My top-5 tips to progress as a kart racer

28 June

Since I started karting five years ago, I’ve been lucky enough to have lots of great support and advice from the people around me. That’s enabled me to steadily improve and ultimately win two Swiss Championship titles and progress into European competition as well.

I love what I do on the race track, but I also enjoy the driver coaching sessions that I run at two of my local circuits in Switzerland. I’m often asked to give little bits of advice to younger or less experienced drivers, so I thought I’d share my top-5 karting tips here. I hope they’re useful to anyone that may read them!

Tip 1

If you have the budget, I would recommend getting your own kart and taking part in test days to complete as many laps as possible. Experience is so important in karting! The more laps you run, the more you will learn and the faster you will get – guaranteed. Then, if you feel you’re ready to take part in some races, take things steadily and start as a beginner. If you get some good results, then of course you can move up and test yourself at a higher level.

Tip 2

Trying to race with a team-mate and a good mechanic is super helpful. Team-mates generally share data and video footage as a way of supporting each other and trying to improve as much as possible. I’m a big fan of that approach! Working with an experienced mechanic is also great. Lots of mechanics race themselves and they can give lots of great advice about chassis set-up and performance on different types of circuits. That kind of insight can often bring a competitive advantage as an inexperienced driver.

Tip 3

Always do a track walk before you go out onto the circuit. Walking the asphalt allows you to see so many different things and to process them in your head. This can involve identifying where the bumps are, where there are issues with visibility, what circuit details may benefit you in the rain or the dry, and which corners you need to brake for and which you may just need to have a slight lift from the accelerator. I never go onto a track without walking it first. It’s very helpful.

Tip 4

Try to exercise and eat sensibly between races or test days. Playing on a games console and going to McDonalds every day won’t help you perform. If you’re a driver that’s too young to go to the gym, I would recommend finding and using a fitness trail. We have these in Switzerland and they’re super useful for building up some strength and endurance. Then always make sure you eat good food and drink plenty of water! Staying healthy will only benefit your performance levels.

Tip 5

This is probably one of the most important pieces of advice I can give: make sure you enjoy your karting. It’s a fantastic sport that is a lot of fun and teaches you lots of good skills that you can take into your normal life. Of course, it’s nice if you win some races along the way. But karting is about more than that. It’s about making new friends, working with others, listening to good advice and learning to push yourself as a person. To me, it’s the best sport in the world!