When you are a car enthusiast or a bike enthusiast, for that matter, you might find yourself thinking about going on a track day. Or even competing in a race. As you may be aware, and if you are, we will fill you in; motorsport is expensive. However, never experiencing a track day might be worse than just doing something expensive.
In the past few months, I have had conversations with several people who longed for an opportunity to compete but could not afford to get started. Some of them already had a vehicle that they intended to use for the job, while others did not. While it may seem strange, I can say that the vehicle does not matter that much.
Things will not be excellent if you are out in a minivan or a large SUV, and big sedans are also not ideal vehicles for a track day. But if the event lets everyone drive a road-legal vehicle, and you do not mind a bit of tire wear, a bit of brake system wear, and the risk of something failing, go for it.
Wait. Before you get into that, be sure to have a backup plan if the vehicle does fail or if you crash, so have money ready for a tow truck, do not go on a track day with your last bucks.
If you want to do this properly but do not have a time machine to send your younger self to a karting school, you can still go out and race in a kart at your age. Whatever that age may be. Within medical restrictions, but you get the picture.
If you can drive a car that has two or three pedals, you can drive a go-kart. It is advisable to rent one, instead of outright buying one.
Racing go-karts is good fun, and it is the most affordable form of competing in real life with someone else's vehicle. It is also cheaper than competing in your vehicle, as the latter suffers no wear or risk of damage while you are out speeding on the track in a go-kart.
The next step is to take your car, or your track-day car of choice, to autocross events. The latter is usually done in restricted sections of a track or secluded areas. Instead of a conventional track, the organizers prepare a route using cones. This way, there is no damage if you miss a turn or a braking point. Oh, by the way, try not to get carried away. It is easy to push yourself too far.
Once you get the hang of driving your vehicle a bit quicker in autocross events, you should be ready to move on to track days. A fair warning here: it will get more expensive from this point. The experience that you gained while karting and autocrossing should be put into play on the track, but remember that there is no restart button if things go wrong.
Proceed with caution on your first track day. Do the same on your next one, and gently raise the pace, despite the normal urge to just go all-out. Resist that, as you may damage your prized vehicle just minutes into the session.
Do not be the reason the entire session has to be stopped and do your best not to become the reason for a new rule in the series book.
Again, pace yourself, as track days usually have several sessions in a day, split into “chunks” of several minutes each. It is more than enough to get you going and not too much to risk damaging a vehicle that is properly maintained.
Do not do these things with rented vehicles (except those rented specifically for track use) or with vehicles from work. In the latter case, you may end up in big trouble.
Regardless of what you will get to drive on the track, do it sooner rather than later. Just like getting a particular model, there is a time and a place for everything. I do not know anyone who regrets going for a quick session in go-karts. Do it sooner rather than later. Yes, it is expensive, but it is worth it if that is what you were dreaming of.
Things will not be excellent if you are out in a minivan or a large SUV, and big sedans are also not ideal vehicles for a track day. But if the event lets everyone drive a road-legal vehicle, and you do not mind a bit of tire wear, a bit of brake system wear, and the risk of something failing, go for it.
Wait. Before you get into that, be sure to have a backup plan if the vehicle does fail or if you crash, so have money ready for a tow truck, do not go on a track day with your last bucks.
If you want to do this properly but do not have a time machine to send your younger self to a karting school, you can still go out and race in a kart at your age. Whatever that age may be. Within medical restrictions, but you get the picture.
Racing go-karts is good fun, and it is the most affordable form of competing in real life with someone else's vehicle. It is also cheaper than competing in your vehicle, as the latter suffers no wear or risk of damage while you are out speeding on the track in a go-kart.
The next step is to take your car, or your track-day car of choice, to autocross events. The latter is usually done in restricted sections of a track or secluded areas. Instead of a conventional track, the organizers prepare a route using cones. This way, there is no damage if you miss a turn or a braking point. Oh, by the way, try not to get carried away. It is easy to push yourself too far.
Once you get the hang of driving your vehicle a bit quicker in autocross events, you should be ready to move on to track days. A fair warning here: it will get more expensive from this point. The experience that you gained while karting and autocrossing should be put into play on the track, but remember that there is no restart button if things go wrong.
Proceed with caution on your first track day. Do the same on your next one, and gently raise the pace, despite the normal urge to just go all-out. Resist that, as you may damage your prized vehicle just minutes into the session.
Do not be the reason the entire session has to be stopped and do your best not to become the reason for a new rule in the series book.
Again, pace yourself, as track days usually have several sessions in a day, split into “chunks” of several minutes each. It is more than enough to get you going and not too much to risk damaging a vehicle that is properly maintained.
Do not do these things with rented vehicles (except those rented specifically for track use) or with vehicles from work. In the latter case, you may end up in big trouble.
Regardless of what you will get to drive on the track, do it sooner rather than later. Just like getting a particular model, there is a time and a place for everything. I do not know anyone who regrets going for a quick session in go-karts. Do it sooner rather than later. Yes, it is expensive, but it is worth it if that is what you were dreaming of.