UK Karting - Notice Board (General Karting) : Re: affordable karting?

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Re: affordable karting?
Posted by 'SimonS' on 23 Aug 2013 @ 16:51

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SimonSJoined: December 2004
Total Posts: 4
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Perhaps the real issue is that you are looking at the sport in the wrong way.

Simply put, it isn't about winning, it's about having fun.

Pretending that your 7 year old has a chance at a career in motorsport is unrealistic, and it only matters if he is winning at the highest level of the sport if there is a career at stake.

Just for reference, it is estimated that getting your first competitive ride in a formula 1 car will mean that you've spent at least Ł10 million in the past 10 years. That's what it cost McLaren's to put Hamilton in the hotseat and it is a figure that is fairly constant, it cost Schumacher at least Ł4 million to run with a bottom end team when he started, (inflation is high in motorsport) and it is reported that some "pay to" drivers in the sport today have to put down at least Ł2 million a year in cash as well as a substantial sponsor package.

Otherwise be content to race at 'your level' and cut your ambitions according to your budget. At the club level expect to spend around Ł300 per weekend meeting, with travel and accommodation on top. You will never, unless your lad is astonishing, compete with the child who races 52 weeks of the year and has the budget for mid week practices and proper driver tuition. The BBC documentary on Hamilton records him saying that knowing that his engines and kart were prepared by and to the level of F1 mechanics for every race and practice and that his driving instructor trained Barichello as his 'day job', that Mclaren provided his academic tutor so he could do midweek practice and Buckmore Park provided him access to the track free contributed greatly to his confidence and skill.

Don't expect to compete against that level of sponsorship unless you have the skill to get that sort of sponsorship. (that isn't driving skill, it's a "getting sponsorship" skill).

Otherwise, settle for a couple of years in the clubman championships, win the NKRA national trophy before starting down S1, coming 55th out of 60 in your first race really won't do much except depress you and him.

But mainly have fun. I can say this having never won a significant final in 20 years, because I have always been competing in grids that hold 2 if not 3 national champions; but still enjoyed most of it.

Message Thread:

affordable karting? by 'orangeart' (22 Aug 2013 @ 10:46)

Re: affordable karting? by 'davidmc' (22 Aug 2013 @ 10:57)

Re: affordable karting? by 'orangeart' (29 Aug 2013 @ 10:06)

Re: affordable karting? by 'itpro' (22 Aug 2013 @ 11:04)

Re: affordable karting? by 'Liam' (23 Aug 2013 @ 20:58)

Re: affordable karting? by 'itpro' (23 Aug 2013 @ 23:58)

Re: affordable karting? by 'Liam' (24 Aug 2013 @ 19:27)

Re: affordable karting? by 'itpro' (25 Aug 2013 @ 1:20)

Re: affordable karting? by 'orangeart' (29 Aug 2013 @ 10:13)

Re: affordable karting? by 'orangeart' (29 Aug 2013 @ 10:09)

Re: affordable karting? by 'MaxRacewear' (22 Aug 2013 @ 14:51)

Re: affordable karting? by 'SimonS' << You are here!

Re: affordable karting? by 'NJB' (23 Aug 2013 @ 17:09)

Re: affordable karting? by 'Jeff Johnson' (23 Aug 2013 @ 22:22)

Re: affordable karting? by 'EtheT' (23 Aug 2013 @ 22:31)

Re: affordable karting? by 'fatsam' (27 Aug 2013 @ 21:52)

Re: affordable karting? by 'orangeart' (29 Aug 2013 @ 10:28)

Re: affordable karting? by 'orangeart' (29 Aug 2013 @ 10:23)

Re: affordable karting? by 'Liam' (02 Sep 2013 @ 20:58)

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