Go Karting in motorland
So today was my biggest day in Germany so far. It was for this reason that I brought my racing gloves from Canada. I was going to tear up the racetrack in Deutschland, the heart of motorsport and the birthplace of Michael Schumacher.
For weeks ahead of this day, it was always imbedded in my mind. 10 days left...9 days left...we're only a week away! Today, I could not stop thinking about the Kart race. I got up early in the morning to get to work and from the point I woke up, I knew it was going to be a special day.
On my breaks, I searched for Go-Kart driving tips and how to get a fast lap. You have to keep in mind that the last time I went Go Karting was about 5-6 years ago, in Canada, in go karts that were really quite slow. All my real racing skill has been derived form none other than...Gran Turismo 4.
In the game, I would always come out on top against my brother and friends. It is only recently that my brother has been able to beat me in an equal race. It's because he's starting to make less mistakes. Usually, I would handicap myself by either driving a slower car or using slower tires. Nowadays, I have to use the same car, same tires, but I try to keep Traction Control off to keep challenging myself to drive better.
A few years back, Rogers Video celebrated the release of Gran Turismo 4 with a city-wide competition. At the time, I didn't have a PS2 and so my main game racing skills were from Gran Turismo 2. I stepped in the store and picked up the controller to see how fast I could go.
I had never played the game before and it was a new racetrack for the game. With my Gran Turismo 2 skills, I beat the competition and actually came out first place with the fastest lap and fastest total lap time! It was really a good feeling to get a phone call fro Rogers Video about my win. Apparently, there was a kid that practiced in the store everyday for a week before the competition. I remember always thinking about one corner that everyone messed up on because they didn't brake early enough. Though, I thought the competition was a bit unfair. They let you choose your own car, and your own tires. Obviously, I chose the fastest car I knew, the Yellow Pennzoil JGTC Nissan Skyline. After 4 years, I still remember all the details...
So here I am, finally on level footing with people who have proven their speed around the racetrack. Adam, who I call the Michael Schumacher among the Praktikants (or interns) beat all his other colleagues in qualifying, set fastest lap and won the race. I had a defined benchmark, in an equal real racing machine.
We had booked the racetrack for a half hour among 10 of us. Right before we got on, there was a whole group of little kids on the track. the fastest lap was 45 seconds. The average lap is about 30 seconds! In no time at all, the kids were off and with our helmets strapped on, we were in.
I strapped on a visor'd helmet and pulled on my Trusty Alpinestars racing gloves given to me by my brother for my Birthday. Previously, they had only been used winter drifting sessions and 'fun' driving. Now, they were being used to race. I had also brought along my VW 'GTI' shirt in hopes of it gaining me 1 HP. Not seriously of course...
I took Kart number 10, fourth from the front. There was a 12 lap Qualifying session followed by a 32 lap race. My friend Adam went ahead, followed by Graham (the other Veteran) then Haidar, then me. I was raring to go.
Once the track marshall started up the engine, I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my hands and feet. I was racing! I was a little cautious to start, as anyone would be when driving a go kart after 5 or 6 years. I had been reading a lot about how to drive a Kart fast, such as braking only in a straight line or else you'll spin the kart. I kept that in mind but after just a few laps, that memory had been relegated to trash.
This kart was fast! I could hear and feel the little engine burning up the fuel and propelling me into my dream. The steering was pretty light and the car was surprisingly easy to control. I found out that if you brake while turning, you really won't spin the car unless you really stamp on the brakes. I started feeling the rhythm, the flow...it was familiar.
It all dates back to my days of Super Nintendo. I would spend hours playing Super Mario Kart, trying to get the fastest lap around the track. Some way or another, I'd always end up beating my brother.
Things changed quite a bit with the arrival of Gran Turismo into our family. It was in Malaysia and my enthusiastic dad had just showed me a car game that had really realistic graphics, physics, and a large selection of cars. Minutes later, he bought the game, followed by buying the actual console. Yes...we bought the game before the Playstation.
I remember tuning up my Toyota GTO to over 900 hp, and having fun beating the computer into submission. We later bought Gran Turismo 2 and had our first experience with the Dual Shock controller. I spent loads of credits buying and tuning cars. My favorite car of the game was certainly the Suzuki Escudo Rally car. Despite having only a V6 engine, it made close to 1000 hp and could beat any car in the game. It was especially fun when I could pass the computer on the shoulder.
We basically skipped GT3 for the lack of a PS2. And then it all changed with Gran Turismo 4. I think however, my improved racing skills came with the purchase of one of my most expensive toys, the Logitech G25.
For those of you who don't know, the G25 is Logitech's finest force feedback steering wheel. With a leather steering wheel, a clutch, and a gated 6-speed shifter, it was as close as you can get to a real car, without the car. I really enjoyed racing the monster horsepower cars with traction control off, trying to wrangle the car to make a fast lap. The steering wheel would writhe in my hands, following every groove in the racetrack, and punishing me for every mistake I made.
My favorite track was none other than the Nurburgring. I would always want to drive the car as smooth as possible, synchronizing my steering inputs with that of my feet. Braking light, accelerating without too much haste, and making quick laps. I never thought in my life that I would live in a city only three hours away from the famous racetrack. But here I was...
It was my Gran Turismo driving that was coming back to me. I was back in the game, but in a real car, a Go-Kart; this track was just another digital rendition. After a few familiarization laps, I started braking late into the corners, diving into the turns and more than once, clipping the barriers. I was a bit ragged at the beginning, but nonetheless, it was fast enough to put me third on the grid, behind the veterans.
All I really wanted to do was to stick with them, and see what I could really do. The coolest thing about this go-kart track is the way everything is done. The start is just like a Formula 1 race. Once the five lights go out, its show time.
The first corner was rather undramatic. A simple left hander, followed by an S-turn. I followed the veterans into the turn and just tried to do my best and follow them. Boy were they fast! I was always thinking in my mind, how fast could you really be? Even though I was driving my kart off its wheels, I was falling behind. I wasn't that slow was I?
Thanks to a few yellow lights from spinning Praktikants, I was able to close up the gap and rethink my strategy. I started to examine how the veterans were driving. In actuality, they weren't doing much things different from me. So I did what I normally would in Gran Turismo and stopped trying to mimic my friends.
I was going faster, keeping up with the two and making some real progress. In the thick of it, it was us three, dicing for position, with the rest trailing rather far behind. I was quite surprised at myself actually... the rookie was keeping touch with the veterans!
"If you're trying to go fast, you're only going to end up going slow"
That was the words from 'Schumacher' Adam. It ran through my head, and that's how I needed to drive. On certain laps, I ran too fast into the corner, sliding, losing grip, and coming out slow. I could feel my laps were getting better and I knew where I needed to improve. My hands felt every little twitch of the front wheels and my right foot was the pulse of the car. It started beating to my rhythm.
Around lap 22-23, there was a bunch of back markers, racers that we were about to lap. This was really the only time for me to pass and pass I did. It was totally awesome! I had secured second place.
What came up next was both exhilarating and slightly scary. After running a close second to Graham, he slowed slightly, and I immediately passed him. I didn't quite know what think. On one hand, I was happy, but on the other, it was weird...and I soon knew why.
In my flurry of racing I totally missed the flashing yellow lights and yellow flags being waved. I must have scared the living daylights out of the track marshall on the track who, expecting slow karts, saw me and my other friend speeding right down at him. If he ever reads this blog...I am really sorry!!!
Not wanting to win while passing on a yellow flag, I tried to let Graham pass me, only for 'Schumacher' Adam to make a quick dive and pass both of us. Slightly stunned, I closed the door on my original place taker, and pulled out all the stops to try to win the race. I could feel it! On lap 31, I set my fastest lap of 28.882. Not only was it my fastest lap, I was the only racer to dip into the 28 second range. The asian rookie has got some speed!
And you know what else? I told my girlfriend that if I won the race, it would be for her. Since I didn't win the race, I dedicate my fastest lap to her. Yeah!
I finished second, set the fastest lap, and set the fastest speed trap time of 45 km/h. That figure shows you how late I tried braking into the corners! To show how fast the veterans were, our fastest laps were separated by a mere .3 sec. The fourth place runner was a further .4 sec. behind.
Being my first time on this track and my first time in a real Go-kart, I think I did pretty well! So what do you say...lets tackle the 500 lap challenge!
