go-cart racing - 07.01.06

we went go-cart racing at allsports grand prix in dulles, va.

it just happened to be ishaq’s 29th birthday.
by the time i remembered it was 10 AM.
i don’t feel bad cause he didn’t remember mine on the day of my birthday
til noon
AFTER i reminded him.

anyway,
it was FUN!
i’ve been wanting to do this for years.
i haven’t done it since i was a child in alabama.
i have this dream of having a go-cart birthday party,
but most of my friends are too girly.
all they want is henna and spa days.
what about roller skating and go-carting?!

did i say it was fun?
you had to sign a liability waiver
– like sky diving –
so you know it was fun.

ishaq didn’t wait for me…(smile)

you also had to
watch a five minute video safety briefing,
wear a race suit, head sock, gloves, and a helmet.
they had the nerve to give me an XXXL helmet
and with head, hair and scarf, it JUST fit!

a young boy,
about 10 or so,
was also there.
he was a regular.
the receptionist knew him by name.
after he kicked our butts by 5 seconds or more
– that’s a lot –
we found out he was #1 in a local kids league.

they have a timing system attached to each cart
so after each race
you get a print out of all the racer’s lap times, best time, total time, and rank.

i knew they were serious go-carts
when i found out this little bit of info:
“The chassis of our karts are made in Belgium by JB Racing,
and they’re equipt with 6.5 horsepower 4-stroke Honda engines.”
they also have superkarts with 9-hp engines,
but you have to pass a certain speed on the regular
– if you can call it that –
go-cart in order to race in the superkart.

if someone who is faster than you
is trying to pass you
you get a blue flag with a yellow line across it
to tell you to let them pass.
i got that flag.

if you do something really bad,
like hit another cart,
you get a black flag.
i got that flag, too.
i’m like: what did i do?
it was just that my scarf was flying in the wind
and coulda got caught on something.

one time ishaq spun out
and they had to help him
get started again.

my adrenaline was rushing
and i’m sure that was the case of the many others
who visit and frequent allsports grand prix
’cause my clothes smelled of pure, funky, musty body odor
from the race suit.
i KNOW it wasn’t me smellin’ like that.