I am going to try to start posting regular updates on my racing here, starting with the most recent KRA doubleheader at NCMP…After starting the weekend without the certainty of even entering the race because of engine problems, the #52 kart was able to find a lot of pace. We were one of the fastest karts of the weekend but many misfortunes kept us off the top step of the podium.
We had four races this weekend – Two in the TaG Sr class and two in the TaG Lite class. TaG Sr is the more competitive and deeper. It’s the closest to a pro class. These are the karts IndyCar drivers will train in and sometimes race. It is the most competitive class in all of American go kart racing. TaG Lite is the same kart and engine, but less weight is required. So, drivers tend to be younger and it’s often not quite as competitive. But, this weekend, there were several other really strong drivers in this class.
In Saturday’s TaG Sr race, we had our best qualifying session so far in TaG – qualifying on the outside of the front row in a very strong field. But, the race ended early after a lap one incident fighting to hold position.
Saturday’s TaG Lite was a little more exciting. After starting in fifth, we were able to work our way up to third, and the top three ran away from the rest of the field. We had plenty of pace to win, but unfortunately we lost the brakes and had to slow our pace a lot to keep the kart on the track, ending our race in third.
Sunday’s TaG Sr race was my race to lose. I won my first pole in TaG. In the race, I pulled away from the field of 20 and led until about two thirds through the race, when we had a mechanical. We still don’t know exactly how, but the axle bent while I was leading without hitting anything, causing me to quickly lose 6 spots. I finished 7th. We think that I might have ran over something like a weight that had fallen off someone else’s kart without realizing it.
After spending the entire break putting the kart back together, we started Sunday’s TaG Lite race in second place. After battling for positions two through five, the leader was able to break away. After the leader started to take off, I decided to stay in third and push second place to try and catch the leader but there wasn’t enough time. By the end of the race, the kart tightened up, and we lost the pace we needed to pass for second.
While these weren’t the results we wanted this weekend, we still were able to find a lot of speed and we collected two more podiums giving us 6 in the 9 TaG Lite races, including a win and we are 2nd in points. In TaG Sr, I think we are 3rd in points with a podium. But, this weekend we found the pace to win with some luck.
Next up, after baseball the next two weekends, will likely be the SKUSA Summer Nationals at NCMP from August 10th-12th. This will be our first SKUSA race, which includes all of the best karters in the country and a great experience.
Thanks for your support!
Jackson Lee #52 iKart