Casey Putsch to appear at the KIC, Road America July 18-20

More like a 1 million dollars for a top team in Atlantics and thats about right for a Star Mazda team. If he really wants to compete with the best then I would say Star Mazda is the way to go. Its becoming more and more competitive because the cars are pretty close to Atlantics and cheaper to run.

 

Nah, I talked to a driver who won the main IMSA Lites class, and he said it costs around 150k. I also talked to a guy who finished 5th in Star Mazda but couldn't afford to do it the next year, but he managed to pull together 150k to do IMSA Lites. Also, Jonathan Bomarito, who finished 4th and 5th in Atlantics for a couple years, told me it usually costs about 700k, but in his personal situation he only had to find 300k, because the team really wanted him.

 

I was talking about SCCA's amateur Formula Atlantics Series - not the Atlantic Championship. I thought I had heard that SCCA's amateur Formula Atlantic and Formula Continental series both can be run for under $200k a year, unlike the more expensive Atlantic Championship series. In order to get noticed and get sponsors for either Star Mazda or the Atlantic Championship series (or any other series for that matter), I was suggesting the amateur SCCA FA series. Without something impressive on your resume, I can't see how you'd get any sponsorship for either.

That's why I was eluding to "getting your hands dirty" and leaving the "glamour" series behind and getting some hard work done to prove yourself. Maybe I'm incorrect, but I thought the SCCA FA series was much less expensive to run than the more "pro" Atlantic Championship and Star Mazda series.

 

Thanks LolaMan for confirming that - and congrats on your win!!! I'm just one of the volunteer corner workers who's track time is limited to getting to and from the corner in my Mondial so a little inside knowledge is appreciated. Back to the thread though - I think you get my point. Anyone - Casey included - who doesn't have the resume or the right name needs to build themselves up in the most competitive arena they can - and SCCA open-wheel racing can be a good starting point if you've got the talent.

 

well, so did he. (Racy Casey himself...)

 

Goring told me it was 150k for IMSA Lites. Gerardo managed to find the money, which amazes me because I still don't know how he did it. It sure paid off for him though, with that Mazda LMP2 ride. Yeah Bomarito is very talented, I asked him how he found the budget for Atlantics, and he gave me this really big "Hell if I know" expression, and pretty much made it sound like he was really lucky to find it, without any connections etc.

 

Wow Bruce is your mentor? Haha, he told me I reminded him of JPM when I passed two cars in turn 11 at Laguna in a Skippy race. He's a really nice guy, very good instructor, but I don't know much about him. I think he was in Atlantics back in the day?

 

wow pk...some names from ff and fc days of old. the good ole days! i have not seen rand in years. i hope he is well!?

pcb

 

You're new here. Go check the old Casey Putsch threads for your amusement. It'll be worth your while.

 

So, anyone know what happened to "our boy"? I didn't see his name anywhere in the qualifying or results lists. Perhaps he was forced to run incognito.

 

Incognito? I think he was helping the models get out of the Antique Cars.

 

LOL!! Thank you for that!

 

From Chuck Brandt on page 2 ot the KIC post on TNF - With pics. I have not seen any results yet.

"One of the more facinating barn find stories to come up recently is this car. While it looks like a Lola T70 Coupe, underneath lies the rolling chassis if the McKee Mk 3 / Peregrin sports racer. (Pending confirmation using Bob McKee's chassis drawings) It's definitely an early McKee and only the Mk 1 and the Mk 3 are unaccounted for. Bob thought the bulkheads were too large for the Mk 1. The Mk 3 was designed to hold a Ford 289, Ford Quad Cam, or Ford 427 engines so the bulkheads were wider.

Owner Casey Putsch only finished putting the car back together on Wednesday and did a great job driving it in the event. His qualifying times were very good and he ran in the race with the Can Am cars, but had brake problems. I believe he intends to make an authentic new body for the car."

 

Sounds like he's well on his way to replace Raikkonen next year!

 

I'm sure his was the only 40 year-old car experiencing brake difficulties. Didn't Senna break into F1 by re-bodying vintage race cars his dad bought for him?

 

ouch! cautious times.

 

Not to mention he was lapped.