So i just got back from the time of my life at Jim Hall Kart Racing School. Last Sunday some friends and I headed up the coast to attend one of the most exhilirating events i’ve ever taken part in. This isn’t your average 2 mile an hour go kart track, this is the real deal, or at least where the future F1 drivers go to work there way up the chain.

After the quick and scenic trip up the coast their track, located just off the 101 in Oxnard, we got out and stretched our legs for what was to become an epic day. When we arrived, we were greeted by the staff who were prepping the karts for the day. They cleaned the engines, changed tires and did a safety check on each kart before we started. Since, i had never been in a kart that went over 20 mph before, i was a little nervous, but after chatting with one of the 12 year olds that had been to the kart multiple times, my nerves were settled, as it became clear that these karts were one of the safest motor sports around.  More after the jump!

So then training began. The 12 of us sat down in the training room with a white board and the staff to go over the course, safety, and strategy for getting the best laps at the track. After the orientation we each got a helmet, a jacket and racing gloves to go out for our first lap around the track and boy were we excited. These 100cc Sprint karts were plenty fast. When your ass is 1 inch off the ground, 50 mph feels like 100!

Here are the specs on the karts we went out on:

After our first lap we were geared up and ready for the rest of the 6 hour day. The track was fantastic, each section presented a new problem and a new solution to be found. It was really an awakening of sorts to realize how much thought goes into racing one of these karts and how technical racing can be. There were so many things to keep in mind while we were flying around the track. For instance, where do i turn in? How late can i brake into the turns without carrying to much speed? Where is the apex of the turn? At what point do i want to apply throttle when coming out of the corner? What is the best line through the chicane? Remember to keep your eye on the next corner ahead, etc.

The list goes on and on, and after the day was done, it was clear to me that it could take someone months or even years to perfect this course. It took me a minute to just get comfortable at the speeds at which the karts were going. I kept letting off the gas early, for fear of carrying too much speed into the corners, but after following the instructor and finding the proper line and amount of speed to carry, it was clear to me i just had to commit to it and go full force.

My friends and I each had a blast at Jim Hall, in fact we can’t wait to go back for the next session and now we’re even considering entering in a endurance race some time with friends. I’d recommend a few classes at Jim Hall for any car enthusiast or racing enthusiast. If you want to learn how to properly drive a course/track in the shortest amount of time, i think that Jim Hall is the perfect place to start. There are so many concepts that you learn at the school. A new concept that i wasn’t familiar with entirely was trail braking. I learned to set the weight of the car on the front wheels to carry the maximum amount of speed through a turn. Not only did it scrub seconds off my lap time at Jim Hall, but it also translated to my times on Gran Turismo 5, another favorite pass time of mine.

Anyways, i could go on and on. Thanks Jim Hall, I’ll see you guys again soon!

If you’d like to go to Jim Hall as well, please visit their website:

jimhallkartracing.com

or call

805.654.1329