Bambino School

Thank you for your enquiry regarding our new Bambino School and Bambino Club for 6-7 year olds. The aim of both the School and Club is to build confidence in young drivers as well as ensuring they have fun and are not under too much pressure. At the present time the minimum age for Motor Sports Association (MSA) competition karting is 8 years old and the proposed training and Club would be the ideal preparation for both MSA racing and racing in our own 8-16 year old Junior Club.

The Sisley Kart School was established in 1972 and has trained 10 British Kart Champions as well as past Formula One drivers. The Bambino concept is a totally new initiative and our qualified instructors will be very cautious in their approach to the training required due to the relatively young age and spread of ability of 6 and 7 year olds. Safety is of paramount importance to us.

As we have been inundated by enquiries we’ve had to allocate additional dates and sessions for the Bambino Kart School as well as rescheduling the Bambino Junior Club dates. An information sheet is enclosed listing the new dates (there may be more added depending on demand).

We will provide drivers with all equipment including safety wear and 50cc 2 stroke Mini Bambino Top Karts. These are made in Italy and are basically miniature cadet karts which are already used for competition in Italy and the USA. We also have a four stroke Mini Trainer Kart available which may be suitable for very nervous drivers.

Bambino Kart School

All drivers must take part in at least three Bambino Kart School lessons before they can take part in the Bambino Junior Club. We have therefore scheduled more Kart School dates in the early part of the year to enable drivers to gain as much experience before the first round of the Bambino Junior Club on 30th May. Each School lesson will run for 1½ hours during school holiday dates or Saturdays and will be at three levels as follows:-

Lesson 1

This session will take place on the new Paddock Circuit which is self contained and approximately 120 metres long. The emphasis will be on training the drivers to understand the most basic commands i.e. left/right/stop/start as well as familiarising drivers with the controls of the kart. There will be a maximum of four karts on circuit at any one time with no more than four pupils to one instructor.

Lesson 2

This session will also take place on the new Paddock Circuit and will concentrate on building confidence in the drivers by explaining the basic concept of cornering and the correct line. There will be a maximum of four karts on circuit at any one time with no more than four pupils to one instructor.

Lesson 3

This is the final lesson which will take place on the longer Club Circuit (this is the same circuit where the Bambino Junior Club will take place). This lesson will include teaching the correct cornering technique and racing lines for the Club Circuit and cover such items as driving standards and understanding of the flags used in the Bambino Junior Club.

After the successful completion of lesson 3, pupils will be allowed to enter the Bambino Junior Club which starts on the 30th May. Every pupil will have a record card which has to be signed off by an instructor who will advise parents whether their child is of a suitable standard to compete in the Junior Club. Pupils can continue to take part in Kart School sessions without moving up to the Junior Club if necessary.

Bambino Junior Club

The Bambino Junior Club will take place on the Club Circuit on the same days as the Junior Club for 8-16 year olds takes place on the National Circuit. This is always during School holidays or at weekends. Each Club will take place in the afternoon and last for two hours (there may well be more than one club on each day depending on uptake). The drivers will initially complete practice laps to acclimatise themselves to the circuit. After practice drivers will be sent off in 5 second intervals with their start time recorded. After a period of laps a green flag will be shown (start flag). After 5 further laps a chequered flag will be displayed and the driver’s times will be recorded.

Drivers will be split into groups of similar speed and all times will be recorded on the drivers record cards. As drivers become more experienced the length of each timed session will be extended.

Owner/Drivers

Although both the Bambino Kart School and Bambino Junior Club are aimed at drivers that do not own their own equipment we will be offering separate School lessons (on the same days) and a separate class within the Bambino Junior Club for owner/drivers. The entry fee for owner/drivers is the same as for drivers that use our own equipment. Owner/Drivers wishing to race in the Bambino Club must first attend lesson three of the Bambino School and also show written proof that they have been trained elsewhere to a suitable standard

General Notes

The initial entry fee for each Bambino Kart School lesson and Junior Club round is £49 per driver. This amount may need to be increased if we find that the timescale needs to be extended. The membership fee for the Bambino club is £10 from May to October 2008.

Pupils taking part in Lesson 3 must not take part in the Bambino Junior Club on the same day.

As places are limited we will accept bookings for both the School and Junior Club on a first come, first served basis. The initial session time for lessons 1 and 2 at the School is 8.30am to 10am. We can accept up to 12 drivers per session. Once full, the next session will be released on the same day (11am to 12.30pm) and so on throughout the day depending on booking levels.

All lessons and Junior Club entries must be paid for in advance. We will also need to know the height of each driver when booking.

Please book early to avoid disappointment as I know we are going to be oversubscribed and we can only take a set number of drivers. To book please telephone 0845 603 7964.