FIVE TIPS TO LIVE BY
There are a lot of things someone
new to the SCCA and
competition needs to learn: how
to drive, for starters – not to
mention how to prepare and
repair a car. You can learn to
drive at one of SCCA’s Drivers
Schools, and there are a million
books on racecar preparation;
but there are things that the
schools won’t teach you and
aren’t printed in the books.
1. You will get beat
Nobody cares how good you
think you are; you’re going to lose
your first race. And your second.
And a few more beyond that. Get
over it. Chances are the drivers
you’re competing against have
been at it for years.
global view of the Club is for you, you
can even run for a position on the BoD.
ON YOUR MARKS...
Ready to jump into your membership?
A few pages deeper into this special
issue of SportsCar is a decision tree,
helping you choose which part of the
Club is right for you. From there, we
take you step by step through the
details of each type of competition. By
the time you’re finished with this issue,
you’ll know all there is to know about
how to get involved in the SCCA. Well,
almost. But if you’re ever in any doubt,
ask someone – we’re a friendly bunch
of motorsport enthusiasts.
T WO KINDS CCA has t wo kinds of rally: RallyCross (MAIN) and Road Rally (BELOW). While very different, many members compete in both.
Rupert Berrington
Philip Royle
2. Ask the people who
beat you for advice
The beautiful thing about the
SCCA is you can ask your
competitors for advice – and
actually get it. Chances are pretty
good that you’ll find an
experienced competitor who’s
more than willing to help you out.
3. Respect the rules
The rules may not make sense
now, but after you’ve been
around a while, they will (at least
most of them). Spend some time
finding out why the rules are what
they are, why they’re written in
that confusing language and then,
if you still think it’s necessary, start
questioning them.
4. Don’t try to save
money on safety
Safety is not the area in which to
save money. In the beginning,
skip buying that trick part or the
hottest gadget and, instead,
spend the money on the best
safety equipment you can buy.
5. Improve the driver,
not the car
Practice and training will make
you quicker, faster, than any trick
parts on the market. In the
beginning, money spent on driver
coaching will yield a much better
return on investment than an
expensive set of shocks.