Welcome to the 2014 Sigma Racing Time Attack season!

2014 marks the 5th anniversary of the series and also marks the start of a partnership with Track Enthusiast.

SRTA would like to thank everyone who was involved with our four successful seasons and we are pleased to announce the following dates for the upcoming season.

Saturday June 14th, 2014
Sunday July 6th, 2014
Sunday July 27th, 2014
Saturday September 6th, 2014

All events will take place at Toronto Motorsports Park.

Welcome to Canada's Newest Racing Facility - Toronto Motorsports Park

SRTA always strives to offer an encouraging and welcoming atmosphere with friendly and helpful staff members. This is done all while maintaining the competitive nature of motorsport.

All participants enjoy their own AiM Sports lap timer, ample track time for a test and tune and a chance to participate in the official time-attack at the end of every event with prizes for the top racers.

After a successful 2013, the Mazda Canada contingency returns for 2014 for those competitors who compete in a Mazda or Mazda-powered car.

Registration is now open with each event capped at 60 entries to ensure ample track time for everyone. Early bird pricing is in effect at $200 per event.

For more information and to register visit us at SRTA Canada |

 

A reminder that the early bird price of $200 for the June 14th event ends on May 12th!

There is a Mazda contingency once again this year so don't miss out!

A Class

Highest Placing Mazda $150.00

2nd Highest Placing Mazda $75.00

3rd Highest Placing Mazda $50.00

B Class

Highest Placing Mazda $150.00

2nd Highest Placing Mazda $75.00

3rd Highest Placing Mazda $50.00

 

Is there any opportunity to work a group discount if we get 20+ rotaries out to one of the event?

I'm trying to organize a rotary track day and some of the rx7/rx8 members would like a full track day.

Let me know. I've also contacted the previous organizer of SRTA to forward my request as well.

 

We still have 3 events to go!

Great first event! 1238 laps were completed by attendees with no incidents.

Some pictures here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...9174357&type=1

We had 1 FC out competing and what an FC it was!

Don't miss the next event on Sunday July 6th! $200 until June 30th. $260 thereafter.

 

Still spots available for tomorrow! $260 at the door.

 

Next event is on July 27th! Timed open lapping all day long and a Time Attack in the afternoon! $200 until July 20th!

SRTA Canada | Event Registration

 

Ill be there! Won my entrance you guys definitely need to come and check out this series. For the price, the amount of lapping you get is pretty much unlimited. And the people are pretty friendly and its a very relaxed environment. There is also the Mazda contingency to sweeten the deal!

 

Have they changed the rules on the classifications of vehicles yet or are they still running the class A class B only rules?

I feel way back at the start this was a great series for people who have a lightly modified daily driven street car. People who were bored just doing lapping and wanted to do a time attack style event but without all the rules and regulations of an official time attack. It was fun and competitive. I loved it but now not so much.

Spending my good 200+ bucks to not even get close to winning my class because a Maclaren or a stripped out track prepped Miata is killing both classes time and time again just doesn't appeal to me.

Where's the pride in saying my 300+ thousand dollar Maclaren beat your 30 thousand dollar FD WTF! that's nothing to brag about. That's so they can say they won a time attack instead of going and competing in other organized events with vehicles of the same type and having no chance of winning anything. Or the guy how competes in an other official series using this as cheap track time but wins anyways. This isn't fun for the street guy.

I understand attendance is getting harder and harder to meet and dollars are dollars, the track has to be paid for. However, letting a supercar or stripped out car enter into the event to make up numbers and to only hand their money back for taking first place has the opposite effect. This doesn't make sense.

If this series is going to survive another season then stop scaring away average Joes like myself from attending. These types of vehicles should be in their own classes or not even allowed to enter.

I wish this series would to go back to the reason why it started in the first place. Daily Driven street cars for guys who want to have competitive fun.

 

let me first start off that I have no affiliation with Sigma whatsoever, I just really enjoy their events/people

The rules still remain the same class A vs B.

Scotty, you pretty much answered your own question "lightly modified daily driven vehicles" So when you think about it, the McLaren/lambo guys should be the ones throwing a fit because all the other cars are much more modified than theirs. Technically the lambos/mclarens are their daily drivers that are only modified with hoosiers etc, the only difference is that they have more money to play with than we do. On the flip side would you feel any better being beat by Marco's monster RX-7? Hell Marco's FD has beat other supercars and is not that much far behind them in times.

The Mazda contingency should still sweeten the pot for you, the supercars dont get any piece of that pie lol.

I felt like yourself in the beginning but then I realized that I was starting to take things too serious and was not having anymore fun. In the end someone will always be faster (perhaps money and resources will influence that) than you/myself/anyone.

If you want to have a "level" playing field than I suggest OTA but Ill bet you a case of beer that by the time you classify your rx8, you will have accumulated enough PIPs to class you with cars much more faster than yours (not taking into account driver skill). I did OTA and its a pain and not a friendly environment. But then again if you are able to modify your car within the rules of the class you want to run then you have a better chance with being competitive.

Other lapping events like Touge, etc will have more expensive metal than you will ever encounter at sigma lol, Ive seen handful of GTRs, porsches, Lambos, BMW GTRs, etc....those guys have money for sure. Then theres also the disorganization and lack to track etiquette there.

For $200, unlimited amount on lapping (depending on to worry about what everybody else is driving, the rx7 gives me enough to worry about lol.
eitherway, hope to see you around.

 

I am involved as one of the organizers this year (and former competitor) and welcome the feedback. I agree with almost all of it and agreed with it last year.

So why didn't we make changes?

SRTA almost didn’t happen for 2014. Since I had run for the last two years and had a fantastic time, I knew I couldn’t let the series disappear.

This was a zero hour save though and we had very limited dates to choose from and since the series wasn’t confirmed until late into March we felt that changing a ruleset a couple of months before the first event isn’t fair to competitors who are building a car or expect some rules stability.

In hindsight, we should have changed the classes. What I don't agree with is turning away the guys in the super cars (we have only had 1 Lambo out this year) or the stripped out race cars. We just need a couple of additional classes and some additional rules to balance things out. I know it can be done without taking away what has made Sigma great.

However, we need some more attendance this year at the remaining two events to ensure their will even be a series next year. We're keeping the price at $200 for this event. No price increase to $260 even for walk-ins! Its still great value for money.

 

online registration is here: SRTA Canada | Event Registration

 

Hi All,

As a past organizer for SRTA, I've seen the same concern raised before.

Also as one of the founders of SRTA, I believe that the core value of our events has never changed:

To make grassroots motorsports in Ontario affordable, fun, inviting, unintimidating, undiscriminating, and accessible.

This is done through a variety of little things we throw in the package - relaxed schedule, money prizes, food/snacks, friendly environment etc., all the little things that made SRTA what it is today. We also spiced it up a bit with our own flavor - timing equipment, contingencies, mostly Mazda events etc.

Since day 1, we've always welcomed everything from Hondas to BMWs, little cheap track beaters to serious track machines, old to new and foreign to domestic. Why should that change all of the sudden now because some cars carry a higher price tag than others?

This is grassroots motorsports. This means we all drive different cars and they are all prepared differently. Everyone is here to have a good time and learn to be better drivers. I hope this spirit will live on forever.

Classing-wise, the SRTA series is a work in progress and it always will be. Stay tuned for updates and changes in the future.

Cheers to Motorsports,

Howi

 

I hope that Sigma will continue to operate. It's been two years since I have had a car to drive at the events but will hopefully have one for next year. Sigma time attack was a very enjoyable track experience. One of the best I had in 20 years. For me it worked. Go out and drive and see what times I could hit.

 

While I agree that winning the prize money would be nice, not being able to win it isn't a big deal to me either. It's kind of like playing in a golf tournament, sure it would be nice to win, but most people don't play golf to make money, it costs money to play golf, and it costs money to race cars.

That being said SRTA makes it VERY easy for virtually anybody to get into racing without having to jump through hoops like getting racing licenses or having to have FIA current seats and seatbelts.

The mazda contingency also helps. I am as amateur as it gets and yet my mild 300hp street FD still got me $400 in mazda contingency winnings last year. Obviously that doesn't come close to covering what I've spent on fuel, brakes and entrance fees but it gives me the warm and fuzzies nonetheless.

 

As someone that hadn't ever been on a track before going out 2 years ago at Mosport DDT with Sigma, I can say that is was a great experience. Well organized and felt safe overall. For me, its all about having fun with the car I have in a safe environment. Mostly, I guess you could say I race against myself, not the others out there. That is why I chose SRTA, its the only series that doesn't require a high price tag and potentially licenses to get a lap timer in the car so I can race against myself. But I can see how some of the more competitive racers might feel off put when they see a Mclaren or a full race prepped monster in the same class as their not quite as fast time attack car.

That being said, I can't help but think that adding additional classes to accommodate these high power super cars would end up complicating things and start taking the fun out of it for those of us that are out there to have a good time.

 

You know (I am certain that I am going to get flamed for this), when I read these types of threads it just makes me wonder a bit. I have read a whole bunch of threads about classing this car versus that car, this organization versus that organization, I want to build my car this way so I want a class that suits me, etc.... does anyone want to actually compete any more?

Over the years I have raced in CASC Solo 1 (forerunner of OTA), NASA, ASN-FIA, WC, FAQ, ICSCC, EMRA, SCCA, CACC, Sigma and I am sure I am missing a couple. Every group has their strengths and weaknesses, but as a "competitor" you research the group you are going to be racing with and build your car to the rules or you look for another group. I was seriously going to run with the CSCS guys this year, even though I have misgivings about their classes as well, but Al put together this series at TMP and that has given me as much as I need for play racing time outside of sanctioned race days.

What I don't get is what do people want? No rules, some rules, a class for every car? When you compete is it supposed to be fun or competitive? Do you want to push yourself to the limit or just go out and squeal tires and make noise? All of these things are important in deciding what group you want to run with.

When I got into motorsports, about 400 years ago, there were classes and your car had to be prepared to meet the rules. When you showed up at the track you had to give it your all, 100% of the car and 100% from the driver, just to compete. Then when I moved into actual racing it was a bigger leap as now you had to do all that plus run wheel to wheel against pretty hard men who gave no quarter.

Now nobody seems to want to run hard anymore unless you get up to the professional levels. Hard does not mean bumping each other or running someone off the track, hard means running side by side with someone, both at the limit and the guy you are passing leaves you 1 car width plus an inch. In Solo events, hard means running the car to the edge and sometimes going over, hard means building a car to a rule set and more than likely having your butt handed to you as the other guys are more experienced and better prepared and then working on it to come back and take them on in a better way.

What I see now are people who want no rules, no pressure but still want to go out and podium and say they were racing. Sure you can have 90 classes for 80 competitors and everyone takes home a trophy, but where is the sense of accomplishment? Everything is better when you have to give it your all and then do well. It isn't a long lasting sense of pride when you show up with a LeMans car and race against a bunch of Nissan Sentra's. You get a trophy but you didn't do anything special.

If I was god of motorsport, I would set up a series of classes, maybe 6, based on engine size, weight, power, car size and stock versus modified. Its relatively simple to do and there are many examples to use, look at WC or Conti for clues. I would not differentiate between FWD, RWD or 4WD. They would just go into classes based on potential speed not based on modifications. Then I would say to the people coming out, lets go and see how good you actually are.

However, this is a fantasy land as people are too used to not really competing and want what amounts to participation medals. I have watched with interest the response to the races that Al is putting on. He has stripped away all of the excuses. You don't need licenses, its super cheap, no body contact allowed, the track isn't fast so little danger, lots of lapping time and testing time, but little to no interest as he is having a hard time getting more than 20 cars out.

As well, I even remove the last barrier by offering my RX7 for free to someone and all they have to do is show up and run as I have a spare set of safety stuff and I have had 4 people respond here and in other places. What do people want today? Sigma is good for what it is, CSCS is a step up, OTA is next, Al's Champion Oil/NGK/TMP is next, then John Bondar is starting another inexpensive series for race cars, but you need to be licensed, then Ontario Regional Sprint races then CASC GT Challenge and then CTCC/Supercar.

If you guys actually want to compete and see how good you really are, let me help. If not then work with the Sigma and CSCS guys and run by their rules or get them changed. You may not realize it, but right now is a golden age for normal people being given a variety of venues to compete on track and the varieties of tracks on offer. It is far better than even 15 years ago.

Rant off even though I am a bit cranky today as it took me close to 10 hours to get back home from Montreal last night. So don't hastle me until tomorrow.

Eric

 

It's not about being on the podium with little effort. Its about like cars being classed together for some degree of fairness.

In regards to Sigma I would like to see 4 classes, all organized by engine displacement, NA vs. FI, street driven vs. track only and by UTQG. That's it. Simple.

At a cap of 60 cars that's 15 cars a class. Imagine competing against 14 other cars in your class where you might have a shot if you and your car give 100% like Eric mentioned.

Right now in Sigma's A class there are 2-3 cars out of a class of 15-20 cars that have a shot. I understand why series attendance is down this year.

Al's series looks awesome but at the end of the day it still requires a race car to enter. So that leaves many of us out as we just don't have the budget.

 

That is really interesting as the classing you are bringing up, is what I was generally thinking about.

MY WORLD CAR CLASSIFICATION RACING CLASS RULES:

1) 3 classes based on displacement; 0 - 2.0L, 2.1 - 3.0L, 3.0 and above (Forced Induction gets boosted a class)
2) Street Tire remain stock class and race tire move into modified split on treadware of 200 and lower. Most top end street legal (?) tires perform close enough to slicks that they should all be lumped in together and the differences between them are just daily speed variance noise.
3) Stock (you can change wear parts like shocks/brakes/clutches/exhausts, but the car must be able to pass a safety) and Modified (anything else beyond stock)

These classes would eliminate a lot of the concerns people have, they are simple, easy to understand and if you decide to play with your car a bit, you know whats going to happen.

Would this stop some guy trolling for trophies by bringing out his McLaren, nope but at least he would be in a class for 3.0L and above stock vehicles and only be racing guys with Vettes, Porsches, etc..... It gives guys with lower displacement cars a chance in lower classes. The hardest thing to realize is that in all forms of racing there are always going to be cars that fit better into a rule set and they become overdogs. What you can do as a rules maker is take the cars that are overdogs and move them up a class where they become more equal even to the point of moving a stock supercar into a modified class. You can also adjust the displacement break points to best reflect the variances between cars so that you don't end up with overdogs in the lower classes. Events are only places that allow you to get on track and compete. There can be no set of rules that ensure that all cars are competitive. That's life. At no point should I expect that if I showed up with a bone stock 1992 Suzuki Swift that I should have a chance at a class win. Its the car I chose to compete in, so learn your craft with the car and then move up to something better for the next year. That's racing.

Eric

(spoken as someone who drove the wheels off of a Suzuki Swift as a factory driver and watched poorly driven Golfs and Civics power by me and drive away for a couple of race seasons and was happy to get a top 10 finish at the end of the year.)

 

Suzuki Swift..... Anyone remember that swift at sigma last year?

 

Regardless of the classes, I've just signed up for Sundays event at TMP. I've got a heavily modified FB with street tires, a ride height that's probably too low and only autocross seat time. I'm ready for my *** kicking!

 

I'll be out this Sunday as well, but unfortunately not in my 7. Looking over it today, I am concerned about the condition of my front brake rotors. They are at the limit of wear and look to have wore a bit unevenly. I don't want one breaking on me during cool down or warm up and with no time to get new rotors I can't risk it. So I will be bringing out my 2013 Dart. All stock down to the factory installed POS Kumho Solus tires. The faster they wear off the better IMO...

Orion84gsl, you might be surprised just how well you do. I was there with my 7 last year when Buggy had his half bridge RX-4 out on the track and I was surprised to be within 3 seconds of his lap times, with an estimated 80 less hp, narrow all season tires and open rear diff. Even running stock rear drums on my car, which are holding up very well by the way.

I'm hoping to be out with the 7 at the last event this year, hopefully with a bit more power...

 

Fk it guys, I think I'm going to run time attack as well Need to repair the wing and grab new plugs and I will see everyone there!

 

Our final event of the year is Saturday September 6th.

$200 up to and including the day of!

5+ hours of open lapping (no sessions, go out as often as you like) with a Time Attack in the afternoon.

Come for the relaxed environment, in-car coaching, complimentary water and snacks, your own personalized AIM lap timer and much more.

SRTA Canada | Event Registration