By: Ron Burt
The First of A Two-Part Series
Do your children want to get into racing? The first thing I will tell you, racing and affordable are two words that don’t go together. This goes for any kind of racing but here we’re talking about cars that go around in circles making left turns. The first thing I recommend to parents and potential young racers is, go to a race. Mini Wedges and Quarter Midgets aren’t like what you and your child watch on a Saturday night at the local racetrack. They are real race cars and for your son or daughter’s age and these cars are fast. See if your child has interest before you make a big investment. Talk to the parents and have your son or daughter talk to the young drivers. You both will be caught up in the hype of the moment and you’ll be excited with everything you see. Now it’s time to do your own research. Go over the information the parents and drivers shared with you. Mini Wedges and Quarter Midgets have standard rules across the country. Some tracks will add their own twist sometimes when running their local races. This might include splitting classes up to let more youngsters have a better chance to get a win or just more racing experience. Check where there are racetracks in your local area. Take your new list of questions back to the track and get the answers you’re looking for.
The Mini Wedge
At the Rumble in Fort Wayne, I caught up with people that had children racing in both classes. I’m grateful for the time they spent with me. The first young man I met was Colby out of Michigan. He races a Mini Wedge and where he lives, he can race up to 4 times a week, at any of 4 local racetracks getting lots of valuable experience. He’s lucky to have so many tracks near his home. This doesn’t include larger out of state events like the Rumble in Fort Wayne or even State Series races. The first thing I noticed about this young man, he’s friendly, and straight forward with his answers. He knows his car, getting experience from racing and learning from his family that have a background in the sport. The near future for Colby will have him competing against adult drivers in a regular class at Speedways. It won’t surprise me if we see this young man in a Modified or Late Model in five years.
This car looks like a car body set on top a go-kart frame but it’s not. It’s a little wider and the body resembles a wedge Late Model. It has a roll cage and requires mandatory safety equipment to protect young drivers. Motors are sold at Harbor Freight. The Predator 212 engine Hemi or Non-Hemi allowed with no modifications. I invite you to Google Mini Wedge rules for the complete list. Drivers’ safety is very important in Mini Wedge and Quarter Midget. Full face helmet and fire suits are just the start of a long list, and every racetrack upholds these safety rules. The closest track to N. W. Ohio would be west of Fort Wayne at Plymouth Speedway. Some of their Mini Wedge racers also compete at South Bend Speedway and Galesburg Michigan. These cars race on dirt and paved tracks. I also suggest you visit Great Lakes Mini Wedge Series on Facebook. They are based in Michigan and some tracks are close to us.
You can buy a used Mini Wedge with a motor from $1000.00 on up. Several people make them new starting at $4,380.00 with a motor and assembled race ready. These prices put you in a car. This doesn’t include transportation to haul your car, tools, spare parts, and tires. Your fire suit can cost $90.00-$500.00 and full-face helmet $125.00-$500.00. However, kids are always outgrowing cars, fire suits and helmets and racing families are good at helping each other and a lot of bartering goes on in the pits. Racing people are always helping each other. They all want their sport to grow. Next week we’ll look at Quarter Midgets. Ron Out!
