To those of you who are considering joining the exciting world of go karting for your child/children, you can't just ask the question: Is go karting for your child? You have to ask: Is it for YOU and YOUR CHILD? For as much as it is your child that drives the go kart, YOU are the Crew Chief, the Mechanic, the Organizer, the Financer, and whatever else. It takes just as much commitment, if not more, from YOU to get involved in go karting as your child, mainly from the dads.
Go Karting is NOT for Everyone but IT CAN BE for Everyone. Go karting is for the young and the old, boys and girls and men and women. Karters range in age from 5-99! (Honestly, there was this one driver at the Enduro race at Blackhawk this year who someone said was 100-years old! I saw the guy. I don't think he was that old but he might as well be! He looked pretty old but he was bending on his knees, mending his own go kart and driving it!) Then there are the five-year olds who looked very cute in their racing suits, sometimes bumping into each other and nonchalantly too! (Tommy could not wait to be five-years old so he can drive his own go kart--or so he thinks!) There are families at Badger with every member driving in different classes!
Go Karting is a Family Affair. For us, anyways--and at Badger Kart Club (BKC). (I hope it's the same for others.) I've seen some karters without both parents on race day and that's fine; that's their deal. Tommy and I don't go to practices but we certainly are there during race days. I usually am the photographer, the one who makes sure they eat and drink plenty of fluids, the one (with Tommy) who cheers them on the sidelines, among other things.
Family Friendly Atmosphere. Briggs and Stratton Raceway Park (BSRP, formerly Badger Raceway Park) has a family-friendly environment. There is a free camping facility for families who want to camp on back-to-back race weekends (us) and for those who are from out of town camp on practice Saturdays and into race Sundays. People can bring their pets; the kids can ride their bikes/scooters after races. No engines or motors can be started before 10 a.m. and after 6 p.m. (It's one of the stipulations in the contract between the village of Dousman and BKC). There is a concession stand where coffee is served (and sometimes breakfast) and lunches for sure. There is also a playground for the kids to play in and nice restroom facilities.
Families Help Each Other. During our first few appearances at BSRP, we had no clue what we were doing. We didn't even have a starter for our go kart! Someone loaned Tom a starter and someone is always willing to lend a hand in lifting the go karts onto and off the stands. People are always willing to give you a hand or advice on what to do or direct you to someone else who knows.
Parts/Equipment Store. Missing a bolt, broke a part of your go kart or ran out of fuel? Not to worry. The Franklin Motorsports (
http://www.franklinkart.com/) and 4-Cyle Central trailers (
http://www.4cyclecentral.com/) are there for all your karting needs. From fuel to bolts to go karts! Pretty much whatever you need to get you driving your go kart in no time. They have handy mechanics too.
Fun for Kids. Go karting is all about safe fun for kids--and adults too! When the kids are not racing, they are playing with each other. No matter how competitive they are on the track, off the track, they are just kids! They want to play and chase each other or share something cool with each other. As long as the kids are having fun, then it's all worth it!
Before You Join:
Visit the Track. A year before we joined BKC, we spent a day at BSRP and watched the races. We soon found out that Connor was not interested in watching other kids race. He wanted to be in the race himself! Sure, he would watch NASCAR and other races on TV, and once in a while we'd make it to see the actual races, but the drivers in those races were not kids, they were professionals!
Go to the Swap Meet. The next thing we did was go to BKC's Annual Swap Meet at David Hobbs Honda on the north side of town. The club has its annual swap meet in February. We went there to price used go karts and accessories and to have some kind of idea how much we would need to spend if we were to pursue go karting. Members can buy and sell used equipments.
Join Badger Kart Club. BKC owns BSRP. But one doesn't have to be a member of Badger Kart
Club to race there but it is cheaper if you are a member. Depending on
how often you want to race, you might want to consider becoming a
member. For information about the club, visit
http://www.badgerkartclub.com/
4-Cyle or 2-Cycle Engine. Okay, I'm not going into details with this for my knowledge is limited to say the least. But I know that my boys have 4-cycle Briggs and Stratton engines. Don't ask me the difference besides the numeric ones for I cannot answer.
I do know that both engines have distinctive sounds. I can tell when a kart has 2 or 4-cycle engine. I also know that these go karts run on methanol and they are available for purchase on site and at go kart stores. It's about the same price as gasoline. Just before every features race, the fuel is siphoned from the go kart and put into a collective tank. Then on the other side of the same tank is where you can get fuel back into your go kart. This is a measure to make sure everyone is using the same fuel.
Race Class. Each group of drivers is called a class. There are at least 15 classes at Badger. It depends on what engine your go kart has (2 or 4 cycle) and the age of the driver. Right now, Connor and Colin are in the Animal Sportsman class with ages ranging from 8-12-years old. Next year, Connor will be moving up to the Animal Junior class with drivers' ages starting at 13-years old. Tommy, if he races next year, will be in the Kid Kart Novice class with drivers' ages starting at 5-years old.
Fees.
Spectators. There is no admission fee for spectators. So everyone and anyone can come out and watch the races any time of the day or all day long!
Membership. There is an annual membership fee to join BKC. Right now, it is $75 per individual or family per year. Additionally, there is a Competition Driver Fee of $10 per driver per year. (So this year, we paid $95 since we have two drivers.)
Practice. Right now, practice fee per driver is $10 and $10 pit pass for the crew. (Usually, we pay $30 per practice, $10 for each of our two drivers and $10 for Tom because he needs to be in the pits.)
Race. It's $20 per driver (I believe it's $40 per driver for non-BKC-members) on race day and $10 for anyone who wants to be in the pits. (We pay $50 per race day. $20 for each of our two drivers and $10 for Tom.)
Volunteering. Each driver is required to put in 3 days worth of working for BKC. This could range from running the track at BSRP, manning the booths at fairs (State Fair) and shows, being a part of the club on parades (St. Patrick's Day Parade), etc...We have two drivers this year so we are required to put in six days of volunteering work for the club. So far, we have two days down, four more to go.
Fun Fact. If you are a NASCAR fan, you probably know who Danica Patrick and Jamie McMurry are. Yeah? They raced go karts at BSRP when they were kids!
We never thought we would be this much involved in go karting. At first, it was just something for Connor to do. We didn't plan on running all the points race last year. We were just going to do the ones we felt like it. But when we saw his potential and his passion, it became a commitment from us. We were also going to use the same go kart for Colin but because both boys have different height and weight, it was too much work for Tom to adjust the go kart for each child on the same day! So we decided that Colin could ride the go kart during practice but only Connor could race. This year, thankfully, we were able to afford to buy another go kart for Colin to race in.
Because we did not plan on running all the points race last year, we've budgeted way less than what we ended up spending. One thing for sure, go karting is NOT a cheap hobby! You have to buy the go kart, the accessories, the safety gear (helmets, chest protectors, neck braces, race suits, gloves, etc...) Not to mention broken or worn out parts that need replacing!
It also helps to have someone in the family who's mechanically inclined. I cannot believe all the work Tom had to do every single race--not to mention days before a race! Prep the tire, check the alignment, the gear, cleaning the carburetor after every race, measuring, tightening, loosening something, making sure the engine sounds just so, just to mention a few!
We do have drivers who show up only once in a while for either they are running other race series or they live out-of-state or they just do it when they can like we initially planned. But if you're only going to spend all that money, you might as well make the most of it. It takes money, time, commitment and a lot of each to race go karts. For us, a typical race day usually means we are out of the house by 8 a.m. and don't usually get back until after 6 p.m. And on back-to-back race days, we just camp at the track. So far, it's been all worth it!
So, is go karting for YOU and YOUR CHILD?
