Cal Club Autocross Forums

I did my very first autocross event last weekend (El Toro) and had a blast. I'm planning on getting a bit more involved going forward, but I thought I'd ask this question (being new and not familiar with all the etiquette, etc.).

I have a son, 14 years old. Nice and responsible kid. That being said, he expressed interest in going with me to various autocross events. I'm wondering what the specific rules are for the different session (i.e. practice vs. competition, etc.) for keeping him with me. I'm aware there are waivers, and he's been my navigator in a few road rallies (one up at SMSCC just a few months back). I know he's responsible and capable of participating with me, but I also know there are rules for the clubs and events.

So, in the autocross world, what situations would he be allowed to be my passenger? Also, would he be allowed to work with me during work sessions out on the course (i.e. keep him close to me and have him do some of the running, etc.)?

Basically, I'd hate to bring him out and then have to leave him somewhere with nothing to do while I'm running and/or working at an event. Can anybody please share some insight on this topic for me? TIA

Introduce him to the Jr. GoKarting parents and they'll likely invite your son to try out one of their karts. You might have noticed they had their own course on the parallel runway.

But to answer your question....

As best I can tell from reading the SCCA Solo rules (Section 1.4.3.A,D) anyone 12 and up can ride as a passenger provided they sign the waivers and have a weekend membership (we give those free to passengers). However, there is also another rule, both in the main solo rules (Section 1.4.3.O) and our supplemental regulations (Section 4.1), that says that no one under the age of 16 is allowed in the grid.

Hopefully someone who knows for sure will chime in eventually...

As far as the rules for a practice or championship day, passengers are fine for practice days, but our region does not allow passengers (other than instructors) on championship days, unless you're running Time Only (TO) class.

Main SCCA Solo rulebook: http://scca.cdn.racersites.com/prod/ass ... %205-1.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Our region's Supplemental Regulations: http://www.solo2.com/supp_regs/SCCA_Cal ... s_2013.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mako Koiwai wrote:Introduce him to the Jr. GoKarting parents and they'll likely invite your son to try out one of their karts. You might have noticed they had their own course on the parallel runway.

The family came out to cheer me on last Sunday. He was there, and I sent him over to check out the kart track on the other runway. He came back with a piece of paper with loads of information (contacts, where to shop, etc.). I guess the people over there were very nice and friendly to him. I am going to try and get him doing a little of that over the summer (at least try it out a few times) before committing to getting a kart, etc. We'll see how that goes.

There looked to be some opportunities out there in Fontana to autocross for me, and kart for him (and maybe kart with him)....we'll be checking into that as well.

Jeff Stuart wrote:But to answer your question....

As best I can tell from reading the SCCA Solo rules (Section 1.4.3.A,D) anyone 12 and up can ride as a passenger provided they sign the waivers and have a weekend membership (we give those free to passengers). However, there is also another rule, both in the main solo rules (Section 1.4.3.O) and our supplemental regulations (Section 4.1), that says that no one under the age of 16 is allowed in the grid.

Although it looks like there might be some technicalities to argue, it appears to me that the "spirit" of those rules says: He can ride as a passenger, but he's too young to be out on the course working.

I'd love some "authoritative" clarification just so I don't drag him along and then make him have to hang around in the paddock all day. Perhaps there are other work assignments that don't involve having him out on the course during running? Either way, I just want to make sure I play by the rules and maintain proper etiquette as I'm new to this endeavor. That being said, I'd love to have my son there with me as well for some quality father/son time. Any input is much appreciated!

unless you're running Time Only (TO) class.

.... or doing X-Runs

Karen and I run the CalSpeed Arrive & Drive GoKart SuperSeries ... which kids can run in also, although it would be a coincidence if it and our Auto Crosses were running at the same time. The SuperSeries requires all of ones time, so one couldn't do both.

CalSpeed GoKarting has a number of different rental programs that you two could do together. Karen and I had a very fun wheel to wheel battle last Saturday.

More here: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Randy Gonzalez wrote:Although it looks like there might be some technicalities to argue, it appears to me that the "spirit" of those rules says: He can ride as a passenger, but he's too young to be out on the course working.

I'd love some "authoritative" clarification just so I don't drag him along and then make him have to hang around in the paddock all day. Perhaps there are other work assignments that don't involve having him out on the course during running? Either way, I just want to make sure I play by the rules and maintain proper etiquette as I'm new to this endeavor. That being said, I'd love to have my son there with me as well for some quality father/son time. Any input is much appreciated!

I have two kinds, so I've already been through this. Once you have the waiver signed and a weekend membership, your son is good to go as a passenger (just have to be over 12). He can't be on course working with you, however....too dangerous. Usually for the junior karters, they have them clean up trash as their work assignment.

Randy Gonzalez wrote:Perhaps there are other work assignments that don't involve having him out on the course during running?

Also, just to clarify, he doesn't have to work at all unless he's participating in the event as a driver. No work is required from passengers.

Jeff Stuart wrote:Also, just to clarify, he doesn't have to work at all unless he's participating in the event as a driver. No work is required from passengers.

I realize that work is not required for him. I just thought the "hang out" would be better with us together the entire time. Also, he's the type of kid who would rather help out and be useful than sit in the car playing on an iPhone or something.

Randy Gonzalez wrote:Also, he's the type of kid who would rather help out and be useful than sit in the car playing on an iPhone or something.

Where did you find such a child? }:)

Max Hayter wrote:Where did you find such a child? }:)

I can't take any credit....his mother's done a great job with all my kids....whew!

Mako Koiwai wrote:Karen and I run the CalSpeed Arrive & Drive GoKart SuperSeries ... which kids can run in also, although it would be a coincidence if it and our Auto Crosses were running at the same time. The SuperSeries requires all of ones time, so one couldn't do both.

CalSpeed GoKarting has a number of different rental programs that you two could do together. Karen and I had a very fun wheel to wheel battle last Saturday.

More here: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks for sharing this Mako. This is something we just found online and are quite interested in. Is the SuperSeries something that we could participate in together? We'd absolutely be down with racing for an afternoon in some decent karts. I'm going to research this and ping you with any questions. Sounds like big fun...perfect for what I'm trying to do with him.

Randy Gonzalez wrote:

Mako Koiwai wrote:Karen and I run the CalSpeed Arrive & Drive GoKart SuperSeries ... which kids can run in also, although it would be a coincidence if it and our Auto Crosses were running at the same time. The SuperSeries requires all of ones time, so one couldn't do both.

CalSpeed GoKarting has a number of different rental programs that you two could do together. Karen and I had a very fun wheel to wheel battle last Saturday.

More here: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7230" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks for sharing this Mako. This is something we just found online and are quite interested in. Is the SuperSeries something that we could participate in together? We'd absolutely be down with racing for an afternoon in some decent karts. I'm going to research this and ping you with any questions. Sounds like big fun...perfect for what I'm trying to do with him.

Yeah, you can both run at the same time, or possibly against each other. The karts are made as evenly as possible so by ballasting everyone's weight up to 200lbs. Just make sure to bring lots of water, its a bigger workout than you might expect. Brad is pretty easy to get ahold of over at Calspeed, and can answer any question you have or give you any help if needed.