid food, then semi solid and then gels.
Just remember to take your suit off, hydrate and don’t eat garbage and you’ll be fine