I am the second newest TaG Masters driver, after Rich Hensley. Like him, I did it the hard way.
Yesterday, a co-worker said that his 27 year old son really wants to take up kart racing. I gave
the co-worker an estimate of $3000-$5000 to get to the starting line. Or, I said, your son could
hope that next year there is a New Racer class, running in rental karts.
That discussion gave me a much better perspective on how valuable it would be to have a New
Racer rental kart class. The sticker shock of buying your own kart would be a lot easier to swallow
for someone who has already had their first wheel-to-wheel experience. We should make those new
racers earn their starting place with a lap time; they will value their achievement more if they had
to work for it. This class would also be the ideal sales venue for used karts.
When the Winter Park Ski Patrol recruits new volunteer patrollers, we have an open-to-all-comers
ski test. Perhaps 5-10% of the skiers who take that test complete the training program and
become patrollers. In contrast, we have much better luck when existing patrollers bring their
buddies up to ski. Their conversion rate is more like 10-20%. I employ that same tactic when
I let a buddy drive my kart. Without exception, their reaction is shock and awe, with a lot of
interest as well. I’d suggest that others might want to occasionally bring in a buddy too.
We would all have to give something, be it waiting through yet another class on race day,
giving up time in your own kart, or being occasionally stuck behind a never-ever driver on
a practice day. But, we’d all gain something as well. The track operator would get more money
from their rentals, it would be a little easier to sell used karts and, best of all, our fields would grow.
Mike