MB2 Raceway

Maybe I'm getting old. I've forgotten how much helmets make you sweat. How hard your body works to keep a small motorized vehicle from spinning out of control. How acceleration leads to exhilaration.

Those long-forgotten lessons came rushing back while I hurtled around the snaking quarter-mile track at MB2 Raceway behind the wheel of a deceptively-quick electric racing kart.

I rode dirt bikes as a kid, spending long Sunday afternoons looking for steeper hills and bigger jumps, and daring myself to wind out the throttle a little longer on the flats. But it had been a long time since I'd pulled on a helmet, toyed with an accelerator and wondered just how fast I could go.

It didn't take long to find out.

Because of their size, the Italian-made karts resemble a Formula One Shrinky Dink. But this is no Malibu Grand Prix putt-putt car. It's low-slung, with a wide stance, four fat, slick tires, and dual rear disc brakes. The red fiberglass shell hides four lithium car batteries. The chain-drive motor responds instantly to a tap of the accelerator with a revving whine.

A standard race is 14 laps with 10 to 12 cars. But since this is a weekday morning, only three of us are lined up in the pit alongside the track laid out inside a cavernous warehouse in Sylmar's Rancho Cascades Business Park.

I'm in the second car. In front of me is Racnmason (you pick a nom de race when you register for the first time) who has his real name, birth date, and vital medical information painted on the back of his helmet. Behind me is Leavittation Lane, who I'm told is a stunt man. So it looks like I'll be nothing more than a speed bump for two seasoned pros.

The kicker? They're both at least 10 years older than me.

Fortunately, the goal is not to be first across the finish line. Instead, we're racing against the clock and trying to log the fastest lap time.

So how did I do?

I averaged 34.91 seconds per lap, with a low of 31.84 coming in lap 10. The other two guys averaged 28.81 and 29.88, and lapped me at least twice each. (The track's best racers are finishing more than a second faster.)
Counting that first race as a learning experience, I focused on what I learned while getting lapped. First, I was too cautious in the corners. Next time, keep the pedal down. Second, I was too far inside on the turns. Start them further out and cut them sharper. Applying those two lessons dropped more than two seconds off my average time - and let me lap another new racer.

It also proved the kart had way more power than I could handle. Even as I attacked the corners, it never lost its grip. The only thing preventing me from going faster was my ability to hang on. I leaned into the corners and gripped the wheel as tight as I could, but the force of the turns still overwhelmed me, and I had to back off the accelerator.

My two races left me breathless and drenched in sweat.

Speed will do that to you.

Eric Harnish lives in Newhall and generally drives the speed limit when behind the wheel of his Honda Civic.

Things That Make You Go Vroom
MB2 Raceway
13943 Balboa Boulevard, Sylmar
866-986-RACE

Virtual test drive: www.mb2raceway.com

Bring it: Close-toed shoes. Camera. Cash or credit card.

Getting there: Take Interstate 5 south. Exit Balboa Boulevard and turn right. The second street light is Balboa. Turn left. Go over the freeway and continue on Balboa. MB2 is on the left.