i remember that there was someone on this board who started pro racing. he had a black X taped to his bumper to notify the others that he was a rookie.

i'd like to know if that was with the scca, and how he went about getting his competition license. (which driving schools) also what mods are allowed on the cars, and if there is a limit as to how old the car can be.

i would like to build a crx to get started in "real" racing, (hopefully in the next year or two) but the oldest car i've seen in this sort of racing is roger foo's civic hatch.

thanks for any help

argiris

 

sounds like you're talking about Andrew, but he's not a pro so I could be wrong.

 

actually i think it is andrew, now that i think about it. he's doing wheel to wheel racing i think, so that <U>is</U> a pro to me it's a step in the right direction at least.

thanks yoshi
argiris

 

Andrew races with TCRA ( http://www.touringcarclub.com) Andrew is a very good driver, but that's not really PRO RACING. Nobody starts in PRO RACING.

If you want to start racing a CRX in your area, the best would be to race with SCCA Club Racing or NASA. If you want to attend a Racing School, the best is Skip Barber Racing School. Check out their websites for more info. If you have more question, I would be glad to answer them.


http://www.scca.org
http://www.nasaproracing.com
http://www.skipbarber.com

 

i think paul (junpowereditr) is in the process of getting his pro license..im sure he has some useful insight

 

Actually EP, Paul is racing with me in TCRA as well.

TCRA is an organization here on the west coast that hold both Time Trials as well as two race groups. I run my R in the 2.2 Challenge Cup, which is a race group that is only 2.2 liters and under.

As for being a great driver, I am FAR from it, and still have a lot to learn. I just really started going to track events about 1.5 years ago. Guys on this board like Glen K. (Gansan) and Scott Rinde (RR98ITR) are what I would consider "great" drivers.

----Insert shameless plug here----

TCRA will be holding an event at California Speedway in Fontana, CA on Oct. 20th and 21st. For more info, go to http://www.touringcarclub.com.


[Modified by Andrew, 5:08 PM 8/28/2001]

 

argiris,

The Speedvision World Challenge has a limitation of how old the car can be, which I believe is no older than 5 years after it was discontinued. So a CRX would be out of the question. However, before you try and get into a series like that, I would recommend getting a few years experience in club racing like I am doing.

 

I agree that Glen K.(Gansan) is a GOOD driver!

Lloyd- who got a chance to take a few laps with Glen at the ITR Expo!

 

thanks for all the info guys.
i'm definately not looking to race in the Speedvision World Challenge, just some wheel to wheel racing. i haven't even time trialed yet, but have been to the track with driving schools. (nothing like skip barber, much more laid back).
i'm just trying to see what i'm really getting myself into with this.
i found this: http://www.honda-challenge.com/, which i think would be a good start for next year. it's on the east coast at least! if anyone knows of any other clubs on the east coast let me know.

thanks again.
argiris

 

and Glens car is all stock isnt it?

 

You should at least have 10 Time Trial/ Lapping days under your belt before you go wheel to wheel.

You might save yourself and others the grief of body repair.

Small steps...

 

Glen has two Type R's. The one he had at the Expo was his first, which is near stock (with the expection of the Mugen suspension stuff.) He also owns one of Taz Harvey's ex-R's -- remember the DC Sports R in Gran Turismo 2?

 

i'm definately thinking small steps, just thinking ahead also.
i figure next year will be spent doing time trialing and lapping days/schools. if all goes well the year after i would move on.

so someone bought taz harvey's R? glad to see it went to good hands

argiris

 

yeah i heard about that one. Whats wrong with it? Blown engine?

 

Pro racing is not always "pro" as in "great drivers". Take for instance the Grand-Am Cup and Speedvision World Challenge. All these guys are considered PROs, but in fact they are just regular amateur racers with a LOT of $$$funds. Money is the only thing it takes to "graduate" into one of these series. For example, now I have a national scca license. All I need to do is to come up with a few hundred dollars and upgrade it to a Pro license. And there ya have it, I'm a PRO! No further experience required! The guys racing in the World Challenge have the money to afford to build and run $80 000 ITRs, BMWs, etc as opposed to running a $15 000 car in IT or with NASA. There are a few great drivers in these series also, and we all know who they are, but most of them are just ordinary people who like to have fun racing (expensive!) cars.

To show this: Last year when the WC Touring ran on BFG R1s (d.o.t. race tires) at Road Atlanta, if we would have somehow made the field with our ITA car, we would have qualified just about mid-pack by what we usually run there. This is being down a good 70+ hp! Last year at a scca race at VIR, the fastest ITA CRX there was running laps in the 2:19s. This is 1 second away that what the pole GSR ran this year in the Grand-Am Cup Compact class! The CRX also was on par with both HART Civic Si who qualified 2nd and 3rd in the Grand-Am race. Don't forget, this is in a CRX that is down about 50 hp to those Civics and GSRs! There are a lot of good drivers racing in "amateur" series only due to lack of mega funds to run with the more expensive machinery required to run in the WC/Grand-Am Cup for example.

All I'm trying to say is that there are Pro drivers out there and real PRO drivers. The real PRO guys, in addition of having a Pro or FIA license, also get paid to drive (unlike 95% of the Grand-Am Cup/WC drivers). These are the guys you see in AMLS, Le Mans, CART, IRL, F1, Nascar, etc.


[Modified by Hracer, 9:55 PM 8/28/2001]

 

Argiris,
Send me an email. I have dreams just like you and I am starting to make them true. Last week I bought a Miata and I will be turning that into a Spec Miata/Time Trial/Driving School Car. I was going to buy a CRX, but I wanted to learn how to drive RWD. In the dry, a RWD and FWD car can be just as fast on a track, but I still felt I needed to learn the different driving dynamics of RWD. As next year progresses, I will be getting my SCCA competition license, so I will keep you posted. Check out my website http://www.autocrossnyc.com I have a link on the menu called "My Miata". This page will be a diary of the changes to the car and my racing experiences.

P.S&gt; If you can, come out to Englishtown this weekend, we can talk. If not, I will drive up to Limerock on the 8th to hang out with you.

 

dave, you have mail.

argiris

 

I asked Taz Harvey about his (old) car @ the WC race in Portland, and he said that he found a buyer, and a week into the purchase the motor let go

Demian