Any advice for switching from Asphalt to dirt??

Racer1

Member
Hey guys been racing on asphalt my whole life and this year will be moving over to dirt at Nutmeg Kart Club here in CT in a flat kart. Any one that has done this have any tips or general helpful information they would like to share? Feel free to pm or email as well. Thank you in advance!
 
You will have fun on the dirt. Have not been to Nutmeg in a few years, track was extended some. Check with Nuclear Turtle on here. He will help you with some track info. Don't think they have a tire rule. Good luck!
 
dirt tracks get slicker as the night goes...your kart will loosen up and you have to be ready to compensate for that
 
Honestly your biggest hurdle will be the tires. Most asphalt tires are harder compounds, and do not get prepped like dirt slicks do. Talk to some of the local dirt racers and get some basic advice on tire brand, compound hardness, and preps. Also most karts set up for dirt are way to tight on asphalt , even with asphalt tires. So you will probably have to change your scale set up on your chassis when going to dirt. Most tracks have practices in the spring, take advantage of this as much as possible. SEAT TIME, SEAT TIME, SEAT TIME...
 
Honestly your biggest hurdle will be the tires. Most asphalt tires are harder compounds, and do not get prepped like dirt slicks do. Talk to some of the local dirt racers and get some basic advice on tire brand, compound hardness, and preps. Also most karts set up for dirt are way to tight on asphalt , even with asphalt tires. So you will probably have to change your scale set up on your chassis when going to dirt. Most tracks have practices in the spring, take advantage of this as much as possible. SEAT TIME, SEAT TIME, SEAT TIME...

You can take this to the bank....
 
We ran that track once a few years ago, before it was expanded, our only dirt race ever. We did absolutely nothing, including running a small LR. Ran a flathead against animals in lites and finished 4th out of about 12. It seems that hooking up coming out of the corners was extremely important there and running with less power was probably one reason why we did so well. The chassis we used developed a lot of grip, often too much grip for pavement. Might want to try less left then you are accustomed to. You will probably adapt well for the simple reason that dirt is so much slower then pavement. Lots of banging around at that track and many had a tendency to hit rather then to pass skillfully. You probably already know that they have (or had) a Vega tire rule, one set per race day, and no prepping at the track. I did not see any cheating on those rules. Tire wear seemed to be non existent. Put a lot more effort into a good air filter program, it is possible to ruin a motor in one race on dirt. Our experience was that it was a friendly place to race.
 
thanks chip for the kind words . Racer1 , pm me I'll answer any and all questions you have . we have a tire rule , vega yellows ,vega reds and any burris 33"s all 4 have to be same compound ,no mix and match . tires you start the first heat race with is the tires you have for the day . no prep at track and wash tires with only water . close to same set up but less left and cross. track takes rubber all day and is black as asphalt by end of the day . just finished another expansion longer and wider just over a 1/10 mile on inside 1/9 groove .
 
Tires and setup. Either learn working and selecting tires or get a good shop help you. Scale your kart.
 
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