Kart circuits
Encyclopedia
Race track
A race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...
designed for kart racing
Kart racing
Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motorsport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits...
. There are several types of kart circuit, depending of the type of use desired.
Short circuit
Any outdoor circuit of less than 1,500 meters in length.The average length for a serious racing track for karts is around 1,100 - 1,200 meters, 7 to 9 meters in width. Normally custom-built for karting, they resemble road courses, with left and right turns. They generally allow sprint racing for both gearbox and non-gearbox karts.
Temporary circuits can be set in city streets or large parking lots for special events. This is the case for the Junior Monaco Kart Cup
Junior Monaco Kart Cup
The Junior Monaco Kart Cup is a kart racing event ruled by the CIK-FIA and organized by the Automobile Club de Monaco, it takes place each year in Monaco.The event see young drivers compete with KF3 karts, a class for top drivers aged 12 to 15...
, a prestigious event for young drivers taking place each year in the city of Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
, and the SKUSA SuperNationals, taking place in Las Vegas at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino
Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino
The Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino is located off the Las Vegas Strip in the unincorporated area of Paradise, Nevada, USA. It is better known as The Rio and is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Inc. The Rio was the first all suite resort in the Las Vegas area...
.
Long circuit
A long circuit is defined as being an outdoor circuit of more than 1,500 m in length. Typically they are shared for other motorsportMotorsport
Motorsport or motorsports is the group of sports which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles, whether for racing or non-racing competition...
and only have gearbox kart races.
This type of event can see karts (Superkart
Superkart
Superkart is a form of motor racing based around a racing vehicle sized like a kart but with several characteristics more strongly associated with open-wheel racing cars....
) reach speeds in excess of 160 mph (250 km/h).
Indoor
Normally for casual racers, the indoor circuits can be in any closed space (often old factoriesFactory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
), sometimes with a short outdoor section to add interest. Normally they have their own fleet of Go-kart
Go-kart
thumb|A [[Kart racing|racing kart]] at the [[Commission Internationale de Karting|CIK-FIA]] European Championship 2008A go-kart is a small four-wheeled vehicle...
s or micro kart
Micro kart
A micro kart is a small, one passenger mini go-kart. These karts typically have 2-stroke engines, ranging in size from 22.5 cc to 85 cc, and putting out anywhere from 1.2 hp to over 20 hp.-Lower class micro karts:...
s, chosen more for economy than out-and-out speed.
In Europe, indoor karting is where most people will sample their first time in a kart. Indoor karting exploded across the UK in the 1990s and had a similar impact in European countries such as France and Belgium. It has made a lesser impact in the United States. Indoor karting still offers a competitive experience for all levels of racers.
Others
In this category fall the dirt-tracks, ovalOval
An oval is any curve resembling an egg or an ellipse, such as a Cassini oval. The term does not have a precise mathematical definition except in one area oval , but it may also refer to:* A sporting arena of oval shape** a cricket field...
tracks and ice rink
Ice rink
An ice rink is a frozen body of water and/or hardened chemicals where people can skate or play winter sports. Besides recreational ice skating, some of its uses include ice hockey, figure skating and curling as well as exhibitions, contests and ice shows...
s. Speedway
Oval track
Oval track racing, also known as oval racing, is a form of closed-circuit automobile racing that is contested on an oval-shaped track. An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, almost universally left...
racing is the most popular form of karting in the USA.
UK kart circuits
- Buckmore Park Kart Circuit
- Rowrah Kart Club
- Rye House Kart CircuitRye House Kart CircuitRye House Kart Circuit is a kart circuit, in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England, and is adjacent to the Rye House StadiumThe circuit is one of the oldest in the country, and has been driven by many of the big names in motorsport, including Jenson Button, Anthony Davidson, and Lewis Hamilton.It hosts...