Really??

pat slattery · Joined: 10 Aug 2001 Posts: 371

at most club races shifter karts are only a small percentage of the overall kart population. It seems that the shifter racers may have more disposable income and are more vocal and attend more races away from home, but they are only a small percentage of the karting community. If kart shops had to depend on only shifter karts they wouldnt last very long.

Barry Hastings · Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2001 7:46 pm Post subject: Really??

I agree with some of the people here. I have also spokend with some of my freinds. Shifters isnt the only way to greatness. "Lesser" classes tend to teach more about conservation of speed than shifters. I am not nocking shifter racing, I have one and enjoy it lots. I will also say that conserving speed with a shifter kart is truly a beautiful thing. (Scott Speed)
No mater how much power you have, if you dont loose the speed you dont need to use the HPs to get it back. So you can use the HPs to go faster. This is a truth from kid karts to Formula One. To carry speed is much harder to do than point and squirt. Fast is always going to be fast but true speed is awsome, hard to achieve. Watching most of the people who race shifters here at the local track, there is only few people who are able to carry speed true the turns. Most seem to very scared of the kart, power and speed in the turns. Some are able to muscle and hussel the karts around the corners. Others still feness the kart around the corner and are the same speed. But the feness driver is more consistant and works the tires much easier. This is my opinion of coarse. But there people who are FAST in cars who have never drove a shifter, let alone a 2-cycle. So who knows?

Tom Milner · Joined: 05 Sep 2001 Posts: 14 Location: Middleburg, VA

But too be fast in Shifter Kart racing you have to be smooth, as many karters have shown. And in real race cars, smooth is fast. 100cc karts are slam, whip, and slam. That won't ever be fast in race cars today. Plus add to the fact that in Shifter Karts everything happens so quick you develop reflexes and strenthen your reflexes. I saw a video someone made from a helmet cam in a kart at Amago. He inserted clips of F1 qualifying inbetween turns of the karter and watching the difference was amazing. Now obviously these are two very diffent things to compare but you get the jist of it.

There is a reason professional drivers keep there skills intune by shifter kart racing.

BTW, I have to say these are fantastic forums. Too bad I didn't find them sooner.

Rick Blood · Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2001 9:44 pm Post subject: Really??

I have to agree with you on one point. Recently at Amago raceway. we were pitted next to Boris Said and Bryan Simo (Transam aces) Boris likes to go out for 20 minutes in his 125...this is his workout.

lynn haddock · Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2001 4:05 am Post subject: Really??

Please review the driving history's of the current crop of F1/CART drivers........
most came up thru karting.......few drove shifters.

Mike Goebel · Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2001 5:30 am Post subject: Really??

Why does every body need to say that either one form of Karting will produce better car driver that the other. Both will do the same thing. Look at Kimi R, Alex Barron, Memo Giddley, Trulli . Stop the nonsense, keep racing. Hey Tom M how's that BMW program going, looks like Alvin likes it a lot

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Mike G.

bird · Joined: 17 Jul 2001 Posts: 147

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Why does every body need to say that either one form of Karting will produce better car driver that the other. Both will do the same thing. Look at Kimi R, Alex Barron, Memo Giddley, Trulli .
It may very well be nonsense, but a lot of the British car team bosses would rather not have gearbox drivers (Trulli went to Germany) I've got no great liking for the single seater and tin top industry in my country for various reasons but I daresay they know what they are on about after all these years.

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Quote:

But too be fast in Shifter Kart racing you have to be smooth, as many karters have shown. And in real race cars, smooth is fast. 100cc karts are slam, whip, and slam. That won't ever be fast in race cars today.
Won't be fast in 100cc either. Remember what Senna always said - they are the closest thing to drive to F1 cars.

Mark MacDonald · Joined: 05 Aug 2001 Posts: 124

Well said Mary-Ann, Who would think that 100cc is slam-whip-bam? Maybe in Super-A you don't have to be smooth, but in HPV (20hp, low stall clutch, like a weak ICA/J) you have to be smooth or loose all momentum and get fright-trained to the back...

Mark MacDonald
MTM Karting www.mtmkart.com
330.497.3585