Go Karting near NYC - Velocity 17 Go Kart Track in Maywood NJ (Review)

17 Jan

Go Karting In New Jersey and Drive Like a New Yorker

Written by Vincent Crossley Leisure, New Jersey

Tagged with adventure, bus, new-jersey, reviews, sports

For all you offManhattan readers who don’t own a car, and have ever thought you could dodge traffic better than a New York City cab driver, this is your chance to give it a shot. At the Velocity 17 go kart track in Maywood, New Jersey, you’ll find out what it’s like to weave your way through cars at 30 miles per hour. Except here, your butt will rest only two inches off the ground and you better watch out for the hairpin turns and chicanes thrown in for good measure.

After entering the track area and viewing a brief safety video, you will don the required helmet and neck brace. When your name is called, you will step into one of the electric-powered beauties and await the start signal. Pushing down on the pedal, you’ll immediately feel the intense acceleration, and hitting the first turn you’ll realize how much skill is involved to drive this track fast. The races last about eight minutes each and are about two miles long. Once you have recovered from the exhilarating ride, stick around and wait for your stat sheet that will most likely show you how poor your lap times are compared to the veteran racers. But you can always race again!

Only a half hour bus ride from Port Authority, Velocity 17 makes a great weekend activity. And it’s not just the go karts you will enjoy. With a flight simulator, billiards table, lounge with a cafeteria, and driving simulators, you won’t get bored.

Thanks to their late hours (closing at 11pm Tues-Thurs, and midnight Fri-Sun), it’s easy to find a time to race. Be sure to call or check their schedule before planning a trip—they occasionally have private events and are closed to the public. To drive at the full 30mph, drivers must be over 18 and bring a valid drivers license, or else you will be throttled down to 22 mph and race with the kids. The cost to get on the track is just $10 for the day or $20 for a yearly pass, in addition to the $18.50 fee per race.

How to get there: Velocity 17 is easily accessible to New York City NJ Transit bus. Take the 164 Midland Park bus from Port Authority Bus Terminal, ride the bus for thirty minutes, and get out at the Essex St. and Maywood Ave. stop. The facilities are a five minute walk away. From the bus stop, walk on the sidewalk towards Duane Reade, cross Maywood Ave., stay on the sidewalk until you pass Duane Reade and see a closed road on your right. Walk down the road, bearing left. Continue on this road (you will pass a FedEx building on your right) and you will end up in the V-17 parking lot. Take our handy map with you to make sure you don’t get lost! Please note that the road may not be well lit at night—if you stay late, you might want to bring a flashlight. (Velocity 17, 87 Route 17 North, Maywood, NJ, 800-942-4919, v-17.com)

Walking Directions (See -How to get there- to download and print map)

The Bus Stops Here

The Road to Fulfilling Your Racing Dreams

Velocity 17

The Lounge

The Karts Await

Racers

Racing

More Racing

Track Layout (Image Courtesy Velocity 17)

Map It |

11 Responses to “Go Karting In New Jersey and Drive Like a New Yorker”

>. Says:
January 24th, 2009 at 8:49 pm

“The cost to get on the track is just $10 for a year—long license or $20 for a yearly pass, in addition to the $18.50 fee per race.”

Correction since it’s hard to understand.. It’s $10 for a day pass and $20 for the yearly.
Vincent Crossley Says:
January 25th, 2009 at 6:51 pm

Thanks for pointing this out! The text has been changed to make this clearer.
Jocelyn Says:
July 1st, 2009 at 11:02 pm

Hi..I saw your website and it would be the type of place I would enjoy.I would like to know if you give bundle prices if we come as a group of more than 10 people.I’m planning to celebrate my 18th birthday there.
Thank you!
Me Says:
July 17th, 2009 at 10:48 am

So if im correct it cost 10.00 dollars to get in and 18.50 to rent a car all day ? please let me know… thanks
Private Label Rights Says:
September 1st, 2009 at 8:26 pm

Thanks for the news, I really didn?t know about it yet though I normally keep my eyes wide opened.
dennis Says:
November 27th, 2009 at 10:34 pm

AVOID VELOCITY 17 LIKE THE PLAGUE!!

If you enjoy being treated like cattle, enjoy waiting 2.5 hours for a 6 minute go cart race and having your nine year old son cry 3 times, this is the place for you. I tried to get all the information upfront as I waited to register on the first of the 3 lines.
First up: 3 touch screen registration monitors (30 minutes.) I winced in agony as patrons stood there entering all their personal information very slowly, talking to their friends and family, asking each other what their zip code is and how to spell their street name. This pre-registration could easily be done on the internet prior to arrriving thus saving the first 30 minutes. Second up: The payment line, waiting in line to pay for the ride (30 minutes),just make sure you pay cash (no credit cards) and if you don’t have cash, they make money on their portable ATM next to the desk $2 per transaction.) At this junction into the second hour of racing “hell”, I asked the cashier at the desk what the approximate wait was (She said about 1/2 hour to 45 minutes) and I also asked if you paid for multiple rides around the track, would you be able to stay in your car and ride again or would you have to get off and get in line again? (She said she wasn’t sure and would have to ask a senior cashier… the senior cashier said you have to get back in line again, just like you would expect to do at “Disney World”- bad comparison, I’ll explain later.) THIRD UP: The final circle or racing “hell”, the intolerable wait in the actual line (1.5 hours) to race for 6 minutes…However, this is where the biggest kick to the crotch came to play. Apparantly waitind so far for now 1.5 hors wasn’t bad enough with the promise now of being the next group to finally enter the actual racing pit, but all of a sudden being informed that an unseen party was now to be given preferential track time even though there was no indication of anything of this. A party was now going to get in line between my son and I and was now going to cutt off the line on 35 people all waiting on line…We were assurred by the “carnie-like staff”that this was an imposition and they were sorry for it and there was nothing they could do. This party would only add another 15 minutes more to our wait, and sorry but here some more V-17 logic, either play by our rules or leave–we don’t care. The party did not take an extra 15 minutes it was an extra 45 minutes. Finally at 2 hr and 15 minute mark we got on our hair nets (lice prevention from their racing helmets, put on our neck braces and we raced finally for SIX WHOLE MINUTES!! WHOOPPEE!! the people running this place have absolutely no consideration for anyone..the almighty dollar reigns supreme and your anger needs to be checked at the door. You need to be a silent sheep and either play by V-17’s rules or leave. I unfortunately tried V-17’s rules and left with the feeling of nausea in the pit of my stomach after one of the worst experiences of customer service I have ever seen in my entire life…This coming from someone that was stuck on the Pirate’s of the Carribean Ride in Disney World last summer for nearly 2 hours last year after the ride became inoperable and wouldn’t move. However, the people at Disney know how to deal with the public in a humane manner, even though circumstances are not up to par. V-17 could care less if you have had a good experience or not, just make sure you pay cash (no credit cards) and if you don’t have cash, they make money on their portabl;e ATM next to the desk. THIS PLACE IS A TRAVESTY, I wouldn’t have an enemy of mine go there..there is not a shred of compassion amongst the staff and they really do not care about the customer experience, just the almighty dollar. Here’s a quote from my nine year old son who just got done reading what I just wrote, “At first I was having fun just being there, then I realized the place stunk and I repeat STUNK! It was just plain bad and I was planning on my birthday party being here…I’ll never go back again!”

Have fun at V-17- Don’t say a I did not warn you… If you agree to this article or not I would like to see you comment below-

Thanks for your time.

And please do not compare yourself to Disney- is the horse dead yet?
Brian Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 11:56 am

Thanks for the heads up on V-17-
Sometimes it takes several changes in ownership before these places become actually well run. Guess I’ll have to wait for the third set of owners before I try it out.
Tony Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 4:06 pm

All I can say is the place is a rip off. One 6 minute race in 2 hours. Don’t go thee ever. There are much better places in PA.
Sean Says:
December 7th, 2009 at 2:17 pm

All I can say is that they ruined my son’s birthday. When I called up I was told that I did not need to book a party. When we got there 15 kids, they had to wait 1 to 1.5 hours per race. We have tickets for 4 hours. They put a couple of other parties in front of us and gave the us some free races, knowing well that they will never have to make good on the freebies. To get through all the races we would have been there something like 7 hours for a total of 35 mins of racing. When I spoke to the staff their attitude was nothing we can do, you should have booked a party. The managers were no better, Pete and Eric. All they were tying to do was push the virtual racing and roller skating.

Spoke to a couple of people there who had booked parties, they were waiting on average 1 hour per race. Even though they had been given race times.

Would never go there again if they paid me. Avoid, Avoid, Avoid. That’s all I can say.
bryce simon Says:
December 26th, 2009 at 9:06 pm

do you have any type of parties i can have here
Mike Says:
February 8th, 2010 at 10:40 pm

If it wasn’t for that in depth review up there i would have taken a lady friend on a date to V-17. I’m glad i dodged that bullet.

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offManhattan is a travel guide for native New Yorkers and tourists alike, promoting a "greener" lifestyle. The editorial staff has mapped out and explored hot spots off the island - without a car. So embrace public transportation and welcome to oM.