Brag on my kid time - Finally got his 1st national win!
 

We've been at the karting deal for 4 years now, wouldn't trade the good times my son and I have had for any amount of $$$ in the world. Really made progress last year, with numerous top 5 national finishes and really should have won a couple. For 2011 he had to move up a class so we just hoped to maintain our strong finishes. Well, this past Saturday he finally got his 1st national win at the WKA Gold Cup event held in Jacksonville, FL. The track is famous for it's 1000' straightaway where the draft is in full effect. My son led most of the heat race, only to get freight-trained on the last lap by a group drafting together. So he started the feature race in 4th place, and worked his way up.. this video really shows the draft in action:
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The #1 kart my son passes about 1/2 way thru the race drafts with him the rest of the race, and pushes him by the leaders on the last lap. You should have heard the crowd!

This class is 10-12 years old running a restricted Briggs "Animal" engine on Methanol. HP output is about 8hp at 6800 rpm. Our GPS was showing 68mph at the end of the straight, where you pretty much go flat into a hairpin turn. Pretty amazing how well these kids race.

Wow.. as good as the feature race was, I just downloaded the Heat race, and what a last couple laps! I couldn't see what happened on the last lap:
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DT

****ing BAD ASS! Is his dream to be an F1 pilot when he grows up? You should have him take a trip to the racing school on Road Atlanta when he gets a little older.

did he unlock the rainbow track?

Was he checking out the chick at the end?

Cool stuff. Was he getting weighed there at the end?

Awesome, Congrats!
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I wasn't devoting 12 minutes but I watched the last 3. Yeah, pretty cool. Makes me pine for a son.

:rockon:

Looks like a good time. Enjoy your kid.
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Awesome!

Yes, you have to weigh when you come off, and then his engine promptly got torn down :)

And I think he -may- have been checking out the scale girl... all the more reason to be a proud pappa!

DT

Everyone yearns for a son that lives his life a quarter of a mile at a time. Congrats.

Of coarse he dreams about cars, but he also knows how much it costs just to race karts competitively on a national level, so I think he realizes that we'll just have a good time racing karts and if an opportunity comes along great.

DT

Yeah, if he is talented enough, though, I'm sure he'll find a way. Don't kill his dreams, pops!

Dude that was sweet.

That was an awesome final lap.

Grats to you and the son!