Being one of the many victims of motorsport's tendency to eliminate those without a thick wallet, I've become a bit of an evangelist for affordable racing. So in the following post, I want to mention what I think is one of the best value for money racing championships in the UK.
Motorsport is a rich mans game. All the way from the 9 figure budgets of F1 teams down to the hundreds spent each weekend for club kart racing, drivers are often restricted not by their talent, but their wallet.
A season in a professional championship like British F3 can cost something in the region of £400,000. Even at rookie level a championship like the Mini Challenge Club Class can easily cost in excess of £10,000 per season, and that doesn't include the cost of repairs after a visit to the barriers.
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| Motorsport can be very expensive |
But racing addicts do not despair, there do exist some far more affordable ways to get out racing in some fully fledged competitive championships.
Kart racing is amongst the most affordable form of competitive racing, and thankfully is also one if the closest, driver focused forms too. You might be thinking karting is for kids, but remember every single driver on the current F1 grid cut his teeth in karting. Some still do in the off season, with non other than 2009 F1 World Champion Jenson Button saying "there is no purer form of racing than karting." So it's not something to be dismissed before having a go in a 'proper' kart first.
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| Jenson says karting is the "purest form of motorsport." |
One of the easiest ways to do this, is in 'arrive and drive' championships. They exist in great numbers across the nation, but perhaps one of the most competitive of them all is Club100. This championship uses machinery that has little resemblance to your average fun fair lawn mowers. Instead these karts are powered by full racing TKM Extreme engines, as used by British Championship drivers in TKM Extreme Super 1. Of course these Club100 engines are no where near as highly tuned, but they still offer some exhilarating performance characteristics that take skill to manage. Being direct drive they cannot start from a standstill, but once rolling they can achieve a 5-60mph sprint in something around 6 seconds. And they'll keep on accelerating up to about 75mph, which I can assure you feels much faster when you're sat an inch off the tarmac, bumper to bumper with some aggressive budget racers.
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| Both ex pros and novices can compete in full Club 100 grids |
Add this impressive machinery to a field of proper racing enthusiasts, including some ex National level drivers and single seater winners, and you have a championship that offers some of the closest racing in the UK. Competing on circuits also used in the British Championships, you could be forgiven for thinking this championship will resemble the money pit that is modern motorsport. But in actual fact you can compete on each race day (comprising 2 rounds) for just over £160, which in motorsport terms is an absolute bargain. With 3 levels of championship, each tailored for different experience levels, ex pros and beginners alike get to mix it with drivers of the same level. Endurance and sprint championships also suit different driving styles. And with 16 of 22 rounds counting, there's flexibility to minimise travel costs and avoid racing at the inevitable couple of events located too far from home.
This championship can really force a driver to hone their skills, with all karts being (almost) identical, barring inevitable battle scars from earlier races. Kart consistency is amongst the best in the UK, so race results will almost always reflect driver ability entirely. And when it rains, there are no wets to find usable grip. Instead slick tyres are used in all conditions, so rainy days really sort the men from the boys.
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| Slicks in all weather - separating the men from the boys |
But probably the best thing about this championship is the fact that it is an arrive and drive series, meaning as a driver all you have to worry about is driving. No maintenance costs, no place to store the kart is needed and most importantly, there are no bills if you bend it. In my opinion, there really are few better ways to race in a competitive championship at such affordable prices.
All things considered, I do want to emphasise that for many this Championship won't scratch all of the racing itch. With no chance of adjusting kart set-up and maintaining your very own machine, racers may feel a little disconnected from the whole experience. And more significantly, these are go karts and not cars on proper car tracks. But when you're counting the pennies and don't fancy entering a bottomless pit of service and repair bills, Club100 is the perfect answer to tame that racing itch. And for me it at least keeps me from taking out my anger on my poor little Clio....most of the time.
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| Taming the itch |
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