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USAC president Rollie Helmling just confirmed on tonights Race Fan Radio show that an entry fee will be instituted for 2007. He stated that the fee would be 'about' $25. He went on to say that the fee is needed to pay for personnel to operate the one way radios that will be required as well as the transponder system. Wonder if the fee will be lower for tracks that don't have the transponder unit? Wonder if there are any job applications? Sounds like a nice paying part time gig.....LOL

He mentioned that the series averaged 41 cars last year. At $25 per, that is $1,025 per event. Times 41 races, this becomes $42,025 per season. Add more if the fee is higher OUCH! Never said anything about any of that money going into the points fund either. I mention this because I heard some people say they thought that would be the case.

I'm curious to know what everyone thinks of this announcement. Remember, be nice too...:)

Personel to operate the radios LOL!!!!  How many people does it take to operate a radio ??? Does the teams have to buy the radios or will they be supplied by USAC ???

How do you to get the teams to stop this?

They all show up at the pit gate for the first race; but NO ONE signs in..... and I mean NO ONE.

Either USAC finds another way to do this, or there are no races.

Chuck.....

Here is the notice from USAC's web site. Rollie did say that USAC will have radios for lease at their trailer at each event also.

Reminder for 2007 Season

January 8, 2007 HANS Recertification / One-Way Radios

 OVERVIEW

As most of the competitors have been made aware, for the 2007 season USAC has made mandatory a SFI approved head and neck restraint system. Some of the older HANS devices do not have an SFI rating, but they can be recertified. Also one-way radios are now required for the sprint cars in 2007.

RECERTIFICATION

HANS has a recertification program which allows you to keep using a HANS device which previously was not SFI approved. You can reach them at www.hansdevice.com or at 1-888- HANS-999. The process starts at $15.00 and up dependant upon whether the tethers or padding need replacement. The turnaround time is around two business days so you should have no trouble having this done before the start of the 2007 season.

ONE-WAY RADIOS

For the 2007 season one-way radios are also required for all USAC sprint cars including National, Western, and CRA sprint cars. These radios and accessories are available through the National office. You can order by calling 1-317-247-5151. The price list is as follows:

 • Complete Kit $260.00

• Radio and Earpiece $240.00

• Radio and Case $175.00

• Reliant Radio $150.00

• Earpiece $100.00

• Earpiece Adaptor Cord – One Pin $25.00

• Earpiece Adaptor Cord – Two Pin $40.00

• Mounting Case $25.00

USAC FREQUENCIES:

• Channel One: 464.5500• Channel Two: 466.6875

Chuck:

Here is a piece from Ken Wagner's column from 9/10/06. The last statement he makes seems to be a good point. When the teams relinquished their own sanctioning body, they forfited a fair amount of their say in how things would be conducted. Not stirring the pot with this tidbit, just stating a fact. It's USAC's show now.

"Over the years I have experienced a lot of highs and lows with the CRA, SCRA and now USAC/CRA. Sometimes the problems can be the action on the track, sometimes off it, but it never seems to end and the same troubles always seem to come back no matter who is in control. The start-up CRA began with high hopes of autonomy and local control, but when you align yourself with big business, it no longer is a club that you can control, in fact, it’s not a club anymore, just a footnote in USAC business. Our USAC/CRA satellite group here on the West Coast is part of one of the largest racing organizations in the country. And as business goes, the squeaky wheel, or the best producing arm, gets all the attention and benefits. Our club is gone, along with picnics and other fun times that used to be part of racing out of town. Now it’s a business and nobody will get rich, so it is amazing the car owner’s still want to spend their money this way."

Let's see.....

41 races x $25/race = $1025

Radio = $ 260

$1025 + 260 = $1285

$1285 paid to USAC that gets the car owner NOTHING in return; there will still be scoring errors, bad officiating calls, and the low buck(although racing isn't cheap)teams take it in the butt.......again.

If ever a time was right for Ron Shuman to resurface, this is it. IMO, USAC has done almost nothing for the West Coast non wing racer.

Chuck.....

I agree with Chuck,and would like to add, USAC has done nothing in California but stir up S--- ! I think
it's time for these Racers and car owners to get together and move on with their own asscociation. If A car owner is going to have to pay $25.00 a night,how about using it to hire a person to run things.Shuman maybe? IMO you can dump the Radio idea,I see nothing but new problems coming into the picture. Drivers and owners have enough problems now, they don't need a new one.JMO

"If ever a time was right for Ron Shuman to resurface, this is it. IMO, USAC has done almost nothing for the West Coast non wing racer."

Doubt anyone could get Shuman off the golf course now days. Only the car owners can decide to stay status quo or create their own group again. It would take someone with the knowledge to lead a group however. Any leader of such a group would have a real challenge to face. That is, to know for certain that 'pledges' to stay together would be solid pledges. At the time of the 'spilt', Shuman had pledges from some car owners and when it came time to race, some pledges didn't hold true.

Bottom line is, the situation at hand is what it is. The car owners will pay more to participate. If they choose not to, they will either need to park their cars or go racing elsewhere. I was surprised that some owners I spoke with at the Chili Bowl weren't totaly aware of everything that's taking place. That leads me to wonder if there aren't any meetings amongst them. I know of a couple of owners who could race for 2007, but aren't because of the way things are at this time.

The first night to sign in at the pit gate for the 2007 season could produce some interesting reactions.

Cry, Cry, Cry,

Why is it that everyone wants to cry about changes that people asked for.  I vividly remember everyone crying when Mike Spencer beat Tony Jones because of a mis placement call. (Hence the one way radios).  I was very surprised when I found out that teams did not have to pay a fee to race, whether it goes to points fund or for a better ran organization.  The HANS device changes is to save lives and injuries, DUHHHH!  That is a great idea.  Remeber this is not NASCAR or IRL or F1 who have the big bucks, this is sprint car racing!!!!  If you dont like the raise of costs then you can always be a sponsor, so that drivers don't have to pay entry fees.  Last I checked, racing is not cheap and if you can afford a $30,000 car, a $40,000 rig and trailer, $2,500 in extra parts, then why not pay an extra $1300 to make a change for the better of the sport..

$1300 is just the small number for viewing. It's the $42,000 figure I see everyone concerned about. That doesn't factor in the Hans unit either.

It's like saying gas is only $2.50 but the real number to make a trip is more like $200. It's all how one perceives the numbers they are looking at.

I agree with the need for the "Hans Device",if it saves one life it was worth it. I doubt "Cry Cry Cry" has ever owned a race car,worked all night on one,or counted pennies to get to the next race,to understand why one would object to the added cost of an item like a Radio or an entry fee to fund someone to monitor it. The fact that a person has invested $50 to $70 grand in a race operation does not mean that the next $1300 should go to USAC.

I said it when USAC came and stayed and I'll say it again. I loved it when USAC came to town and the CRA or SCRA boys or anyone else got a chance to show their stuff off against the "BIGBOYS" or just run with them, and it was great. It was also great when they left.

A life time ( 50+) years of tradition of the west coast and AZ was thrown out the window by a few track owners and USAC...Look what they did to the Copper Classic.

CRA is not really back ,USAC just used the name! .... Kenny

P.S. Why would Ron want to come back after the way he was deserted. No better word for it.

Half the lies they tell about me aren't true. 

Something I'm justwondering about, I notice that KOP has some very interesting posts but many times they are peppered with a little jab here and a little jab there and for the longest time I honestly wondered if KOP was not really from Mesa, Az., until one day I saw his real name pointed out. I enjoy this board, I enjoy the many posters, but it seems I'm missing the part where the same guys that have a finger pointed also have a solution to their negative posts. Does KOP want to step up and fix things? Does anyone of the other posters that point out how expensive it is to race safely want to be race director? I can't think of an industry right now where costs are not going up, my suggestion would be to try and help out, ask your boss at work if they are interested in a little advertising for $ 25.00 a race and let them pay the new cost in exchange for a mention on the race car. I'm justwondering if a little help towards the positive wouldn't be better than a lot of complaining from a guy that is 2000 miles away and talks the talk but don't walk the walk. I help out here and there with $50 or $100 when I can, maybe KOP does to and I'm just not aware of it. Let's have a safe and fun 2007, my prediction is that Steve-O is going to be a change for the better. One more suggestion while I'm thinking about it, maybe that $100 titatium shock mount or whatever could be skipped in favor of a stonger safer one to make up for the costs that HOPEFULLY make things better for the racers and the fans with the new radios and safety restraints.

Look around at the crowd nowadays and you can see a lot of grey hair in the stands,what I try to do is get people out to the track. People who have never seen a sprint car race,the younger the better... Bug friends at work who have no idea of what you are talking about when you keep bringing this sprint car stuff up and get them out to the track!

P.S. Don't let them wear any NASCAR stuff....... Kenny

Half the lies they tell about me aren't true. 

I agree with sprinter25, I think that when they call the teams to go pick there pill everyone should keep doing what there doing. I was hoping that USAC would make up for there mistakes from 06, they sure are not getting off to a good start in 2007.

JW:

Interesting post. In a round about way, you were addressing me and I'll oblige by replying a little.

1. To your comment: "I help out here and there with $50 or $100 when I can, maybe KOP does to and I'm just not aware of it." I think it's admirable that you help out when you can. Any help the teams get is appreciated. FYI.....yes, I have put some dollars in the hands of a few teams myself.

2. To your question: "Does KOP want to step up and fix things?" The ONLY individuals that could make changes are the car owners themselves. They are the ultimate ones who control their future and direction. This year they get to decide to either step up and pay up, or park it and relax. Neither option is very pleasing.

3. To your idea: "ask your boss at work if they are interested in a little advertising for $ 25.00 a race and let them pay the new cost in exchange for a mention on the race car".I'll give you some credit there, good idea. Of course, all car owners get what they can from anyone willing to help. If they got the cash you mentioned and didn't have an entry fee to pay, that would be better suited for fuel, pit passes and parts.

Not sure how your affiliated with any team, if at all, but I have been in contact with some who look at the overall cost of this "entry fee" and they just aren't all that pleased. As pointed out at the top of this page, by seasons end there will be over $42,000 put in by the car owners. What they are being told right now is that money is for something they don't think they really need. Or at least, don't need to be funding it out of their own pockets.

Some are OK with the radio fee ($260) and having a transponder system in place. As one car owner recently said: "If they want us to use their tech toys, let them pay for it". Think about this also: The entry fee looks like it will be $25 this year. What about 2008? 2009? 2010? Is $25 the number to get started and then it becomes $30? $35? $40? This is another thought some owners are giving weight to.

My concern is quite simple. The attitude and resulting decisions of the car owners and how the sport can be effected. Here's a sampling. There will be a few teams that you will NOT see on the track this year. These are teams that could be out there but they are really disappointed by recent events and choose to sit back for awhile. Hopefully, they won't sit out for good. Also, if you read through this very board, you will find some car owners themselves making comments that indicate they are concerned about what is happening within their sport. They also talk to me about how things aren't happening that they were 'pitched' on when USAC spoke with them at the very first meeting they had with them. Then there are incidents where funds due to them were 'surprisingly' lighter than they were expecting. That really raised a few eyebrows!

I am a Steve Ostling fan and I wish him the best in his new endeavour this year. I hope he can do his job without "big brother" looking over his shoulder and over riding decisions he makes himself. Time will tell how this works out.

A fan in the grandstands just wants to see good racing action for their buck. Make no mistake about it though, the issues "off the track" can have a bearing as to what the quality of the program is that they get. If some good cars don't show, the field is a little diluted.

As I've said before, for the sake of the sport, I sure hope things workout in the long run. Enjoy the races!

Kop Said:

Think about this also: The entry fee looks like it will be $25 this year. What about 2008? 2009? 2010? Is $25 the number to get started and then it becomes $30? $35? $40? This is another thought some owners are giving weight to.

Hmmmm There's something I didn't think about. What if it were to hit $40?

41 teams a night times $40 is $1640.

 Multiply that by 41 events and that becomes $67,240. WOW!

KOP, you stated some good points,

1. Since it seems the $25 entry fee is here to stay, what can be done to limit that in future years? If what is said about the original USAC meeting is true, then maybe things that are not in writing should be ignored. Also, what is that 25 for, does it pay for something that once paid, the 25 fee will no longer be needed?

2. I'm not affiliated with any team, are you?

3. My idea about ask the boss, was directed to someone like myself that is a fan but might see an opportunity for their boss to advertise to a large crowd at an affordable rate.

4. I'm glad you caught my drift that was directed towards you, I'm puzzeled as to why your so concerned about something so far away, I'm only guessing but it seems you are not involved but pay very close attention to point out anything that could irritate the teams and fans. How about less jabs and more kudos about the advancements "for the sake of the sport " made out here in California. I'm also justwondering, do you have any ideas that might lift some of the "reported" tension? Comments and ideas suggesting the teams sit home or "don't report" are not going to go over very well with guys like Jimmy Naylor etc. that have a ton of time and money invested in maintaining a place for the sport, I doubt the fans are going to be very pleased either (unless they are miles away and would just love to hear there was turmoil under the new leadership). It seems to me that the ones most affected are the car owners, shouldn't it be them calling the track owner and letting them know in a professional manner that there are concerns and not us as fans with basicly less than 2 cents invested blasting an otherwise healthy situation?

5. Comments have been made that USAC has done nothing for the west coast (allow me to mention I'm NOT a USAC supporter) but I do recall when car counts were dwindling and races like the OVAL NAT's were basicly a SCRA race, so for that I have to give USAC credit, car counts are up, and coming to Calif. is important for the mid-west teams. Also I'm justwondering, why do the Calif guys all flock to the mid-west to run with USAC, if given time and some more positive attitudes will that trend turn around?

In reference to the originating post:

" He stated that the fee would be 'about' $25."  Sounds like they haven't made a final decision on exactly what that amount will be.  By the time the season begins, it could be $30, $35, $40..... or more.  Sounds to me like the best thing to do would be to either take the 410s out, put 360s in, and go run with SCRA; or start a 410 division with SCRA.

If USAC were at fault then I dont think everyone would be racing with them.  It sounds to me like all the owners would like to put nothing in and get everything out of it.  Personally, I think everything is messed up in the USAC/CRA