Having attended a number of events/practice sessions in the past 12 months, I’m beginning to wonder whether direct drive karts aren’t a hazard that purely exists today because of its legacy.
Yes I know the purists out there prefer the improved speed and responsiveness of the Direct Drive, but I’m becoming more and more concerned about the level of danger inherent in the format.
We’ve all seen highly capable drivers sat in a stalled kart, either having to jump out and push or pleading for a Marshals help. Both of which result in someone being on the track exposed to the dangers that this involves.
We’ve also all seen Marshals, Fathers or even bystanders nursing a bad back because they tried to lift/push start a kart.
And we’ve all seen Drivers struggling to drag a broken kart off the track, as the push-it option simply doesn’t exist.
We all know the reason things haven't changed is that individual drivers believe they would be disadvantaged by using Non DD engines, but isn’t it time that Karters / Race Formulas / The MSA moved on to Clutched or Touch&Go technology? Or will it take some horrific accident to make it happen?
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