Race Expenses, or...How to Race WERA on a Dollar a Day!

Periodically there are posts from folks either wondering how much it costs to race, or wondering how to budget. I've kept tack of my expenses throughout the whole season in a spreadsheet, and I thought I'd share. My last weekend at Road Atlanta was, according to the spreadsheet, a pretty average weekend (numbers are rounded up to nearest $).

Gas for van: $215
Fuel for bike and generator: $40
Food and drink (includes cooler ice, etc): $37
Tires: $135 (I get at least 2 weekends out of a set on the 400)
Lodging: $0 (sleep in the van)
Showers at Pilot: $12
Race entry: $180
Friday Practice: $120
Gate Fee: $20 (I think...I forgot to write the amount down)
Mystery cash: $40 (I always seem to spend about $40 every race weekend that I can't account for...never fails)

Total: $664

Some important notes:

The food expense includes 0 meals 'out.' My wife makes a cooler full of sandwiches every time I go to the track, and at this event, I somehow managed to use them exclusively, avoiding track food and restaurants. Often this isnt' the case, and you'll get together with buddies for a meal 'out.' When combined w. eating on the way to/from the track (if you have an 8 hour drive like I do) the cooler o' food thing really saves alot of cashola.

My bike is slow, and so am I. These factors conspire to make tires more affordable, since I can easily go 2 full weekends (3 even, if Tally isn't involved) on a set. If you ride a 600 or bigger, this number might be low for you.

Notice that I sleep in my van at the track. If you stay in a hotel, my experience is that this is a budget killer because of the obvious (room $) and also, I'm more likely to go to convenience stores for snacks, or restaurants, or even Wally World for crap that I don't need when I leave the track at night. Sleeping in the van is cheap, it makes it easier to be ready (you're 5 feet from your pit when you wake up), and it's cheaper. Did I mention that it's cheaper?

On the lodging subject, some tracks have (for me) unbearably bad showers. This track is one of them. Luckily, there is a Pilot truck stop 5 miles away where you can take a shower for $6. It sucks to pay to take a shower, but it sucks more to pay $50 for a room.

Also, you'll notice that there is no mention of bike maint. in any way. I was only meaning to illustrate the cost of the actual weekend itself, but fixing/maintaining your bike is definitely an expense. For example, at Nashville this year, my motor gave up on me. Thanks to an extremely generous service manager at Yamaha of Louisville, the bike was repaired for about $500. Not too bad, but consider that around that time, I raced the following schedule w. the attendant expenses...yikes this hobby can add up on you...and this is mild compared to serious crash damage, or Big Bike racing $$-wise...

4/9 Tally: $900 (raced 2 bikes that weekend)
4/16 Barber: $800 (stayed in hotel)
4/30 Nashville: $750 for gas and Fri. practice, including the $500 to fix motor (race fees credited)
5/19 Cycle Jam: $1000 (farther distance, went out to eat, etc)

Yikes...that's $3450 in 5 weeks, and I didn't crash or stay in hotels (except once). Also this doesn't include oil changes, a valve adjustment, etc...figure maybe another $100.

Anyway, it seemes like the question comes up a fair amount, so I figured I'd share my info. If you're starting out, and you're on a budget, I can't stress enough how important it is to make a real effort to cut expense wherever possible. If you're casual about it, and you spend $ as if oyu're just hanging around at home, you can easily spend $1000 or more on a weekend and not even realize it. I know...I've done it.

When you add in the costs of actually buying a bike, prepping it, buying gear, etc. you quickly realize that this is not a game for the stingy. If spending a buck keeps you awake at night, keep away. You'll never sleep again!

 

Please delete this thread. If my wife sees this, she'll kill me first.

 

Darrin's Budget:

Gas for van: $6 (lives 700 yards from the track)
Fuel for bike and generator: $3 (no generator, bike does 16 laps all weekend)
Food and drink: $0 (mooch-eriffic!)
Tires: $0 (uses the same ones...I think they're the OEM tires)
Lodging: $0 (see "gas for van")
Showers: 0$ (you do know which Darrin this is, right?)
Race entry: $60 (clubman only runs once/weekend)
Friday Practice: $0 (2 days off in a row? ya right...)
Gate Fee: $0 (trades mustache rides for gate entry)
Mystery cash: +$300 (people pay for parts he doesn't ever remember supplying to them)

Total: +$231 per weekend

...that's right, Big D leaves the track with more money than he got there with. I need to try his method.

 

The only parts you got wrong:

Gas for the van: $40 ($6.00 used for gas to get to the track and back, $34 worth of gas spend cruising through the paddock, looking for the guy with the green Kawasaki, who is parked next to the guy with the blue Yamaha. "Just look for the bike! You can't miss me!!")

Entry fees: I like the Solo race on Saturday, too.

The rest is so close, it's scary.

 

race if you are worried about money do not race take pcontrol of your life if you do not like it to bad

 

1000. per race a little more at cycle jam now that Inn is open, that was sweet.

 

That with three riders!

 

Delete the cost of food. You're gonna eat whether you're at the track or not

 

Doesn't matter...the idea is that this is how many dollars it takes to survive a race weekend, not how many dollars over what you'd spend if yo were doing something else.

Nice try though!

 

Really cool break out Dave.

But what about beer, smokes and a t shirt from AOD, NOTB, Ghetto customs (I want one of these) and/ or Dalke?

Well, that $40 in mystery cash may cover all that stuff.

 

This needs some revision!

Gas for van: $6 (lives 700 yards from the track)
Fuel for bike and generator: $3 (bike won't start but manages to leak 1.2 gallons of gas while attempting to start)
Food and drink: +$15 (mooch-eriffic! takes hand outs and sells them to bums along with christopher's shoes )
Tires: $0 (uses the same ones...I think they're the OEM tires..yeah for a fork truck)
Lodging: $0 (see "gas for van")
Showers: +$25 (sells pictures of himself in the shower to truckers)
Race entry: $60 (clubman only runs once/weekend)
Race entry refund: +$60 (bike won't start)
Friday Practice: $0 (2 days off in a row? ya right...)
Gate Fee: $0 (trades mustache rides for gate entry)
Mystery cash: +$300 (people pay for parts he doesn't ever remember supplying to them)
Hay Rides with the trooper: +$125

Total: +525 per weekend

.

Talbott is livin high society!

 

So do Sean and I. They should go into business!

 

Good cost analysis, Dave.

Then again, I really didn't want to actually SEE the numbers.

The other thing the nOOb's have to keep in mind is that your first WERA weekend, you're looking at about $400 in fee's.


Hence the reason, why I didn't make it to Jennings...

 

You funny man. Don't make me hurt you.

 

If the cashola to start is a little stiff, you can do what I did, and just take the school...no racing that weekend. Then, you've got your license, and even if you're strapped for cash you can still go to the next race weekend and race 1 or 2 races.

I was gonna race on my rs weekend, but my bike was dead, and the 'Priller that Dan C. loaned me was already spoken for in said races.

 

yeah, that was one of the reasons i wasnt going to go this past weekend

the first weekend HURTS!!
and i still dont have my own transponder(but with the guys in classifieds trying to get 300 shipped for a used one, i think i will just wait untill i am fast enough to actually participate, and get a new one)

 

that's what i'm gonna do. go to the school and then wait until spring to actually start racing. get some practice days under my belt and get the sv dialed.

 

Gas for van: $150 (divided by two or three, I usually ride share with others)
Fuel for bike: $12
Food and drink (includes cooler ice, etc): $30
Tires: $230 (I get 2 weekends out of a set on the KTM)
Lodging: $0 (sleep in the van)
Race entry: $160 (four classes)
Gate Fee: $20 to $10 (I think...I forgot to write the amount down)
Camping charge: $15
Mystery cash: $40

 

If you can get back and forth to Road Atlanta in a van, pulling a loaded enclosed trailer from Columbus on $150 w. gas at $2.50/gallon, I desperately need to buy one of whatever van you're driving...that is awesome!

In my van, $150 in gas would leave me stranded aways South of Nashville on the return trip!

 

that sounds like about 2 weekends for me.