This is how to start.  Real motorsport competition within reach of anyone who wants to give it a try.  A valid driver's license, virtually any make or model of car, from a Yugo to a Suburban,  and passing a basic safety inspection will make  you eligible to enter Solo 2 events.  They are often held close to home, entry fees are low, and required safety helmets can usually be borrowed from the sponsoring club.  Local, regional, and national level events offer a ladder of increasing competition sufficient to provide a lifetime of affordable competitive motorsports.

Solo 2  events consist of one car at a time, beginning  from a standing start, racing against the clock, usually on a local parking lot through a preset course defined by gates and turns  marked by strategically placed traffic cones.  Sounds simple, right?  Well, speeds are low, but not the thrills.  Challenging turns  come every second or two, right, left, right and again at first and second gear speeds in rapid fire combinations that challenge newcomers and veterans alike as the race to be quickest through the course heats up.    Competitors may walk the course prior to the start of the event, but no practice runs are allowed!  A typical course takes about one minute to run, and each competitor usually gets three or four runs.

There is time between runs to relax, think about your last run, or the next, and compare notes with other drivers who may have some helpful tips for beginners.  It looks easy, and most beginners expect they will be quicker than they turn out to be.  Perceived speed and real quickness are two different things!   Like all enjoyable sports, Solo 2 racing is easy enough for the beginner to enjoy, but challenging enough that even the experts with years of experience must work diligently to stay near the top of the game

So what does it take to do well?  How about a hint or two?  Well, stay relaxed when its your turn to start, concentrate on smoothly negotiating the first turn and the rest of the course to follow.   Go slowly on the first run or two.  Its easy to get lost during competition.   A course that looks simple at a walking pace, becomes much more demanding and potentially confusing at competitive speeds!  Your run won't count if you go off course!   When you're sure you know where every gate and turn leads , and how close you can come to the cones  without knocking them over, that's the time to turn up the speed.    But the most valuable tip I could give you, is to just get entered and complete your first event.  Make the step from spectator to competitor.   It's not Indy,  but its motorsport, and you'll be a race driver!