How to get noticed?

[Razorclaw99]

I really want to drive professionally. I go to the track all the time and have had cars from rice burners, to forged procharged 383 lt1s, to now an ls1. I enjoy it quite a bit and cant see myself working in an office building in the future. I consider myself a very good driver and am just wondering how to get noticed ? I am 5 minutes away from Englishtown Raceway Park. Should i just do bracket racing there ? Im a bit lost, hopefully someone who has experience can point me in the right direction.. Thanks

(i checked out skip barber racing school and thats alot of money..)

[Tru2Chevy]

You want to become a professional drag racer?

If so, you should already be running weekly bracket races everywhere you can.

- Justin

[BigAls87Z28]

Skip Barber will not teach you drag racing.

Chose your path. Straight or Curved.

[WildBillyT]

Isn't Frank Hawley the guy you go to for drag racing?

[Tru2Chevy]

Originally Posted by WildBillyT

Isn't Frank Hawley the guy you go to for drag racing?

Yup.

- Justin

[79CamaroDiva]

Doug Foley has a drag racing school too, but thats mostly just to get accustomed to a dragster.

Let me be the first to tell you that its not easy. I'm a 25 year old female who has been racing since 9 years old. I started in Jr dragsters, moved up to street cars, to 8 second door cars, to now a 7 second dragster. I've been in countless newspapers, raced all over the country, and I still have a hard time finding a sponsor. Drag racing is a VERY expensive sport, and you can not expect to drive a race car to make money. The money is in the sponsors, and in this economy its not looking good. Typical race entry for various classes range from $50/week for a footbrake type class (called Pro at most tracks) to close to $200 entry for a race like the Mitchell series that I used to run at Atco, which is 10,000 to win. It sounds like a lot, but don't forget that only one person can win.

I haven't raced at all this season in my own car just because I've been trying to get my own business off the ground, since I know that the chances of making it big as a drag racer are slim to none. It's all about being in the right place at the right time, and I've tried putting myself there.

I'm not trying to deter you. if you have the funds to persue it, then go for it. But it takes a long time, and to be a good bracket racer you have to be consistant to within thousandths. Even racing in a street class you generally have to be .040 or better on the tree all the time, and your car better run within 2 hundredths to be competitive. (if your car runs say 13.20's, by 2 hundredths, i mean a 13.22, then a 13.24, then a 13.23, 13.22, etc. Varying by a tenth will not get you anywhere)

[jims69camaro]

i can only tell you about my brother's trip in the motocross sport: sponsorship means you can race. if you have to go into your pocket on a weekly basis, then you had better have a damn good office job. stuff breaks (ask melissa) on a daily basis so you need deep pockets (either your own or a sponsor's) in order to keep at it. and they want you to run at the top all of the time, so you need a damn good crew. all of that adds up to money. there is no office (that i know of) where you can go drop off your application and get a job. it's just not like that. and know that there are literally thousands of guys at any given track that want that top spot, so you've got to be able to beat the competition on a regular basis, or you'll get dropped for the next up-and-comer... it's not an easy road.

[alamantia]

weve been running in the 5's at 230mph for two seasons now independantly and still have had no luck getting a sponcer, id imagine its pretty hard to become a professional driver. My brother flew out to CA to meet John Force last year in hopes to tryout to run top fuel but it wound up being a waist of time for him.

[SteveR]

We were lucky enough to have dinner with Tony Schumacher two weeks ago and he said that for him, it was his determination and personality that got his foot in the door, and thats is definitely the case if you want to be a pro. Think about it from a sponsors point of view, they want the publicity, and a good spokesman. A lot of the time you spend as a pro driver is in front of a camera, or on the radio, or meeting people and having dinners etc. Being able to present yourself professionally is the first requirement. I asked Tony what made him decide to become a pro driver and how did it happen, and he said that he was racing Top Alcohol Funny Car at the time and his car broke at one race and he didnt have the money to fix it so he needed to find a new ride and sponsors and he heard of a Top Fuel opening so he inquired about it. They brushed him off a little and told him to just send a resume and they'd "let him know". He wouldn't take that as the answer and he flew out to meet them face to face and show them in person that he was the man for the job. It worked, and the rest is history. Each person that may come up to you at a race and ask you something about your car could be a potential sponsor, they may own a local business, or speed shop. Be a salesman each and every time and you'll be one step ahead of the drivers that blow people off.

However, personality wont win you races. You still have to have the numbers to back it up. There are several ways you can go, or mix them up if you want. The big thing is to be consistent. You need to be good on the tree, you cant take yourself out of the race by red lighting. You can run weekly points at a track, and get the attention of the local racers at that track. Hopefully you'll do good enough to collect enough points to earn your way to the Bracket Finals for Division 1, and race in front of several thousand people from your division, and if you win that, you go to Pomona to race at the national event for the National Champion in your class. Another way to go is National Opens and divisional races held at various tracks, both of which will get you some attention if you do good, as well as earn you points to be able to run at national events in front of 2-300,000 people.

The problem some people fall into is the thought that you have to build the fastest car to win. In bracket racing, its all consistency. Build a car that will do the exact same thing every time, and you'll be on the right track.

[NastyEllEssWon]

theres a site thats kinda like fquick.com where you can get sponsors to notice you. i forget what its called. someone here should know


edit:: carsponsors.com

[Razorclaw99]

i heard carsponsors.com is the biggest waste of money ever.

[jims69camaro]

Originally Posted by Razorclaw99

i heard carsponsors.com is the biggest waste of money ever.

it doesn't cost anything to join.

[Knipps]

wouldn't hurt to try www.sponsorhouse.com

[Razorclaw99]

Originally Posted by jims69camaro

it doesn't cost anything to join.

Yea it does. They call you and want something like $60 over the phone with a credit card. Then they claim they give you discounts on things when they over price it anyway. So you think your getting a deal when your getting it for retail price.

[badzracing]

Originally Posted by SteveR

We were lucky enough to have dinner with Tony Schumacher two weeks ago and he said that for him, it was his determination and personality that got his foot in the door, and thats is definitely the case if you want to be a pro.

I think it had A WHOLE LOT more to do with the fact that his dad is multi-millionaire Don Schumacher... It's a nice story and helpful advice, but if you don't win the lottery or have a real friendly uncle ( not to friendly/ touchy/ feely), pro drag racing pro drag racing probably isn't for you...I'd say the odds are similar to becoming a pro football, baseball, basketball...etc player

[band77one]

if you wanna be a professional driver....be like ricky bobby!

[1QWIKBIRD]

You have to live it, eat, sleep, breathe the sport. You gotta put yourself out there and take lots of chances. You gotta perform at the top the class consistently. I don't know if becoming a professional driver without some sort of financial backing is really possible in today's environment. And even with all that, you are face long odds.

There is a much greater possibilty at excelling in the sport and maybe getting free or heavliy discounted gear from a vendor or supplier.

How many Top Alcohol dragster drivers can you name off the top of your head? Or Superstock guys? Or outlaw 10.5 guys? Who's E-town's bracket champ from last year?
Because all those people are looking for the same thing, and they have a head start on you.

Look around at the track and you'll see that many people may look big time, but in fact are footing the bill out of their own pocket. And the faster they are going, the bigger the bill. Lots of these racers are self employed and have a successful business that gives them the financial means and the flexibility in schedule to pursue racing.

My point is that there are thousands of guys/girls out wanting the same thing as you.

I think you'd be better off doing it for the love of it, staying within your budget and becoming a student of the sport, versus focusing on getting noticed. Learn the trade, learn how to race, not just blast down 1320 feet for kicks. Learn consistency, repeatablility, changing conditions. In doing so and becoming a student, maybe someone will notice your dedication and an opportunity will present itself. Along the way I am sure you meet good people who be willing to share their experiences and maybe some less that good people who also have something to share.

Mike Ashley just sold his interest in his funny car team to concentrate on his business. Maybe you could drop them a line, Funny Car would be kick butt, they might be looking for a "shoe"?

Good Luck.

[SteveR]

Originally Posted by badzracing

I think it had A WHOLE LOT more to do with the fact that his dad is multi-millionaire Don Schumacher... It's a nice story and helpful advice, but if you don't win the lottery or have a real friendly uncle ( not to friendly/ touchy/ feely), pro drag racing pro drag racing probably isn't for you...I'd say the odds are similar to becoming a pro football, baseball, basketball...etc player

I asked him that too, and he said his dad gave him nothing until after three years in a top fuel dragster. He got the ride on his own, and raced for three years before his dad thought about starting a team and offered him the dragster he has now. I'm sure the name helped, but just two minutes talking to him and you can tell he is a very charismatic, well spoken, extremely professional person. He conveys the image that sponsors pay for. He even said it, he spends 4.5 seconds in the dragster per run, maybe a total of 20 seconds in the dragster per weekend, but hours talking with people each day. It's your personality and professionalism that sponsors want.

[SteveR]

Originally Posted by 1QWIKBIRD

You have to live it, eat, sleep, breathe the sport. You gotta put yourself out there and take lots of chances. You gotta perform at the top the class consistently. I don't know if becoming a professional driver without some sort of financial backing is really possible in today's environment. And even with all that, you are face long odds.

There is a much greater possibilty at excelling in the sport and maybe getting free or heavliy discounted gear from a vendor or supplier.

How many Top Alcohol dragster drivers can you name off the top of your head? Or Superstock guys? Or outlaw 10.5 guys? Who's E-town's bracket champ from last year?
Because all those people are looking for the same thing, and they have a head start on you.

Look around at the track and you'll see that many people may look big time, but in fact are footing the bill out of their own pocket. And the faster they are going, the bigger the bill. Lots of these racers are self employed and have a successful business that gives them the financial means and the flexibility in schedule to pursue racing.

My point is that there are thousands of guys/girls out wanting the same thing as you.

I think you'd be better off doing it for the love of it, staying within your budget and becoming a student of the sport, versus focusing on getting noticed. Learn the trade, learn how to race, not just blast down 1320 feet for kicks. Learn consistency, repeatablility, changing conditions. In doing so and becoming a student, maybe someone will notice your dedication and an opportunity will present itself. Along the way I am sure you meet good people who be willing to share their experiences and maybe some less that good people who also have something to share.

Mike Ashley just sold his interest in his funny car team to concentrate on his business. Maybe you could drop them a line, Funny Car would be kick butt, they might be looking for a "shoe"?

Good Luck.

Your first paragraph is EXACTLY what Kenny Bernstein said and EXACTLY what he told his son Brandon.

Mike Ashley's partner bought out his funny car team and Melony Troxel will be staying in the one car, and yes, the other car IS open as of now so there's one opportunity.

[Mike]

Originally Posted by SteveR

I asked him that too, and he said his dad gave him nothing until after three years in a top fuel dragster. He got the ride on his own, and raced for three years before his dad thought about starting a team and offered him the dragster he has now. I'm sure the name helped, but just two minutes talking to him and you can tell he is a very charismatic, well spoken, extremely professional person. He conveys the image that sponsors pay for. He even said it, he spends 4.5 seconds in the dragster per run, maybe a total of 20 seconds in the dragster per weekend, but hours talking with people each day. It's your personality and professionalism that sponsors want.

his name got him the interview, he got himself the ride.....it would be foolish to say his name didnt help, but even MORE foolish to say he got hired to drive 300 mph based his dads celebrity and talent

[SteveR]

Originally Posted by cbrrmike

his name got him the interview, he got himself the ride.....it would be foolish to say his name didnt help, but even MORE foolish to say he got hired to drive 300 mph based his dads celebrity and talent

Yea Im sure his name helped, but they didnt care who he was when he asked about the ride, they blew him off and he flew out to meet them in person on his own. At least thats his story.

[jims69camaro]

Originally Posted by jims69camaro

and know that there are literally thousands of guys at any given track that want that top spot, so you've got to be able to beat the competition on a regular basis, or you'll get dropped for the next up-and-comer... it's not an easy road.

Originally Posted by 1QWIKBIRD

My point is that there are thousands of guys/girls out wanting the same thing as you.

is there an echo in here?

i am sorry, i was thinking of another website. i signed up there last year (i think it was sponsorhouse.com) where they have all kinds of people looking for sponsorships. bottom line was it didn't cost me anything to join. look around, there has to be something out there for you.

this reminds me of the guy (firebird67dude) that wants to be a marine, but thinks there is no chance for it to happen. i can guarantee you one thing: if you don't get out there, and get your name circulating, seek out the opportunities, NOTHING will happen. sitting behind the computer will not get you what you want. racing is still a face-to-face activity, regardless of the number of websites that are out there. if someone wants it badly enough, then it has a chance to succeed. if you just sit there expecting it to drop in your lap...

as far as i know, there are only a few people on this website that race on a regular basis, competitively. do you know who they are? my point is, i would be talking to them every chance i got, gleaning from them the information that i needed to succeed. if you decide to stay online looking for the right people, then i would seek out those websites that have professional racers on them, and i would be talking to them. talking to the right people at the right time, and hey, you never know...

[Jam]

razorclaw just asked how to become a racer and never came back to respond to all this advice..

[WayFast84]

You have to ask your self How bad do you want it? Is the juice worth the squeeze? In this thread there are at least 4 people with the same dream as you. Ever since I was little I have loved cars and wanted to be a race car driver. I could have raced karts, Dirt bikes anything, I didn't care, But I(and family) didn't have funds..

I know I am young as hell, 1 week till I'm 17, But I already know I got a late start at my dream.

If you want this bad enough you can do it. I think you should read a few books.

The ultimate secrets of total self confidence by Dr. Robert Anthony.

and

How to win friends and Influence people by Dale Carnegie.

The first book is hard to explain what it will do, but I know it will help give you confidence, and train your self for what you want, to make it really happen.

The second book not only focuses on how to deal with people and get them on your side(potential sponsors, and fans) it will also give you techniques on how to "sell your self"to a sponsor.

A lot of us have the same dream. It sucks its such a dog eat dog world..

[jims69camaro]

Originally Posted by JamZ28

razorclaw just asked how to become a racer and never came back to respond to all this advice..

yeah, how 'bout that?