I've been a couple of times this year, but the latest expedition was the most memorable. I'm talking 'karting at Eastern Creek.

So on this election weekend, the weather was pretty bleak. The optimists, Chucky and Stringer, took me out to the Creek, after we made the phone call. The track was open, but there were several corporate events booked. Being only three, I figured they could just squeeze us in.

After our last time there, we made sure we weren't going to have to wait to long. Sorted. A short while afterwards, we have our first heat. This is our first outing in the 13Hp carts, and I was really looking forward to it. Us three are first on the track, followed by about 12 other karters on 9Hp karts. It is a bit greasy and the karts are cold. It takes a few laps to warm up.

Shortly after this, I start getting in the groove. Then the back starts to wander. I figure the tyres must be coming on song. Then it starts to wander pretty badly. So I pull over to the side and have a look. There is something about the rear right that doesn't feel right. I can't see anything (the motor is in the way), so I continue around the track.

The arse is all over the place, I must have broken something. At the end of the sweeping back straight I am crawling along. One of the other drivers waves frantically at me. I turn around, with sparks spewing out the back of the kart. Shit. So I nurse it back to the pits and get appointed to a new kart. It was a flat rear right.

It's a cold new kart. So I'll be needing a few laps to get some heat into the motor and tyres, which is just when it starts to sprinkle all over the track. Wow, I've never had so much understeer at such little speed. I guess this is what driving on snow must be like. I guess that heat I finished maybe 12 lags, probably about 4 laps at anything near pace. Disappointed, especially for my first outing in a 13Hp. I am thinking seriously about a refund. Shit, pooh, bum.

So waiting around for the hour or so it takes for our next turn is imbued with disappointment from the first heat. That hour drags along. Finally, we get our call up. We pile in the karts, out the front again and head out on the track. A few slow laps getting warm and then it is on.

But there is something strange, the other karts haven't come out. After a few laps, expecting traffic, we realise we three get the track to ourselves for this heat. Awesome. Three 13Hp karts, we are head to tail nearly the whole 15 minutes. Our lap times are very special and the rain stays away until the end of the heat. It was, in a word, perfect. I can't imagine it being that perfect again.

For the record, I was slowest, by 44 hundredths of a second. Stringer managed a 44.11s/lap, my best was a 44.55s/lap. We averaged 55.3 - 55.07 kmh over the 15 minutes. It was quick. I can only say it again, awesome.