Karting data: what it is and how to get it without a logger
By Antony Vickery. Updated .
Three very different things go by the same name. One tells you what the engine was doing. One tells you how quick each lap was. The third tells you where on the lap you were quick, and you might already have it on a memory card.
What is karting data?
Karting data is any record of what you and the kart did on track. Most people mean a logger file from a dash like a MyChron or Alfano, but the venue's timing sheet counts too, and so does the GPS your onboard camera saves inside the video.
The three kinds of karting data
| Logger file | Timing sheet | Camera GPS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where it comes from | A dash on the steering wheel, such as a MyChron or Alfano | The venue's transponder timing, printed or in their app, or the club's results after a meeting | The GPS chip in a GoPro Hero 9, 10, 11 or 13, or a DJI Action 4, 5, 6 or Osmo 360 with the DJI GPS Remote |
| What it tells you | RPM and temperatures, plus lap times on the dash | Every lap time, your best lap, where you finished against everyone else | Position, speed and acceleration about ten times a second on a GoPro, plus g-force from the camera's motion sensors |
| What it can't tell you | Nothing about the film. You match the trace to your memory of the lap | Where on the lap the time went | RPM or temperatures |
| Without buying a logger | Not possible for engine data. Borrow a dash or skip it | Free with the session | Free if you already film with a supported camera |
A logger file
This is what most karters mean when they say "data". A dash such as a MyChron or an Alfano sits on the wheel, shows you lap times as you drive and records the engine: RPM and temperatures, lap after lap. It's the only one of the three that sees inside the engine. If you're sorting gearing, or wondering why the kart's flat down the back straight, you need it. Here's the catch. There's no free way round it. A phone or a camera can't read RPM, so if engine data is the question, the honest answer is a dash, yours or a borrowed one. And if you've already got one? Keep it. Race Ninja can line an Alfano or AiM file up with your camera's GPS on the same lap, so the RPM and water temp sit next to the film instead of in a separate program.
The timing sheet
The cheapest karting data there is. You get it whether you asked for it or not. At a hire venue it's the printout or the screen in the app after the session. At a club meeting it's the results. Either way you get every lap time and your best, and you can see who was quicker. What it can't do is say why. A sheet that reads 0:55.709 then 0:55.471 tells you the second lap was quicker. It doesn't tell you it was quicker in one sector and slower in another, which is the bit you can actually work on.
Your camera's GPS
If you film your sessions on a GoPro Hero 9, 10, 11 or 13, the camera has been logging its position about ten times a second the whole time. At 90 km/h that's a fix roughly every 2.5 metres. A phone's built-in GPS manages about one fix a second, which leaves about 25 metres of track unaccounted for. That's enough to see braking points and line differences clearly. The motion sensors add g-force at about 200 Hz. DJI Action 4, 5 and 6 and the Osmo 360 do it with the DJI GPS Remote (about one fix a second). The Hero 12 has no GPS at all, so on its own it can't time laps. Not sure what your camera saved? The free GPS checker tells you in seconds, and the file never leaves your browser. How to get it without buying a logger: film with GPS switched on, then upload the video to Race Ninja. It's free to start. The analysis runs in the cloud and you review it in your browser: lap times, sector splits, racing line, corner speeds and coaching notes, each tied to the moment on film. That's what we mean by Racing Intelligence. The numbers come with what they mean.
One real session, in numbers
B. Philpot's session at Whilton Mill on 19 April 2026, timed from onboard GPS video. It's public, so you can open the full analysis and check every figure below.
| What the page shows | Value |
|---|---|
| Laps | 15 |
| Best lap | 0:55.471 (lap 10) |
| Best sector splits | S1 9.596, S2 11.156, S3 12.009, S4 11.120, S5 11.177 |
| Theoretical best lap (fastest sectors joined up) | 0:55.058 |
| Peak speed | 49.3 mph |
| Conditions | 11°, overcast, 13 km/h wind from the NNW |
A timing sheet from that afternoon would give you the 0:55.471 and fourteen other lap times. That's all.
The camera data gives you the rest. Put the five best sectors together and the lap is 0:55.058, a bit over four tenths quicker than the best lap actually driven. Those best sectors came from four different laps, so the pace is already there. It just never all turned up on one lap. Finding which sector to fix first is the job, and the sector table on the same page shows it lap by lap.
Questions karters ask about karting data
What is karting data?
Any record of a kart session. Usually a logger file from a dash like a MyChron or Alfano, but the venue's timing sheet and the GPS track your onboard camera records are karting data too. Each answers a different question.
Do I need a data logger for karting?
Not for lap times or your racing line. A GoPro with GPS on, or a DJI with its GPS remote, records enough for that. You need a dash if you want RPM or temperatures, because a camera can't see the engine.
Can a GoPro record karting data?
Yes. A GoPro Hero 9, 10, 11 or 13 logs its GPS position about ten times a second inside the video file, plus motion-sensor data at about 200 Hz. The Hero 12 is the odd one out: it has no GPS, so add a lap-timer or logger file when you upload.
Is phone GPS good enough for karting data?
For lap times, roughly. For corners, not really. A phone's built-in GPS gets about one fix a second, so at 90 km/h it misses about 25 metres between fixes. A GoPro narrows that to about 2.5 metres.
What should I look at first in my karting data?
Sector times, lap by lap. Find the sector where your typical lap is furthest off your best one. Then look at the corners in it. The corner where your slowest speed falls furthest below your best lap is usually where the time's hiding.
Can I get karting data for free?
Your timing sheet costs nothing. If you already film on a supported camera, the GPS data's already in your footage, and Race Ninja's free Rookie plan gives you one analysis a month. Engine data is the one kind you can't get without a dash.