The Club
Race organizations come in all colors and flavors – vintage to modern, fun to competitive. Your choice may be made for you by what’s close by, or if you have multiple choices, by what tickles your fancy. To do it cheap, you need a club and track that’s nearby; transportation expenses get out of control pretty easily. SCCA is the oldest and largest club, and for good reason. They are very organized, very diversified, and located nation wide. NASA is a club very similar to SCCA: large, multiple classes, and many regions. Both SCCA and NASA have a class for just about every car you could want to race, and they eventually allow you to race outside your local area. They are geared towards late model cars, and they can lead you to the professional ranks at their upper end. But this type of racing is not everyone’s cup of tea. Small, local clubs often provide a less competitive atmosphere geared more to hometown, family fun.
Vintage car racing is also a very popular avenue. These clubs usually provide a little more comaraderie in the pits as the racing is as much about the cool, old cars as it is about the racing. Don’t get me wrong, the drivers are just as competitive, but the rules are generally more gentlemanly. VARA, HSR, SVRA, and CSRG are excellent examples of vintage racing organizations.
Most clubs are for production cars, but some have open wheel classes as well. Many have Spec classes, where the cars are supposed to be identically prepared, and the driver makes the difference.
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