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Old 22 Mar 2002, 05:03 (Ref:241335)   #1
Lee Janotta
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Getting started in US?

Hi. This is really a question for the Americans, and perhaps the Canadians here. I'm quite tired of watching from afar, and I at least want to give racing a try. I don't have anything you could possibly call a budget, though, so my options are rather limited. The best I've come up with is trying to impress with daily driver in some SCCA Solo II events. All I've got are an '86 Chevy Celebrity wagon and a 90-horsepower '88 Mustang, so I'm certainly not going to win anything, even in H stock! Do you think, though, that seeing a 20 year-old with zero experience flinging a rusted-out old piece of junk thru corners in full four-wheel drift _could_ be suitably impressive to get some outside support? Hey, I don't even know I'll be that good, but I'll never know if I don't try. Should at least be pretty fun to finally open it up all the way without fear of law enforcement.

Any other ideas? I can't do karting due to budget and geography.

Last edited by Lee Janotta; 22 Mar 2002 at 05:04.
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Old 30 Mar 2002, 03:19 (Ref:247101)   #2
bobdar
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Lee, I don't think your expectations are realistic. There is very little sponsorship money available for novices running daily drivers in SCCA Solo. Racing is a black hole for money, and if you can't afford karting, you can't afford racing at this stage in your life. The good news is that you are still quite young, and your odds of achieving your goals are way better than the rest of us 50++ year-olds. I would suggest that you: a.) concentrate on improving your financial strength, b.) find a race team that can use your (free) help and start learning (also lots of fun), c.) start thinking about finding a partner to share a car (= share expenses) with, and d.) work yourself into a situation where you can get gobs of seat time in a "real" race car. If I were you, I'd try to latch on to an SCCA formula car team, find a buddy to partner with, buy a Club FF ($6-10,000), then drive/develope/re-engineer the **** out of it for a couple of years.
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Old 30 Mar 2002, 12:11 (Ref:247260)   #3
Lee Janotta
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I wasn't really thinking so much about finding sponsorship in Solo II, as building a reputation. It really is all I can afford for the next two years, until I'm done with college. Once I'm out, I should have some money I can throw at the sport. At that point, I should be able to really dive into club races and hillclimbs. My style's far more suited to ITS and A-Sedan that it is to FFord. If single seaters are really more important in moving forward, perhaps CSR?

What I was hoping to accomplish with Solo II was to sharpen my skills as best I can, and possibly start building a reputation, so I could later find some support _within_ the SCCA (not financial). Does that sound at all realistic? There's nothing else I can do until I have my degree. Will past Solo II participation later become a handicap?
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Old 30 Mar 2002, 12:42 (Ref:247286)   #4
bobdar
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Lee: I suppose that "support within the SCCA" means developing friendships and alliances with other racers, and that is a good idea. My CFF suggestion was merely on the basis of cost and simplicity; ITS is not a handicap. Good luck, but if you really want to race, get the degree completed.
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Old 30 Mar 2002, 12:51 (Ref:247291)   #5
Lee Janotta
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Thanks Bob. This has been helpful. And yeah, the degree's both more important than and essential to getting into racing, especially with entry fees being what they are. But I don't want to waste the next two years, so I'm gonna do the Solo II for now.

Hope I see you at the races sometime.
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