john lilly
PR Addict
Oh, I did write it down on a piece of paper and cut it down from 20 pages to two, that's pretty good.
What would it take to bring you back to RACING
- Thread starter ck1racerx
- Start date
Michael
PR Addict
I've been dabbling in working towards getting an auto racing competition license. And there's very little to no complaining about everything people complain about in motocross.
Why is it that most people in motocross want the shortest day possible at the track?
Nobody complains about the long days(12+ hours, with 9-10 of them just sitting in the paddock), a long list of classes you can race in(with some only having 1 or 2 cars and others having 20-30), long drive times to the tracks, etc. Heck lots of people embrace the time they're spending at the track and enjoy the time there after the track goes cold for the night. Having a big pot luck dinner with all the drivers and their family, drinking some adult beverages by someone's rig, and sitting around jibber-jabbering are all part of the experience after driving. Spending the whole weekend at the track is part of the experience, people don't complain about having to be at the track. If everyone could have a three day weekend all the time, everyone would love to be at the track all three days.
Why do people in motocross care so much when costs increase just $5 or $10? It's a few drops in the bucket compared to the costs of a bike, gear, repairs and maintenance, truck (and trailer), etc. Yet some people think sliding it $5 or $10 up or down will either break the sport or help it thrive.
A day or weekend at a road course can vary $50-$200 each day just based on which venue you're at and which organization you're driving with. If track A cost $25 a class to ride and and track B cost $40 a class to ride people would lose their minds. Yet, it's just part of the sport in auto racing. Sure you've got people running on budgets of $200k-$2mil, but a good majority of the people who just come out to drive on a track and have fun aren't rolling in the dough (such as myself). People on a budget save money by the choice of their vehicle they're driving and the modifications done to it, the cost of driving/racing is a fixed cost and it's not worth pouting about. There's people who race maybe half the weekends on the schedule yet they were okay with spending $300 on graphics and $800 on an exhaust, yet they want to be up in arms if it would cost them $5 or $10 more a class to race than they paid last year.
tl;dr - I guess the gist of everything is why do a lot of riders these days want everything to be served to them on a silver platter? Too many people are worried about an hour here or two hours there, $10 here or $20 there, etc. compared to what I've witnessed in driving/racing at road courses where people want to be there and don't mind spending 12 hours at the track with 90% of it just sitting around followed up by camping there or staying at a hotel to wake up and do it all again the next day, or costs varying as much as $400 in just entry fees for a week without even taking into account that they may have drove 12 hours one event compared to just 2 hours for the last.
Why is it that most people in motocross want the shortest day possible at the track?
Nobody complains about the long days(12+ hours, with 9-10 of them just sitting in the paddock), a long list of classes you can race in(with some only having 1 or 2 cars and others having 20-30), long drive times to the tracks, etc. Heck lots of people embrace the time they're spending at the track and enjoy the time there after the track goes cold for the night. Having a big pot luck dinner with all the drivers and their family, drinking some adult beverages by someone's rig, and sitting around jibber-jabbering are all part of the experience after driving. Spending the whole weekend at the track is part of the experience, people don't complain about having to be at the track. If everyone could have a three day weekend all the time, everyone would love to be at the track all three days.
Why do people in motocross care so much when costs increase just $5 or $10? It's a few drops in the bucket compared to the costs of a bike, gear, repairs and maintenance, truck (and trailer), etc. Yet some people think sliding it $5 or $10 up or down will either break the sport or help it thrive.
A day or weekend at a road course can vary $50-$200 each day just based on which venue you're at and which organization you're driving with. If track A cost $25 a class to ride and and track B cost $40 a class to ride people would lose their minds. Yet, it's just part of the sport in auto racing. Sure you've got people running on budgets of $200k-$2mil, but a good majority of the people who just come out to drive on a track and have fun aren't rolling in the dough (such as myself). People on a budget save money by the choice of their vehicle they're driving and the modifications done to it, the cost of driving/racing is a fixed cost and it's not worth pouting about. There's people who race maybe half the weekends on the schedule yet they were okay with spending $300 on graphics and $800 on an exhaust, yet they want to be up in arms if it would cost them $5 or $10 more a class to race than they paid last year.
tl;dr - I guess the gist of everything is why do a lot of riders these days want everything to be served to them on a silver platter? Too many people are worried about an hour here or two hours there, $10 here or $20 there, etc. compared to what I've witnessed in driving/racing at road courses where people want to be there and don't mind spending 12 hours at the track with 90% of it just sitting around followed up by camping there or staying at a hotel to wake up and do it all again the next day, or costs varying as much as $400 in just entry fees for a week without even taking into account that they may have drove 12 hours one event compared to just 2 hours for the last.
ktrop251
PR Member
This isn't road racing, it's motocross. Let's just face it, most guys that race motocross, don't have the money that other sports require. I personally don't mind hanging out at the track with my friends for 12 hours. Hell, I'd do it and not even race, I've done it before. Everyone bitches about something.
Let's get down to business, people don't have the money. Plain and simple. $5 here and $10 there does impact some people. Yea, get another job, don't be lazy, blah blah blah. At the end of the day, money makes the world go around.
Auto racing is an entirely different sport and I would expect it to be that much more expensive. I hate to say it, but not everyone makes that kind of money. Some of us are average Joes or kids trying to make it.
Let's get down to business, people don't have the money. Plain and simple. $5 here and $10 there does impact some people. Yea, get another job, don't be lazy, blah blah blah. At the end of the day, money makes the world go around.
Auto racing is an entirely different sport and I would expect it to be that much more expensive. I hate to say it, but not everyone makes that kind of money. Some of us are average Joes or kids trying to make it.
john lilly
PR Addict
First off, you are comparing an apple and an orange, two completely separate sports. Secondly, I don't know you or if you are married or have kids but this is a sport for one of my kids, the other of my kids (daughter) has no interest in mx and my son gets a boat load of money spent on him, for him to participate in mx; I do it but its not fair. My wife is not a fan of mx and would like to do other things on the weekends besides go sit at a dust bowl and I don't blame her. How does your wife and kids like spending their weekend at the track? Also, how long have you been "all In" on the car racing thing? I thought sitting at a mx track was the s**t at one time but now realize, I have other responsibilities that need to be taken care of. Does your wife and kids like sitting at the track all weekend? Also, I don't know your finances but I have people who live in my neighborhood who skip paying there electric bill and both parents work, so, whats my point, money is tight when you have kids and a family so, every dollar makes a difference for most people in this country these days. Not to mention if, Hillary gets in the White House you my friend are gonna have less money very soon. But good luck to you on your License and hope your family is all in, year after year.
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ktrop251
PR Member
^double like.
GeorgiePorgie
PR Founding Father
Resident Doctor I work with races cars. Has a Mazda he's got about 30 grand into. Now he makes 55,000 as a resident. But one day will be making a lot more. He's told me to come to the track but I'm not sure I want to drive a race car. Because then I'll really have to find out how to make a ton of money.
That's what my dad and I used to do every weekend when I was younger. Miss those days.
ck1racerx
PR Addict
Well after thinking about this for another week and spending another weekend at the races it is clear that BIG changes must be made. Creating another organization that is basically a copy of every other one is not a fix. The battle series is great because it gives the big event feel, but clearly tearing down your district 11 flag and flying an OMA flag is NOT what the sport needs. After a decade or more of dirt country averaging over 200 per race, they are now at 3/4 of that.
My new best buddy weasel drags this topic over to the vitards and almost everyone agrees that the ONE thing killing local moto is too many classes leading to little seat time.
Plenty of people have posted on here and that "other site" their idea of the perfect class list. And of course they are all different. One idiot even said we need a class for small bore 4 stokes!!! That took 1.75 hours off my life expectancy.
I do believe that even I have been looking at this through rose colored glasses. No longer, I say.
Not thinking outside the box. I am burning the box and only dealing with round containers.
Try this on for size:
50 4-7
65 7-10
85 9-12
Supermini 11-14 (85-150cc)
Teen+ (Well, 12+. 125 only)
25+
35+
45+
All star (A / B)
Novice ( no year end awards. Top 8 auto advance)
Beginners (3 race max) no points and you get a paper certificate as an award.
And that's it.
Want a class for your kid on a PW? No. Go practice until he can ride a real 50
Want a class just for 250's or 450's ? No. They are the same speed and I saved you $ by not buying 2 bikes
Want a girl class? No. Our classes are unisex.
Open this? Open that? Yes, we are open, now pick a class from the list above you pus.
Not every race has to have transponders, 3 announcers, 25 people working signup and a personal masseuse for every rider. Give them the same thing you give the people that come to practice. A preped track and someone starting them and taking them off.
Just had a good talk with a track promoter that is going to try it. Sure hope it works and that everyone supports those that do. I know I will
My new best buddy weasel drags this topic over to the vitards and almost everyone agrees that the ONE thing killing local moto is too many classes leading to little seat time.
Plenty of people have posted on here and that "other site" their idea of the perfect class list. And of course they are all different. One idiot even said we need a class for small bore 4 stokes!!! That took 1.75 hours off my life expectancy.
I do believe that even I have been looking at this through rose colored glasses. No longer, I say.
Not thinking outside the box. I am burning the box and only dealing with round containers.
Try this on for size:
50 4-7
65 7-10
85 9-12
Supermini 11-14 (85-150cc)
Teen+ (Well, 12+. 125 only)
25+
35+
45+
All star (A / B)
Novice ( no year end awards. Top 8 auto advance)
Beginners (3 race max) no points and you get a paper certificate as an award.
And that's it.
Want a class for your kid on a PW? No. Go practice until he can ride a real 50
Want a class just for 250's or 450's ? No. They are the same speed and I saved you $ by not buying 2 bikes
Want a girl class? No. Our classes are unisex.
Open this? Open that? Yes, we are open, now pick a class from the list above you pus.
Not every race has to have transponders, 3 announcers, 25 people working signup and a personal masseuse for every rider. Give them the same thing you give the people that come to practice. A preped track and someone starting them and taking them off.
Just had a good talk with a track promoter that is going to try it. Sure hope it works and that everyone supports those that do. I know I will
If someone would do this they would have my support!
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John250
PR Founding Father
Went and supported the local MX Scene again today. Left my house at 6:30 home at 4:30 and live an hour from the track. They were almost done with all the motos when I pulled out. 16 total motos, no 4 wheelers to add another 6 classes.
As for the cost. It is not as much as you all think.
$20 entry for me and my son.
$70 sign up for 2 classes for him, 1 for me.
$90
-$20 in Dirt Country bucks won at the last race
-$25 holeshot award won (will use it on oil or something that I would have spent $25 on)
-$20 RMATVMC gift cards that will come in the mail for Matthew and I for signing up today
So it cost me and Matthew $25 to ride three classes today minus the gas and the track food, that we need to eat any way. We also came home with another $10 in dirt country bucks to use at the next race.
Got practice and two 5 lap motos, and the experience of racing that you do not get going and practicing.
Props to Scott Plessinger also. He posted on FB that he was cancelling practice at East Fork today because dirt country was racing today. I will be at East Fork for their OMA races to support them also.
As for the cost. It is not as much as you all think.
$20 entry for me and my son.
$70 sign up for 2 classes for him, 1 for me.
$90
-$20 in Dirt Country bucks won at the last race
-$25 holeshot award won (will use it on oil or something that I would have spent $25 on)
-$20 RMATVMC gift cards that will come in the mail for Matthew and I for signing up today
So it cost me and Matthew $25 to ride three classes today minus the gas and the track food, that we need to eat any way. We also came home with another $10 in dirt country bucks to use at the next race.
Got practice and two 5 lap motos, and the experience of racing that you do not get going and practicing.
Props to Scott Plessinger also. He posted on FB that he was cancelling practice at East Fork today because dirt country was racing today. I will be at East Fork for their OMA races to support them also.
Michael
PR Addict
How much more seat time do you get from condensing classes? 1 lap? Big whoop. To me that isn't worth coming out and racing again. And if you shave enough classes away and can go from 3-4 laps to 5-6 laps, I surely know I'll be worn out come lap 3-4 like I normally am , then just putt around 75% pace the last two laps. So to me, 1 lap isn't going to bring me out to the races and 2 laps will leave me mad at myself cause I'll likely lose multiple positions from running out of steam. Either scenario is a lose-lose in my eyes. I'd prefer to run 2 classes if I wanted more seat time so I had at least a short break in between the two and could enjoy riding at a full pace. But either way, there's a couple classes that could be cut.
fluidpower
PR Member
I think the difference in car racing and correct me if I am wrong, is that those events aren't held every weekend. I understand that one could drive to limerock, mid-oho, watkins glen, etc. but living in Columbus, I could ride every weekend within 3 hours of my house all summer long. You are not doing that car racing.
Michael
PR Addict
If you're willing to travel (which some are) there's events you can run at probably 40+ weekends of the year. But, that's pretty much for the people with huge budgets that have their own semi and the whole nine yards or pay for a seat with a professional race team. So for most people, there's one every 2-4 weeks that's only a few hours or less away.
I'd be curious to hear from someone who does oval racing, as they would be more comparable in every aspect compared to road racing. Most people have 2 or 3 tracks within a stone's throw from their house that run weekly programs and even the budget can be comparable at the lower end of the sport.
GeorgiePorgie
PR Founding Father
I looked into getting into a 4 cyl ocal track racing. It's pretty expensive as well. There's a track 4 miles from my house. They race every weekend all summer long. And the classes look fun. But again, not sure if it's any more expensive than dirtbikes these days.talked to a guy that races their weekly and said I could build a competitive car in the renegade class for 3-4 thousand. And the payout is kinda cool. Stands of spectators are usually a good size.
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fluidpower
PR Member
I would imagine wrenching on those things would be a full time job. I like just having to nut and bolt the bike, change oil and filters and go!
GeorgiePorgie
PR Founding Father
Yea I mean most of these guys that race own a body shop or are mechanics etc....