>>But you aren't and you probably never will be.

sheesh, Mr.Pessimistic Grumpy Pants.... you have no idea if he 'is' or if he 'can be', so your comment there is non-constructive and kinda silly

a real answer is much more complicated as there are many level to talk about....resources available, time, talent, exposure, et, et...and yes money is a big one


>>OTOH, I really hate when I get reminded that motorsports is basically hereditary.

I race because I fell in love with the sport, no one on either side of my family comes from a racing heritage. Yes, it helps to have a family line that you can step into and get a head start in the game, but keep in mind at some point, someone in a family line had to start it, so cheer up and step up!!! stop ur bitchin!!! :-)

>>Either your parents are rich, and racers themselves, or you are never going anywhere in motorsports.

No and nope, like I said before , no one on either side of my family line are rich or were racers... I fell in love with the sport, work very hard to make $$ to mindlessly dump into the sport cuz i love it :-)

>>or you are never going anywhere in motorsports.

What does that mean? You say it like its an absolute, and its not. I have come farther than many pro racers, only because I had to start further back, from ground zero if you will, and many pro racers had advantages I did not. So its all about what 'going anywhere' means to you as an individual, .... am I a Lewis Hamilton, hahah no, not even close, like not even comparable... but am I a guy who did not know the sport existed a handful of years ago and now run one of the most recognized and successful race cars in the nasa midwest region...yes, and it was a looong and tough journey to get to where I am and it was a blast the entire way to get to where i am, and I am still on the fun journey this sport is takin me on.

>>(at least not until your in your 40s or 50s when you have money yourself)

Bahh, ur such a party pooper. Listen, my reply here is really not mean for you Valkyrie, it is really meant for people like my Asterisk to read, ...and after all this mumbo jumbo my point is this, if you want to do it, then go for it. Make a plan and set goals that are reasonable, put smart experienced people around you to help you, and do not listen to party poopers like Valkyrie ;-)

(sorry Valkyrie, im just givin ya a hard time)

>>Cases like Lewis H. are completely out of the ordinary...

now that i will agree with :-) LOL heheh

 

He admitted himself that he has little seat team. No seat time is the same thing as not being a race car driver. He's already behind the kid in terms of experience, and even more damagingly, the kid had a 7-10-year head start in terms of racing (as a whole). Now, I'm not saying he doesn't have a chance of becoming a racer, just that it would be very hard to surpass a kid who has done so much already, unless has a freakish amount of talent and drive, which statistically is very unlikely.

Also, you're an example of someone who has disposable income to blow on your own car... and you're also in your 30s. That's quite different from someone who's trying to start racing during their youth.

What I meant in "not going anywhere" was that, if you weren't born rich and/or into a motorsports family, the chances of you ever becoming a top-level pro driver are statistically very low, at least not until you're in your 30s and making a professional-level income like you are. And even then, you're spending your own money and not OPM like the person who started rich would eventually be doing.

Basically I'm saying is that you're either born into a rich racing family and start young (and then eventually earn major sponsors), or you go back when you're a professional adult and pay to race.

Hence why F1 drivers are in their 20s, while SCCA road racers tend to be in their 40s-50s...

 

I think that has more to do with culture. There just isn't a huge culture here in the USA for road racing, at least not as much as in some countries. IMO, that's why kids get into karting and the lesser open wheelers much early overseas. People here in the USA spend there money on other things. Large corporations are too busy embezzling their own money to sponsor kids or young adults in a sport which isn't football or baseball.

Most kids would rather do Mario Kart than race a real kart it seems here in the US. Even then, most of them probably wouldn't put in the dedication to learn the craft rather than just having fun.

 

Most parents would also prefer to their kids to play Mario Kart versus kart racing here, too... for more than one reason.

My parents are no different.

 

Yep, it's just not a sport that America has really embraced. And it shows when you rarely see American drivers in the top sports car racing divisions (i.e. LeMans, F1, etc). America just likes to be different. The rest of the world does road racing, America does Nascar. The rest of the world does football, America created their own version of football.

 

Ain't that the truth, I still have a chance to get into it, but I would have to sacrifice just about everything to get my foot in the door to get someone the flip the bill. The odds are against me though.

The more I look at it and where I heading, I will probably be one of those 30-40 club racers out on the track. We'll see.

That's why guys like Lewis H. are a breath of fresh air.

 

It cost so damn much to race, much less finish the race top 10. You could be the most talented person in the world behind the wheel of a car and still you will lose to someone half as talented with twice the money. Racing is no longer about the skill of the people on the track. Its about the bank account in the wallet. So if your racing now, thinking thats what your going to to get paid....wake up.

 

I say get ten people to pool money and buy a car. I would be down for something like that. Everybody works to make a competitive race season. You'll even work as your own pit crew. get some recognition and some local sponsorships buy a sister car then get the snowball rolling.

 

But then you'd have 10 people all wanting to drive the car, which means you don't get any championship points, which means you don't get sponsors (or even trophies).

And not everyone is necessarily qualified to drive, work on the car, or work as the pit crew... yet they'd still expect their share of the seat time.

 

wow thats pretty cool

 

I'm not selfish but i see your point Valkyrie. With That strategy It really would need to be a family thing i guess. So scratch that and save money to do it later. The kid is luckier than me for sure. He's still cool as hell in my book.

 

circuit tracks all your life wont make you the best driver. according to japanese pro drivers.

Tsuchiya is in japans top 10 drivers, i think, and on the weekends he races his AE86 corolla down mountain passes to maintain his skill or "stress" level high.