Should I give up the pursuit of my dream career?

[F089/H]

I'm African American too AND I always wanted to be a Formula 1 driver or Le Mans type racer but my dad was like how are you going to reach that goal?and how many black racers do you know?and they don't make cars big enough for you to fit in.I'm 6'1,well built,169lbs...I wan't to choke him I get all A's(3.9 GPA) and all they do is buy me things like PSP,consoles,Ipods,and other junk of that sort when I have job.But they know what I want and nobody Is helping me get to that point of my life...But I will reach my goals........F*%& non-supportive parents!!!!

 

[Max_DC]

I'm African American too AND I always wanted to be a Formula 1 driver or Le Mans type racer but my dad was like how are you going to reach that goal?and how many black racers do you know?and they don't make cars big enough for you to fit in.I'm 6'1,well built,169lbs...I wan't to choke him I get all A's(3.9 GPA) and all they do is buy me things like PSP,consoles,Ipods,and other junk of that sort when I have job.But they know what I want and nobody Is helping me get to that point of my life...But I will reach my goals........F*%& non-supportive parents!!!!

Perhaps they just want a good life for you, you don't need many pro race drivers ... competition is hard, and many factors play a role, also some you might not think about at first... you are good at school, use it for university and try to enter racing business at 30 or so... having dreams is important, but your parents know that some never might come true... Be careful or you might wake up some day and realize that you wasted your possibilities... Maybe not what you want to hear, but sometimes people tend to forget reality, we can't all be hollywood stars, race drivers and astronauts....

 

[code_kev]

I'm African American too AND I always wanted to be a Formula 1 driver or Le Mans type racer but my dad was like how are you going to reach that goal?and how many black racers do you know?and they don't make cars big enough for you to fit in.I'm 6'1,well built,169lbs...I wan't to choke him I get all A's(3.9 GPA) and all they do is buy me things like PSP,consoles,Ipods,and other junk of that sort when I have job.But they know what I want and nobody Is helping me get to that point of my life...But I will reach my goals........F*%& non-supportive parents!!!!

OH NOES!!! YOUR PARENTS ARE SO MEAN. GO LISTEN TO SOME EMO. Stop bloody moaning, your parents treat you well.

 

[Swift]

I'm African American too AND I always wanted to be a Formula 1 driver or Le Mans type racer but my dad was like how are you going to reach that goal?and how many black racers do you know?and they don't make cars big enough for you to fit in.I'm 6'1,well built,169lbs...I wan't to choke him I get all A's(3.9 GPA) and all they do is buy me things like PSP,consoles,Ipods,and other junk of that sort when I have job.But they know what I want and nobody Is helping me get to that point of my life...But I will reach my goals........F*%& non-supportive parents!!!!

LOL, man. I'm going to say something that's going to be taken rather roughly. But you've been given a lot. You've got great grades and that's awsome. But your parents haven't deprived or abused you according to what you said. So you have zero to complain about. I'm black and don't make excuses because my parents didn't push me to do this or that. That's on me. It's there job to make sure I get the OPPURTUNITY to reach for my goals and dreams. After that, it's all extra.

 

[Smoke_U_24/7]

Wow, there's more african americans subscribed to this web site than I thought!

 

[Greyout]

The Racing orginizations I'm thinking about Participating in is between the IRL and Cart to start off my career.

IRL and CART to START OFF your career?! You may want to look into the world of racing a bit more.

Your background does not give you a disadvantage at all (other then the possible implications of how your success at school may translate into your aptitude to really digest the HUGE amount of knowledge that you will be presented with). One thing that you 100% DO need though, is the personality and charisma for it.

The driver is the front man for the team & sponsor. They want a good-looking, well-spoken, intelligent man inside the suit with the logos smeared all over it. An african american driver who fit the bill might provides a unique & desirable marketing platform to many potential sponsors (which is a plus for you), asuming that you fit the bill. But you have to fit the bill, because to most teams, believe it or not, the driver is a marketing tool first, machine operator second! Team owners have been quoted plenty of times indicating that the driver's value as a marketing tool for the sponor is MORE important then their skill as a driver!

What you need to start a successful carreer is youth (which, when it comes to starting a race carreer in an open-wheel series, you are running out of) and lots of money, lots and lots of money, and a good ability to network and impress people when you meet them.

It sounds like you want to pursue the open-wheel path, which is good. Production car / sedan racing is nearly impossible to make a living at: Many drivers in "professional" production car series, such as the SPEED World Challenge, are PAYING for their seat. RealTime sells the driver's seat spot in their 3rd and 4th TSX's for over $15,000 FOR ONE WEEKEND!

The quickest way to make money racing, unfortunately, is oval track. Every friday night, odds are there is a local track somewhere near you running an amatuer series, with cars that are cheap to develop, and actual prize money at the end. You won't find prize money in amatuer road race series.

Here's how it works for 99.9999% of race car drivers that run in open wheel series:

You buy a Kart that is legal for a regional series. Not only do you own the kart, but you own an SUV w/ an enclosed trailer to haul it around in, and you have one or more friends / family members who are able to support you. You pay the large entrance fees into races, and you compete with some VERY VERY good drivers who are younger then you. Contingency sponsors might help you land some cheap / free parts, but you are paying quite a bit out of pocket at this point.

You move up and compete nationally. Your kart is more expensive, as are the repairs and consumables (tires, brakes, etc). Contingency sponsors become more common, but all that does is help absorb the expense of maintaining your rig, IF you win. Many drivers are partially "sponsored", either by their own company and have managed to turn their racing adventures into a business expense, or because they are good at what they do - not driving! At marketing themselves!

At some point along the way you participate in the Skip Barber race school, and its accociated open-wheel race series. Here, you can expect the season of racing to set you back $3X,XXX, and you can expect to get your ass handed to you unless you are on the TOP of your game, and REALLY have something to bring to the table.

If your lucky, you meet the right people and find your way into the driver's seat of a formula series like the Mazda or BMW cars. If you have success, then you get noticed. When someone notices you, if they see the VALUE in you, they get you into the cockpit of a CART or IRL car.

That is when you are at the TOP of your career, NOT the beginning

I am not trying to shoot you down, but you need to understand that racing, like anything else, is a business. If you are not going to make a team money, you are of little value to them. Wins get a team noticed, but sponsors make teams money, and write your paycheck.

 

[Smoke_U_24/7]

Thanks for the great advice, greyout! One of the things i'm good at besides racing (or so I'd like to think so ) is advertising, and i'm really interested in is taking a course in marketing and advertising while I'm in school. One important thing for me and everybody else here to remember is that you should always watch your back when it comes to the business side of auto racing, or anything for that matter, and get educated, so you won't get "screwed over" on a business deal. Again it's something I would like to do and besides my secondary career goal (video game designer), and I thinkj I'll be very good at this.