Go.
Your foot goes down hard on the accelerator and off you go. The engine roaring, making the kart shake and tremble beneath you as you speed on ahead.
Brake.
Round the corner you go. The tyres squeal harshly and your foot goes down to accelerate again. The adrenaline rises, the only thing you can think about, hear, feel is the kart. The speeds you go at, zooming past your friend, the sharp twist of the wheel. You live solely in the moment.
Lewis Hamilton may be in the lead at the time of writing but it’s under controversy. There's been debates going on about the safety surrounding one of the drivers manoeuvres. Formula One has such a big audience, appealing to all ages and going through generations, inspiring people to take up their own motorsport hobbies – though definitely on a less intense competitive nature.
University of Gloucestershire is widely known for its variety of societies, sporting especially. They even have their own karting team as part of motorsports, allowing people to live their own F1 dreams – though of course on a lower and safer scale and with less controversy.
The karting team is one of the smaller societies at the campus with this year having 30 members split into two teams: recreational and competitive. Although the overall number has dropped from the 2020/21 team, the number of competitive members now outweigh the recreational with 75% of members signing up for competitive membership to take part in the BUKC championships.
Karting obviously appeals to people who have an interest in F1 but also draws in a larger audience, even with those who have no interest in motorsports usually, opening their eyes to the joy it can give. It’s something that many people may have never even considered before seeing the stall at the fresher’s fayre (or welcome fayre as the University of Gloucestershire refer to it as) and sign up to the taster session just out of intrigue to have fun with their friends.
“Personally, I find it’s a good time to disconnect from everything else going on in life. When I’m out on the track, all I have to focus on is racing.” Sam Bishop – President of UoG karting
As Bishop says, it’s the adrenaline that people seek. With the speed, you don’t really have time to focus on anything else when on the track since you have to think about your own safety and the best techniques to take turns to get your best track record.
Even with people just doing it for a bit of fun, the competitive nature is still there among racers. Unlike Hamilton and Vettel, the competitive nature is more fun and doesn’t cause any rifts between the members, encouraging them to have a laugh with their friends, as most people sign up with others they know.
Herefordshire Raceway – video by Chloe Hall
“I do find having confidence on the road is extremely useful to me when karting,” says Jason Croom-Carter, a second year who’s experiencing competitive for the first time this year having only been karting on the odd occasion previously. “I like being able to watch my friends and competing against them. It’s the excitement I love the most. You never know what could happen until the end.” As Croom-Carter says, you tend to be more confident in your skills if you’re used to being on the road but it’s definitely not a necessity to those who take it up, with multiple members of the society not having their full driving license – some of who can get better lap-times than those who do.
As a group activity, karting is incredibly fun and gives that little bit of a taste, to the those who love F1, of what it’s like on the track. Adrenaline levels lift when on the track, feeding to that energy and excitement that most people crave in life. Although you won’t be going at 120mph, you can dip your toes into what life is like behind the wheel.
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