OK, last post on karting 'cause I'm finding it increasingly hard to sound cheerful writing them.
Baby Hunter got *totally* wasted by the racers in his first kart event. When he managed to keep it
on the black stuff, he was lapping within 0.78 sec of the leaders - which stunned me 'cause that's a
good two seconds faster than he'd achieved during the week, and is bloody fast for an 11 y-old
competing against 16 y-olds. As the race novice, he was treated by his fellow competitors to a
personal demonstration of every racing trick in the book - which, frankly, I hadn't expected in this
class of racing - and he only completed one heat without spending some time spinning into the tyre
walls, courtesy of a carefully timed 'touch'. But I guess that's kart racing. If you can't deal with
the rough stuff you shouldn't be out there. I felt *really* bad watching him getting a battering,
stomach knotting up, the usual stuff, but to his credit he hung on for the three heats and the
final, although he was totally shattered by the end. However, he staggered (I kid you not) over to
race control and signed up for his second race on May 11th, and has asked me to practice with him to
teach him how to deal with the rough stuff. Right now, I wish I'd never suggested he try karting and
am praying he finds some less hazardous form of amusement, like skydiving. Christ, whoever would
have guessed I'd end up an over-protective parent?
Roger <wondering where it all went wrong