I'm watching this thread with interest as well as I am looking to likely shift from autox to club with my F500.
So, being that I have younger kids, what's the minimum number of events per year to maintain a license and what's the fallout look like if I miss that due to family life?
Also, Waterford has a fairly strong F5/600 community, worth a look if a cheap formula car is something that interests you.
In reply to Apexcarver :
just gotta do 1 per year to keep your license, and if you don't do that i think they can reinstate it if you contact them, if it hasn't been a super long time since you raced. worst case scenario you do another SCCA school which isn't too bad since it includes a club race and more track time than you normally get at a race weekend.
I'll give a third (or whatever it is at this point) that doing a race weekend by yourself is totally doable. A buddy actually did come with me to help out at my school but other than that instance, I've done all of the non-endurance race weekends by myself. I'll also give the third on always finding help in the paddock if I need it. I'm sure you've experienced that at ChampCar weekends too.
I have no idea if this is an actual route to getting your full comp but you could also maybe consider including a couple SCCA Enduros into the ChampCar mix. You then could submit an application showing three years of previous endurance experience and, hopefully, a clean record at a couple SCCA sanctioned events and that may be enough to at least get you a provisional license skipping the cost of the school.
I do think racing school can be very beneficial, just trying to think through other options for you.
As far as support for doing the school goes, it totally depends on your situation. As I mentioned I did the NASA school, not the SCCA one, but from what I hear they're pretty similar -- classroom sessions start at 7:30 and go til 5 with only a few minutes to get ready for the track sessions. You've got time to put fuel in the car, but that's about it as far as service goes.
So if you've got a car that you know and trust to do a weekend without any more attention than that, then doing it solo is fine. I did it in my M3, which was a race-ready car I'd been using for track days for years by that point.
I would not recommend taking a newly-built car to the school without support. Same goes for a car you just bought from someone else, not unless the seller is someone you know and trust well (and even then the unfamiliarity is a strike against it).
Codrus has it right. I do SCCA race weekends once every month or two and serve as my own support without issue. But race weekends have tons of down time, and I've had my car for two years so I'm familiar with all the ins and outs of how to keep it running and fast. Racing school is totally different because you'll be in class most of the day with little downtime. One of the days I had to skip lunch or I wouldn't have had time to get my car ready for the next track session. Combine that with a new-to-you car and you have a recipe for an unsuccessful weekend and having to repeat the school. It happened to 4 or 5 the drivers that were at my school.
In reply to Apexcarver :
Waterford really does have a great F600 group. My car was run there from 1987 until 2014 when I bought it.
I've run my F500 on my own before. I've done 3 vintage races with it this far along with the 50-60 autocrosses. The set up change from autocross to road racing only takes me about 90 minutes to do. I change the toe, the rear ride height and the rear sprocket.
When I got my license some 30 years ago they took my motorcyle racing into account.
In reply to ShinnyGroove (Forum Supporter) :
Sounds like I should source a car first, and drive it in a few track days to shake it down so that I can minimize chances of having something unexpected fail during the school.
dannyp84 said:In reply to ShinnyGroove (Forum Supporter) :
Sounds like I should source a car first, and drive it in a few track days to shake it down so that I can minimize chances of having something unexpected fail during the school.
Definitely. The car should always be ready to race before heading to the track. Track time is expensive so focus should be on driving.
At the licensing school, you should be doing nothing more than checking air pressure and adding fuel and checking fluid levels. Neither take much time.
In reply to dannyp84 :
As an IT car will likely have the stock tank you may be able to do the whole day without having to fuel up.
At the time I did my school the Datsun had an 8 gallon cell and it went the who day without having to fill it up.
dannyp84 said:In reply to ShinnyGroove (Forum Supporter) :
Sounds like I should source a car first, and drive it in a few track days to shake it down so that I can minimize chances of having something unexpected fail during the school.
Good idea
Is the car you've been running in Champ the same one for the three years? If you can use it or even rent it from the rest of your team, that's the route I'd take if I were you if you're trying to get your license sooner rather than later. You're surely comfortable driving it at this point and probably have a good grasp on the maintenance/weak points.
Then, you'll have your license in hand and can find the right car, etc.
It is a great point a few have made, however, that the school weekend will be more busy and probably nerveracking than a typical race weekend. However, that separate class session at Waterford meant there was only one group meeting at the beginning of each on-track day and then just downloads with your instructor in between hot sessions. It was not a constant back and forth between the track and classroom for my school.
dannyp84 said:In reply to ShinnyGroove (Forum Supporter) :
Sounds like I should source a car first, and drive it in a few track days to shake it down so that I can minimize chances of having something unexpected fail during the school.
I'd go a step further and make sure the car you bring has a current SCCA logbook and annual tech. Don't assume that a car that passes Champ tech will also pass SCCA. I brought a SM with a logbook that I had bought recently, but the annual tech was expired. Turns out the kill switch wasn't working properly. On the eve of race school I spent 3 hours in the paddock dirt, heat and mosquitos rewiring my kill switch with channelock pliers and a pocket knife so I could get through tech. Not the ideal start. Another guy next to me never even got his car through tech, he just packed up and went home.
It takes two things to race with SCCA, a competition license and a good car with a logbook that can pass tech. For a driver with prior track/race experience, 80% of the effort will be on the car. The school itself is pretty much a breeze if you don't have to worry about the car; show up on time, listen and learn, don't be an idiot on the track. Do the car stuff before you get there and you'll have an enjoyable experience and be racing in no time.
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