Searching For Motorsport Scholarships

[alvinkhorfire]

Hi there. It is great indeed to know you guys .I am Alvin Khor.I hope that you would not mind helping me out to solve my problems .

1. You see, I live in Taiping , Perak , Malaysia. I am seventeen years old and very keen in motorsport. I have desire to be a Formula One Racer. But , lack of fund prevents that as I belong to not-so-poor family. Because of this, I have not driven a go-kart before seriously, but only come "Arrive And Drive" 7 times. But , I am willing to give my best shot and train as hard as I can to achieve my dream. Can you suggest which race circuit for go-kart training for me to go? It is the best that the track should not too far from my home.

2. And from whom or where can I obtain motorsport scholarships and seek sponsor to start go-karting?

3. How much do I need to start go-karting in a small scale? How long do I need to become a well-trained racer?Is there any hostel for me to stay during the training?

4. I am now a sixth-former.What should I do in the mean time?

5. What is the price for second-hand go-kart, suit ,glove, boot, helmet,other necessary equipment for go-karting?

6. How can I raise enough fund to start go-karting? Any ideas?

Thank you for your help. Please reply to [email protected] as soon as possible.

[kfoote]

Nothing personal, but if you're not well funded and don't have 5 years of shifter kart experience at age 17, it's already too late to get into F1. You have to have one or the other, or in most cases, both to have any hope of an F1 ride.

As far as time goes, generally 3-5 years in shifter karts, a season of a local formula series, a season in F3000 is about the minimum you can get away with before getting into F1 if you dominate the chapionships every season.

Generally, a good used shifter kart setup is about $5000 US including all safety equipment to get started, plus another $300-$400 per race weekend for various expenses.

[alvinkhorfire]

kfoote
Thanks for the advice.But my main concern is motorsport scholarships, like the one offered by Suzuka Racing School in Japan. Can you find the scholarships somewhere else?

[kfoote]

There are several in North America (Skip Barber and the Red Bull Driver Search are the two that pop into my mind, but I know there are others). The issue is the financing required to get the necessarry experience for the scholarships. Unfortunately, I am not familiar with what is available in the rest of the world.

[alvinkhorfire]

You mean that to get the scholarships, we must spend some money on training to get the experience ,right?

[kfoote]

Yes, and generally you will be competing against well funded people with a lot of experience for those scholarships.