Although motorsport tends to be a very money intensive excercise, the Queensland Gemini series has the best dollar per mile ratio of any circuit racing sedan class. The simple fact is that cars cost as little as $3000 but for this it is unlikely to be a championship winning car, but there are several ways to be able to go racing cheaply. Firstly you could build your own car (or get somebody to help in the know to help you) up from a stock standard road car. Cars are avaible for as little as $100, but a decent road registered car costs upwards of $2000. The savings encountered with the purchase of $100 car may be lost when repairing body damage and rust comes into consideration. The cars are strictly controlled and are kept close to stock standard preperation. Minor engine modifications are allowed, with a controlled cam shaft, with complete regulations available from the Queensland Gemini Racing Association. Safety features such as a roll cage and fire extinguisher must be built into the cars. Secondly you could buy an pre-raced, setup car. Depending on the car's history, condition, and spare parts, a decent car can be found for around $5000. This is the way to go for the first timer, as building and setting up your own car for racing conditions often proves to be a very frustrating excercise. Thirdly you can lease a car from one of the racing teams which offer this as a service. This quite often proves to be the cheapest way to go, as you can pay on a race by race basis or a whole season. The cars are well prepared with strong engines and sorted suspension, with many winners driving leased cars. Once you've got your car, a buget for an entire racing years is about $5000. A run down of possible expenses is as follows: $400 for a set of the "control" Dunlop Monza tyres. They are a road going tyre and are available at most trye retailers, however tyres can be obtained cheaply from wreckers and 2nd hand tyre outlets. Generally a set of tyres will last for 2 race meetings, however this figure varies greatly on how hard the driver is on the tyres, and of how much thre driver is prepared to spend. 85¢ per litre of Avgas, which is widely avaible, or premium unleaded can be used. 2-3 sets of brake pads. $500 for miscellaneous items such as oil and brake fluid. Panel damage which in inevitable, but can always be contained. Safety equipment such as helmet, fire proof suit, seat, seat belts and window nets are all needed incase the unexpected happens. $170 for entering a car at a normal race meeting. $60 for practice on any afternoon of the week at Lakeside International Raceway. However the cost of racing can be recouped through sponsorship. Motorsport attracts more sponsorship than any other sport in Australia. Most sponsorship comes from within the motor industry, the driver's or families business, and sometimes from outside organisations, such as the Quit Smoking program, which sponsored the Corness team for several years. Some poular sponsors inside the motor trade include petrol stations, car yards, wreckers, spare parts stores, tyre outlets and oil companies. Sponsors pay money for their name on the sides of a car, or as often hapens give the racer a service or product for free or at a reduced price. The value for money companies get from sponsoring a Gemini is ever increasing, since there are now more than one race track competing for crowds in South-East Queensland. Tracks are now advertising state race meetings, and larger crowds than those in the past are now attending. Add to this the fact the Geminis race on big time programs such as: V8 Supercars, Super Touring and Australian Sport Sedan Championship meetings, which all attract large crowds. Dunlop, through its Monza branding sponsors the Queensland Gemini Series since 1992. For the 12 years prior to that, American tyre manufacturer Kelly-Springfield sponsored the series.