land speed karts

[jim reed]

I am considering running a bike at the 2016 AMA event. I've been racing since 1967 in karts and on bikes in road racing. I ran on and off with ECTA during their time at Maxton on various bikes getting several now eclipsed records. I asked about running my laydown 250 shifter kart but was refused on the grounds it was unsafe. A definite load of bull as the kart has been run at Daytona between 1989-2008, winning at record lap speed (145mph through the tri oval) 9 times with narry a scratch to the driver. I also asked SCTA about running at Bonneville getting the same reply. I find it odd that a kart at 145 is unsafe but bikes doing over 250 on tires never intended for that speed (correct me if I'm wrong) is safe. Just wondering what the real reason for karts being excluded from lsr events. I know one of the land speed organizations allowed karts for a time but only if you did not go over 140. Since then they no longer allow karts.

[Seldom Seen Slim]

USFRA had karts running up 'til four or five years ago -- and I thought that since I hadn't seen any there in the past few years that it was a lack of interest.  If they don't allow them any more -- I dunno why.  I don't remember incidents that would have hexed participation.  I can understand why SCTA doesn't want them -- mostly because safety standards and classes would probably need to be defined and that's a bunch of work for a very few racers.

USFRA allows "non-standard" vehicles and the 130/150 Clubs and stuff like that to allow as many potential racers as possible to experience the salt.

[Frank06]

Out of curiosity, do the tires carry any kind of speed rating?

Thanks,
Frank

[jim reed]

According to the Bridgestone tire people whose tires I run they are essentially small versions of their normal car road racing tires. I have never been told they have a speed rating but are built to run on the 250 single and twin cyl 2-strokes used in super karts. I have never in all my years at Daytona  seen, experienced or heard of a tire failure. I have heard that a laydown kart like mine but with a twin cylinder 100 hp engine as used on the sit up superkarts has done 165mph in a test session at Daytona. In the WKA Unlimited 1 & 2 class in which I run laydown karts are restricted to one 250 single cylinder shifter engine. Mine has about 60hp. The 100 hp twins are restricted to the sit up super karts which are as about as aerodynamic as a brick. I do know that the super karts chew thru tires and at Daytona one of the reasons single cylinder laydowns beat the twins is because the twins tires often don't last to the end of a 30 min race. According to Don Bootes, who owns S & G Industries and who designed and built my Dominator, the bodywork was designed for him by a Bonneville racer by the name of Nolan White or his son I can't remember which, specifically to be fast at Daytona. My kart was his personal kart which he raced to numerous IKF & WKA National Championships.

[G7]

We were the Last Kart to ever run at an USFRA event and that Kart was the whole reason we got involved with the salt in the first place and have since moved into a car but would love to run the Kart again .
It was capable of going over the 140 MPH limit on the 1 mile 130 club course but was extremely stable and always felt safe .
We searched and found an FIA spec tire , added on board fire system, harness and cage .
 The best technical explanation of why no more karts that day was that it looked scary ?
 I do not fault the USFRA on the decision but personally don't feel that the risk was any greater than some of the other "Exhibition class "vehicles or bikes at that speed or higher and possibly Karts are less risk due to the extremely low center of gravity .

[Malcolm UK]

Karts can take part in FIA world records.