My kid wants to race quarter midgets

Matthew2470

Matthew2470

It's not that serious
Joined
Feb 21, 2012
Messages
6,469
Points
643
Location
Mason, MI
Aiden is 10 and has been wanting to race quarter midgets for awhile. It's finally feasible for me to do this financially but I don't know anything about these cars. Obviously I plan to investigate everything throroughly online but I was curious is anyone here has any experience with quarter midgets either by running them yourselves or your kids running them.

Thanks!
 
The last go cart I raced was in the early eighties and obviously it wasnt a quarter midget, your milage may vary.

I would go to the local races first and hang out in the pits for a few races several if possible prior to buying anything. I think you will find plenty of friendly people that are willing to share their experiences, and the cost experience. Find out the tire cost, and there lifespan.

I would be calculating the initial start up cost, along with the weekly expenses. Dont forget the simple things like pit passes etc.
I would also find out what are the basic tools you will need.

Does the track have individual weigh scales for each tire etc... that can be used on regular basis by all racers, if not then you will need to consider things like that too. But you can probably hold off on that for awhile, I would just work on making laps initially.
At 10 there is a lot of developmental time. Think long haul if he likes it enough to race for years, you can probably buy big ticket$ items more judiciously after some seasoning.

I would only buy what I must have first.. Safety gear, car and a simple trailer. The pits are probably filled with closed haulers just remember that you cant put those on the track. A lot of folks want to show off there hardware, if you are going to do this for the next 10 years you have to be practical (if such a thing is possible in racing).

I think this is a wonderful Father/Son thing. Plan on at least 10 to 15 shop hours a week. The shop time is good structure and can be as rewarding as the racing. A great technical learning center for Aiden too. I would do the most challenging maintenance and assure all safety components are right , but I would let him do as much he can.
A driver that knows what he needs to make speed has a chance, and that knowledge is subjective. What one driver needs in many cases vary, his knowledge is the best friend he will have on the track.

Best wishes to Aiden.
Last of all I know you are very sharp Matthew, and you will go through the safety issues with a fine tooth comb. I would just make sure any track Aiden competes at has no sharp abutments as in a pit entrance etc. Those things have to many angles that can go wrong.

Be patient, Racing is tough and humbling. There will be lots of adjustments and things to learn. I wish I could be 10 y/o and do this very thing. But again it is very humbling.

Again I wish him the best.
 
Matthew2470 said:
Aiden is 10 and has been wanting to race quarter midgets for awhile. It's finally feasible for me to do this financially but I don't know anything about these cars. Obviously I plan to investigate everything throroughly online but I was curious is anyone here has any experience with quarter midgets either by running them yourselves or your kids running them.

Thanks!
Click to expand...


Good on you!

Look up forums and visit tracks and such. That's awesome though. Stoked for you and your boy.
 
Good for Aiden , hope it works out .Either way you're a great Dad .
 
I raced them a long time ago. It was without a doubt the happiest time of my life. There was nothing I looked forward to more than Saturday night. When I raced we only had roll bars, not full cages like today. I got upside down at a paved track in L.A. and didn't get hurt. I had a car come over the top of my car, and got stuck with one of his tires in the ****pit with me. I have a scar about the size of an old silver dollar on the upper part of my left arm. Make sure he knows he can get hurt, just like the big guys do. I can remember winning my first race like it was yesterday. The one thing all of us drivers wanted to do was lap the field. I never got it done. When we spun out, if you killed the engine, you were out of the race. Now they get to restart. No matter what happened on the track, none of us drivers ever got in a fight. For the most part neither did the parents. I had to give it up when I gained about 30 pounds more than any of the other drivers. I have run a few times since then, but never in competition, just exebition. But I still have the urge to drive again competitively, and may have found something I can afford. The things I learned on the track have definatly helped me out in some tight spots in traffic. I still go to the track and watch them once or twice a year. I honestly can't say a bad thing about my experiences racing those little cars. For me it was all good even if I didn't win. But that was a long time ago.
 
I've been doing a bit of research and it seems that this is feasible. What I need to do is just go to a local track and start asking questions. There are lots of cars and equipment for sale and it seems that the clubs are very generous in terms of helping out newbies. Maybe I'll contact HMS about engine, chassis and engineering support. :-D

Aiden has raced go-karts several times and seems to have a knack for it. He's definitely not afraid to be aggressive.
 
I don't currently have a vehicle that can tow a trailer. Since I have a 60+ mile per day round trip commute, buying a big truck isn't feasible.
 
Matthew2470 said:
I don't currently have a vehicle that can tow a trailer. Since I have a 60+ mile per day round trip commute, buying a big truck isn't feasible.
Click to expand...


I dont think you need a big truck. Buy a old cheep old no frills Toyota pick up, and simple trailer.

I hauled a Legends car to Lanier Ga, and Concord NC with an old Toyota pick up, and a 10 x 6 home bulit trailer. The trailer and truck combined literally wasnt worth a thousand dollars. I used 6 ply tires on the homemade trailer, and could haul the legends car on the interstate at 80 mph with ease.

Later on another racer quit racing himself, so we used his big truck and huge hauler which was big enough to haul a late model. Big mistake the gas alone for those hauls was about $60 dollars.

I would keep it simple, you dont have to have a compresser or generator at the track either. Those things are nice but the competiors will let you use their air if needed. If they see that it just you and Aiden and maybe another crew member they will even help you unload and load your car up at the track. It is a good community. I even had other drivers who I hardly knew to lone me car parts, some of them expensive ones as needed.

To begin with it keep it basic.
 
We would put the car, a small tool box, and a couple of milk crates in the back of the pickup, and off we would go. The cars were pretty maintenance free back then, so you did not need that much stuff.
 
I like the idea of having an inexpensive used pick-up truck around for towing a race car in addition to other uses that don't involve helping people move.

The biggest conflict regarding this endeavor is that Aiden is heavily involved in baseball so it may turn out to not be worth it. We shalll see.
 
Matthew2470 said:
I like the idea of having an inexpensive used pick-up truck around for towing a race car in addition to other uses that don't involve helping people move.

The biggest conflict regarding this endeavor is that Aiden is heavily involved in baseball so it may turn out to not be worth it. We shalll see.
Click to expand...

Yeah that's tough. I knew a guy that used to spend 100k plus a year on his kid racing around the western US.. Kid got into HS and became a HS baseball player. I wanted to slap the kid upside his head when I heard that. To each his own.
 
Matthew2470 said:
I like the idea of having an inexpensive used pick-up truck around for towing a race car in addition to other uses that don't involve helping people move.

The biggest conflict regarding this endeavor is that Aiden is heavily involved in baseball so it may turn out to not be worth it. We shalll see.
Click to expand...

There will probably be a crossroads, but I am thinking at 10 years old it is good time to gauge his interest.
I imagine a quarter midget is a bigger investment, but if he tries both you will probably get to see which one is his true love.

I wouldn't think you need to run every week. The points are just a promotors way of insuring car counts imo.
Unless he attracts some local sponsors and their strings he could probably race as time permitted while he is growing up. Unlike a baseball team that would demand his presence for every game.

But if I detected a greater love for baseball, I would probably forget about racing. As he progresses, the personal demands are tougher at almost every level. The guys running the local late model tracks put a lot of time into the effort. Even at that level it feels like an all or nothing propostion. You have to be insanely passionate.
 
Regardless, nothing will happen this year other than seeing if I can get him some laps somewhere and see if he likes it as much as he thinks he will. If he does, I'll invest a bit for next year.
 
Matthew2470 said:
I like the idea of having an inexpensive used pick-up truck around for towing a race car in addition to other uses that don't involve helping people move.

The biggest conflict regarding this endeavor is that Aiden is heavily involved in baseball so it may turn out to not be worth it. We shalll see.
Click to expand...

It seems like a huge undertaking. Hopefully he's sure that's what he wants before you buy a good firesuit, seat, helmet and hans. Good luck.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom