Student Is Hootworthy Kart Racer!

Send us Fan MailWe had such a great time sitting down with our 5th grade GCA champion, Kai, to talk about his incredibly hootworthy hobby: Kart racing! Kai competes around the country in the Swift race class that includes go-karts which can reach up to 70 mph! He has participated in over 25 races so far with several top 5 finishes, but winning first-place continues to elude him. Kai got into racing after watching a tv show featuring a Formula One driver going 200 miles an hour.  While watching the show, he thought to himself, “That sounds cool. I want to do that!” Kai prepares for races and trains to be a better driver in variousways including using a racing simulator at home that includes a driving chair,steering wheel, and pedals that mimic a go-kart racing experience. He  hasa local track that he can practice driving on regularly and also has a coachthat provides feedback on how he can improve and where he is excelling. A lotof this information also comes from data sent from a computer and camera thatcaptures his driving. For example, Kai and his coach can analyze his lap timesand turns to see where he is slowing down, how much faster he could have gone,and what he needs to focus on to get faster. Kai mentioned that the most difficult thing about racing is consistency.Drivers must stay as fast as possible the entire race. These go-karts do nothave auto steer, so they are more difficult to turn, drivers can experienceforces up to 4 Gs, and small mess ups can cost them the race. He emphasized theimportance of consistency in the fact that 2 tenths of a second can separate 15positions. He finds racing rewarding in winning and having fun, but it’s evenbetter when he beats an opponent who has a reputation for winning because thenthe win means even more to him.He has appreciated being a GCA student because it has allowed himto pursue his Kart racing hobby, while simultaneously completing his education.He hasn’t felt like he has missed out on racing or schooling thanks to GCA andhis teachers. If you want to keep up with Kai, you can find him on his InstagramRacer_Kai, or at his local track Atlanta MotorSports Park. He loves it therebecause it feels like a real community, family. He hopes to go 200 plus mph asa professional racecar driver one day but knows he must work to get there! Heappreciates his mom, dad, coach, and teammates for all their support and GCAand his teachers for being flexible with him. Keep it up Racer Kai! Your GCAFam is rooting for you!Hootworthy: The Podcast That Gives a HootWe spotlight the students and faculty of GCA and the stories that deserve to be heard.Watch full episodes on YouTube or learn more at georgiacyber.org/hootworthy.Follow, subscribe, and share. Every story deserves a spotlight.