Friend in wheelchair wants to race with us

[rairdan93]

My friend Landon had a unfortunate crash on his dirt bike that left him a quadriplegic several years back. After a crazy amount of determination and hard work he has been able to get his drivers licence back and has been driving with hand controls for over a year now. He was going to setup a mustang to drive but was unable to get in and out easily. He has now acquired a go kart and wants to race it with us when he gets it setup for hand controls(probably next year). He also drives a hand control side by side around our local motocross track.  I have seen articles of a guy down in the states that races autocross in a wrx with hand controls and does quite well with it. I have quickly browsed through the rules and don't really see anything on hand controls. When Landon gets his kart setup and ready to go can he come race with us? He will be more than willing to work where he can(registration or grid maybe).

[Reijo]

Unfortunately in Canada ASN has ruled that karts are not allowed in solo ... unlike the SCCA.

R

[rairdan93]

Unfortunately in Canada ASN has ruled that karts are not allowed in solo ... unlike the SCCA.

R

I didn't realize that. What about the hand controls? Are they legal? He might want to build something else because he seems to really want to do autocross.

[Reijo]

Nothing I know of ... should be ok.

R

[PedalFaster]

Only tangentially related, but I have a paraplegic friend in Seattle who's raced for more than a decade (including going to Nationals) using hand controls. If your friend has any questions about how to get things set up, I could put them in touch. PM if interested.

[Zach S]

If Kart’s aren’t eligible maybe one of those older open wheel formula cars would work if he can track one down? We had one run a few events last year didn’t we?

[94boosted]

Another option might be the karting club, has your friend reached out to the CKRC (Calgary Kart Racing Club) to see what their policies are surrounding hand controls in a kart?

If Kart’s aren’t eligible maybe one of those older open wheel formula cars would work if he can track one down? We had one run a few events last year didn’t we?

I think it was a B-Mod or C-Mod car, which are quite a bit more costly to build/run than a kart.

[Reijo]

Another option might be the karting club, has your friend reached out to the CKRC (Calgary Kart Racing Club) to see what their policies are surrounding hand controls in a kart?

If Kart’s aren’t eligible maybe one of those older open wheel formula cars would work if he can track one down? We had one run a few events last year didn’t we?

I think it was a B-Mod or C-Mod car, which are quite a bit more costly to build/run than a kart.

There are a few cheaper Forumula cars out there ... F-Mod (which is like Dave's ... F440 and F500 cars) which are pretty cheap and small (don't need a big trailer).  FV (Formula Vee) also fits in here - with the old bug air-cooled engines ... which can be quite cheap to buy and maintain.   

Then there is C-Mod which is typically a Formula Ford (with a Pinto 4 cyl.) which may be one of the cheapest classes to run (and buy into) ... once you have the car all fixed up.  Running cars I have seen from $10k to the very best ones at $30k or more.

B-Mod is mostly sports racers also not a bad class ... often powered by motorcycle engines and some aero is involved.  Dave ended up in B-Mod from F-Mod because of the wings ... and perhaps a few other mods.   

R

[Dr Dave]

Just to add to Reijo comments. The F Mod community members are very good and supportive. They will be the life of the party at Lincoln this year (so I'm told, lol). A great bunch of people, here's a link to the forum for F 500 road racers and F-Mod solo racers, tons of technical info and classifieds that often have cars for sale (the Mini Indy currently in the listings is not a legal FMod or F500).

http://f500.us/forum/index.php

Of all the formula cars FV, FF, etc., F500s are the least expensive to buy and operate and are faster than FVs or FFs.

Last year an older nationally competitive F500 sold for 3-4k US. If your friend chooses the F Mod route the guys in that community would be very helpful. Some of the cars (mine included) run electric power steering (the engine charges the onboard battery to an extent), my point is power assisted hand controls would be doable on one these cars.
If you and or your friend want to get a close up look, try it on for fit (the cockpit is small - on mine, newer ones are bigger, some older ones have been modified for bigger drivers). Anyway....I plan on being at the event at YYC on Saturday the 11th of August, I'd be more than happy to show you the car and answer an questions.

- Dave
#forthegloryofFMod

[rairdan93]

Thanks for all the info guys! Greatly appreciated! The f mod route definitely seems like the best option cost and size wise. He's not looking to be competitive, he's just happy to be able to drive again, so pretty much a solid chassis is all he would need. He works at our local powersports store so he has good access to rotax engine parts and clutches. And good mechanics that will help build it and keep it running. It will be a year or so before we get him set up and racing but at least we know what needs to be done. Thanks again!

[rairdan93]

If any of you see a f mod car come up for sale in canada for under 5k can you please let me know. Thanks

[PedalFaster]

I don't want to be a naysayer, but is he sure a mod car is the way he wants to go? Mod cars come with a lot of overhead which would be doubly hard for him to manage since he's in a wheelchair -- for example, how would be get out of his car after loading it onto its trailer? I'm sure he could figure out a way, but does he really want to put up with that hassle versus just autocrossing his street car?

[rairdan93]

I don't want to be a naysayer, but is he sure a mod car is the way he wants to go? Mod cars come with a lot of overhead which would be doubly hard for him to manage since he's in a wheelchair -- for example, how would be get out of his car after loading it onto its trailer? I'm sure he could figure out a way, but does he really want to put up with that hassle versus just autocrossing his street car?

His street car is a big van with a wheel chair lift. He also has a fancy lift to pick him up out of his chair and put him in vehicles that don't have a lift. He was looking at a cooper mini but would still have to trailer it. The lift and his chair wont fit in a car so he would be stuck in it all day. He has a trailer for his side by side already that would work good for a formula 500 car as well. Being open from the top will make it easy to get him in and out with his lift. Pick him up and drop him in threw the top. He will have a support crew of good friends to help him with getting the car ready and loading/unloading it. The cvt and snowmobile engine are familiar grounds for him, fairly cheap to maintain and easy to drive considering his condition. They are cool little cars and just seem like a good fit for the experience he wants. Now we just need to find one in his price range thats reasonably close. I'm going to get harnesses for my car and hopefully bring him out for some ride alongs at one of our september events.

[PedalFaster]

Ok. For what it's worth, my buddy in Seattle was able to pull himself out of his chair and into his street car, and vice versa. I guess he still might need someone to wheel his chair next to his car, but he definitely doesn't need a crew to help him out at events.

I just worry that, if your buddy gets a Mod car, that he'll be left unable to autocross (and thus stuck with a $5k paperweight) if his support crew's enthusiasm wears off. Conversely, if he buys a $5k Civic or something to autocross, he can also drive that to work, or easily resell it later.