Go-Karting for Kids

Kids go-karting

If you are thinking of something different to do with the children that will satisfy their thirst to be thrilled and challenge them to use a whole range of physical and spatial awareness skills then go-karting for kids is something seriously worth considering.

During a recent trip to Suffolk we spotted a sign for Beacon Rally Cars in Martlesham and after checking out their website decided to take the kids for a drive around. Beacon Rally Karts cater for kids from 5 years upwards as well as for adults and have three tracks and three speeds of kart aimed at different age groups. The slowest  karts travel at a max of  9 mph which is a reasonable speed for young children, whilst the adult cars can reach speeds approaching 40 mph.

The centre was well organised. Everyone got to wear the full fire protection suits, gloves and helmets and we were all given clear instructions on how to drive the cars and to make sure we all understood what the flag signals meant. There were lots of helpful, friendly marshalls about and the maximum number of karts allowed on the circuit at any one time was two or three whilst we were there,  so there was little chance of any collision.  When entering the kart we were supervised by the marshalls to make sure that all necessary safety precautions were in place.

Once that was done the karting began. The first lap is a bit tentative as you feel your way around the circuit and get to know where the bends and straights are, by the second lap the foot’s down and you’re speeding as fast as you can. There’s some quite exciting corners at Beacon Rally Karts and plenty of opportunities for taking it to the max – even if for kids it’s only 9 mph. As Beacon Rally Karts is an off-road, dirt track rather than a tarmac surface it gets quite bumpy in places which really adds to the rally experience and makes it good fun as you bounce around in the car whipping up a tail of dust. We did the course on a hot dry day – next time I wouldn’t mind doing it in the rain when it’s full of mud just to see how dirty we all get and to experience a few skids.

A 30 minute session is divided into 2 halves of 15 minutes with a break in the middle where you get chance for a drink and a sit down. Each 15 minute session gives you chance for about 12 or so laps – depending on how fast you are.  At the end you get print outs of your lap times with a graph showing how well you did over the course. You also get to see where you rank during the day.

It’s not the cheapest activity, for a family of 4 it cost over £100 for 1/2 an hour’s driving, however, for excitement it was well worth it. If you are in Suffolk, check out Beacon Rally Karts, we really enjoyed it.

What did the kids think? Well, here’s their review. Watch it and see.

 

You might also like