Reaching out to heart of Karting

Fellow karters,

There are many of you out there, whom love the sport of Kart racing.  This joyous event called “race day” is one we all look so forward to.  The competition and camaraderie that is involved and output from our racing is many times unmatched anywhere else in life.   For many, kart racing is the last frontier of “mechanical” in this now digital world.  For many others it is about being with a group of people that still desire things like clean living, dirty hands, tenths, hundredths or even thousandths of a second details.  Kart racing is about the smell of fine fuels and oil pouring out of hi-reving, winding motors and the rush of up and down hills and g-forces we can’t get in ordinary life.  It is for all of us, adventure.  With this in mind I would like to bend your ear on the direction part of our sport has taken.

Just like many of you, I just finished watching the “Nextel Cup” awards banquet.  What a display of showmanship of the “elite” that motorsports has to offer.  But behind each driver there exists a ton of money.  Some of the faces invited to the podium are familiar faces. Each one of them, although they appear happy, would tell you it isn’t all fun and games and that it is definitely a business.  Money is what drives the “elite” of motorsports!  In my mind, and many others, we reached a fork in the road several years ago.  Is karting about fun and games and time with your family and friends or is it about televised racing and the brokerage of Mega-companies.  Although there is a place for some of this in karting, for the few that think they are the next Michael Schumacher or Jeff Gordon I suppose.  Some in karting have already headed down a different road from our roots. 

As one organization claims, I believe karting is the “foundation of motorsports.”  Karting has been that foundation and probably will continue to be.  Do we believe that there exists or will ever exist any more fundamental motorsport than karting?  Some however, want karting to be more than the foundation, they want it to be their foundation. These poor souls should be prayed for, they are driven by profits and not passion. 

The real issue is what do we “the karters” want?  Do we want to continue to fade into oblivion, with our heads in the sand as the “money makers” drive our sport?  If your answer to this question is yes, then just continue as we have.  If the answer is no, then here are a few suggestions.  First, let me qualify whom I am calling the money makers.  Money makers are those people whom are in this for the money.  Maybe at one point it was for the love of the sport, but that has long since been washed away by greed.  They are people whom would lie or cheat or do many unethical things to get their hand “deep” into a pocket.  Don’t be fooled by the smiles, and even the expertise, their desire is to get their hands in your pockets.  Sometimes they throw out a nugget for us squirrels to chew on, thinking that will keep us happy, but in the end the outrageous bill has to be paid.  You know who I am talking about.  Some kart shops would tell you 1 in 10 karts actually make it to the track.  How many people have you seen come and go from racing before they even got their feet wet?  No problem, money in the “money makers” pocket. Want to run my track?  Buy my tires, buy my gas, don’t come back! Money in my pocket!  Run my series, money in my pocket, or lets collaborate and you can run our series and it is money in our pockets, now we have a consensus since all of our shop drivers agree.  You know who I am talking about!  You also know who I am not talking about.  I am not talking about the sincere business person with service in mind.  I don’t care if they are getting rich off of their service, I hope they do: if they serve the racer, they ought to get rich.  I often think of George Russell whom helped, and I mean helped, my parents into their first karts.  Men like Mr. Russell were forward thinking enough to see that it wasn’t the quick $100 (with inflation that number would be thousands today) but it was a life- long relationship he was after. He knew that relationship would sell plenty of pistons and rings.  There are many testimonies of people in the karting business whom have such vision.  Want to help? Then support these types of people in the karting business and stop throwing money at the big name big money vendors.  Most of the best advice in karting will come from a friendly neighbor pit for free; you just might have to ask!  A certain sticker on a motor doesn’t make it faster, neither does that person’s “word” that this is a “very fast” motor.  There are plenty of kart shops and engine builders that are more concerned with you than their bottom line.  They may not fill you as full of flowery words, but their service is far superior. 

Finally, I want to speak about organizations.  I see a great divide in the organizations and I am not speaking about minute rule differences.  I am talking about for profit versus not for profit organizations.  Not for profit organizations, are only as strong as the volunteer force of its members.  Often times this can be a short coming, the not for profit status also has many benefits.  Any military general would tell you he would take 100 soldiers willing to die for the cause versus 1,000 hired guns.  History shows us over and over that the 100 “committed” soldiers would massacre the 1,000. (i..e. Scotland versus England (Braveheart), U.S. colonials versus England, U.S. versus Communism, Japan etc… Israel versus the entire Middle East, little old Israel won a war in 6 days.)  One benefit is that the members should receive all the proceeds back to them as what should be called dividends.  For KART it is perks like increased year end prizes, great insurance at a reduced rate, organizational help and periodic distribution and assimilation of information to the entire membership.  For the not for profit “clubs” that run tracks all over this great land all the profits go back into facility improvements like new racing surfaces, timing systems, tech barns and bathrooms, better awards and critical paid staff.  Statistically, a volunteer driven not for profit organization would get nearly 90% of its donations to the actual intended place.  For most “not for profit” (non volunteer driven) less than 50% of the donations actually make it to the intended place.  Churches do more ministry per dollar than government welfare!  Salvation Army is far more efficient than these so called “we are the world” campaigns. Yes, the for profit organizations can do some beneficial things also, but the efficiency of the whole process is reduced by the large pocketed profits.  Sure they will throw out a few pennies to the track so that they can make a pretty chunk of change themselves.  Again, I am not talking about the promoters whom are just trying to break even.  Give them a big pat on the back for sticking their necks and wallets out to bring you a race.

Where are we headed?  Well, right now the “for profits” are looking pretty good.   They are strong and growing, maybe they are ready to take over?  I relate the “for profits” to our utility companies.  Though the utilities are supposedly “government regulated” they always seem to get that rate increase voted through the legislature just in the nick of time for them to be wastefully profitable.  Meanwhile the common folk just bend over and pay their little bill.  Ever wonder why gas prices increase during the coldest part of the season?  They have stockpiles all over the place!  That is called Monopoly.   Have you wondered why gas prices have gone up and stayed up here over the past year?  Watch how many cars get sold next year when all the major Automobile manufacturers unleash their new product line of “hybrid” cars that get a meager 25% fuel economy increase.  For many years Volkswagen has had a little diesel, quiet little thing that gets 50 miles per gallon, Volkswagen had the idea, not the lobbyist! Many organizations have been infiltrated with these “money makers / lobbyist”.  They are on the boards, the tech committees, the rules committees.  Some hold these positions just to protect themselves from being harmed by the rules.  Others hold these positions, in part (with a smile) to manipulate the rules, so their track gets the big race, or their motor or “package” gets the next class. 

Want Answers?

If you have a vote, then vote for the “good guys” with vision for the type of future in karting you want.  If you don’t have a vote, then you aren’t really a member are you, you are a membership $$$!  

You can vote with your dollars--pit passes are probably the biggest money maker to karting organizations.  Pit passes aren’t free to the organizations, but when you purchase a pit pass, ask yourself if you believe this “donation” is going to a good thing?

If there is an organization in your area, then support it with all that you have.  Give your time volunteering: flagmen, corner workers, tech officials, registration, crowd control, scoring, mailing, all sorts of gifts are needed by volunteer-based organizations at the track or from your home or from your office. Don’t do it for a free pit pass or entry fee! Joy is not in receiving but giving!  If you are already volunteering recruit more committed people.  Share the joy!

Bernie Baldus, K.A.R.T. Sprint Director