Gearjammer
Clearly things are different in the UK then. In the US, where the economy is a bit stagnant right now, it is tough to get sponsorship yes, but we are not talking about major sponsorship in the beginning and we are not talking about a full ride sponsorship either.
My salary when I work is around 50K+ a year before taxes, or around $4100 a month. Estimated cost to live is around $2500 a month, which includes utilities and basic necessities like food and gas. An additional $500 a month for entertainment expenses, which include internet, going out on occasion and the rare movie. This leaves roughly $1100 a month that can be used for hobbies such as racing.
If I wanted to get into professional racing, the initial cost for a banger to get started would be around $1500 including engine etc. $3200 for the driving school which is required in order to obtain the license, and any entry fees, race fees, parts etc per event there after. So initial cost or investment if you will would be less than $5000 US or about 5 months of savings.
Now comes the fun part. You enter a few events and if you do well, you take videos, standings etc and you go to all those mom and pop racing fan shops around town and ask if they would like to invest in some advertising on a car that is showing some good potential and will put their name out to the public due to publicity from finishing well in the events. Mom and Pop give you a few hundred dollars so they can have their name on the doors of the car, and you use that money to buy tires. The next Mom and Pop shop you convince to advertise with you gives you enough money to get their name on the hood. You take that money and set it aside for entry fees and fuel and some spare parts that you are going to need.
You keep doing that until you have enough to make it through the season in which you hope you will do well enough to finish high in the rankings. Rinse and repeat for the next season, but you also start to talk to drivers you meet at other racing events, and start to talk to other guys that are in the higher end racing that you want to move up to. Baby steps here guys or they are just going to laugh at you higher up and ask for your hard earned money.
The key is you have to approach sponsors as potential advertisers, not as someone you wish to get money from to race with. You have to expound on the virtues of your racing skill and the amount of folks that are going to see the shops name on the car. You can even tell them you will do personal appearances with your car to help promote their business when you are in town and not racing.
That is the low cost way to get into racing and with your skill make it to the top without paying for your ride.
Now the question time seeing as you guys are talking about UK stuff. Are there no events other than karting that you can do to learn your racecraft and show your abilities? I am speaking of street stock classes or something similar. That is the area you should be thinking about unless you really plan on being an F1 pilot, then you will likely have to pay a lot.
My salary when I work is around 50K+ a year before taxes, or around $4100 a month. Estimated cost to live is around $2500 a month, which includes utilities and basic necessities like food and gas. An additional $500 a month for entertainment expenses, which include internet, going out on occasion and the rare movie. This leaves roughly $1100 a month that can be used for hobbies such as racing.
If I wanted to get into professional racing, the initial cost for a banger to get started would be around $1500 including engine etc. $3200 for the driving school which is required in order to obtain the license, and any entry fees, race fees, parts etc per event there after. So initial cost or investment if you will would be less than $5000 US or about 5 months of savings.
Now comes the fun part. You enter a few events and if you do well, you take videos, standings etc and you go to all those mom and pop racing fan shops around town and ask if they would like to invest in some advertising on a car that is showing some good potential and will put their name out to the public due to publicity from finishing well in the events. Mom and Pop give you a few hundred dollars so they can have their name on the doors of the car, and you use that money to buy tires. The next Mom and Pop shop you convince to advertise with you gives you enough money to get their name on the hood. You take that money and set it aside for entry fees and fuel and some spare parts that you are going to need.
You keep doing that until you have enough to make it through the season in which you hope you will do well enough to finish high in the rankings. Rinse and repeat for the next season, but you also start to talk to drivers you meet at other racing events, and start to talk to other guys that are in the higher end racing that you want to move up to. Baby steps here guys or they are just going to laugh at you higher up and ask for your hard earned money.
The key is you have to approach sponsors as potential advertisers, not as someone you wish to get money from to race with. You have to expound on the virtues of your racing skill and the amount of folks that are going to see the shops name on the car. You can even tell them you will do personal appearances with your car to help promote their business when you are in town and not racing.
That is the low cost way to get into racing and with your skill make it to the top without paying for your ride.
Now the question time seeing as you guys are talking about UK stuff. Are there no events other than karting that you can do to learn your racecraft and show your abilities? I am speaking of street stock classes or something similar. That is the area you should be thinking about unless you really plan on being an F1 pilot, then you will likely have to pay a lot.