Grassroots Motorsports
Issue link: http://grassrootsmotorsports.epubxp.com/i/501675
Grassroots Motorsports 20 M ost every racing enthu- siast fantasizes about quitting their job and making a living in the racing busi- ness. Ara Malkhassian was no exception. After spending 11 years in the corporate world, Ara was ready for a change. Ara started building race cars out of Mazda Miatas as a hobby in 1999, but his builds were so popu- lar that he quickly found himself running a business. Before long, Ara had walked away from his desk jockey job at Compaq Com- puter Corporation and focused his efforts on the new and grow- ing Spec Miata racing class. His aerospace engineering degree and MBA from Penn State were coming in handy. In a few short years, his fedg- ling company had built close to 40 cars and was providing sup- port for them at tracks throughout the Southwest. In 2005, Mazda approached Ara to join a new race series they were starting, the Mazda MX-5 Cup. Alara Racing had gone professional. To d a y, A l a r a Ra c i n g i s t h e l o n g e s t- r u n n i n g t e a m i n t h e highly competitive Battery Tender MX-5 Cup Presented by BFGo- odrich. Alara drivers Christian Szymczak and Kenton Koch won the 2013 and 2014 champion- ships, respectively. Szymczak will build on his conquest by racing in the 2015 IMSA Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge on a Mazda Ladder scholarship. On-track success is just part of the picture, however. Ara has learned a few vital lessons about how to make the underlying busi- ness successful, too–and he doesn't mind sharing them. Exceed Expectations: Don't meet expectations, beat them. When Ara started building race Alara Racing: Turning a Hobby Into a Business DRIVERS MEETING photosbyjuha.com Alara Racing turned a common dream into a r motorsports as a business.