There are things in this world you don't know are missing from your life until you experience them. A three-story go-kart track is one of them.
The Track in Myrtle Beach is here to fill a need you didn't know you had. And it's every bit as fun and thrilling as it sounds and looks.
The Myrtle Beach family attraction has not just one, but two towering go-kart courses for budding race car drivers and their parents, along with a flat and easy track for younger drivers. For the very littlest visitors, there are a handful of amusement park rides just their speed.
But the real stars of The Track are Mighty Myrtle and Wild Woody, the elevated, multilevel courses.
With the pedal to the metal, you'll corkscrew your way up three stories, then twist and turn your way down. Both courses feature single and double karts, so families with kids from preschoolers to teenagers can get in on the fun. An added bonus: Because the karts are electric, they're far quieter than the ones you might remember from your childhood days. And there's no stinky gasoline fumes either.
I never imagined how much fun I would have racing against my own 11- and 13-year-old kids. At that age, they're old enough to drive a go-kart on their own, but young enough that I was absolutely certain I would smoke them in the race. I've had a license for almost 30 years now. Surely I'd out-drive them.
With the racers dashing out of the gate single file, the kids immediately took off in front of me. I knew to hug the curves going up to try to gain an advantage. But the kids used the same strategy, keeping me in the rear. It was on the turns going down that I finally made up some of the distance and was able to pass my daughter.
At the last big hill before the course turned sharply and started to climb again, I spotted my son ahead of me. Confident I would be able to cut him off on the inside, I made my move, gunning for the inside rail. As I wedged my front bumper in between the curve and his go-kart, he was bumped out to the side, allowing me to pass him.
But not before one of the safety guards met my eye, dourly shook his head and blew his whistle.
Staff members are positioned all along the course to enforce The Track's safety rules. Clearly, this is a necessary precaution when you get overly-competitive, cutthroat moms on the same track with their more cautious young children. The safety guards make sure everyone is having a safe and fun time.
Before we knew it, we were back climbing to the top of the three-story track to start the descent again. After countless laps up and down the tracks, we went inside to play a few arcade games before heading to the beach.
Over the course of the afternoon, I won some and lost some against my kids and husband. But who's keeping score when you're having a blast.
