How to start

[Rushy]

I started karting last year in a cadet
i'm looking forward to the new season
any one got any tips?
i race in hallavington
where do yo kart???

Rushy

Please Reply

[marcus]

Welcome to ten tenths Rushy.

I race in Australia allthough I am currently in retirement.

the only advice i can give you is go out there and simply have fun, enjoy yourself and remember first place isnt everything.
ok sure first place is nice but i believe the reason most people get into racing is for the pure joy of it , and I always tried to take that feeling with to every meeting I have seen way to many times drivers throwing a bit of a hissy fit because they cam second or third instead of winning.

its all for fun , you can really serious about in later years if you carry onto cars.

again welcome to ten tenths and i hope you visit reguallary

[everett brown]

Hi Rushy, seat time, lots of it. walk every track every inch, along with the handling of your kart, work, work, work on the correct gears and study the best breaking points at each and every track. most important, have fun!

[philneast]

G'day Rushy

My son and I race sprint karts in Tasmania, Australia.

Marcus and Everett have already got the important things; lots of seat time and have fun. Don't worry about where you come just try to go a little bit faster each time out.

[Simon Pullan]

Don't look behind you!! Too many cadet karters are too worried about what's going on behind and you'll never go quickly if you aren't concentrating on what you are doing. Concentrate on your own race and don't be intimidated by others. If you knuckle down and get on with your own race then you'll likely pull away from the guy behind anyway.

Also, don't be too defensive. It might work every once in a while but more times than not you'll be punted off. Take the race to the others.

[marcus]

yeah . all sound advice , especially looking behind and blocking , not many people like that , it took my ages to stop looking behind so much , but i soon learnt not to anymore when i was about 3rd in a pack of 5 and going into a hairpin I decided to see what the other two huys bhind me were doing and how close they were , and of course the two guy in front of me decided to tangle and then along came me looking the other way and ploughed straight into them , thankfully no one was hurt , but it was a lesson that I wont forget in a hurry , LOL

[Metalstar]

Hello all!

I have recently been planning to get myself a TKM Kart to race at my local track (three sisters in wigan).

So obviously, i'm just looking for some friendly advice

I am thinking of getting a second hand kart to save me initial costs, how much difference will there be between my kart and others in the race if i go second hand?

I am planning on joining http://www.mbkartclub.com/ and racing with them.

How much should i expect the running cost to be for such a kart/club?

Anything else i should watch out for as i am just starting out?

Cheers for the advice! its much appreciated!

[crozier74]

Hi Metalstar

I believe I'm the only current TKM 2/ racer on this forum, but no doubt you'll get a lot of help from everyone here - the vultures will swoop soon enough

MBKC is an excellent club to start racing with. Big grids in all classes, and probably the biggest TKM grids in the north of the UK.

2nd hand is always a good route to take. Saves costs obviously, but there should be very little difference between the performance of a 2nd hand kart and brand new one, it all just depends on how much running/abuse it's had, and what make/model it is.

JKH and Venom are the two leading manufacturers in TKM of the last few years, so I'd advise you go for them. There's usually a lot of 2002-2003 chassis going about for reasonable prices. Check out www.karting.co.uk/MP and the classifieds in Karting Magazine, and make a shortlist of some possibles. Remember, don't go for something just because it's dirt cheap, base your judgement on the quality of the overall package.

Running costs. Hehe. The big question in motorsport. I think for a season's racing at one club, you should be looking at something between £3000-£5000 per year. Will obviously go up the more meetings you take in and the more travelling to other circuits you do. [rant] This is a nightmare for us, cos we're over a 2h drive North of our home club (WSKC), and obviously being so far North is even worse when travelling down to race in England [/rant ]

Just snoop around for deals, spectate at a few meetings at Wigan and get talking to people on the TKM grid, buy a kart, and test like crazy! Then sit your ARKS test, get a licence, and get racing I'll be racing in Senior TKM next year too, maybe take in the Gold Cup, hopefully see you on the grid then

Best of luck

[speedy king]

Costs - you can run on a shoe string budget of £1000 per year at club level if you just want some good racing (i.e, you wont necessarily be at the front) I don't think there is much more to add to the good words of Crozier. Good luck! Just some questions though, how old are you and what build are you as some people struggle in Junior and go Intermediate as they're heavy because they're tall for their age like me. Also, do you or your dad have good mechanical knowledge as i was planning on doing TKM a year ago but was advised Rotax purely as they're ment to be less maintanence though i'm not sure about that and TKM is recommended for beginners not rotax, so i paid the price in some of my earlier races.

[Metalstar]

Thanks alot for the info you two!

I had already seen that JKH Karts were popular so i had my mind set on getting one of them, and i was also planning to use that page you suggested to source my kart so good that you pointed them out also!

As far as technical knowledge goes, my dad is as good as a pro mechanic He builds kit cars in his spare time (built an MG when he was 30ish, built a sylva stikera few years back, and is now working on a ferrari P4 replica project) and has good mechanical knowledge in regards to engines. He also used to race 250cc Gearbox karts (unsure as to what class since i was young at the time). I am 20 so i have still got a lot to learn in that area .

I weigh just over 11 stone, am 6ft and quite slim so fitting into the kart shouldn't be an issue I worked out tmy weight with estimated car weight and it should be around 140kg, the minumum for TKM is 125kg i believe, so i think i'm not too heavy for it!

With the heavy ammount of saving and spending i will need to do, i hope to have the kart by the end of this year, ready for the MBKC season next year! So i should see you at the gold cup hopefully!

thanks for the info

[crozier74]

I worked out tmy weight with estimated car weight and it should be around 140kg, the minumum for TKM is 125kg i believe, so i think i'm not too heavy for it!

Dunno whethr that was a typo, but the minimum weight for TKM is 147kg, so you'll still need a bit of lead on I think I'll be needing something like 21kg to get up to weight next year!

[Metalstar]

Originally posted by crozier74
Dunno whethr that was a typo, but the minimum weight for TKM is 147kg, so you'll still need a bit of lead on I think I'll be needing something like 21kg to get up to weight next year!

Oops! I must have read some old or incorrect info somewhere! I will need to add a bit then I am only estimating though, i also read that the karts weigh about 70kgs, so i used that for my estimate!

I have ordered my MSA Pack with the application/info. and ordered This book aswell (there were 3 left a few mins ago )

I can get £200 (i hope) from work using a personal development/recreation scheme they have in place, this will come in handy they are a big company too, so they just might give me a little more as way of sponsorship.

I am sure every penny will be needed, since the only way to make a little money in motorsport, is to start with alot of it

[Metalstar]

would just like to add.

What does having an "extremed" engine mean? i have seen this mentioned a couple of times and can't see an official answer anywhere.

[hgmonaro]

couple of things...

as a beginner, you'll find more time in driving 'correctly' and basic kart setup than the difference between a new chassis and 2nd hand one, so 2nd hand is good, just take the advice above and look at the overall condition. Another common practice here (Oz) is to buy a new engine and 2nd hand chassis to ensure your engine is both legal and not on it's last piston size!.

Also, remember to factor into your budget your safety gear (helmet, suit, gloves, shoes) and a couple of specialised tools that you need like T-Handles/whatever to get rear wheels off, alignment bars, spare stub axles

Having to add a few kgs of lead to your kart is ideal, cause if your too heavy you're disadvantaged. Ideally, hit the scales just over the class limit (after a race so make sure you allow for used fuel).

[#15 tkm 4/]

now in TKM 2stroke, the seniors engine have been upgraded from 100cc engine to 115cc engines... basically just gives you more power out of the corner. So the seniors have TKM100cc and TKM(extreme)115cc. When you buy a second hand one try and make sure it has been 'extremed'

also im not sure about this but i thought JKH chassis are only competitive on juniorTKMs as ive never seen any driving JKH's in senior... I thought the Venom or Project One chassis are the the best for senior's... maybe someone can fill me in here??

p.s. your about the same height and weight of me and im just coming up to 17! and i have to have lead on my kart
p.p.s. also allow into your budget buying a brand new seat WHICH fits properly because 1. You will be in so much pain if it dont fit properly from you sliding around in it when going around corner's. 2. A good fitting seat helps to keep you more stable in the kart so you can concentrate on the driving and not having tobrace yourself for the next corner.

I am a TKM4stroke driver so all this information may be useless for TKM2stroke, OH AND HAVE FUN!

[speedy king]

I'm 5ft 11" and really struggling to get in my Gillard which is an inch longer than a CRG, but i think my seat can be adjusted.

Good luck and enjoy it!

and #15 TKM 4/, this wasn't TKM however Reece who i raced against last year had a JKH in Jnr Rotax and then said when he moved up to seniors he mentioned something to do with how the rear of the kart wasn't designed for senior, might be the trac or something to do with the width adjustment. Could have the same problem in Snr TKM though Rotax's tend to run a bit wider thank TKM in both Jnr and Snr, but still a possibility

[crozier74]

Yes, you are both right, JKH is worse for Seniors than Juniors, and the reverse is true for Venoms. Well, that was the case with the 2001-2003 homol, but now both have tried to sort the problem. JKH have introduced a new wider V4 kart, which is quicker in both Juniors and Seniors, and Venom have introduced separate Senior and Junior karts, the Sidewinder and the Shadow.

Would still say Venom is the best chassis for Seniors atm, and JKH for Juniors, largely because it's difficult to change trends where most of the grid is on one make of chassis. You need one to jump first and show improvements before anyone else follows. FWIW, recently I've switched from my traditional Wright to JKH, and "joined the fad" so to speak, and I can't see much difference between the two karts when they're both going well, and the JKH brake is much more troublesome, but it's just more much consistent, and you can spy on the others settings

[Metalstar]

Hello again all, thanks for the advice so far! its proving very useful

Having had a look at the Senior TKM results/standings for MBKC it does look as though venom's are the most used karts, although a JKH Finished 2nd overall. So i think a venom will be the way to go, since i will probably be in need of advice in my first season so having a well known kart will be a bonus i guess!

I am opening a cash ISA tommorrow that i can pour my funds into, rendering myselft "skint" until the new year so that i have enough cash for the initial jump into karting.

Hopefully, it will all be worth it

[speedy king]

Believe me, it will! I can remember how great my first race felt and the first season, even though i had **** results to start with until the last few rounds. It's all just a great experience!

[Metalstar]

Bit of an update.

I recieved my MSA/ARKS Karting pack, so i booked my medical in with my local doctor, Unfortunately doctors are doctors and i have to wait for 2 weeks until i can get it done (and they charge £60-£80 for the service )

Hopefully i will be able to pop down to kimbolton next weekend to watch the TKM Festival and hopefully speak to some of the competitors. There is also a 2004 Tal-Ko Storm chassis for sale there that i wouldnt mind taking a look at, since if i can convince the parents to loan me a bit of cash, i could have my first chassis then i would have time to save for a brand new engine, since i have seen this seems to be a good method to start!

I had a hidden bonus the other day aswell, one of my dads friends has a son that is interested in kart racing, so we are going to ring him to see if he wants to start at the same time as me. That way we can share experience, also the other guys father owns a 2nd hand vehicle dealership so it is likely he could loan us a van for the race weekends, which would save alot of messing about and alot of money!

By the way, anyone in manchester know where i can pick a copy of Karting magazine up from? the big WH smith doesnt have it, and they have every magazine possible in there usually

[ukkartace]

um.. try logging onto www.karting.co.uk and follow the link to karting magazines website.
i think u hav to subscribe its virtually impossible to buy. normally at races people are selling copies

[speedy king]

Some local news agents sell them. Certainly one near where mum works sells them, thats how i get mine

[Metalstar]

Hello again all

Just thought I should update you on what happened I have now started racing and my next race will be my last one on novice plates!!!

Have made a website aswell! basically just so i can record how my meetings go etc.

www.sme-racing.co.uk

Cheers for all the info you guys gave me last year

[speedy king]

Hey, nice to see your back. Now taking a look at your site

[speedy king]

Nice site. I remember when i first moved off Novice plates on to Red plates, great fun starting in the mid pack on the grid. Best of luck