Shifter karts are awesome. Anyone who has ever driven one will tell you that these things are a riot. Go karts are fun in general, but when you put some real power to them with a clutch and a trans to shift, they get way funner in a hurry. Yeah, I said funner. If you have ever driven a shifter kart, then you know that funner really is a word. I’ve ridden a few different ones in my life, although it has been quite some time since I got in the last one. Regardless of the engine combo they are an exciting ride, but taking one down a dragstrip sounds like a recipe for a giant smile and perhaps some white knuckles. They are not made for doing it, but they are good at getting up to speed in very little distance, even if that is normally supposed to be between corners.

The 125cc equipped karts typically make 40-50 horsepower and only weigh a couple hundred pounds, so the power to weight ratios are way better than even the most ultra high performance rides. They are as close as you’ll get to a ride in an F1 car, and are why every F1 racer in decades has come from the karting world as a kid.