Does this club ever have track days?

[JBinAlabama]

Soooo, I met a fellow member at Sebring a few weeks ago.
I had no idea how bad the bug would bite me!
It was awesome to watch this vintage cars roar by from the stands.

It's no apparent to me I need to try his track thing!
Does the Shelby club or do others have track days and what is required to be involved?

[mark p]

National "SAAC" usually/ always(?) has an open-track element to the National Convention. Check the Shelby American magazine for past convention coverages.
Other chapters (etc) sometimes run their own "track events" as well.
There are also MANY other opportunities with other clubs and organizations for "track days" with various formats. I'm sure others will chime in with much more experience and detail...
here are a couple that I have heard of:
https://www.tracknightinamerica.com/
https://www.hookedondriving.com/

Good luck scratching that itch

[JBinAlabama]

Thanks Mark,

When I asked around at Sebring all anyone said was this is expensive.......no numerical value was assigned.
The vintage racing crowd looked like a serious bunch though!
I figure a track day was the best place to start and see if I'm up for it.

[98SVT - was 06GT]

Going vintage racing is $$$$$$$. Most are about $600 for the entry and that is on top of what you'll spend on a race car/tires/fuel/oil/etc/etc. You'll get maybe 2 hours of runtime with your group for the weekend.
Lynn Park is able to run his bi-annual Willow Springs event for $200 per car for both days. Willow charges $225 per day on their test days and you'll be sharing the track with lots of different classes of cars.
Check the SCCA web site for your area and see if they have some SOLO I or II events you can start with. Check the calendar of your local track and see what groups are renting for their own track days. You'll probably find Porsche & Vette clubs renting. They may allow other makes if they need them to make their event financially viable.

[Jim Herrud]

Hi JB, After autocrossing for 33 years – most of those in my '65 Fastback - I started doing track days in 2020 using a '19 GT350.

To get started doing track days, "mark p" listed some great resources. I began with the organization he mentioned called HOD https://www.hookedondriving.com which caters to track day beginners as well as more experienced drivers. The HOD website has a lot of information on how to get started doing track days. HOD provides track rental, guidance and instruction at many tracks in the western US. After some track days with HOD, you can qualify to run at other events which require experience.

One good & free resource to find programs and events around the country is a motorsports clearinghouse & registration site called https://www.motorsportreg.com/. From here, you can search for many types of motorsport events that are happening anywhere in the country, including door-to-door racing, carting, hill-climbs, drag-racing, autocross, driving schools, motorcycle events and, of course, track days. The events where I run most often use Motorsport.reg to register entrants for their track days.

In my experience, track day events cost about $300-$500/day. Instructor prices vary but are roughly $100/day for full-time instruction. I started with an in-car instructor, but due to COVID, instruction has recently taken the form of using two cars – student and instructor - in a lead/follow configuration using a two-way headset. I think it's a good idea to hire an instructor at least for orienting yourself the first day at a new track.

As with Autocross, the main equipment cost (other than the vehicle!) is tires and brakes. My track tires lately have been Falken Azenis RT660 which last about 6-8 days when I drive a typical 2-hour-tracktime track day (6 sessions at 20-minutes each). I burn through them faster if I run an open-lapping track day with unlimited track time. – maybe 4-5 days per set.

The stress on the car from a track day is obviously more severe than for autocross, so regular fluid changes and maintenance are more frequent.

I use a tow-rig (with a winch!) to transport my car and equipment to the track. While not required, it's a nice insurance policy which I cashed in last summer when my GT350 blew a coolant connection at Oregon Raceway Park that precluded driving it home.

At the SAAC-46 convention last summer in Sonoma CA, we ran a track day and a drag race. That was a hoot!

Hope to see you out there!

[JBinAlabama]

Thanks for sharing!
Research in process and it sounds FUN!
I wonder if Hagerty covers that with an additional fee!

[SFM5S000]

NorCal SAAC is predominately an open track club as an example. So depending on where you are here in the country I'm sure you can contact the closest SAAC region and find additional info. As others have mentioned, Hooked on Driving (hod) is an excellent venue for new drivers as is NorCal SAAC.

Cheers,
~Earl J

[6s2055]

As Earl mentioned the Nor Cal SAAC does about 3-4 open track events per year! Sears, Thunderhill,Laguna. A typical weekend is around 400-500 plus lodging etc. Great events. The real reward is the time spent with others who share your passion for the cars....track time is just the icing for the weekend!
WARNING! After the first event or so it gets more expensive! Gotta have "sticky" tires, 350 HP just not enough, those stock springs and shocks just aren't right and car trailer just in case.....
Last of all, after awhile it gets harder to hide those must haves from the misses!

[TA Coupe]

As his name says,  he's in Alabama. A little far to make it to one of our NorCal events.

        Roy

[NC TRACKRAT]

As the name implies, I'm a track "junkie" and have been a club HPDE driving instructor for over 40 years.  My suggestion is to start out with a fairly new street car and it doesn't have to be a hot muscle car, just reliable.  Find out what clubs in your area run HPDE in your vicinity and at what tracks. (Barber, Road Atlanta, Atlanta Motorsports Park, Roebling come to mind).  Go on www.motorsportreg.com and www.clubregistration.net to see who, what and where. Most clubs are open to all makes of vehicles. BMW CCA runs one of the best HPDE programs in the country and, if you join, you'll get priority to register for the events. You'll start out as a novice, have in-car and classroom instruction and learn how to drive fast in a safe environment.  It's the best bang for the buck.  At some point in time, you may wish to go to a professional driving school but I'd wait until you get the basics down pat.  As you progress, you'll come to find out what it takes to go club racing or vintage racing.  As others have implied, bring your checkbook!

[mark p]

it wasn't the original question, but you could try autocrossing (as Jim noted above) and see how you like it.
I found it to be a [plenty good] adrenaline rush and generally a lot of fun. Speeds are not "open track" high, but you work in those corners. Other than tires - unless you break something - the costs "can be" very low.
(Venues vary, this one was at a small circle track)

[CSX 4133]

My advice is find a "cheap" Mazda HPD car with all the current safety equip./etc. Look into SCCA's track night in America program, they offer a variety of competitive events for beginners too advanced. Chin Motorsports is another program offering various driver development programs at various tracks with a decent reputation. Go slow, listen to advice and be patient while gaining experience.