Just wondering what kind of courses/classes/licensing it taks to road race. Reason why I ask is because a road course is opening up at Englishtown and it would be lots of fun to use it. Any and all help is very much appreciated

 

Depends on how serious you want to get. If you are just beginning I would go to a PDA event at Pocono or even Lime Rock. NASA also has HPDE events for those with street cars. Do one of these "Driver Education" courses with an instructor to get the feel of your car on a real race track. The pressure to perform is not high and there is no "door handle" racing allowed. The basic equipment requirements for this are quite similar to autocross-helmet and cotton long-sleeved shirt and pants. The websites are www. imp-auto.com and http://www.nasaproracing.com. NASA also offers their version of an autocross as it were in the form of a Time Trial event, but you need to get some track time first.

For more serious activity you want to go with SCCA and or NASA and go to an approved drivers school program in a suitable "race" prepared car. The rulebook for NASA is online a their website. SCCA members buy the General Competition Rules book from the national office or region they belong to. (www.scca.org or call 1-800-770-2055) Remember that this is a serious undertaking both personally and financially.
Hope this gives you a start.

 

you should read my FAQ, link is in my sig. which is also in the forum sticky. i suggest you pay special attention to the advice of finding a local racer and contacting him before you put any money into your car or whatever. but to answer your question of what it takes, it simply takes $$$.

 

first thing......you have to be willing to possibly write off your car.....yes even in an HPDE....

second.....just do driving schools with a STOCK CAR!!! use that time to examine yourself both mentally and physically to make sure you can race. no, not everybody can race!!

third....find an organization that you like, nasa, scca, speedtrials etc. go with them for your HPDE's and Competition Licencing.

fourth....start to slowly mod your car to race prep, it is a big expenditure if you do it all at once, or just buy a preprep'd car which is the most cost effective measure.

fifth....get the wife/girlfriends' blessing.....glad i had neither when i started out!

 

It takes...

 

That is so foul.

 

$, and lots of it.

 

Can a case of Elephantitis really do that ****?

 

Like it has already been mentioned, money as well as time are what it takes both generally and specifically since these two things will determine how much (if any) racing you can do. Thinking about licenses/classes/etc are also important, but once that's done we must once again think about how much money/time our specific goals will require and go from there. So first set some goals (what class/car you wish to race) and then plan for them using the resources you have.

 

A road course is opening up in Englishtown? I did not know that.

Aahj

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Aahj &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">A road course is opening up in Englishtown? I did not know that.

Aahj</TD></TR></TABLE>


Karts maybe. Thats a big maybe.

problem#1 Legal issues with the city still have not been resolved.

problem#2 The track has major problems with lay-out. I bet there will never be a real w-2-w AUTO race there. If there is a w-2-w event.... count me out, too damn dangerous.

Too bad, e-town is 15 mins away.

BTW- you need money and time to learn the craft.

Good luck.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Rguy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">$, and lots of it.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Yes. racing takes more $ than anything.

building a car
taking school
practice practice practice
repairs
travel

so much money...i wanted to run WCHC this season but cant afford it till im done with school...

 

Thanks for all the help guys! I really appreciate it. I also recently heard that Englishtowns track was basically a failure, and MAY be a kart track. That was disappointing...