BERKLEY, Mich. (WXYZ) — Have you ever driven past Superlap Drive Studio in Berkley and wondered if it's a place where car enthusiasts come and race virtually?
"It's definitely not a video game. It can be entertaining in the same ways," said Russell Soto.
Russell Soto is a car and sim racer as well as one of the coaches at Superlap - Metro Detroit's first state-of-the-art sim racing facility.
"This is a training tool to help you be prepared for the real-life thing." Russell said.
The 24-year-old moved to Michigan from New Jersey three years ago to pursue a career in automotive engineering, but never lost sight of his passion for a motorsports career, all thanks to sim racing.
"How realistic is SIM racing?" I asked
"Very! If you're a modern racing driver. Sim racing is almost essential. Even professional racing teams in Formula One or IMSA, for example, in the higher ranks, have sim racing, and just in general, it's become its own thing as well. It's its own competition too," Russell said.
As per Global Market Insights, in 2023, Sim racing was valued at $1.8 billion. And by 2032, it's projected to be 2.5 billion dollars, with North America leading the market.
That's why the founder, Dan Cycholl, is super proud of this facility on Woodward Ave., featuring eight high-end racing simulators with 4-point motion systems.
"We have kids as young as 5 or 6 using our kids sim over there and then we have adults all the way up to 75. I'm not sure if I've seen someone over 80 yet in here, but it's really for everybody," Dan said.
"How's this place different to go to like a racing institute?" I asked.
"Cost is probably the number one thing. You gotta pay for track time, you gotta pay for the use of the car, the brakes, tires here you can learn as little as $50 an hour," Dan said.
"If you actually hit a barrier, you know, you can reset instead of paying for it," Russell said.
But there are a few things a simulator can't replicate...
"When you're driving a race car, especially around a fast corner, your car is going one direction, your body wants to go the other direction. There's a huge physicality to it and you feel it through your core and your neck muscles as well. you don't necessarily get the same feeling from a simulator here at Superlap we have motion rigs which are really cool because you get a little bit of a sense of what that might feel like, but it's definitely not the same," said Russell.
"When you're racing here at Superlap, are you representing Michigan or New Jersey?" I asked.
"I always try to represent Michigan, despite coming from New Jersey. Michigan has given me so much in my racing career, especially Superlap," Russell said.
Superlap is open to anyone who wants to feel the need to speed in a safe, secure environment. To learn more visit: https://superlap.world/
