Help and advice needed for a go kart race

[bensorota]

I am a 15 year old amateur go kart racer from greece. I am currently running a championship of 18 rounds in a specific race track and i really want to win it. I started of quite good but in the last 4-5 rounds i am really falling behind. It's not the others that are getting faster, it's my times that have become slower. I would really appreciate if someone could help me figure out the correct racing lines and give me some tips. Thanks a lot and i appreciate it.(I can provide more detailed plans of the track)
p.s I am running with 400cc 4 stroke go karts, so not really that fast

 

[KartManiac0]

Which tracks are coming up next?

 

[landuse]

Welcome!

If your times are getting slower, you should work on your consistency before looking at your lines?

 

[bensorota]

Which tracks are coming up next?

It's always the same track, the only thing is that each race they change the direction

---------- Post added at 02:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:40 PM ----------

Welcome!

If your times are getting slower, you should work on your consistency before looking at your lines?

I believe i am quite consistant as normally all of my lap times are within 0.5s of each other. It's just that suddenly from one race to the other my lap times have become 6-7 tenths slower. I think it's because i skipped 2 races due to injury and it seems like i can't quite get the pace.

 

[landuse]

Post an aerial photograph of the race track, and we can maybe give you some advice

 

[bensorota]

Post an aerial photograph of the race track, and we can maybe give you some advice

I am having trouble in turn number 1(the decreasing angle turn after the straight), turn number 4 and 5(the 2 consecutive right hand turns) and turn number 8(the slow 180 deegre turn)

 

[ezcome-ezgo]

A 400cc kart is "not that fast"? I am getting old.

 

[anderkart]

Something that really helped me when I raced karts was learning to work the throttle and brake pedals very-smoothly when entering corners.

Our natural instinct is to instantaneously go from full throttle to full braking when entering sharp corners like those, this violent/sudden change in velocity upsets the handling by transferring too much weight to the outside-front tire, causing the other 3 to loose grip...

Another tip that helped me on difficult corners was discovering that it sometimes helped to stay at half or maybe quarter throttle and use more braking through the corner.

Keep in mind that races aren't won by the guys that enter corners the fastest, they're won by guys that have learned how to carry the most speed through and out of the corners!

Good luck

 

[bensorota]

A 400cc kart is "not that fast"? I am getting old.

Well it's only one speed so i would say they don't go faster than 45mph

---------- Post added at 07:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:09 PM ----------

Something that really helped me when I raced karts was learning to work the throttle and brake pedals very-smoothly when entering corners.

Our natural instinct is to instantaneously go from full throttle to full braking when entering sharp corners like those, this violent/sudden change in velocity upsets the handling by transferring too much weight to the outside-front tire, causing the other 3 to loose grip...

Another tip that helped me on difficult corners was discovering that it sometimes helped to stay at half or maybe quarter throttle and use more braking through the corner.

Keep in mind that races aren't won by the guys that enter corners the fastest, they're won by guys that have learned how to carry the most speed through and out of the corners!

Good luck

That's true, and thanks for the advise. But since the go karts are not really that fast, real breaking is required only one or two times in the whole track. Most corners are full speed or you get a good line just by letting off the gas a bit. Do think it's better to let the gas of a bit earlier in the straight and don't hit the brakes, or go further down and give some taps to the breaks?

 

[bob58o]

"While we're still under a Caution, I want you to go back out on that track... and Hit The Pace Car!"

Sorry, Posts like this make me want to race something!

 

[anderkart]

That's true, and thanks for the advise. But since the go karts are not really that fast, real breaking is required only one or two times in the whole track. Most corners are full speed or you get a good line just by letting off the gas a bit. Do think it's better to let the gas of a bit earlier in the straight and don't hit the brakes, or go further down and give some taps to the breaks?

I cant answer that, you'd have to try both ways and see what gives the best lap times or results in a race.

Also keep in mind that the gripping ability of your tires will change as they heat up during a race, so you may need to compensate by changing your braking/driving style a bit as the race progresses.

 

[Poboy kartman]

My philosophy road racing with cars...(that had crappy suspension) was to hit the brakes at the last moment to scrub off enough speed to accelerate completely through the corner....with enough throttle to hit the end at the edge of loss of control...and maybe even approaching top speed when entering the straight....

Don't know if applies here or not...just worked for me...but I was outrunning much faster cars with better suspension...and they were getting further and further behind....on a bunched up track...might not work out too well...but it works on curvy lake roads!

 

[ezcome-ezgo]

This is great advice for the next time I'm running moonshine. Thanks.

 

[ChromeRhino]

Well if its only your times that are getting slower than it nsrrows it down to you, your kart or a combination of the two. What part of your body was injured? Did you gain weight while you missed the two races? Weight is pretty critical with karts. It could be a mechanucal issue also. Check your ignition and fuel systems thoroughly. Mentally you could be off... a racer's mind can be either his greatest advantage or his most feared opponent.

Just sift through the options while working on the mechsnical part of your kart and see if you can hone in on what you think is the problem. You had the advantage and can again, you just need to adjust one or two little things. You can do it!

 

[bensorota]

Well if its only your times that are getting slower than it nsrrows it down to you, your kart or a combination of the two. What part of your body was injured? Did you gain weight while you missed the two races? Weight is pretty critical with karts. It could be a mechanucal issue also. Check your ignition and fuel systems thoroughly. Mentally you could be off... a racer's mind can be either his greatest advantage or his most feared opponent.

Just sift through the options while working on the mechsnical part of your kart and see if you can hone in on what you think is the problem. You had the advantage and can again, you just need to adjust one or two little things. You can do it!

Thanks a lot, i had injured my right hand so i could not hold on to the steering wheel. I did not gain any weight and i have revised the cart more than a couple of times and there's nothing there. So i think it all comes down to concentration.