LOCAL HOPE: Michael Clemente with his machine. Pic: Geelong Advertiser
Fast and Furious
JUNIOR go- kart racer Michael Clemente will be hurtling around the Beckley Park track almost as fast as the men at the Victorian Open Championships this weekend.
Michael, 10, is the Geelong Go-kart Club cadet champion, a class for young racers aged 7-11.
Michael’s go-kart will be hitting top speeds of 90km/h in the Geelong straight at one of go-karting’s biggest carnivals of the year.
More than 340 entries have been received across 15 categories for the three-day event, ranging in age from seven to the Clubman Over 40s division.
It will be a big day for Michael, a rising star in gokart ranks, and his father Danny, both members of the Geelong Go-kart Club.
But Danny, who will be assisting his son’s title bid, says the sport offers a lot more than merely winning a title. ‘‘It’s a great opportunity for a father to bond with his son from a young age,’’ he said.
‘‘You can’t describe it in words or put a money value on it, but it is just gold,’’ he said.
‘‘ You start talking as friends, how to get the kart to go faster, asking him what it is doing, does it need more grip at the front or the back, do you need more power out of the corners, do the brakes work good, what’s the power like?’’ Danny said.
‘‘You are always talking about the sport, on the way home you’re talking about how he went and not just telling him to do his house chores or get his school homework done.
‘‘Michael has a passionate interest in the sport and that makes me have a strong interest as well.’’
Danny is fascinated how his son became so deeply interested in motor sport.
‘‘I like motor sport but grew up with no racing background at all,’’ he said. ‘‘But I’d go to Sandown to watch the V8 Supercar races.
‘‘Michael was two years old when I started restoration on a ’66 Mustang. It took six years to build.
‘‘Michael would help me, holding things in place or playing with the air hoses.’’
Michael was five when he first drove dodgem cars.
‘‘He picked it up easily and didn’t want to get off. Then he started driving my golf buggy,’’ Danny said.
‘‘He was seven when I took him to an indoor hire go-kart track to see whether he liked it.
‘‘He had a drive and I asked him what he thought. He said, ‘Good Dad, but they are too slow’.
‘‘I knew he wasn’t scared so within a week or two I bought a second-handkart for $4500 and became a member at Geelong because it had a great reputation as a family club with many people willing to help newcomers.
‘‘It’s turned out a marvellous experience and in the last 12 to 18 months Michael has started to succeed a bit,’’ Danny said.
‘‘He was on podium at each of the 10 club races last year and won the championship.
‘‘It’s great to see a young person with passion and he says he wants to be a V8 Supercar driver when he grows up.’’
