[Alan Roehrich]

For all the pessimism and cynicism here, this is a good place to get advice and information.

You do need to get a rule book, and you really should go to a few races.

Be prepared to spend a lot of money. Even if you buy a car that is built and running. Unless you buy a super nice car that is working really well, you'll have to work on it a lot. The only way you'll find one of those cars like that for sale at a great price is to find someone who is quitting. Other wise, it is easy to spend a ton of money on a car that you bought that was already being raced.

Consider contacting Nitro Joe here on the boards and buying a subscription to his stats that he keeps. That will tell you what cars are fast, who wins with what cars, and where those cars and drivers are. One reason for that is so that you know what cars are competitive, so you know what to look for. Another reason is so you know what classes are heavily populated and competitive in your area. That will help you avoid buying a car that fits a class with a lot of other cars in it that are fast. You don't want to buy a car that is 5 tenths under the index in a class where there are 5-6 cars in your area that are 1 second under.

Read Mike Carr's response to your post. About five times. It's well written, and he knows what he's talking about.