The Bend Kartdrome is home to South Australia’s Fastest Go-Karts. Get a crew together for some action on the track, Mums and Dads included!
Just over an hour by car from Adelaide is the town of Tailem Bend, home to South Australia’s international award winning, state of the art, world-class motorsport facility, Shell V-Power Motorsport Park (formally known as The Bend Motorsport Park). As well as hosting major spectator racing events, The Bend also offers experiences such as hot laps, driver experiences and go-karting.
The Bend Kartdrome has South Australia’s fastest karts with drivers able to reach speeds of up to 70km/h. You don’t need a licence to drive the go-karts, but there are age and height requirements.
Once you turn off towards the The Bend Motorsport Park (just after the OTR service station which is past the main town of Tailem Bend) just follow the ‘Kart’ signs to the Kartdrome. It is situated a short drive away from the main Motorsport Park building and race track.
Checking in was easy, with each participant having to complete a waiver (those under 18 must have this signed by a parent/guardian). You are then required to watch an instruction video which explains the rules along with the red, amber and green light system. Once fitted with a helmet you are allocated a kart number before heading outside to the track to find your kart.
The staff are helpful, safety checking each helmet and making sure each driver is safely secured in their harness. Then each kart is started and one by one the karts pull out and onto the track.
Those who are new to karting or not very confident are encouraged to drive to their ability and allow faster drivers to pass. We saw a few karts spin out and one hit a tyre wall. There is a viewing platform to watch the race accessible via a staircase on the side of the building. You can see the entire circuit and it’s a great vantage spot for photos and videos.
After each race drivers head back inside to view their race times and see where they placed. There is a mini winners podium too perfect for that bragging right photo!
The 15 year old in our group raced for the first time and loved every minute, describing the experience as ‘exhilarating, exciting and heaps of fun’! He also said he felt safe and his confidence grew with each race. He found the karts easy to use and couldn’t wait to go back and do it again, so we returned a few months later for his 16th birthday with 4 mates and they all had a ball. It is such a great activity for a group of teenage friends, especially when they don’t want an actual party. Once the boys had finished their session we stopped in at the Tailem Bend OTR for Hungry Jacks on the way home.
READ OUR REVIEW OF THE FAMILY TANDEM KARTS
There are 3 circuit configurations on the outdoor track and on the weekend we visited our group were able to use the full 1.172 km circuit.
The Bend Kartdrome offers 3 different circuits:
- Fast-paced bumper to bumper racing on the Sprint circuit
- Quick and technical racing on thee Challenge circuit
- Experience the best of both on the large Grand Prix circuit
The Bend Karts
The kart fleet is made in France and they feature Honda 390cc engines to power them up to 70km/h. There are fitted with a rollbar and 4 point harness, have adjustable seats and an F1 style steering wheel. Mandatory helmets are provided (along with hair nets) or you can purchase a balaclava to wear under your helmet. Enclosed footwear is required.
Adult Karts
- must be 14+ years old
- minimum height 138cm
- weight limit: 120kg
Tandem Karts
- Drivers must be 18+ years, minimum height 138cm & weight limit is 120kg
- Passengers must be 8+years, minimum height of 100cm and weight limit is 80kg
- There are 4 Tandem Karts READ OUR REVIEW
The Bend Kartdrome is open 7 days a week from 10am – 5pm (subject to change based on bookings). All Karting bookings must be made online. Be sure to plan ahead if looking to book during school holidays.
CLICK HERE TO BOOK KARTING
Location:
543 Dukes Highway, Tailem Bend, South Australia. Open 7 Days a Week.
For more information and all enquiries please visit The Bend website.
At Play & Go Adelaide we make every effort to provide accurate information to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. We recommend confirming times, dates and details directly before making any plans as details may be subject to change.
As per all our Play & Go reviews, this is not a sponsored post and our review is done completely independently.
Image Source: all photos by Play & Go 2023
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