I made 3 resolutions on New Years day.1: stop smoking,
2: not to leave my socks on the floor 3: not to get involved in Karting
related debates on Team.net .The Smoking and socks lasted 2 days. I'm making
it a hat trick today.
First of all there is not one Fjr driver that doesn't take racing serious. I
don't care what age they are.Kids are naturally competitive and want to win.
To say Scott is one of the few that are serious about Fjr is disingenuous to
the scores of kids nationwide involved in FJr. Scott is very talented and
has done extroidinarily well on old equipment and is to be commended . But
every kid out there is working just as hard for that $3 plaque.
It is my understanding that beginning this year the NT's and pro's will have
two separate Kart classes The spec Briggs is one, The other encompasses all
other engines allowed under WKA rules. This IMO is a wise move. Problem with
a across the board Spec class for kids is the wide range of weights between
a 10 year-old and a 15 year old In WKA we have restricted Juniors turning
faster lap times than unrestricted 15 year olds because of the weight
difference. With what SEB has been done now, the spec briggs class stays
intact for the younger kids and allows them to trophy within thier age
group,while the older kids can under established sensible guidelines can go
progressively faster as they mature and develop the necessary skills to
prepare for race cars when they turn 16. This, IMO should be the whole point
of FJR. Restricting to them run the same engine at a decreasing level of
performance for several years doesn't improve their skills or inspire them
to stay in SCCA.
The 100cc 2cycle engines that the teenage Juniors often prefer are about
the most equal in performance. They were race engines developed for karting
in the first place. They range from 18hp to about 24hp.The popular Yamaha
Kt100's are usually blueprinted(legally) to produce 20-22 hp. The european
100cc engines such as the K71 are homogulated and further blueprinting has
very little benefit. You usually need some serious cash to get just a couple
more HP from a 100cc kart engine. While15000 rpm sounds like a lot of rpm
100cc kart engines are designed to operate reliably between 11000 and 15000
rpm. 15000 is a typical redline for 100cc two stroke
As high dollar motors go I think Scott paid $250 for his 2 cycle engine
and swapped that even for a Yamaha this year. I swapped $300 worth of used
kart rims and scuffed tires for the 100cc engines my son uses. A spec gas
5hp briggs will put you back $500 minum by the time you buy everything.
As for grenade motors you will always have those. Don't matter how
much you regulate someone will always be willing to spend the money to go
faster than the next guy. That is racing. But all the HP you can buy will
never beat a kart that is well driven and well handling.
Are the rules being manipulated? no not at all. The rules have not changed
in 2001 they are just being defined in print The 100cc Yamaha, Scott and
many other Juniors runs is his designated WKA class for his age, as is the
100cc european 2cycle my son and a few others run. when we came to Fjr in
mid 1999 we were told to run the engine package we normaly raced under WKA
rules
The formula Jr class is a program that helps prepares our children not only
for racing but serves to establish a firmer bond with their racing family.It
provides continuity to SCCA and injects some fresh blood into an otherwise
aging membership It has been mentioned on this list the Juniors that have
moved up to cars. Scott and my son moves up in 2002 or 2003.. Whether you
like karts or not, I urge everyone to consider the benefits we are beginning
to see and continue to lend your support to Fjr.
Lets not spoil it with bickering
PS: One thing that troubles me is the comments made to Vernon Head, I don't
know Vernon personally, he lives 3 thousands miles away from me.We have
only conversed a couple times on another list about racing subjects of which
we typically disagree. Vernon, like many other people involved in SCCA
volunteer their time to help with events or serve on a committee, Vernon in
this case got clothes-lined for doing a job that benefits his Region
without the benefit of doubt . Is it any wonder the regions have trouble
getting volunteers?
Rick
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