So you want to start Racing huh?

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Due to the amount of threads recently on this subject I've tried to write an at least partially helpful FAQ and where to start.

I want to start racing

Ok, ok, hold on, do you have a road licence? Have you done any trackdays before. If the the answer to the former is no, then I'll assume for argument's sake that's you're under 17. You'll need to get yourself an ACU licence. See below.

If the answer to the latter is no then why not? How can you expect to cut it on track without having been out there before? Stop reading this and book yourself some trackdays. Start in the novice group so you don't scare yourself shitless the first time you go out and gradually move up as you feel ready. Once you're in the advanced group and holding your own, then you're probably about 60% of the way to being race fast. Then look into getting your licence.



How exactly do I get my ACU licence?

If you're under 16 and/or don't hold a road license or CBT you'll need to prove you can handle a bike competently, so you'll need to do a day at the Ron Haslam Race School or any other approved ACU race school, then sit an exam(O no!) at the ACU HQ in Rugby(other venues are available between January and March), and have your eye test(An eye test is all they as for as far as I know at the moment) in order to get your licence. In order to get the licence you also need to be a member of a club.(See links further down). Most clubs offer a system where by you send all your licence forms to them and they do the rest for you.(Not the exam naturally).

So you've got your novice licence now. As a novice license holder you MUST wear a novice orange bib. In order to upgrade your license to a clubman license you need to complete at least 1 race at 10 different meetings and on at least 3 different circuits.
There are limits on what you can ride on a novice license, but these vary according to your age. The ages and restrictions are listed below:

11 years: Up to 125cc production scooter

12 years: Up to 125cc producted based machine
250cc four stroke single cylinder machine limited to 28 bhp

13 years: As 12 years

14 years: As 12 years

15 years: Up to 125cc GP machine
250cc four stroke single cylinder machine with no restriction
Up to 500cc twin cylinder 4 stroke macine

16 years: 250cc two stroke or 400cc four stroke
Production based machine up to 650cc
Twin cylinder four stroke production based machine and including the Ducati Monster 800cc air cooled machines

17 years: Any classic or vintage solo

18 years: 250cc GP machine
600cc 4 cylinder 4 stroke production based machine
675cc three cylinder 4 stroke production based machine
750cc twin cylinder 4 stroke production based machine


If you are over 18 and have a full motorcycle licence/CBT then you don't have to do the race school part because your road licence proves that you can handle a bike competently, although some clubs will stipulate that you attend a race school anyway. You simply send your bits off to your chosen club and sit your exam, and eye test.

So you've got your novice INTERMEDIATE licence now. The novice intermediate has no cc limit on it as you've already proved your competence using your road licence/CBT. As a novice intermediate licence holder you MUST wear a novice orange bib. In order to upgrade your licence to a clubman licence you need to complete at least 1 race at 10 different meetings and on at least 3 different circuits.

NOTE
As of the start of 2010, the novice and intermediate novice do not exist. You simply have a Clubman license straight away, but must wear an orange bib for you first 10 races, or first 5 races if you finish in the top 50% of finishers.

If you have a road license, then you hold a Clubman "A" license.

"Proper" Clubman Licence

It essentially means you can enter an club race in the UK without the orange bib.In order to upgrade to a national licence you need to finish in the top half of the total finishers in 10 race meetings at 4 different circuits.

National Licence

Is the highest form of UK licence and permits you to race in any racing in the UK, BSB etc. etc.

Competeing outside the UK?
You'll need an international licence or UEM and must have held a national licence for at least 1 year prior. The UEM is a time based progression, whereas the international licence is based on results and is what the moto gp, world endurance, and WSB etc. racers hold.

ACU Pace days

You may have seen these advertised, they are essentially trackdays, but only ACU licence holders may attend and timing is permitted. I think they're of an open pit lane format(so no groups) although I'm not sure.

Do I need a medical?

Unless you've had previous health problems then only an eye test is required. The ACU will inform you if you need to take a full blown medical.

Greatly detailed info here

Choosing a class

Choose a class based on your experience an/or wallet.

Many people think that supersports 600's is a good place to start as they don't feel that they can handle a 1000cc bike and a 600 is easy. Hence 600 supersports is never always oversubscribed and is fiercely competitive.

There is the mini moto route, but IMO this is only really good very young riders starting out, if you're over about 13/14 forget it, get a 125 and enter superteens.

If you're older than that then your best bet is probably to start looking at the more affordable classes, ideally ones with limit on tuning and bhp so that your ability to compete isn't dictated by your ability to spend £10,000 on a factory tuned motor. Things like the CB500 cup, hornet cup, desmodue, and mini twins are still very competitive, although the tuning regulations are very strict and the tyres last a comparatively long time. In desmodue one set will last you about a season, in the hornet cup a set will last you at worst(by worst I mean if you're really on it) 3 full track/racedays.

Rookie 400's is also a good place to start, also as 400's are getting more and more thin on the ground both decent bike wise, and spares wise perhaps this isn't a good move.

Clubs

There are loads of clubs throughout the UK:

BMCRC(Bemsee) and New Era are the biggest, others include:

Auto66
DerbyPhoenix
HMRC
ThundersportGB
NGRR
NEMCRC
Wirral100

Each club runs different race classes and at different circuits at different times, you browse their sites and see which is the best for you.

I hope this has been a little bit helpful, PM me or post if you feel I've missed stuff.

Changes made:
6/5/09 - ammendments to novice license regulations
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[5v3d3b0]

Sticky this. It's very handy, thanks.
A question I bet a lot of people want to ask:
What kind of prizes are there in these races?

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Not a great deal, people don't club race for the money, as far as I'm aware it's a small plastic trophy and maybe a bit of money, but I guess it varies from class to class and club to club.

I'll get back with a proper answer in a bit.
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[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

I emailed Mike from Bemsee regarding prizes, his reply was:

[Gazdaman]

Just a small note. There's no S in licence.

I wouldn't bother posting normally to point out a typo, but it's every other word in that post. And you've clearly put a lot of time and effort into writing it up.

Might also be worth mentioning the MZ 'rent-a-racer' scheme. For £450 you get put through your licence, and get a bike and all entries etc for a weekend.

Gaz

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

[Gazdaman]

Rent-a-racer details are here: https://www.bmzrc.net/RentaRacer/tabid/72/Default.aspx

Seems to be £500 now though.

They seem to frown upon people just doing it as an experience. It's aimed at giving people a go on an MZ before committing or not.

Gaz

[Fawbish]

Fuckin' great Ham



Just to mention though, you dont need to do a ron haslam race school or anything (although it is advisable if funds permit!) and if trying to race on a budget as a youngster, if 16 or over, a CBT will suffice as proof of riding ability for an ACU licence
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"Oh....it looks like Average Joe's is forfeiting the match!" - "Yeah, its a risky strategy but lets see if it pays off for 'em Cotton."

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

[G]

A few comments (haphazardly thrown down):

ACU Licence:
Novice intermediate licence is only if you have the road licence, otherwise it's just novice I believe.
However you can still race most classes bar powerbikes on a novice licence.

'ACU Pace Days'
Not sure about these.
Traditionally pace days* were days were days were trackdays where you are let onto track in order of you lap times.
There are very few ACU only practice days which aren't directly linked to a race meeting - Wednesday evenings at Mallory being an oddity.
Generally most track time will be grouped, as they're usually at capacity.
*(originally started by ESS, then taken over by Hottrax for a bit - I have the honour of being the first person to crash on the first one after they had a big go at us about safety )

Some trackdays will have an ACU group; this means the superfast people aren't bothering your average fast group. Expect even harsher manoeuvres here than in your typical fast group.

What class?
Minimoto;
I think minimoto is a fine way to learn the basics of racing, regardless of your age. Especially if you're on a budget; it's obviously a lot easier and less hassle too, as you can chuck the bike in the back of a hatchback, or even on a full-sized motorbike if you're brave!

Bemsee Minitwins
If you want to be near the front in Bemsee Minitwins, expect to go through a set of tyres a weekend. However the pace is a fair bit faster than other clubs minitwins.
Not quite the same, but I was doing a similar pace at a trackday to the at-the-time club Hornet Cup leader. I dropped a couple of seconds when I sorted it out on (the second) race day, but sure he'd have done similar. That pace got me just into the top ten in Bemsee clubman class.


Some people are happy to be in the middle or even near the back of a fast class. Others of the same pace won't feel like they're achieving much and would prefer to be near the front of a slower race.
I'm of the former view - the way I see it, if you think you're fast, you're probably comparing yourself to the wrong people, as at these levels, you can always look up the next step and find a lot of people a lot faster.

Yamaha Past Masters are a good budget class which can be done cheaply; don't expect to be winning with out spending a bit, but you can certainly be 'reasonable'.

Tuning:
Even on the more 'budget' classes there's a fair bit you can do. If you can afford it, getting a bike that's as well setup as the class allows at the start of the year is gong to mean that you can't make excuses in that area. However you may find that you actually improve more if your bike isn't quite up to other people's bikes.

Some of the best races I've had have been on under-powered bikes, where I've had to really push it to try and stay ahead of someone with more power.
At cadwell with a 64hp SV (class limit 72hp) I was consistently pushing the front end to just before the point it was just sliding, going into corners. On the same bike at brands hatch, after a race I found out I had 35hp thanks to a Carb problem - I managed a very hard fought 11th place, just losing out to the person I was chasing who had twice the power, but was still right on his tail; I had obviously compensated for the lack of power by trying that much more.

So the other philosophy is to wait until you find the bike is really holding you back, then spend the money. However, if you're taking this route, I would consider it as a 'contingancy' plan at the beginning of the season - budgeting some money for this, as well as general other improvements you might want/need (steering damper, suspension, new fairings, etc) is worth considering.

Cost/The weekend:
You're probably going to want a van to get to and from the track - sleeping in this is the norm, if you don't have a caravan or similar.
You can do it with just a car, but it's a fair bit of hassle.
A Gazebo or other shelter is very useful and a whole 'nother topic selecting one.
A generator will give you a few home luxuries (like light, at night) and power tyre warmers.
Tyre warmers, if allowed, will help tyres last longer and give you confidence to gain or keep positions at the start, where it's most important.
Fuel for the bike, transport and generator is all going to be a cost you have to consider.
A practice day before the weekend is always worth doing if you can and offers much better value per lap than the racing, while still pitting you, generally, against the same people.

Clubs:
To some degree clubs are arranged geographically, so obviously this should be a consideration when picking a club.
Also consider, as above, the pace you want to run at. I don't know how ThudersportGB is going, but Bemsee was definitely always known as 'the fast one', with NewEra possibly second and then some of the smaller clubs being relatively a lot slower. Some have complained of the big clubs that they aren't as friendly; in my experience, everyone has been really friendly in Bemsee.
Safety is another concern and possibly linked to the speed thing. When I had my fairly-nasty accident, Marshalls were stopping the race within seconds and I had a doctor with me not that much after that (I did stop quite near the medical post). Bemsee will generally have three marshals per post with ones on every corner, as well as on straights where possible. Other clubs often have a much lower number per circuit, however this is partly related to the pace; people may tone it down a bit, knowing that they may be in more danger if they crash. A smaller number of marshals, however, can mean that the race is more likely to get 'red flagged' (stopped) as they can't so efficiently clean up after an incident.

'Contact':
You're playing with the big boys now. Do expect to occasionally get some contact between bikes or racers. Do expect that people will be trying to squeeze you out - trying to get you to chicken out before they do when there's only space for one bike on that line going into a corner. And do expect that people will overcook it, misjudge their moves and collide with you at speed. It's racing. stuff

Prizes:
Are provided by sponsors, generally.
If they were being provided by the series, then effectively they would be being paid for by the competitors; which doesn't seem too fair when the tendency is for those who win to have a fair bit bigger budgets than those at the back already.
Also at Bemsee, in some meetings I think it's Norfolk line provides prizes for sidecars; rather than for finishing positions, these positions that will get prizes are selected beforehand and placed in a sealed envelope. These are then opened after the race has finished.

[Fawbish]

Biggest double post, evar
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"Oh....it looks like Average Joe's is forfeiting the match!" - "Yeah, its a risky strategy but lets see if it pays off for 'em Cotton."

[5v3d3b0]

Agreed

[Ghost]

You mention a Rookie 400 class in your post but I can't find any details on it in the UK, is it a club, championship, race series or what? Thanks.

Edit: Just found my local club (wirral 100) has a formula 400 class in their races at anglesey so the zxr 400 would fit in there fine at some point in the future

[G]

Bemsee used to, at least, run a rookie 400 class - last year that was as a subset of the main 400 class because there weren't enough rookie entries.

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Pretty much what G said, you'll find a lot of clubs run them together but have separate standings for rookies and everyone else.
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[alt101uk]

Great posts guys, some good info there. Many thanks

[Benj]

this was a really interesting post, seems its easier than i thought to get into....


in peoples experience ...are these places welcoming to new people or the opposite?
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Theory Passed!: 18th July >>> CBT Passed!: 13th August >>

[G]

Very welcoming in general - most people are happy to offer advice and help, even often people you're directly competing against!

[Nipperdog]

Wicked advise

I am doing my first trackday at Donnington End of September

CAN`t Wait

Regards

[Chriss]

Sorry to drag up an old thread, but I've a question in relation to this....

I might be posted soon, to the Linconshire area, and I have a plan to get out of work fairly often, thinking of racing.

Question is: I need to pitch for an amount for sponsorship from work, now I've done some maths with the information here, but it doesn't look it'll cost all that much. If you had to sum up how much you spent in a season, how much would you ask for? Aside from as much as possible.

Secondly: What days are the meetings normally on? I'm thinking Thursday travel, Friday practice, Saturday and Sunday for races?

Thanks in advance.
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TheShaggyDA: I've got 3 or 4 pairs that predate my wife, so at least 11.5 years old.

[Bendy]

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

[Deano]

race to the depth of you pocket.
Im gonna be doing EMRA, in a roadstock class, its 5 rounds a year, with with a corordit championship to ride in 600 national superstocks if your good enough and under 25yrs old, (you have to win it of course), all races at the same track @ Mallory park (in leceister).

the event is a one day event with 3 practices in the morning which also count for qualifying time and with lots of sprint races up to 10 laps in many classes.

then do trackdays for practice, responsibly of course and then you get a cheaper option that exposes you to it, see if you can cut it and join other clubs if you can.

the sort of costs that ham is explaining is those of someone doing a serious full season effort in a series like thundersport, MRO.

approach a few local shops for tyres, pads maintenance, do the stuff you can, for cost and it helps you even more.

part-worn tyres for practice/trackdays and new for racedays.

an estate car and trailer for tranports should be adeqoute.

there is a little bit more help/hope than what ham is trying to put a dampen on.

good luck to anyone wanting to try it.

[G]

I'd say a £5k budget won't get you very far in MRO at all, not if you want to be competitive anyway (presuming you've got the skill in the first place, which most of the MRO stuff is.)

Pretty much all of the people that have done 'full' race weekends with cars and trailers that I've talked to have either ended up with a van, or wished they did have one.

There are plenty of fairly cheap classes, but pound per lap it's never going to be cheap, whatever. From what I've seen, the different clubs don't vary that massively in this regards. I'd prefer to race a full weekend on the 'value for money/time spent'.
Personally I find race practice days much better than trackdays and are often cheaper!

I'd definitely agree on 'race to your budget'; but that usually ends up rather variable.
Incidentally, always try and blag discounts, though many will have heard it all before. Got a decent deal on oil from a big mail order company when racing the R6 by ordering in bulk.

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]