Perhaps you can give us some insight as to just how this sport is organised and conducted. Why don’t we start with a description of a typical race meeting? The drivers and equipment, etc.
Well, first there is issue of notifying the drivers that a race is to take place. This can take quite a bit of effort. Since what we do is usually going to attract unfavourable attention from local authorities, the races are carried out clandestinely, usually late at night, and well after all shops in a centre have closed. Someone has to determine the location, plan the track layout, decide on a night which is acceptable to the majority of available drivers and their support teams, AND ensure that a supply of suitable shopping carts is going to be available.
That last point can be a real showstopper as most of the centres have now engaged firms to collect all the carts after hours and put them under lock and key. The local drivers can be expected to bring their own carts, but those of us who must travel on public transport just cannot afford to be seen with shopping carts in our possession. It would give the game away immediately. I mean, can you imagine the reaction if I show up at the Qantas check-in desk with a fully optioned racing shopping cart?
Yes, I can visualise that!
The excess baggage charges are crippling! And they invariably damage the carts in transit. What good is a cart when one of the wheels is missing? And I don’t mean your ordinary everyday shopping cart wheels. You could hardly steer anything equipped with those. These are full ball bearing, double swivel action, pneumatic racing wheels, tuned to extract the optimum performance on typical car park surface. Normal travel insurance just doesn’t cover the loss.
Just getting to the race itself. How long is the typical course and how is it laid out?
The course is a carefully measured 1000 metres circuit. Which of course means you can’t use just any car park; many simply are not big enough. There is at least one straight stretch of 110 metres for sprint events. The course has no corners of less than 45 degrees and must include at least 8 turns. Much like a formula 1 track in fact.
Can many drivers participate at one time?
Originally we set a race maximum of 6 participants, organised in heats with the winners going through to a final. Over time this has proved unnecessary as the numbers have fallen off. We will rarely have more than 3 in a race these days.
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