Bored of trackdays. What CHEAP motorsport options are there?
Discussion
I'm mulling over taking a step into some kind of budget (edit: non-racing?) motorsport, but don't really know what's out there.
I raced on and off a bit in Caterham Graduates for a while up to about 10 yrs ago, but quit when my kids were born as i was fed up spending so much on it. I'm not that keen on having to get my race licence again. Plus all of my safety gear is old now. I quit just as the HANS requirement came in.
I've dabbled with trackdays since then but find it a bit boring unless in something very raw and reasonably powerful. I have a Clio 200 track car that i'll be selling soon as it's just not quite doing it for me on track.
I've had my "dream" (to me) road car (BMW M2) but got bored with it in less than a year, so have recently sold it.
I have a towcar in place.
I have space in my garage, and can do a fair bit of spannering at home.
So, what can i do that's got some competitive element to it, but doesn't cost the earth?
Things i've thought of but not looked at yet:
Hillclimbs
Sprints
erm....
I'm stocky/heavy, so karting is probably out.
I quite fancy having something bonkers like a westfield with a bike engine in it, but would need to do something competitive in it, maybe with the odd trackday to scare passengers.
Help/advice wanted!
Budget to buy a car+trailer is up to about £25k if i sell the clio, but ideally i'd like to have something all sorted for around £15k if possible.
I raced on and off a bit in Caterham Graduates for a while up to about 10 yrs ago, but quit when my kids were born as i was fed up spending so much on it. I'm not that keen on having to get my race licence again. Plus all of my safety gear is old now. I quit just as the HANS requirement came in.
I've dabbled with trackdays since then but find it a bit boring unless in something very raw and reasonably powerful. I have a Clio 200 track car that i'll be selling soon as it's just not quite doing it for me on track.
I've had my "dream" (to me) road car (BMW M2) but got bored with it in less than a year, so have recently sold it.
I have a towcar in place.
I have space in my garage, and can do a fair bit of spannering at home.
So, what can i do that's got some competitive element to it, but doesn't cost the earth?
Things i've thought of but not looked at yet:
Hillclimbs
Sprints
erm....
I'm stocky/heavy, so karting is probably out.
I quite fancy having something bonkers like a westfield with a bike engine in it, but would need to do something competitive in it, maybe with the odd trackday to scare passengers.
Help/advice wanted!
Budget to buy a car+trailer is up to about £25k if i sell the clio, but ideally i'd like to have something all sorted for around £15k if possible.
Edited by PTF on Thursday 12th May 12:28
Edited by PTF on Thursday 12th May 12:29
charltjr said:
EnduroKa or City Car Cup?
I think these are about the cheapest circuit racing options, but from the sound of it you want higher performance?
Although not fast cars, these do seem to be the popular options for low cost/ more track time and flexibility in what you can do.I think these are about the cheapest circuit racing options, but from the sound of it you want higher performance?
A cheap car where you can enter everything from 8 lap sprints to 24h endurance races
mat205125 said:
Hill climbs and sprints are beaten only by drag racing for terrible cost to time/mileage ratio
I think if i'm mixing trackdays with it, where there's as much track time as i can take available, then that would probably be ok.mat205125 said:
Key cost consideration is whether you want to win or just have fun?
With racing i think this is a really, really important point. Thanks i'd not thought of that.charltjr said:
...but from the sound of it you want higher performance?
Yeah i think i do. I really fancy having a go with something quite bonkers.Not blowing my own trumpet or anything, but i tend to get to grips with cars and tracks quite quickly, like within a few laps, then i'm a bit bored.
Quite fancy something that's hard get to the limit with.
An elise has been top of the list for a while, because the mid-engined layout isn't something i'm used to on the limit.
You could look at RTV 4x4 trials; vehicles are reasonably priced as are entry fees. You don't need a custom-built specialised vehicle to be competitive - it's mostly about tyres, driver skill and an ability to 'read the ground'.
A bit of decent weather, good company, a scenic site and you can have a great day out with like minded enthusiasts - probably the cheapest form of motorsport there is.
Being able to tinker with and improve the vehicle relatively cheaply is a bonus too.
A bit of decent weather, good company, a scenic site and you can have a great day out with like minded enthusiasts - probably the cheapest form of motorsport there is.
Being able to tinker with and improve the vehicle relatively cheaply is a bonus too.
MG CHRIS said:
If you like the qualifying element more than racing why not try out time attack that budgt could get you something quick in the club classes. Also get good track time compared to sprints an hill climbs etc.
Just had a look on the website. That actually looks really good. 4x 15 min sessions (min), so still a reasonable amount of track time, but you're racing against the clock rather than eachother.Hmmm. I might take the kids to Brands in June and have a chat with some people there.
Thanks for that.
John Laverick said:
Have you considered a switch to bikes .... your question has motocross written all over it.
Been riding motorbikes since i was about 12. Not done much offroad though apart from round a field in my teens.Not sure i've got the confidence for motocross TBH. Though getting an offroad bike might be fun if i could find somewhere local to play on it.
My kids would want one though!!
I do a reasonable amount of cycling/mountainbiking, so sort of feel like i've got that covered....ish.
PTF said:
MG CHRIS said:
If you like the qualifying element more than racing why not try out time attack that budgt could get you something quick in the club classes. Also get good track time compared to sprints an hill climbs etc.
Just had a look on the website. That actually looks really good. 4x 15 min sessions (min), so still a reasonable amount of track time, but you're racing against the clock rather than eachother.Hmmm. I might take the kids to Brands in June and have a chat with some people there.
Thanks for that.
mat205125 said:
Hill climbs and sprints are beaten only by drag racing for terrible cost to time/mileage ratio
Indeed. Although if you are doing it with a road car then overall costs are pretty low versus any sort of wheel-to-wheel racing.You can even enter as a 'standard car' is some regions and literally spend zero on car prep once you've bought/made a timing strut.
If you buy an interesting road car (eg. hot hatch, MX5, Caterham etc) and can mix up some fun road driving, track days and some club hills/sprints then that's all your motoring bases covered IMHO.
PTF said:
I'm stocky/heavy, so karting is probably out.
Historic karting offers great value for money. Don't worry too much about weight - some heavy drivers are astoundingly competitive 
http://retroracerhks.co.uk/
if you've got the ability to have a trailer, and dont mind a bit of spannering yourself, then i'd go for some kind of bike engined mk indy or the like.
went out in one at snetterton and it was absolutely incredible. 12k redline, sequential gears, slick tyres. ran rings around everything else there.
That alone would make trackdays fun again, but if that wasnt enough, i'd probably say sprinting.
http://www.javelinsprintdays.co.uk/sprint/
http://www.britishsprint.org/default.asp
went out in one at snetterton and it was absolutely incredible. 12k redline, sequential gears, slick tyres. ran rings around everything else there.
That alone would make trackdays fun again, but if that wasnt enough, i'd probably say sprinting.
http://www.javelinsprintdays.co.uk/sprint/
http://www.britishsprint.org/default.asp
emicen said:
PTF said:
I'm actually not that bothered about racing TBH. I used to really enjoy testing and qualifying way more than the races. I liked trying to race the clock.
If you weren’t so far south I would have suggested Super Lap Scotland. Sounds like exactly what you are looking for.
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