New to FV

[Steve Bamford]

It seems the thread has only attempted to focus on the entry fee costs saying over & over that something should be done about them compared to bracket racing.

These are two different sports altogether & have different costs associated with them. Many car manufactures are renting out road racing tracks we use for customer driving days. These are becoming more & more popular & are helping to sustain many of the tracks we race on. If our organizations don't pay the track fees then we don't race & someone else is in line to rent out the track for other purposes.

I don't know of the car manufactures renting out the drag stips for customer driving days but could be wrong...just doesn't have the same marketing appeal I guess.

Movies used to cost .05 cents, gas used to be less then a dollar a gallon, etc, etc. Supply & demand dictates costs as we all know & track costs are not oblivious to this.

Also why build a FV when you can buy an excellent used one for half or less the price of what you can build one for? Maybe that will help offset the extra weekend entry fees vs bracket racing.

This post seems to have taken a turn against the SCCA & other road racing organizations which all make it possible for us to enjoy the sport we love. There might be ways they could shave some money here or there to make the costs slightly cheaper but I am sure they are attempting to do that already.

Lets not slam anyone for having an opinion in one direction or another, that won't help any of us or our sport.

What I personally spend on any of my hobbies I can not justify, so I don't try to. The fun is worth more then any price I can put upon it. At least I don't have to worry later life saying "I wish I had of gone racing" when it is too late to do so for whatever reason.

[Daryl DeArman]

What I personally spend on any of my hobbies I can not justify, so I don't try to. The fun is worth more then any price I can put upon it.

That's justification enough, no?

[CenDiv4]

So............................ I take it Twister wont be joining us anytime soon?

[Diamond Level Motorsports]

Probably not, which is sad. We could use more racers out here. I think if he came to a race and experienced the camaraderie within the group he might feel differently. I don't think the money is the real reason. I know a lot of guys that don't have a lot of money that are still racing. It can be done cheaply if you really want to do it.

[Tiago Santos]

Cheap is unfortunately a very loose term when applied to racing. I don't think there is such thing as doing it cheaply. Even if you could do it for $400 a weekend (is that even remotely possible with the scca, anywhere in the US?) that is NOT cheap. I thank my parents every time I'm on track for the opportunities they gave me to have a decent career. If I earned 30 or 40 grand like A LOT of people do around here, I sure as hell wouldn't be racing! Even earning twice that much, racing (as cheaply as I can!) stresses my bank account a lot more than I would like..

[sracing]

Not sure what the point is to all this. Everyone made correct statements. Like anything else if you can't afford the hobby, you can't afford the hobby. Comparisions made to any other forms of racing are invalid. This one (and all others) are unique. All my neighbors are into Thorughrobred Horse racing, I think I would look pretty silly complaining to them that horses, entry fees, or track time is too expensive and so I am not going to play. We can try to optimize the costs via pressure on organizations etc. and we should, but you aren't going to impact overall costs much.

As pointed out, it is an expensive hobby.

[Turbowerks9]

I checked the cost of racing before hand and did the number crunching like one did for us on the thread. I know tracks cost money to rent, pay for insurance, pay for corner workers and other important people that keep us safe and pull us out of the mess we created on a corner. Racing can be expensive but look at what Bass fishing costs. Look at what game hunting costs. If you have gasoline in your blood you'll find a way to make it happen. No, its not cheap but SCCA racing or Vintage racing can be fun and reasonable. You just have to do your homework before you jump in. Happy racing folks.

[Turbowerks9]

Speaking of new to FV, has anyone read the book "Getting started in formula vee / first"? Any recommendations. Is it a good book for a novice?

[sracing]

Yes. I have read it several times. We get lots of good feedback from it. It is great for someone wanting to get started (covers buying a car, costs associated, tools required, etc.) Most of the simple maintenance, some engine diagnosis, some racing info in general. It will get you through your first year of racing without looking too much like a rookie. About 10 years ago the 1st production of the book was largely reprinted in SportsCar Mag in a series of 4 or 5 isuues. It's now available (updated to cover a bit on Vintage and FST) for $12.95.

[Tiago Santos]

Yes, definitely worth it! Personally, being such a noob about cars in general, it didn't replace having good friends in the local FV community to ask lots of questions, but it did make some questions more specific and made me sound like I knew what I was talking about Just kidding, I use it all the time!

[Anthony Tabacco]

Hi all. I am the webmaster for the Racing Drivers Club (in the San Francisco Region) and was checking to see if all my links (to racingdriversclub.com) were still current when I came across this thread. Hope you don't mind if a Spec Racer Ford guy chimes in about the entry fee discussion.

Really, the Region is impeccably managed but since the economy went south, the balance sheet has been on the wrong side -fortunately only slightly- expressly because of the desire to hold the line on entry fees despite lower attendance. The costs pushing fees locally are track rental, true, but sanctioning, and especially insurance fees from National are real drivers of costs for (all) the Regions.

I wish there was some magic formula for relief from this, but then I also wish I could find an affordable motel in Monterrey.

Tony

[sracing]

and especially insurance fees

Won't argue with any of your points, but Inurance per car according to the SCCA is:

2009 = $28
2010 = $29.50
2011 = No increase planned.

So, it's a chunk, but not a big hitter.

[jhenn4716]

This is my first year racing (or attempting to race) fv's. I did my research, read books (Getting started in FV) and learned what the costs should/could be. When you look at your expenses its a shock or it can be. Getting started in any form of racing isn't for the weak of heart when it comes to your pocket book. After I bought a trailer, got the car, started spending money right and left. No matter all of that, the moment I got on the track it was worth every penny.

Drag racing and road racing are completely different forms of road racing. Comparing the two is like apples and oranges. The associated cost just can't be compared. The behind the scene expenses (for SCCA) make up the majority of the entry fee. I've been involved in SCCA for going on 6 years working as an official so I see what the entry fees are paying for. As a racer I want lower fees but as an official I realize what those fees allow us to do.

As someone suggested, come out to the track, see what it's like. You'll never find a more friendly, willing to help, give you the shirt off their back group of guys outside of the fv community.

Best of luck wherever your racing dreams take you.

[Tiago Santos]

It is now almost exactly a year since I bought my car.. And things are starting to look much better. Seeing as I'm a 20 something year old, who had been living in a new country for a year and a half, in a rented house with a tiny garage, most of the cost of racing my first year was logistics. I had to buy lots of tools, lots of little things that seem inexpensive but add up very quickly. A cheap craigslist trailer turns out to be not so cheap when it needs tires right away.. Likewise, a cheap car turns out expensive when you don't know what you're doing - and I had no clue what I was doing!

Entry fees up here are about $250 for a weekend (2 races, 6 sessions), so they're a little bit less than half of my total weekend budget. Gas for the vee and the wagon make up a decent chunk of the cost, then tires, engine rebuild fund and spares fund. I probably spend a little bit less than $400 cash for a weekend, then keep in the back of my mind that I spent another $250 worth of engine, tires and parts. And of course, every now and then I splurge on things I don't really need - extra sensors for the data system, fancier parts, whatever.

I should be saving money to buy a house and move out of a rented place. But realistically, house prices in Vancouver are so incredibly high (can't buy a house for less than $750.000 right now), I won't have enough for a decent down payment for at least 6-8 years. I'm not about to stop racing for that long just because the market is incredibly artificially inflated.

[jhenn4716]

I had to buy lots of tools, lots of little things that seem inexpensive but add up very quickly... Likewise, a cheap car turns out expensive when you don't know what you're doing - and I had no clue what I was doing!

Jeez, you can say that again. Nobody said anything about all the little expenses. Yes you know the car, the trailer, the race fees will all be alot. And you budget for those expenses. But I swear it's the little things that add up that are killing me. But like everyone else, I've got that addiction.. and no matter the cost we all keep doing it.

Best advice ever given, go out to the track! Meet a few racers, make some new friends. Of course talk about racing, what it takes to race, getting to the track. But don't forget to talk about the behind the scenes stuff. Where to get that engine rebuild, where to go for tools (especially the specialized vee stuff you can't find anywhere else).

If you're good with a wrench, like it sounds you are, buy someone elses car. Go over it from front to back and work on anything that needs fixing. My car won't be winning national championships anytime soon.. but as my skill in driving increases I'll address the issues that'll make my car better, and faster, on the track. But that's for next year, and the years to come.

Another suggestion, rent someones car. Takes some of the stress of getting your own and someone else will prep it for you. You can work with them as it comes time to race and get a far better idea of what's involved in vee racing and you haven't committed tons of money yet.