Can anyone give me a avice on how to become a professional driver?

they always say, "provessional driver on a closed course" in commercials.

how does one go about being a professional driver?

i dont come from a racing background.

gear advice toward someone whos a junior in college.

any advice would help! Thanks!


Modified by travnewmatic at 7:50 AM 9/24/2007

 

Not that I have any first hand knowledge, but you might try a stunt driving school.

http://www.motorsportsemployme....html

 

That might help, but I know a lot of those guys are ex-racers or current racers doing sidework. Rhys Millen did a bunch of commercial driving for Nissan at one point, as an example.

 

yeah, i've always heard of that Bob Bondurant Racing school. Maybe i'll buy that for myself when i have my midlife crisis.

My friends tell me that i just need to make connections, that knowing the right people can really open the door to some pretty great opportunities... as with everything else in life.

i mean i have friends that are into cars... but not into INTO cars, on any sort of a professional level... at least not to my knowledge.

By the way, thanks for the link, i appreciate it.


Modified by travnewmatic at 7:27 AM 9/24/2007

 

i've always wondered the same thing. seems like anyone who becomes big are people who come from a family with alot of motorsport history.

 

What is your major in college?

One possibility is to get an engineering degree, take courses that relate to the automotive engineering, then work out in Detroit's proving grounds. A friend of mine works at Consumer Reports testing their cars, has a track at work, gets to play with all the new cars and really test them, bring them home as his daily car... That's one possibility for you.

 

Grassroots Motorsports did an article on being a professional (spelled with a "f" ) driver.

They did a great run down on the categories of driver:
- stunt driving
- driving school instructor
- race car driver
- etc.

But you are correct about networking (as with any other career). If I were you, I would start attending amateur and professional races. Sometimes, some race teams need people to volunteer to crew. When you befriend them, you may also befriend their friends and so on and so on.

Also there are two types of professional drivers... those who earn it and those who buy it. If you cannot afford to buy into racing, earning it is a very difficult road and you will have to show by results that you are the cream of the crop. To gauge your ability I would start autocrossing, doing HPDE's, etc. If you excel there, then continue on with your dreams. If you do not do well, you didn't spend a lot of money and you can move onto something else.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Stinkycheezmonky &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">That might help, but I know a lot of those guys are ex-racers or current racers doing sidework. Rhys Millen did a bunch of commercial driving for Nissan at one point...</TD></TR></TABLE>
As well as all the driving in Fast & Furious 3 and The Dukes of Hazard movies...

Yeah, Rhys Millen and Tanner Foust are the guys you need to talk to. Don't expect it to be easy, though. Its not like there's a shortage of "professional driver" positions at the local job fair.

 

Since you don't have a racing background, ie karting or racing something since your teens or earlier, you need loads of money and resource.

If you are in JC, gear your education towards finance and business. Get your education done ASAP, spend a few years on accumulating a good sum of money. Buy yourself a good ride in a respectable Pro series and BAM, you are now a PRO DRIVER.