Motor Sportsperson

A motor sportsperson drives a car or rides a motorbike in speed competitions or time trials.

The main areas of competition in car racing are:
racing, rallying and karting (often the starting point for racing drivers).

The main areas of competition in motor cycling include: road racing; trials (testing riders' skills and balance over natural obstacles like rocks and streams); endurosport (timed cross country events); motocross (riders race against each other up and down hills in rough country); supermoto (a more extreme version of motocross with more jumps); speedway (teams of motor cyclists race against each other round an oval track).

The Work

Whether you drive a car or ride a motorbike, you could be:

• training regularly – all week if you drive or ride full time


• visiting the place where the event is to take place (race track or planned outdoor course), studying the layout and planning your tactics


• depending on the type of event, racing your own ordinary car or bike or a customized vehicle
• in kart or circuit racing, driving a special racing kart or car round an oval track, competing against other drivers


• in sprint or hillclimb races, driving your vehicle over a closed track while judges time your speed and compare it with your competitors’


• working closely with mechanics and helping maintain and tune your car or bike


• perhaps working closely with car and motor cycle designers, testing and developing new models, tyres or engines


• working in a team made up of manager, drivers, mechanics and commercial sponsors.

Conditions

• You would race mostly at weekends but you would train all week.


• You would travel to races and spend overnights away from home, perhaps abroad.


• Races can be long, demanding, tiring and stressful.


• You would wear a crash helmet and, depending on the race, you might wear fireproof overalls.


• You should be aware that there is a risk of serious injury or death.

Getting In

The Royal Automobile Club (RAC) Motor Sports Association (MSA) Ltd is the motor sport industry's governing body. To get started in any form of professional car driving or racing:

• You must get a Race Licence from the MSA.


• To apply for this you must be at least 16 and have regular experience and success in karting, amateur races and rallies. You must also buy the MSA's 'Go Racing' starter pack and complete a half day MSA course for novice drivers, run by member of the Association of Racing Kart Schools (ARKS).


• Provided your parents agree, you can start racing in karts when you are 8. You can navigate in road rallies at 12. You can drive in autotests from 14. You can drive in trials from 15. You can race cars off the road (after at least 1 year in karts) from 16. To drive in a road rally you must be 17 and hold a full driving licence.


• You can train and gain experience at karting, circuit racing or rally driving schools. In Scotland there is a school at Knockhill in Fife which runs racing and rallying courses. There is also a karting school based in Cambuslang which is registered with the MSA.

• To compete as a professional motor cyclist you must apply to the SACU for a Novice Licence. To obtain this you must pass compulsory Novice Training and have an eye test.


• Provided your parents agree, you can start grass-track or motocross racing when you are 6. You can take part in road racing, on low-powered machines from 11.

What Does It Take?

You need to be:

• confident and resilient


• competitive


• brave


• quick to react to possibly dangerous situations


• physically fit with good stamina


• able to concentrate while racing


• good at working in a team for rallying.

Training

• You would have to practise regularly and get used to different kinds of racing courses.


• You could train at a school of racing (approved schools are listed on the MSA and SACU websites).

Getting On

• If you become professional you will have a manager to negotiate races for you.


• You will have a relatively short working life as a motor sportsperson and will move on to other work as you get older – sports journalism, commentating or promotion of motor sports might be possibilities.

Pay

Your income will be irregular and variable because it depends on sponsorship, appearance fees and prize money.

If you do really well you can earn a very high income. However, only a few top drivers have an income they can live on – and even then only for a few years. You may well have to do an ‘ordinary’ job as well.

More Information

Approximately 5,000 motor racing events take place across the UK every year. About 34,000 people now hold MSA Competition Licences, but there are around 100,000 competitors in total in the UK. An increasing number of women are now taking part – there is a British Women Racing Drivers’ Club.

Addresses

The following organisation(s) may be able to provide further information.