Thousands of kids grow up dreaming of becoming a race car driver but unless you start in karts from a young age, the chance of going pro is almost zero.
That’s okay though. Not everyone can be the next Lewis Hamilton or Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the same way that not everyone grows up to be Tom Brady or Lionel Messi. But almost anybody can can make their passion for motorsports into a fulfilling, lifelong hobby.
There’s nothing wrong with being a hobbyist, an amateur. Hobbyists have made incredible achievements and contributions to whatever fields they dedicate themselves too. Hobbyist astronomers have discovered galaxies and exoplanets. Hobbyist racers can tear up ovals in V8 stock cars, complete grueling endurance races at Daytona, and win national championships in their own series.
And no matter what form of motorsport you’re into, there’s a hobbyist option.
Want to race open wheel formula cars at Watkins Glen? Formula Vee with the SCCA does what Formula One doesn’t.
Want to slide your way through a forest, inches from trees and spectators? NASA Rally Sport has you covered.
Want the door-banging thrill of oval racing? America is covered with short oval tracks where weekend warriors do battle under stadium lights.
If you can’t afford a real race car (your author certainly can’t – yet), there are multiple affordable and accessible ways into motorsports. These might be your best choice even if you do have the money to dive right in deep end. Learn to walk before you run, and what not.
Autocross and SCCA RallyCross are safe ways to participate in high-level competition in your street car.
High Performance Driving Events (HPDEs) or track days similarly let you learn how to drive fast on a real track in your own car.
Arrive and drive karting leagues get you proper wheel-to-wheel racing frequently for less than a thousand bucks per season.
If you dream of going racing, participating in any of the above events is infinitely better than doing nothing. You will almost certainly have a great time, learn a lot, and make friends no matter what discipline of motorsport you end up participating in.
What’s the point of Motorsport Hobbyist?
Unless you grew up around racing, in a racing family, the world of amateur motorsports feels very opaque.
I hope that by running this site, writing about my own experiences of starting a hobbyist career in motorsports, and sharing the stories of others who race for fun, I can make amateur motorsports feel more accessible and encourage others to start racing too.
I also hope to cover multiple disciplines of motorsport. There are amateur road racers, oval racers, rally drivers, kart racers, hill climbers, time trial drivers, and more.
Any motorsports discipline you’re interested in is worthy of your time and money. Drive what you want to and can afford, as frequently as you can.
About the Author
I’m Blane Erwin, a mid-20s guy who loves motorsport but wound up working in media and marketing. This website is a passion project for me, where I get to combine my writing and reporting chops with something I’m interested in.
As I launch this site in 2021, I’m not anything close to resembling a racing expert. I’ve competed in one autocross and a couple of outdoor arrive and drive karting sessions. I’m also not a mechanic, only capable of basic maintenance on my own cars.
I do a lot of sim racing, but it’s not the point of this website and I don’t anticipate to write about it frequently. There’s a million sites about sim racing out there and it’s very accessible.
I’m currently driving a manual 2015 Mini Cooper S. I’m participating in my first season of autocross and attending at least one track day this year.
I hope you’ll hang around, I’m looking forward to sharing what I learn with you.
Homepage header image by Doctor jacob | Sidebar image by Ian Gulinao | Wikimedia Commons | Both images have been cropped to fit.