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Originally Posted by JackG
Our local PCA is has a spread of ages... but probably 70% are over 40. As far as skill level goes, it's the older guys that have dedicated race cars, and aggressively pursue racing. No autocross for them... they do club road races at Robling Road (Savannah, GA), Charlotte Motor Speedway, Daytona, etc. 130+ mph on the straights racing. These old guys can teach you a thing or three.
When you young guys see an older guy, all you see is the snow on the roof. Believe me, there's still a fire burning in the fireplace for most of them/us. 
I'm 45, and I used to think that was old. Now I'm thinking 65 or so is getting old...  |
Hi,
That's really true. But, you don't have to be older (peak earning years) to be actively involved in racing.
I started in my '20s, co-owned and championed a Formula Ford with a buddy. We alternated driving race to race. Cost us $6k each to get in (car, spares, trailer) and about $3k/yr. each in entry fees, consumables, misc.
But, you can go even less expensively than that. You can get a Formula VEE car for under $6k complete w/ annual costs as low as $3k. Steriodal VW Flat-4 - 130MPH in the straights, and plenty fast for those cars. You can even Auto-X them, I do mine. Vintage races, open class, SCCA Club, etc.
And, age doesn't limit you, only your own skill. Here's a shot of me in my last race this past Sept., in the lead in my Protoform P3 FV ($6500 New, that's less than the cost of some of the mods discussed here, but as low as $3k for a used one). I got held up by traffic and the Silver car behind me got past on the outside on the last lap so I had to settle for 2nd, that's racing...
Happy Motoring!... Jim'99