Home of the Jimmy C. Wall Speedway
Huntsville, Alabama
Dedicated on 07/22/09 at the 2009 Eastern Grands
Getting Started
Getting Started in Quarter Midget Racing.
The HQMA offers "Try it you’ll like it" programs throughout the year. During these events we invite families to come down to the track to give their son/daughter ages 5-16 a chance to drive a Quarter Midget Race Car around the HQMA race track. - First of all you will need to purchase a Quarter Midget Race Car. Race Cars are NOT provided by the HQMA. All cars are individually operated and maintained by the owner/handler. Here are some tips on purchasing a Quarter Midget Race Car. Most decent USED Quarter Midget Race Cars sell around $2500.00 to $3500.00. Some older cars can get as low as 1500.00 dollars during the off-season. Be sure to talk to several club members about cars before purchasing. There are at least a dozen Quarter Midget manufacturers selling race cars. Talk to club members that run the particular brand of Quarter Midget that you are interested in before purchasing. It would be good to look at more than just one car and arrange to drive the car at the track if possible before purchasing. Your novice trainer will also be glad to give advice on any car that you are considering purchasing.
- Next you will need to purchase SFI Racing Gear. Racing Gear consists of a Helmet, Neck Collar, Racing Jacket/Suit, Racing Gloves, Arm Restraints, optional Racing Pants and Racing Shoes. Here are some tips on purchasing SFI Racing Gear. An "entry level" set of Gear costs around $450.00 while a Professional Package will cost around $1000.00.
- Now that you have all the equipment, you need to sign up for a HQMA membership. To join the HQMA and QMA you need to submit a request form to be mailed out to your home. An HQMA membership costs $175.00. Click here to fill out the request form. This is also a good time to start looking for a copy of your driver’s birth certificate. You will need to submit a copy of the birth certificate along with 2 pictures (1inch X 1inch) of the driver’s parents/handlers for their official QMA name badge. These badges need to be worn by the parents/handlers of your QMA racer at major QMA Racing Events. (States Races, East/West Grands, etc)
- Once your HQMA membership is validated, you will need to sign up for Novice Training. Novice Training is taught by one of the more experienced handlers about the basics of Quarter Midget Racing. This would also be a good time to read over the "Novice Handbook" by Steve Clark.
Once you have made the decision that Quarter Midget racing is something your family would enjoy doing. There are a series of procedures that need to be completed before your child will be able to Quarter Midget Race.
- Next it's practice, practice, and more practice. On race day there is two classes for the entry level drivers. The Junior Novice class for the 5-8 year olds and the Senior Novice class for the 9-16 year olds. Don’t underestimate the driving abilities of these young drivers. Some of them have a lot of experience at the novice level. They will run these cars at full throttle around the track without lifting in the corners. On average a Junior Novice will complete a lap in less than 9 seconds. A Senior Novice will complete a lap in less than 8 seconds. Hint: Bring a stopwatch and have you child perform 5 laps at full speed. Take the time that it took for the 5 laps and divide by 5. Make sure your driver is ready to compete at those levels and has an understanding about stopping, lining up, rolling starts, getting on/off the track and the Flag System.
- A typical Race Day. Race day starts with the tower opening at 9:00 a.m. with the pit meeting around 10:00am, but get there early around 8:00 a.m. because your first race day you have a lot of things to do. Everybody at the track is more than willing to help you, but you have to ask for it, otherwise they just assume that someone already has told you what to do. The first race day you need to get your equipment and racing gear Tech inspected by the Tech Director. This person will look at all your safety equipment and inspect the Quarter Midget to see if it’s within the QMA guidelines. Once the tower is open, you will need to sign in and pay your pit fees, along with pull your draw for placement in the race. (Pit fee’s for one car is $25.00 per race plus $3.00 for fuel.) Next, you need to drain all the fuel from your car and fill it with the track provided fuel, check your weight at the scale with your driver (250 lbs for Junior Honda and 260 lbs for Senior Novice) and then get ready to race.
The first and second class to race that day are Junior Novice and Senior Novice, respectfully, so be ready. The race day consists of 2 races. There will be a heat race and then an "A" man. There is around 7-8 different classes depending on race day attendance. You will need to be back in staging after the second to last class has finished their race. After 2 races your racing day is over.
Once you have finished this you are now an HQMA Quarter Midget Racing Family.
