TTAC Media Challenge: Calling Out Autoblog, Hooniverse, Car And Driver For A Good Cause

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

I may not have a Golden Disco Hoodie, but I have more experience than Jack Baruth does when it comes to karting. And I’m calling out any member of the media who wants to challenge me on a kart track. After all, I’m defending my title from last year (see above)

(N.B I did finish first here. “Scott” refers to a gentleman who crashed out and DNFd)

Before you unfairly write me off as an arrogant jackass, I should explain the backstory. Last year, a few of us decided to forgo abusing the open bar at the Hyundai Genesis launch to hit up a kart track. Hyundai will be launching the Veloster Turbo, Elantra GT and Elantra Coupe next week in San Diego, and it looks like the same crew will be re-united, along with a generally strong roster of atendees.

While plans for an evening of karting were a no brainer, I decided to up the ante. I’m branding this one the “TTAC Media Challenge” (since I thought of it) and raising the stakes. Anyone can enter, but the losers have to donate $25 to a charity of the winner’s choice. I’m choosing Gabrielle’s Ride in support of Cardiac Kids & The Pediatric Stroke Foundation at the Hospital For Sick Kids in Toronto. My friend Kyle, an avid cyclist, is participating in the event, and any donations can be made via his account at the link above. If anyone wins (unlikely) they can choose something else.

Attending the launch are journalists from Autoblog, Hooniverse, Automotive.com, Car and Driver, Jalopnik, The Smoking Tire and numerous other outlets. I encourage anyone interested and willing to come to San Diego to come out. More participants means more donations. I’ve chosen Miramar Speed Circuit since it’s close to our hotel, the karts look good and they seem to be able to accommodate groups.

P.S. I’ve already had numerous gripes about the driver’s weight when karting. I am 5’10 and around 180lbs. I was the same weight last year and managed to beat much smaller competitors, while 6’7″ Jared Gall came in second. On the outdoor tracks pictured above, I run in the Heavy class (180lbs and up), as the long straights really do provide an advantage for the lighter guys. On a short indoor track, it won’t matter.

Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Wolfwagen Is it me or have auto shows just turned to meh? To me, there isn't much excitement anymore. it's like we have hit a second malaise era. Every new vehicle is some cookie-cutter CUV. No cutting-edge designs. No talk of any great powertrains, or technological achievements. It's sort of expected with the push to EVs but there is no news on that front either. No new battery tech, no new charging tech. Nothing.
  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
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