Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

This time of year we see that this driver is going to race for this team and that driver for another team.  Teams used to pay drivers to race now drivers pay the team to race.  This started in Indy Car and NASCAR and is now down to local racing.  I know for sure a 410 team wanted $20,000 to drive car, several years ago.  I heard a 360 driver paid $25,000 to drive this year.  Most drivers do not have a pot to pee in and you wonder how hard it was to come up with money.  Your opinion.

This time of year we see that this driver is going to race for this team and that driver for another team.  Teams used to pay drivers to race now drivers pay the team to race.  This started in Indy Car and NASCAR and is now down to local racing.  I know for sure a 410 team wanted $20,000 to drive car, several years ago.  I heard a 360 driver paid $25,000 to drive this year.  Most drivers do not have a pot to pee in and you wonder how hard it was to come up with money.  Your opinion.

It's like every other business since the beginning of time.  Supply and demand.  Right now, there is a huge supply of rich men who want their son's dream of becoming a race car driver to come true.  It goes on with all sports too, not just racing.  Although racing takes the largest pockets.

Examples
If you want to make it as an MLB player, the average salary of a minor league player around $11,000.  So, in order for you to remain in the minors for 10 years chasing your dreams, someone needs to pay your bills for you-----daddy.  Otherwise, you starve after 1 year and give up on baseball to get a real job.  

If you want to make it as a "professional snowboarder" you need to be at the slopes every, single day.  Who has the money to do that?  Only those with daddy's money.  People without daddy's money have to get a real job and can only hit the slopes on Saturday.  (The winter olympics is full of rich kids who haven't done an honest days work)

Finally, unless you're Kyle Larson or Tony Stewart, you wanna race for a living, you're screwed!!  (notice I said race for a living, and not just race)  You have a few options.  1. Find a banker who believes in you and will throw you a few million.  2.  Approach NAPA and ask if they would take a chance on you although you have no credentials.  3.  Work your way from nothing, get a few breaks along the way, and eventually end up with a great sponsor and profitable enterprise as a few guys have done.  However, nothing beats option 4:  Have a bunch of daddy's money at your disposal at age 12 and presto, instant racing prodigy!  This is the new world order in racing and sports in general.  

It's not going to ever be different again so might as well settle in and watch, and occasionally, have a Kyle Larson or Tony Stewart to root for.  

This time of year we see that this driver is going to race for this team and that driver for another team.  Teams used to pay drivers to race now drivers pay the team to race.  This started in Indy Car and NASCAR and is now down to local racing.  I know for sure a 410 team wanted $20,000 to drive car, several years ago.  I heard a 360 driver paid $25,000 to drive this year.  Most drivers do not have a pot to pee in and you wonder how hard it was to come up with money.  Your opinion.

It's  what today's racing is. Drivers bring cash, some bring sponsorship.  

20k for a 410 ride? Sign me up!! Much better option than the $120k it will cost to buy and run a car for one season. 

I am pretty sure that is where a lot of recent out of state drivers in Pa. come from. There are many good local drivers passed over for out of the area drivers in recent years. They are bringing money or sponcerships which is the same.

PA has always had drivers from NJ and MD who most consider "locals". Other than Borden and Millard(both WA), I can't think of any out of area drivers who run regular in central PA. It's actually at an all-time low. I doubt that Borden is bringing money, as the 23 is a pretty well funded team(as was the 27). He's earned those rides as an up and coming young driver I'd say. Don't know much about Millard but he only runs Lincoln in what I think is a lower funded family owned car.

PA has always had drivers from NJ and MD who most consider "locals". Other than Borden and Millard(both WA), I can't think of any out of area drivers who run regular in central PA. It's actually at an all-time low. I doubt that Borden is bringing money, as the 23 is a pretty well funded team(as was the 27). He's earned those rides as an up and coming young driver I'd say. Don't know much about Millard but he only runs Lincoln in what I think is a lower funded family owned car.

And it does not just start at the local level of sprint cars or even at 12. Kids that are just getting into racing have dads/grandparents that are paying thousands of dollars either race a particular car builders car or have "experts" setup and coach their kids. It is insane some of the $$ figures I have heard that some people spend and the parent after 3-4 years still has no clue on how to work on a car, let alone set it up. The parents job in some cases is simply to get the kid to the track and maybe clean off the car and look busy. Gone are the days of Kyle Larson, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and others loading up the family car/truck with a tiny trailer, racing week after week to learn and get better. Now a kid can win each week in go karts, quarter midgets, bandaleros, or even legend cars but if he does not have that money behind him the odds of him getting a QUALITY ride are slim to none. Not to say he can't get a ride and sponsors based on ability but you need to find the right people for that to happen and usually the right people will cost you. 

Even working at the hockey rink we had countless parents buying practice time with specific coaches and "donating" or "sponsoring" certain teams on conidition that their kids and selected coach were on the team. From ages 6-7 all the way up to trying to to get their kid into Jr Hockey. Even spending money to talk to specific scouts to try to gain influence.