Rachel's Guide to Newcastle and Beyond!
My other half James is definitely an adrenaline seeker, in the past he’s persuaded me to parachute off a mountain wearing skis, bungee jump off the Transporter Bridge and he’s even done a sky dive (I’ve yet to pluck up the courage for that one)! So when I told him we’d been invited to take part in the inaugural North East Media Karting Championships at the recently re-relaunched Karting North East, well, you can imagine his reaction!
Almost half a million quid has been spent improving Karting North East over the last few years. The 1.2km track has been completely resurfaced, it’s also been extended making it one of the longest in the UK and it’s just down the road from us near Sunderland.
James and I needed a third member for Team Geordieland so we invited along his cousin Tony who was almost as giddy as James! Personally I was a little bit nervous, especially when I heard we’d be up again teams from Capital & Heart radio, plus the guys from North East Times, as we all got acquainted during the health and safety briefing I got the impression they weren’t first timers like me!
Owner Guy Wilks, himself a former Intercontinental World Rally Championship driver, helped me get kitted out in the safety gear. I asked him for a few tips but the look on his face told me all I needed to know, I would need a rather generous head start to get my hands on that trophy!
Fat chance though, I didn’t even realise the qualifying session was more than one lap and I made the mistake of pulling back in to the pits while everyone else was still racing round the track. Poor James and Tony, they had no way of winning with me on their team!
For some reason I just couldn’t brave the incredible speeds that everyone else was driving at and I found myself constantly being overtaken throughout the thirty minute experience, I only managed to complete 15 laps while most of the other drivers got round 19 times!
I didn’t really mind though, I still had a great time. I may have been the slowest but I could feel my heart beating wildly as I gripped the steering wheel and held my breath round every nerve-wracking bend. I can certainly understand how people get addicted to this kind of hobby!
As well as the impressive karting track, there’s also 2,500 sq metre outdoor paintball arena, off-road 4×4 experiences, archery and tomahawks and off road ârage buggyâ racing available at Karting North East.
Indoors we were impressed by the newly refurbished reception and café area with ping pong tables and of course, the winners podium which amazingly we did make it on to. Although, I should point out that this was only because there was a draw for 2nd position, notice the wooden spoons on our t-shirts!
We had a fantastic night at Karting North East and can highly recommend it. I reckon it would be perfect for corporate team building and family days out, no doubt that stag and hen parties will love it too, they also do kids parties. Check out the website for details of current promotions like the 30 minute ‘arrive and drive’ offer for ÂŁ25 pp.
Have fun and fingers crossed you can do better than Team Geordieland!
This looks like such good fun! Can’t wait to give it a try đ
Oh that looks like great fun, although i would be terrible at it and probably crash. I know Kevin from Capital who came fifth, such a small world x
Looks like a fantastic day out for team building – bet things get a little competitive!
I love a bit of go karting. I went with a load of friends for my 30th and we had such a fantastic time. Crashing and spinning off may well have happened but it all adds to the fun. Oh and I got fastest lap so even better!
Argh, I’d be far too chicken to do that! Too close to the ground, too fast, ugh, not for me! How did it feel wearing a helmet?
Commenting again to say thanks for linking to #traveltales – I’ve pinned this post to our pinterest board. Hope to see you next month. Don’t forget the badge đ – Sam x
Karting is so much fun! I’ve done it a couple of times, as you say, it’s a great corporate thing to do and we had a couple of ‘team building’ type events at work.
It did bring out a very competitive streak in my though, LOL.
[…] and I was determined not to be shown up by the boys (especially after letting the team down at Karting North East a couple of months […]
[…] at Karting North East. I took my fella and his best mate along to try it out a couple of years ago (read about it here) and they both loved it so much they have been back several times since, without me I hasten to […]