9 replies to this topic

[German Fomin]

Hey guys (and girls)
My name is German, I live near Chicago and I have a few questions.
My uncle is a rally driver in Kazakhstan, he is a double champion, and quite possibly one of the best drivers in Kazakhstan. His name is Denis Aksenov and he wants to race in US in a few championships.
So here come the questions:
1) Is there a way to rent a SM car for one race?
2) Do you need a racing license to compete? If Yes, will his Kazakh one do? (will provide translation)
3) How much will it cost to sign up for the race?
Here is an article about him: http://proautosport....senov_5065.html
Thank you for looking at this topic.
P.S. He plans on competing near Chicago (Road America, Autobahn CC and any other track within 400 miles or so from Chicago)

[Danny Steyn]

Hey German

very cool. Lots of teams have Spec Miata's for rent. I race with Tom Fowler of OPM Autosports out of Atlanta Georgia and they offer race-winning arrive-and drive-rentals at most of the major events. Approximate cost for a full weekend including test days will range from $2,000 - $3,500 assuming of course there is no crash damage. Speak to Tom, one of the nicest guys in this sport, and he can advise actual costs, whats included and what's not.

Regarding his Kazakh motor-sports license, in most countries there is a way to get an equivalent license issued by the sports sanctioning body based on the drivers experience, and in your uncle's case this should be no problem. I suggest you approach SCCA directly - you will find them very helpful.

Hope he comes over to race - you will find this crowd very welcoming and fun to hang with. Having a foreign rally driver race with us will be a big deal for us.

Now just get your uncle to tell us what we need to race in Kazakhstan!!!! And Fowler, this is a trip that needs to be planned!!!!

[Glenn]

Hey German

very cool. Lots of teams have Spec Miata's for rent. I race with Tom Fowler of OPM Autosports out of Atlanta Georgia and they offer race-winning arrive-and drive-rentals at most of the major events. Approximate cost for a full weekend including test days will range from $2,000 - $3,500 assuming of course there is no crash damage. Speak to Tom, one of the nicest guys in this sport, and he can advise actual costs, whats included and what's not.

Regarding his Kazakh motor-sports license, in most countries there is a way to get an equivalent license issued by the sports sanctioning body based on the drivers experience, and in your uncle's case this should be no problem. I suggest you approach SCCA directly - you will find them very helpful.

Hope he comes over to race - you will find this crowd very welcoming and fun to hang with. Having a foreign rally driver race with us will be a big deal for us.

Now just get your uncle to tell us what we need to race in Kazakhstan!!!! And Fowler, this is a trip that needs to be planned!!!!

What Danny said, but I suggest he get in touch with Dave Wheeler @ Advanced Autosports http://advanced-autosports.com/ as they are close to the area he will be located

[davew]

What Glenn said. No love from my friend Mr. Steyn.

Dave

[davew]

The phone is quiet, so I can type for the moment.

Yes, we rent cars and are near Rockford Illinois.

He will need a racing license from a USA club. Sometimes you can get a license issued based on past experience. But I would start that process asap. I would recomend that he go through a school anyways. Great seat time to get accustom to the Miata.

2011 Rental prices are listed on my website. There will be some changes for 2012, but not huge. Rentals include fuel, tires, at track support etc. They do not cover entry fees, crash damage or personal safety equipment.

Our 2012 schedule is posted at www.advanced-autosports.com

All my contact info is below.

Dave

[Steve D]

No love from my friend Mr. Steyn.

You can't go wrong with either OPM or Advanced. I've done business with both.

In Danny's defense, he uses OPM (Atlanta) in spite of the fact that he's in Ft. Lauderdale, which is only 50 miles closer to Atlanta than Chicago is. I am admittedly Southeast biased, but we've got a pretty damn good selection of tracks and an 11 month racing season.

[Caveman-kwebb99]

While I have never had any prior racing dealings with Dave. If I was going to look into a rental for a track near Chicago, Dave at Advanced would be my first call. Simply because of his proximity to the racing venues in that area. I know that OPM races at some of those venues but that happens very infrequently, which reduces the availability to rent from them on any given weekend. If I was going to be racing at ATL, OPM is a no brainer

[Danny Steyn]

No love from my friend Mr. Steyn.
Dave

Love you long time Dave!

[davew]

Love you long time Dave!

I look forward to it !!!!!!!!!

Actually you could not go wrong with Advanced Autosports SOUTH (I mean OPM). The 2 crews and drivers have a lot of fun, whenever we visit the southeast or when they come up to cheeseland.

dave

[German Fomin]

Thank you all for all your help.
I had internet problems and could not reply.
I looked at the website, and I have a question about sponsorship stickers.
If we find sponsors for this race, can we put their stickers on the car?
I mean it is comparably cheap, but it will cost us about $5,00-6,000 total to get him to come here to race (the plain ticket alone costs about $2,500)
And to answer about coming to Kazakhstan to race, it's pretty easy. But there are no racetracks here.
The cheapest thing would be going here in the winter to race in the Samuryk Cup. It's a club rally series. http://samuryk.org/ (google translate FTW)
People here are really nice too, and it would not be a problem to rent out a car from one of the drivers.
The reason why it would be cheapest is the plain ticket is about a $1,000 cheaper due to the lack of tourists, and the series itself is designed for amateur drivers and professionals looking for freshing up their ice racing skills, and therefore doesn't cost much.
You will need a license, but it is really cheap to get (under $10) and also both the driver and co-driver will need an international drivers license (they do make exceptions if you have are an experienced driver.)