Last article we looked at one of the most inexpensive ways of getting to the track, taking your own car to a lapping day. While that's cheap and gets you to the track, as well as a lot of seat time, it's not wheel to wheel competition, it's not actually racing someone else. It's not “real” racing.

Today we're going to take a look at the cheapest way to get into actual wheel to wheel racing, and that is Arrive & Drive karting available at many kart tracks. For this article we're going to look at the program run out of Goodwood Kartways, just north of Toronto. With the recent news that Goodwood Kartways owner Dan Di Leo will be running the newly rebuilt karting facility at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, it's likely CTMP will have a similar program running in 2015.

One important thing to keep in mind with all of the racing we will be discussing over the coming months:

Racing, at any level, is DANGEROUS. Regardless of what level you feel you may be racing at, you can get hurt, or worse, in the event of an accident which may, or may not, be your fault. As well, you are responsible for the damage done to the vehicle you are driving, and possibly more depending on the event, whether or it's your fault or not. You can reduce your risk by listening to your instructors, acting and driving responsibly and purchasing the proper safety equipment, but you can never eliminate it. If you are not willing to accept this risk, then you should avoid getting on the track, there are a lot of other ways to get involved in racing.

The concept behind Arrive & Drive karting is simple, it's racing's version of men's league hockey. You pick a night, show up at Goodwood and go racing.

Goodwood supplies most of what you need, including the high-performance racing karts, your race suit, and Snell-approved helmet. You will need to purchase your own mandatory neck brace (cost, $39.99 and available from Goodwood), while a pair of thin-soled karting shoes is always a good idea as is a good pair of gloves. As well, if your going to keep at this, supplying your own helmet isn't a bad idea either. Anything you need can be purchased from the Goodwood pro shop, with assistance from their qualified staff. Going back to our comparison to men's league hockey, the equipment you have to purchase to go karting will cost less than a pair of skates, so all in all, a pretty good deal.

At this point I want to take a minute to talk about helmets. Racing, at any level, can be dangerous and a helmet is the most important piece of protection you can wear. While Goodwood will provide you with a proper, Snell rated helmet, it's never a bad idea to purchase your own. While they can be expensive, in order for a helmet to provide it's maximum protection, it has to fit properly (and this goes for all sports, especially hockey where too many helmets are so poorly fit they will likely provide little protection when they are needed). If you go to a few races and find you really like it and think your going to continue doing it, get your own, proper fitting helmet. And don't buy one online, you can never be sure of the proper fit picking numbers off a chart on a web site. Go to the pro shop at Goodwood or Canadian Tire Motorsports Park and get one of their trained staff to get you into a proper fitting helmet. The only way you know it fits properly is to try it on. It is the best investment you can make if your going to keep at this karting stuff for a while.

Racer's are divided into three groups, youth (age 8-12), teen (age 12-18) and adults (age 18 and up, with the average age being 39!). Men's league hockey where you and your son or daughter can both play!

Beginners are always welcomed, and in fact encouraged. From Goodwood's Dan Di Leo “There is a huge emphasis on training especially at the beginning of the year. The series is designed for the rookie and/or beginner. We get hundreds of new members annually that have never done this before. They go through on-track training sessions as well as in-class instruction prior to entering there first race”.

The races at Goodwood take place every night of the week, except Tuesdays, and run bi-weekly, from April to October, rain or shine! (There is nothing better than racing in the rain!) As well, you can also come out and do some practice laps throughout the week, on non-race days, by contacting the track to find available dates and times.

Your race night gets you 1 1/2 hours of open practice, a 5 minute qualifying session and a12 lap race at each event. Weekdays, racing is from 5:30pm to 8:30pm and on weekends it's from 10:00am to 1:00pm. All race days conclude with a medal ceremony awarding the top 3 drivers in each class.

Registration is open all year long, so if you aren't able to get in at the beginning, you can still join mid year, but as Di Leo says, “it is always best for newcomers and beginners to register early in the year to take advantage of the front-end loaded instruction”.

So, what about the costs? It all sounds great, but how much will this actually cost me?

Again, it's in line with men's league hockey. First, you will need an annual Goodwood membership to use any of the high-performance karts, which is $99.99 for a season. Next, you will need an annual photo licence (which has to be produced for each race) which will set you back $10.00. You need the neck brace mentioned above, for $39.99 and you are ready to go racing.

The fee per race is $60.00 and includes use of the kart, a Snell rated helmet and a karting-specific racing suit.

Getting some practice laps is also available, as noted above, and range in price depending on the number of laps purchased, but the popular package is 25 laps for $40. Always call the track first for availability.

One cost you won't have to worry about with the Arrive & Drive karting program at Goodwood is crash damage. We noted in the opening that drivers are generally responsible for their own crash damage, but with Goodwood 's program, if you find yourself in a precarious situation, you're covered.

Make no mistake, these are not the slow rental karts you take your little cousin to for their birthday. These are fast, high performance racing karts, capable of speeds up to 75 km/h and are a blast to drive. Goodwood is a great facility and a fun track to drive, and if you are looking to go racing, this is, head and shoulders, the best bang for you buck.

Take a look at the pictures, check out the great video below produced by Canadian Karting News and Karma Studios and get off the couch and get out racing, there's no excuse not to!

For more information, you can contact Goodwood Kartways in the following ways:
Web – http://www.goodwoodkartways.com/
Web page for the arrive & drive karting - http://www.goodwoodkartways.com/crkc.htm
Email for the racing leagues and general info - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Phone – (905) 640-5278 

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