Adventures w/ Teh Bear. Part 4.

Team Sweaty Awesome

OMG.  The best time you'll ever have in Bahrain is racing go karts.  No jk.  BEST TIME EVAR.

I wanted to make sure that go karts had its own post, because it was the one thing Teh Bear definitely wanted to do while he was in Bahrain.

There were several issues with go karts, to start with... to do the Mini GP Race, you have to have 10 people.. and if all 10 people don't show up, you still pay for 10 people.  It was 1.5 hours of awesomeness, don't get me wrong, but paying an extra 25BD didn't feel good.  And knowing that someone that had already paid, but got sick that evening and were out 25BD also sucked.

If you plan to do go karts, even for a short session, prepare to be drenched in sweat.  You can't see it in the "after" photos we took, but we all looked like we'd been swimming in our clothes.  Small price to pay for 1.5 hours of awesomeness.

Once you arrive (which is only a quick google maps search away for directions), you register, which was made super easy with a FB app (technology at its interconnected finest).  You get a membership card for 1bd, which none of us asked for, but I think you have to have no matter what, which is good for a year.  It makes it easier to go back and do the arrive and drive session, which is looking like something Teh Bear and I might do before he leaves, because we had such a super awesome time.

After we registered, we went downstairs to the changing rooms and put our sweat flame retardant suits on (over our clothes).

Transforming into badass go kart racers.  Step 1 - don fire protective gear.

Then we went into the heavenly A/C-ed briefing room for a video on the rules of the track.  Beoler (I think was our briefer's name) was super awesome.  He was down for taking photos for us while we raced around, which made this post possible it even more AWESOME!

They were all entranced by the informative video.

Teh Lumberjack approves.  And although his kart was #1,
he (sadly) never was.

We did our qualifying laps, which Chief of course won, along with all the races, which I'm basing on the fact that he's been to the track several times now, so he's got practice.  I came in 6th, pretty good considering how many times I spun out.

First documented spin out!

We had qualified, now it was time to race!

After qualifying laps, we paused to line up, and then we started our first race.  Where I came in 3rd.  WOOT, on the board!  I felt like I was channeling my inner child once I finally started getting the hang of how to slide around the curves, when to brake, when to floor the gas.

Side story:

This go kart is definitely more high tech than the
one I grew up with.

Teh Dad procured a go kart for Teh Kid Megan way back in the day.  If you recall the Duke of Hazard stories, the dirt road from the diamond intersection to TC/TT's house, was my driveway as a kid.  So it was pretty good go kart training.  The go kart that Teh Dad purchased was used, which was ok with me.  But Teh Dad was serious about making it as safe as possible.  Our go kart had a roll cage.  I think I've mentioned that Teh Dad is a pretty good handy man.  He also made a "net" out of colored cables/wires (not really sure what they were as I'm not a super handy woman).  He strung the cables on the passenger side of the go kart (via the roll cage) in a checkered pattern, so that way the passengers couldn't fall out when the driver swung the go kart around as fast as possible at the diamond intersection.  It was very effective.

The go kart had an engine with a chain though.  Maybe it was an old school engine, but I'm not a mechanic, so I'm not sure the crafting that went into the contraption.  The issue with the chain was that it would randomly come off.  Which meant if we were at the diamond intersection when the chain came off, we had to walk all the way to the house to get someone to put the chain back on.  Although there was the one time that we just pushed the go kart down the driveway until we got to the hill, then we jumped in and rode it as far as we could, and pushed it the rest of the way home.

Teh Bear was jealous cause I came in 3rd and he was 4th.

Yeah, definitely have stories with the go kart.

But back to REAL 60kph go karts with flame retardant suits, gloves, and helmets...

After the first race was over, we got a 15 minute break.  While we were walking off the track, Beoler asked us where we worked, and he was surprised when we said the Navy base, and explained that usually people that work at the Navy base come and break all the rules.  Score with the staff!

Checkered flag means get all your tricks out now!

I'm a winner, no matter what.

We all semi stripped our sweat suits and sucked down some water.  Teh Lumberjack also aired himself.. I mean smoked.  I didn't go inside because I knew if I went back into a place with air conditioning I prob wouldn't have came out for the 2nd race.  Apparently, going inside to buy water inside was like "heaven".  We sat still around, conversating and joking around for a few minutes.

Then it was time for our 2nd and final race.  We returned to our karts, Beoler took more pics of us, we raced.  It was sooooo awesome!  I came in 4th that time, because I spun out at the hairpin turn, fail.  I only came in 4th because Teh Lumberjack spun out and I got to pass him before it was over.

This guy really liked waving his flag.

Starting out last race.

Sliding around and spinning out was a super fun time.  I wanted to spin out one final time, but they put out the yellow flags, which meant slow down, so I didn't get to.  :(

We can haz one more lap? plskthx?

Go kart racing time was over, and taking off the sweat suit was like removing a wet suit.  The idea that someone else sweated in the same helmet and suit that I wore was kinda gross, but the awesomeness won out.

SOOOOOOOO sweaty.

The staff was leaving, since it was midnight, and we started to head out.

The grand finale was definitely when my car wouldn't start.  Fail, Kaar, fail.  I got a jump from Chief and we headed back home.

Teh Bear says the battery is dead.  That's a battle for another day.