Surely You Could Survive This 140-Horsepower Go-Kart

Your life is boring. I know it, and I think you do too. You go to work, do your job, come home, make dinner — surely there's more to life than that. There has to be something to inject emotion into your life, to give it meaning, to remind the animal of your body that it's a living thing meant for more than just commuting, spreadsheets, and Netflix. You need raw, uncut adrenaline, and I know just the source: This Kawasaki ZX-9R-powered go-kart built by a high schooler. 

I myself built a go-kart out of plumbing pipe and a Harbor Freight motor back in high school, which qualifies me to tell you that this is both a better and worse idea than that scratch-build was. This kart is at least based around an off-the-shelf go-kart frame, intended for a shifter kart, but it's been lengthened with what the seller refers to as "ok" welds. It's got two disc brakes up front, which beats the single drum I used, but the seller calls them "breaks" when saying that they work. Remember that this seller built the kart that now holds 140 horsepower of '90s sportbike glory just behind the driver's seat. 

Isn't there something to that feeling, though? That trepidation and anxiety you feel right now, at the prospect of a go kart with Miata power that some high schooler slapped together, surely is making you feel alive. Imagine how good you'll feel once you wring it out — the seller claims it can hit at least 120 mph, and that he only backed off from there once his neighbors complained. Imagine a buck twenty, that close to the ground, riding on welds described as passable by a high schooler. The risk, the thrill, the daring. 

Sometimes, you need to be a prey animal for a bit. Sometimes you need to be reminded that life is beautiful and fleeting, and that it's best spent in the company of those you love. Sure, you could develop a knife kink to meet that same end, but you're an enthusiast — wouldn't you rather be reminded of the gorgeous ephemerality of life while seated ahead of a screaming 900cc engine?