[rpoz-29]

As what has been the most difficult year of my life comes to a close, I want to get back into autocrossing, (something I've done since 1975), next year. My car will need some love, but the first thing that needs help is me. Some of my friends go to a local indoor kart track once a week. I've been a couple of times, and have improved my times, but will that translate into usable autocross skills? My friends compete in open wheel cars, so I can see how this helps them, but a Camaro takes a different line than an A/M car. Your thoughts, please.

[CrashTestDummy]

Commercial 'racing' karts are momentum machines. They all usually lack power, so you have to maintain as much speed in the corners as possible and plan your corner so you can get on the gas as soon as possible. Too much steering input will KILL your time, and you won't even feel it. Slipping and sliding the back around will kill your time, too. You have to practice being smooth, and working the brake and wheel as little as possible to get the job done. Looking ahead also contributes to being able to reduce the inputs to negotiate the track. You also learn the 'short' way around the circuit. All these skills apply to autocross, especially if your autocross car is a H Street or some other momentum class. But you can still learn things even if your regular car is a C Prepared car.

This post has been edited by CrashTestDummy: Dec 12 2017, 01:58 PM