Where should newbs to racing go?
04-12-2012, 12:52 PM
#26
FULLY SEMI AUTOMATIC
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Wow!!!! Is all I can say to all this confusing talk to this new guy with a car he want to have some fun with.
All this NASA talk of what you can and can't do / put on your car / levels and ladders and racing and such seems just a 'tad' bit overboard. Virtually any standard everyday Club HPDE (BMW, PORSCHE, AUDI, SCDA, etc) have no such rules and regulations as youall are speaking of .. just have a safe and maintained car (any car) and a helemt and pay your fee and go .. or alternatively any modification whatsoever that are not disallowed .. and these are mostly safety things - no levels/classes for entry.. no hassle and you get excellent instructors .
Some people just want to have fun .. not make a life choice that you're going to be a professional racer before you even get on the track. Let the guy walk before he plans a trip to the nationals with his car meeting every rule in the NASA rule book.
Or at least that's my 2c worth.
All this NASA talk of what you can and can't do / put on your car / levels and ladders and racing and such seems just a 'tad' bit overboard. Virtually any standard everyday Club HPDE (BMW, PORSCHE, AUDI, SCDA, etc) have no such rules and regulations as youall are speaking of .. just have a safe and maintained car (any car) and a helemt and pay your fee and go .. or alternatively any modification whatsoever that are not disallowed .. and these are mostly safety things - no levels/classes for entry.. no hassle and you get excellent instructors .
Some people just want to have fun .. not make a life choice that you're going to be a professional racer before you even get on the track. Let the guy walk before he plans a trip to the nationals with his car meeting every rule in the NASA rule book.
Or at least that's my 2c worth.
04-12-2012, 01:02 PM
#28
FULLY SEMI AUTOMATIC
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good read bse and a little funny
04-12-2012, 01:06 PM
#29
04-12-2012, 08:33 PM
#30
if things go according to plan and you are interested in autocross, im bringing out all the rx8 owners from my college(Theres 7 of us!) to a autox in the summer. Were crashing the party with rx8s. If you want to know when we are going just PM me and ill keep you in the loop when everything is settled.
This will be my first autox/ racing experience ever as well.
This will be my first autox/ racing experience ever as well.
04-12-2012, 11:32 PM
#31
i started out drifting before anything. even before autox. i hated autox. i had a SN95 Cobra as my first car so id go up BeaveRun (now is PittRace) and would pay like $20 for the WHOLE day and drift on the skidpad. alot of fun and it sorta teached me how to control my car in a way too. only thing that sucks is you run through tires like its your day job. but id go with autox, it really helped me alot when i actually decided to do it later on.
04-13-2012, 02:28 PM
#34
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if you end up hooked and want to start competing in the future don't come back here and whine about how you have to demod your car or run in a class the car can't compete.
That's the big reason why I said to go read Take the Wheel and *really* try and evaluate where you want to end up. If it really is just to have fun at the track in DE groups, mod how you see fit and enjoy
if it isn't, need to think a little farther ahead.
BT,DT.
That's the big reason why I said to go read Take the Wheel and *really* try and evaluate where you want to end up. If it really is just to have fun at the track in DE groups, mod how you see fit and enjoy
if it isn't, need to think a little farther ahead.BT,DT.
04-14-2012, 08:43 PM
#36
I appreciate all the info guys i really do. But you gave me a reality check to the cost of maintenance and everything. I mean do some people just do this on the side as a hobby? Or do most you guys do this professionally/earn money this way? I really wanna race my 8, but seems like a pretty expensive hobby. Maybe when I'm more settled down after my daughter is born (prolly within next 2 weeks), I can start pre-planning
04-14-2012, 09:00 PM
#37
Driver of #50 RX8
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I appreciate all the info guys i really do. But you gave me a reality check to the cost of maintenance and everything. I mean do some people just do this on the side as a hobby? Or do most you guys do this professionally/earn money this way? I really wanna race my 8, but seems like a pretty expensive hobby. Maybe when I'm more settled down after my daughter is born (prolly within next 2 weeks), I can start pre-planning
James I honestly think you can "track" your car for a reasonable amount but "Racing" (Time Trial, Time Attack, and wheel to Wheel) is going to get expensive quick. I would say AFTER the car is prepped a track day would be $300 or so on average. Time trials aka time attacks probably could be done as cheap as a track day since you are only spending as much as you want to go faster... realize that can become an endless pit pretty quick though! I would say Wheel to Wheel is probably more like 1K-2K per weekend and up depending on travel and accomodations. Racing professionally (WC or Continental challenge) is definetly out of the question for the average person and is at minimum 15K per weekend for a back half of the grid effort. In all these "scenarios" you can't forget about Prep work that you need to do.
Track Days are a ton of fun and a good way to get started to see if you even like running on track. I suggest hooking up with someone like Spin9K to see what realistic costs are.
Don't forget about AutoCross as well. This site is full of people that are doing Autocross ranging from casual to pretty darn serious efforts with RX8's!
Good Luck, If you didn't visit the three clubs I mentioned above please do so. I think you will find at least 1 of those clubs have an event near you that could have you on track for less than $300 bucks WITH an instructor to help you out!
Stephen
04-17-2012, 09:27 AM
#39
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Wow!!!! .. just have a safe and maintained car (any car) and a helemt and pay your fee and go .. or alternatively any modification whatsoever that are not disallowed .. and these are mostly safety things - no levels/classes for entry.. no hassle and you get excellent instructors .
There is more to this than just hopping into a car with a helmet and driving!!
That IS the voice of experience!
04-17-2012, 11:10 AM
#40
Momentum Keeps Me Going
^ disagree. Maybe from your perspective as a advanced racer, or at some kind of lassiefaire open tracking session somewhere, things are treated differently, not sure. No untrained person should just pay $$, get in a car and drive on track alone, and I've never been to any event ever where that was alllowed in any way, shape, or form.
But all the HPDE clubs I'm aware of are absolutely looking for new entrants. Any roadworthy car that meets club inspection and student requirements is sufficient. There is certainly nothing ill advised about that statement. Without new people all there would be on track at any event would be advanced solo group and instructors tracking for cheap. There need to be plenty of instructors as the more instructors the more new entrants can be accepted and trained to progress up the skill ladder and improve both themselves and their car if they so desire. This keeps HPDE's viable as there are monetary consideration as well. Students pay the bills.
If you are the voice of experience, you would already agree with all that I say. I am the voice of experience as well, so what exactly are you saying? Everyone starts a green student. There is no requirement to go fast, or even as fast on track as on the street. Driving skill and handling a car safely on track are the absolute priorities at any and all events I have been to in the nine years I have been tracking, not speed, lap time, etc.. Instructors sit in every new entrants car the whole time on track to govern the use and safety and monitor ability. No one gets signed off to solo without a thorough vetting, which is as it should be.
My advice stands, I don't understand what you are saying.
But all the HPDE clubs I'm aware of are absolutely looking for new entrants. Any roadworthy car that meets club inspection and student requirements is sufficient. There is certainly nothing ill advised about that statement. Without new people all there would be on track at any event would be advanced solo group and instructors tracking for cheap. There need to be plenty of instructors as the more instructors the more new entrants can be accepted and trained to progress up the skill ladder and improve both themselves and their car if they so desire. This keeps HPDE's viable as there are monetary consideration as well. Students pay the bills.
If you are the voice of experience, you would already agree with all that I say. I am the voice of experience as well, so what exactly are you saying? Everyone starts a green student. There is no requirement to go fast, or even as fast on track as on the street. Driving skill and handling a car safely on track are the absolute priorities at any and all events I have been to in the nine years I have been tracking, not speed, lap time, etc.. Instructors sit in every new entrants car the whole time on track to govern the use and safety and monitor ability. No one gets signed off to solo without a thorough vetting, which is as it should be.
My advice stands, I don't understand what you are saying.
04-17-2012, 12:01 PM
#41
After reading extensively on this site I determined it would be about 3500 a year for me to do 12 track days. That covers track fees, increased maintenance, tires, pads, fuel, pretty much everything. This is a line item budget forecasted out to 2016 and adjusted for projected CPI. So far I’m under budget. Should be as simple as that once you find a mentor or someone to get you started/hang with you a couple times until you actually decide to get competitive.
04-17-2012, 12:03 PM
#42
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Your original post states that talk of the ladder system is confusing
Read the title of this thread (Where does a newb go racing) and the quotes from it's author:
I absolutely agree that new people should go out. I absolutely agree this is the most fun thing in the whole wide world. I firmly and wholeheartedly encourage the NASA and SCCA ladder systems.
But your quote indicates that the ladder system is too complicated and you can just hop in a car and drive fast. I believe you when you say that you have experience. If so, you know all the things that can go wrong. This is a dangerous sport. There were numerous cars wrecked this weekend by newbs in the rain at MidOhio. "just hop in with your helmet" does a disservice. One guy dropped enough oil on the track it took $1800 worth of oil dry to clean off because he was too unaware to get off the track. Your response contradicts your original post. I am saying there are a lot of things you need to be aware of and things you need to prepare your car for. Especially if heavily modded.
It seems we actually agree, we're just exchanging confusing words.
Read the title of this thread (Where does a newb go racing) and the quotes from it's author:
But your quote indicates that the ladder system is too complicated and you can just hop in a car and drive fast. I believe you when you say that you have experience. If so, you know all the things that can go wrong. This is a dangerous sport. There were numerous cars wrecked this weekend by newbs in the rain at MidOhio. "just hop in with your helmet" does a disservice. One guy dropped enough oil on the track it took $1800 worth of oil dry to clean off because he was too unaware to get off the track. Your response contradicts your original post. I am saying there are a lot of things you need to be aware of and things you need to prepare your car for. Especially if heavily modded.
It seems we actually agree, we're just exchanging confusing words.
04-17-2012, 03:01 PM
#43
Momentum Keeps Me Going
After reading extensively on this site I determined it would be about 3500 a year for me to do 12 track days. That covers track fees, increased maintenance, tires, pads, fuel, pretty much everything. This is a line item budget forecasted out to 2016 and adjusted for projected CPI. So far I’m under budget. Should be as simple as that once you find a mentor or someone to get you started/hang with you a couple times until you actually decide to get competitive.
one typical event****
Entry per day ave $200-300
Gas @.50/mile $75 < ~2 hr on track/day @70mph@8mpg
tire/wheels/pads/oil/tools $???? < spread over several to many track days
hotel & food *if needed $????
TOTAL = rough $275-375 /day x12 days = $3300-4500 NOT counting the above consumables....or ANY mods you might do beforehand..or ANY lodging/food.
I just nixed a nice 2 day event after figuring the cost like this....4 day trip (850 miles roundtrip @20mpg = ~$200) plus $375 event fee + 3 night hotel (3x~$150=$450) and 8 hrs track time (nice!) @70mph @8mpg (~$300) + cheap food (~$100) + on track oil (~$30) = $1455. Again, no consumables like tires/pads used in that.
Adds up fast!!
04-17-2012, 03:10 PM
#44
Momentum Keeps Me Going
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