The air was an exciting mixture of nervousness, anticipation and the throaty thrum of the engines of 16 karts. It was the starting grid for the final race of the Senior Max category at the JK Tyre Rotax Max national karting championship in Hyderabad. These tense moments were just a prelude to what was to happen on the track after the flag-off. Two laps — one for warm-up and the other, a formation lap — would precede the main race and until such time, the drivers drove together with the discipline and camaraderie of a pride of lions.
But then, the green flag was waved and it was time for battle. The karts became a blur of colour whose auditory accompaniment was the deafening, high-pitched whining of the two-stroke engines and at time, the ear-splitting screech of the protesting tyres as the karts slid around each corner. But all that fades to the background of what the driver experiences on the track. For spectators, the process of driving the kart around the same track for a number of laps might seem mundane, but for the driver, it is a constant battle — with his opponents, the track and his own self. The sheer amount of control needed to ensure each lap is as smooth as the previous is something that not many are aware of.
The driver has to keep eye out for approaching karts while at the same time, visualise the next section of the track, which would be embedded in his mind’s eye, thanks to several hours of practice over the weekend. The muscles in the forearms, shoulders and neck tense ever so slightly, as do those in the calves, in anticipation of executing a near-flawless turn. The right foot eases off the throttle while the left foot squeezes the brake just enough to cut speed while his hands work simultaneously to guide the kart around the corner.
Nothing can compare to the sheer feeling of total control as the driver manipulates the raw power in his control around especially tight bends. The thrill of executing the perfect turn and the satisfaction of negotiating a hairpin and moving smoothly back into the racing line are incomparable. Then there is the sheer adrenaline rush of driving on the straights. With no corner in the immediate reckoning, the racer is at full liberty to floor the throttle. There is a slight struggle to keep his head from whip-lashing as the torso is slammed back into the back of the seat by the g-force. The driver has to fight the adrenaline rush and guard against the resulting recklessness.
While the best driver wins, the sheer levels of skill exhibited by each of these young racers should not be ignored. For it isn’t everyone that can display such control over these machines as to make onlookers believe anyone can do the same. Nothing could be farther from the truth.