A day in the life of a kart racer

A lot of people think a day in the life of a kart racer is just putting on a helmet and going fast. I wish! A typical race day starts early. REALLY early.

We try to load everything we need into the car the night before because we don’t want to forget anything. There are tools, oil, racing gear, snacks and about a million other things. It’s a lot to remember when you’re only half awake 🤣

When we get to the track, everyone is doing the same thing. The paddock turns into a little town made of tents and karts. We set up our tent, table and toolbox so we can work on the kart, stay out of the sun or rain, and have somewhere to eat and drink. That part alone takes a while.

A kart racer's day starts way before the green flag

Before I go on track, we check everything. Tire pressure. Chain. Nuts and bolts. Gear settings. Gas. We check it between sessions during the day too because if something goes wrong, you don’t race. We also fill out tech forms before every race and submit them to race control, certifying that the kart is safe to the best of our knowledge.

Next, I head out for a track walk. I look for things to factor in when I'm driving, like wet spots or sand.

Once that’s done and the kart is ready, I get ready too. Fire suit, race shoes, rib protector, neck brace, gloves, helmet.

Then… we wait. There’s a lot of waiting in karting 🥱

Hit the track, then get back to work

When I finally get a chance to drive, it goes by really fast. A practice session on a race day is usually only about 6 minutes. That’s 6 minutes to learn everything I can to get ready to race.

When I come back in, the work starts again. We put the kart on the stand and talk about how it felt. Was it sliding? Did it turn well? Was it fast in the corners?

I try to explain what I felt, and then my mom or my mechanic (if we have one that weekend) makes changes. Sometimes it’s just adjusting tire the pressure. Sometimes it’s changing the gearing. Sometimes it’s looking at the MyChron 6 data to figure out where I'm losing time. Drive, learn, adjust, repeat.

Waiting doesn’t mean doing nothing

A typical club race day goes like this:

• Practice - 6 laps

• Qualifying - 8 laps

• Pre-Final - 8 laps

• Final - 10 laps

I’m not just sitting around between these sessions. I’m drinking water (or, as my mom says, "staying hydrated"), eating snacks or lunch to keep my energy up, watching other races, or thinking about what I want to try next time I go out.

There's also driver meetings, lineups for pre-grid, and sometimes delays while the flatbeds go pick up any karts that crashed in the last race. Yeah, that happens sometimes.

If it rains, everything changes. Suddenly we’re adjusting the kart again and talking about wet driving. You have to be ready for anything.

Racing is the shortest part

The actual races are the shortest part of the day, but they’re what everything else is for, and obviously the most fun part!

When it’s over we pack up, load everything back into the car and talk about what went well and what didn’t on the way home. Or I fall asleep in the back seat. Yeah, that happens sometimes too 😄

We are all tired from a long day at the track when we get home, but it feels great knowing we worked hard and learned something new for the next race. Every small improvement is a big win.

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