How do I start racing in the Alfa Romeo Championship?

If you are interested in Alfa Romeo Motorsport, the chances are that you have thought about taking an Alfa for a few laps on a circuit. You may already want to get out there on the grid for your first race. But where do you begin?

If your only desire at the moment is to take your road-going Alfa onto a proper track where you can push it beyond normal road limits, contact ARCA for information on Trackdays. You will not need a competition licence to take part in a Trackday or to make expensive modifications to your car.

You may have raced before, some years ago, but want to get started again. Why not contact ARCA to discuss your options. Maybe a Trackday to get back into the swing of things is the answer or renting a race car from one of the teams that offer Alfa championship cars to hire would be good option.

You may be racing now in another championship and fancy a change to an Alfa Romeo. You’ve come to the right place! Have a look at the information on the website to learn about the series, the cars and the regulations.

Finally, you may have never raced before and the thought of it seems a bit overwhelming. Well, don’t worry, there are lots of ARCA members who will be able to offer help and advice to get you started.

How do I get into motorsport or motor racing for the first time?

Often the best way for a novice racer to learn how it works, is to come along to one of the Alfa Romeo races and chat with the teams and drivers. We are a friendly bunch who welcome newcomers, new racers, seasoned racers or pure enthusiasts.

However before you are even able to enter a race meeting, you will need to get yourself an MSA National B grade licence. MSV offer tracks days, tuition and race licence preparation. You may need some tuition to get you through this, but here is an overview of what you need to do.

How to get into racing? / How to get into motorsport?

The easiest way is often through friends or other drivers and the best place to find them is on circuit, at a race weekend. The Alfa Romeo Championship prides itself for being a friendly environment and welcoming for novice drivers. Pop along to one of our race events and speak to any of the drivers in the paddock and we’d be happy to answer questions. Some teams even rent out cars per event or can help you towards your ARDs and with tuition!

How to get a racing licence?

It’s fairly straight forward, but always best to have a few track days under your belt first. Look for your local circuit and go online to find where you can hire a track car, if you don’t have access to one already.

When you apply to the MSA for the “Go Racing” pack you will get lots of information including a Competitors Year Book, DVD and application form. and the “Go Racing” pack costs about £95. It explains everything in more detail including the process, the on track test and theory test too. Plus it will outline all the personal safety equipment you will need to invest in before you can race, including helmet, Hans device, race suit, boots and gloves. It’s quite a long list, full essential and mandatory safety equipment.

The Novice Race Drivers Scheme

Novice racing drivers must undergo a half days training at one of the Association of Racing Drivers Schools (ARDS) before they can obtain a National B licence.

Anyone who does not possess a Race Licence must apply to the MSA for the “Go Racing” pack. The pack contains – amongst other information – a Competitors Year Book, a DVD and a novice application form. Currently the “Go Racing” starter pack costs £95 (including VAT).

Medical

Once you have your pack and you have studied your Yearbook (you will hear this referred to generally as “The Blue Book”) you will need to arrange to have a medical examination. This can be done by your GP and is similar to a life insurance examination. The form for your GP is included in the pack from the MSA. Unless you have a very sympathetic, motorsport loving, doctor you will have to pay for this check-up.

ARDS Racing School

Once the medical formalities have been completed, you must decide at which ARDS racing school you would like to take your test. Most of the UK circuits have an active ARDS school. If your standard of driving is competent and safe you should get through this without too much trouble. The cost of the course is around £300.

Budget

Before you go much further, please give some thought to the cost aspect of racing. Even basic club level competition can average out at over £500 per race and this does not include buying or preparing the car. Unless you are well funded, take some time to think over the implications of such a financial commitment. You will be disappointed if you run out of funds half way through a season – especially if you are making good progress and getting results.

Equipment

When taking costs into account, please be aware of the ever changing requirements for safety equipment. Even if you have raced recently, there is a good chance that some of your personal safety equipment – crash helmet, seat belts, race suit etc will be out of date and will not pass scrutineering.

Club Membership

As well as obtaining your licence and joining ARCA, you need to be a member of the 750 Motor Club in order to race in the Alfa Romeo Championship.

A final word on this – your MSA licence is valid for the calendar year for which it is issued and will expire on 31st December. Your 750MC membership is valid for 12 months from when you join, so there is no need to sign-up until it is close to your first race. For general circuit testing (not Trackdays) you only need to have a valid MSA competition licence.