Price you gotta pay…By: Gary Boggan

Posted Jody Shannon on December 7th, 2007 | Filed under Articles, Gary Boggan, The DRC

Well, in this installment we will discuss the cost of living vs. the cost of racing from all aspects. I race a 4 cylinder mini-stock and an open wheel modified. My dad is my car owner. When my older sister was living at home he supported four kids, a wife, and a two kart team. Times were tough, but we made due with what we could just so I could race. I can remember times when he wouldn’t get home from work until around 9 or so at night. He is a mechanic, so he worked many side jobs. My mother wasn’t working. We spent a good portion of the family grocery money to race karts on the weekend. I can remember eating a lot of meals made out of ground beef, and eating a can of beans to go along with it.

Although the times were tough we did have fun, and had real good success. In my seven year karting career I managed to run 6^th in the Indoor Kart Nationals in Tunica, Mississippi in 2001. This race is special to me as it was the final race that my grandfather got to see me race in, and so far the biggest. In addition to that, I have claimed three track championships, all in same year, and 16 wins in a 45 race season that year also. I have also scored several top 5’s in 40 lap survivor races and 50 lap summer classic races at my hometown kart track in Atoka, Tenn. At the time I never understood why my family didn’t have the fancy cars, go out to eat every week, or do a lot of things that my “high class” friends did. Even now, I don’t know what its like, I just know the way things are going now it will be hard for any low budget team to compete.

My views on this subject is this: If someone doesn’t put a stop to the overpriced racecars and engines, nobody will be able to race in 10-15 years. There is no need to pay $20k for a top of the line Open Wheel Modified motor, on 8 inch tires, are you crazy!? What about in upwards of $50k for a late model engine. Honestly, are you really getting what you paid for? Or is it just the name? Some people say there is a solution to this, and that’s crate engines, well no, I don’t think so. In 2006, while attending the Winter Classic in Columbus, Mississippi I ran across a very well known late model driver. What he told me about the crate cars was very shocking, his stated that drivers are paying around $4k for a set of shocks to get them cars to hook up. I’m not familiar with the crate modified class that Fastrak has, but I would assume this is the case there as well. There’s only one solution to it, a spec chassis and suspension. Only certain adjustments allowed, and you get choices on each adjustment you make, so for instance you have six holes in the top bracket, well, you can only use three of them. Which three will be determined that day, and announced during drivers meeting. This will be the only way around the high dollar motors, make them hard to hook up, challenging for the drivers, fun for the fans.

With the cost of gas rising something has to be done to help the drivers have the money to travel a vigorous schedule such as the World of Outlaws Latemodels, Lucas Oil Latemodels, or a true outlaw style modified schedule. I have recently ran across hundreds of fans who don’t show up very often to the races because in their words “The cars drive themselves.” This comes from a mixture of non-racers and racers. Racing is a skill sport, it shouldn’t be about money, if you like that go play golf or football or something to that nature. Racing was racing back before my time, when the likes of Jerry Inmon, Don Hester, Frank Millington, Johnny Stokes, just to name a few from my area, drove. These guys were true drivers in the sport we call Dirt Latemodel Racing.

The opinions in this article of that of the author and do not reflect The DRC in any way. If you have any questions or comments please email me at theatokaoutlaw90@yahoo.com.

Thanks.

Gary Boggan.