Autocross is an inexpensive, safe, and most importantly fun way to enter into the world of competitive motorsports.
It began as a Gymkhana, which was basically a very low-speed test of precision driving. The essence of Autocross is to negotiate a course outlined with pylons (a.k.a orange cones) one car at a time in the least amount of time without hitting or knocking over any pylons.
Courses tend to consist of tighter turns which are close together and are 40 to 70 seconds in length. This helps keep the top speeds down, usually not exceeding highway speeds. Despite the lower speeds the activity level (measured in discrete turns per minute) can be higher than even Formula One due to the large number of elements packed into each course. This means that Autocross tends to place more emphasis on car handling and driver skill than on sheer horsepower.
To keep the playing field level, cars are grouped into classes with equal performance potential. This means that sports cars won’t be classed together with family haulers. Just about any car can participate in an autocross, and no special safety equipment is needed other than a helmet.
Events are usually held in large paved areas like parking lots or airfields. Typically, new courses are created for each event so drivers must learn a new course each time they compete. Prior to driving, a competitor will walk the course, taking mental notes, and developing a strategy to be refined upon subsequent runs.
In addition to being a national-level motorsport in its own right, autocrossing is a good way to learn skills that transfer to road racing, as drivers learn vehicle control and club ethics.
National organizations such as the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and National Auto Sport Association (NASA) sponsor autocross events throughout the United States, and many areas have independent autocross clubs. Automobile manufacturers and their associated clubs (e.g. the BMW Car Club of America) sometimes hold marque autocross events.
