Tag Masters

[Jeff Salak]

Hello Tag Master racers.

Simple question.

Do you want Tag Masters to go the route of Leopard only Masters?

I see a few series and special purse races going this route. In my opinion this isnt the best for this class. We are our own pocket book. I race with what engine I have and have a great time. If I can get up front great. If not Ill stilll be racing.

Im NOT in favor this at club, regional or National level. Not is this economy. Plus we choose the engine that works with our size and weight.

Just wonder how people feel about this. Before every club, regional, or National series makes this choice for us.

Jeff

[Jason Ewers]

IMO I like the leopard only. It eliminates the issue of one motor being better at one track than the others. Take a look at the Yamaha class. It's a single engine and has been the back bone to karting for years. Hopefully the leopard only will do the same.

[Russ Kemple]

Jeff,

You can run your Rotax at Mid-State any time. We will run all TAG legal motors at the Jacksonville Street race. Our club is 1/2 Leopard and a few Rotaxes and PRD's, Sonics and X-30's, ROK-TT are all welcome.

[Jeff Salak]

Russ thats cool. I have places to run. Thinking about going to your street race for sure.

I just dont see the engine of the month club being a problem in Masters like it may be in Senior.

Yet everyone/new series or purse race thinks this is what Master Racers want. Im just not sold on Leopard only class. Leaves way to many hung out to dry.

We need entries not people staying at home cause they dont allow the engine they run.

[Paul Makarucha]

I'm not a Masters but the idea of a Leopard only Master class doesn't make sense to me.

A "Master" can run a Sr class if he/she chooses. This would be the more competitive class to run, and there is typically a Leopard only option there already.

The Masters who presumably are not trying to squeeze every .001 of performance would better suit a mixed engine TaG class. If they do want to squeeze every .001 out, sign up for Sr class...

Right? Doesn't that make sense?

And don't take this the wrong way, I'm not trying to say Masters class is not competitive, but not to the extreme the Sr class will go to, and I have always been under the impression that is the reason for a Masters class. Or else why bother having it.
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[Chris McGinley]

I run Masters, but I'm a Rotax guy and typically focus my efforts on Rotax regional and national events. But, here are my $0.02 -

For regional, national, and purse races, I think having a single engine is important because it costs a lot to do these races since they typically require travel, time off from work, etc. The purse races need to be a relatively level playing field, otherwise the people with the biggest pocket books will buy every motor possible so they have a competitive edge at each track.

Now, club level is a whole different story. I think the clubs should be focused on getting more participation and having several options for motors is beneficial to this cause.

[Paul Makarucha]

Chris, understood. You are one of the guys running the class so you definitely know better than I. And you guys are damn fast!

I'll note that I do always see the cleanest racing and passes done in the Masters class. Thats nice to see. Kids these days like that bump n grind hip hop action, no bueno.
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Do you have any special rituals when the helmet is concerned like many have? - "I wipe it so that I can see better." - Kimi

[Jim Maxson]

+1 On what Chris said in Paragraph 2.

[Jeff Salak]

So take the Rock Island Grand Prix 2012 Tag Masters. 4 out of 18 drivers had Leopards.

http://www.mylaps.com/results/showrun.jsp?id=2485974

No one bitched about what engine won the race. It was the best driver!
So you going to tell the 14 other guys not to come to next big race cause its Leopard only.

Thats just wrong!!!

If people actually looked at the numbers with the people that are left racing. You dont make this rule with Masters.

[Chris McGinley]

Jeff,

If the best driver were to have options on which motor he/she ran, what would it be? (rhetoric intended)

Maybe Rock Island doesn't apply since it's a different kind of track ... however, if there is an advantage to running one motor over another at a track, then I think I'd stay home and not travel any significant distance with lodging, etc. costs to the race unless I had that motor on my kart.

-Chris
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[Tim Koyen]

At a single track, or club racing, the multiple engine format is fine. There is plenty of data and folks can make an educated engine choice when they get into it. Doing traveling races at many different tracks can put some engines at an advantage. These disparities require racers to have multiple engine options available to give themselves the best odds to win. This costs more money and can make it cost prohibitive for some. There is no perfect solution, which is why there are so many options out there.
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[Gary Osterholt]

[David Womack]

This debate has gone on for years in karting. It seems somethings never change. There will always be one engine that has an adavantage over another at any said track. So to compete at a national level, you'll need to either have a stable of motors o pick from or be prepared to get your a** handed to you at some tracks. To me there is so much disparity in the TAG class among engines, you have to wonder what genius approved these in the first place. A single engine class would solve this equation. This would seem even more logical on a local level. If average Joe comes to race and he has the same engine as the local bullet, he knows one day he'll have a chance to run with him. But if the bullet has a super motor and joe has a hobby motor, chances are he'll give up after awhile and get out all together.
I will pose another question. How many masters drivers really want to go that fast? I know out of pride no one will admit to it on here, but let's face it, we're not kids anymore. Sure the extra power covers alot of mistakes and makes you look like a hero. A little less power will make you drive smoother and still get a thrill out of sitting in the seat. I am thinking of getting another kart just to play on and looking to get a KPV. Yes it's not as peppy as my Leopard was, but it still has enough giddy up to give you a thrill. No water cooling to fool with, just a fuel line and throttle cable. Old school racing like most of the master drivers came from.
As for masters racing in the Sr class. Yes you can do that and I did it as well. The comment earlier of how the master class is 'cleaner' racing than the sr class is true. Most of us have businesses we have to get back to on Monday and we know what it feels like to bust our a** on the track. Running the sr class is like being in the movie 'Ben Hur'. I had never seen such blatent bashing and crashing before in karting. I raced in the days before bodywork and you had to pass clean or go heads up pretty quickly.

[Mike Burrell]

I still think Yamaha Pipe is the perfect Masters class: not to slow, not to fast, 1 engine, stable rules, good on medium or hard tire, and not to expensive...

Multi-engine classes have never worked over the long run (10+ years). It's just been a fact of karting. Another fact is "Masters" age karters make up about 35% of the karting market, usually pay retail or close to it, and are usually totally ignored by karting industry, media, sanctioning bodies, etc.
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[David Womack]