Firstly, the name "Dads and Lads" isn't an exclusively male environment, there are plenty of Mums, Nans, and Sisters all involved, and it's good to see more and more girls are now taking to the track. The expression of "Dad and Lad" is just used to explain "Home run" race teams rather than the more expensive and professional race teams.

If like me, your son and daughter have been to the dreaded Go-Karting party, or they just want to have a go as they want to be the next F1 driver or even those of us who have holidayed abroad and seen the Go-Karting tracks enticing you to take your kids for a day out, (I remember taking Zenico when he was around 8yrs old on a double-seat kart in Lanzarote, the safety was appalling, and we were lucky to get out of the kart without injury!).

Then, as a parent, you will be sharing the same thoughts as my wife and I had:-

• Is it safe?
• That's a lot of money for a 15 min session?
• Go-Karting? Really, why not football?
• Is this going to be another fad like the street dancing lessons he wanted?
• He wanted a puppy, but look who walks and feeds the family dog now! That promise didn't last long.

Firstly, let's start with the first word that comes out of many parents in the paddock when racing:

"I need to get a new mortgage to finance this !"

Yes, Go-Karting can be expensive, but there are options. I will talk about the difference between Hire Karts and Owner Karts in another section, but for this part, I will concentrate on the 'Lad and Dad" aspect of Karting.

The day has come, your son or daughter has been in the hire Karts and may have even won a few trophies to gather dust on your sideboard. You are now looking through "Facebook marketplace" at secondhand Karts, and joining as many Karting Facebook groups as possible, your Facebook feed is now full of Karting posts that you don't understand. You have searched Google for help, and nothing comes up other than Karting shops or Karting tracks, and frankly, you are just lost in it all. I also bet money on it that if you have talked to friends, they will know someone, or may have even themselves at one point in their life, been the best Go-Karter, and were so close to being the next Lewis Hamilton who used to Kart at Buckmore Kart circuit in Kent.

My advice! Stop now, as rushing in will cost you wasted money, and time.

If you get it wrong at the first hurdle, you are risking the safety of your child or children.

One of the first things I wished I had done, was to visit the UK Motorsport site to learn what options there are and to understand the minefield of the different karts and classes for your children, so I shall save you a mouse click and explain them below as the site is a monster and full of things you don't really need to know at this stage:

Karting is split into four main categories: Cadet, Junior, Senior, and Gearbox, but there is also a Bambino class,  but, as we are talking kids,  I will keep it to the Bambino, cadet, and Junior Classes:  

(SOURCE - karting.co.uk)

Bambino - When you visit a track on what's called an "Owners Day" your jaw will drop when seeing a 6yr old kids, in customised race suits, helmets and neck braces, sitting in a mini go-kart, racing around the track (albeit slowly).  Parents trying to catch them as they come into the pits, or kids even driving around the wrong way around the track (Yes, I have seen it with my own eyes.......red flags being waved to try and stop the other kids, the marshal running onto the track to turn them around before a head-on collision!)

Zenico only started his journey last year, so luckily we did not experience the Bambino stage, but hats off to those parents who allow their cherished little ones to enter the sport early, I don't think I could have done it, my stomach still churns now when Zenico gets into his kart.

IAME Cadet - Now this is where the excitement starts to begin, I watch some of the skills of the young 8yr olds in the seat in awe, they have no fear, but this class is not as popular as the next one, CADET class. The IAME is a restricted 60cc engine but still has a top speed of 40-50MPH.

HONDA CADET - This is the current class for Zenico. There are two types of engine, a Gx160 and now the more popular Gx200.  As of 2024, the Gx160 engine will start to massively decline, so you should see some cheap karts hitting the market. The CADET is an excellent starting kart for the more mature 8yrs olds, the kids can use it until they are 13yrs of age.  The engine resembles your lawnmower engine, and is a pull and go!  The engine requires minimal maintenance and I think they are bulletproof.  I've seen Zenicos Gx160 Cadet hit 57MPH on the straight with the right gearing, but a Gx200 does have the edge and is the better option currently.

I don't have any personal experiences with the next classes, but I am learning, so I shall do my best!

Junior TKM-2s - This is the first kart where the weight of the driver must be a min.  In all the other classes, you can strap lead weights to the kart to make up the min weight.

Zenico has never been a strong eater, so his weight is a worry for the next classes up, but he is determined to move up a class, so is currently washing down protein drinks like there's no tomo!

Then it's onto the kart that all the kids want, the ROTAX!

These are not pull-and-go engines, they require fuel mixing, and a deeper understanding of mechanics.  I often see Dads in the paddock, swearing and hitting the karts as we do when we can't get something working.   If your child has not reached those wonderful teenage years yet, then I would recommend keeping to the CADET class to learn your trade as the Dad mechanic! 

The good thing about the ROTAX, is the chassis.  The frame is mostly the same across the board, so the engine is restricted by chips (not the ones that come with fish!).  As your child grows, the chip (brain) is changed to allow for different restrictions.

Remember, these ROTAX karts are fast.  If your child is straight into one, then I would strongly recommend that you use a race team for the first few sessions as a taster before you spend your hard-earned money!

In regards to the X30 Mini, Junior, and OK Junior, I confess I don't have a clue.  I have seen them at the track, but I would be lying if I said I knew anything about them.

So, I have done my best in explaining the different karts, but now I'm sure you are still looking at the Facebook market place getting confused about what to buy, then turning into a detective, trying to find posts from parents looking for advice on social media karting groups and basically holding your head in your hands thinking, “What have I started!”.  Like us, you also looked at YouTube and found lots of videos on how to change tyres, what pressures to use, and then the old outdated Motorsport UK ARKS licence video! 

For now, ignore them all!  Reset your parent brain, and continue to read this page.  Once finished, go back to our advice page and check out “Finding the right kart”, so, I continue my rambling below! 

The one thing I have neglected to explain, is what do parents, grandparents etc actually get out of “Lad and Dad” karting?

Firstly, I'm sure your kids spend time playing Roblox, Fortnite etc, and then watching TikTok’s that we as parents don’t understand (How can a child watch hours of unboxing videos?)

Well, this is what is good about getting out into the fresh air with your kids.  It takes them away from playing games, spending your hard-earned cash on Robux and other in-game currency to buy that much-needed upgraded weapon skin, and then to top it all off, saying more down a microphone than they actually say to us when they get home from school and we ask “What did you do and learn today?” and the generic response is normally “Not much, I can’t remember!”

Dragging an excited child out of bed in the morning, seeing them help loading the Kart and equipment in the car, getting their race suit on, and the look on their face when they know they are about to do something they love! Now, that is the reason we do it as parents.

At the track, you see your child grow in personality, maturity, and overall taking control of a kart on a track without a parent nagging into their ear! They beam with excitement, adrenaline and overall, knowing that their actions on the track are their choice and their choice alone.

As a dad, I get to spend time with Zenico, he talks to me, he (sometimes) listens to my 'not so expert' advice on racing lines, and he gives me feedback on the kart that it may be pulling to the left, or it was not fast enough out of a corner, or the tyres felt wrong.  Ultimately, he's the driver and he "knows" his kart.

Then as a dad, I put my thinking mind on and try to fix it, with the anticipation of when he next sits in the kart seat, have I done it right to improve his performance? If I don’t know what’s wrong, I go ask another parent who has more experience than me, and they are always willing to help.

This is what 'Dad and Lad' karting is all about, it's getting your little cherubs away from their phones, away from their computers or tablets, and having quality family time, watching them grow and become independent.

Not only that, motorsport attracts a different type of kid, when it comes to race weekends, they are not interested in staying out at their mate's house all night or sitting on street corners, they want to race!  And they want to race while being supported by their parents, and that is something that money can’t buy!  Your kids will meet like-minded friends, and they will become part of the Racing cummunity.

Like any motorsport, It may be dangerous, but knowing that as a parent, you have a bigger carrot to dangle to engage your children rather than those on the streets that see your child as a commodity and place them at risk of exploitation, you, the parent now have something to give that is more than just taking them to school, or ensuring they are fed and watered, you have something that a lot of parents don’t have?

That something is your child's dream to race! 

Please remember, we are not a professional race team, this site is to provide some help to others who share my dream, and live, sleep all things Go-Karting!