| Wheelspin - St. Louis Region SCCA | March 11, 2011
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Dear friends,
"Nothing Impossible" was a slogan of the 1904 World's Fair and was for a time the de facto motto of the city of St. Louis. When we try to put our finger on just what we mean by the Spirit of the St. Louis Region, I think those words should be right at the top of the list.
In that "Spirit", I'd like to challenge each of you to think big about what St. Louis region could do or become, taking as a given that anything is truly possible. I had a mild flash of lunacy recently, and did just that, the end result being a rallying cry of "1000 Members". I hope you'll take the time to read the article by that name below.
The accolades and awards keep rolling in, and at the risk of developing a sprain so early in the racing season, it's time again to pat ourselves on the back. As a region we received two national awards and several of our members were recognized at the national convention and also at the SLARFC (Don't know what a SLARFC is? Shame on you, see news from the BOD for all the details!)
Putting on my Editor's hat: Wheelspin is either a little early, or a little late this month, depending on your perspective, so I'll just call this the Second Edition, and keep cranking them out on an approximately monthly basis. To keep Wheelspin interesting and vibrant we need more news and more perspectives than just mine. Send in your photos, articles, editorials or snide comments - you write it, I'll publish it! Most importantly if you know about something that should be in Wheelspin, tell me about it!
Sincerely,
Steven Burkett,
Regional Executive
and Acting Wheelspin Editor
<---- "The Apotheosis of St. Louis" by Charles Niehaus, upon which is inscribed the motto "Genius Points, Inspiration Whispers, Nothing Impossible".
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| News from the BOD | |
Please join us in congratulating St. Louis Region members Dan Layton
and Ron Ferris, both of whom were recognized at the St. Louis Auto Racing Fan Club's (SLARFC) annual Banquet of Champions. As you know, Ron was one of the St. Louis area's national champions this year, bringing the Road Rally title back to St. Louis. Dan received the SLARFC's highest honor, the Dale Mueller award, for his 25 years of contributions to motorsports, and especially his work in expanding Honda Performance Development's participation in grassroots racing.
St. Louis Region was well represented at the SCCA National Convention, with twelve region members in attendance. Our region was honored twice in the large region category; we won both the Tom Burke Award for region growth and the Regional Achievement Award in recognition of our outstanding growth, member retention and leadership in customer service. We also received a check for $800 from the national office for exceeding our goals for member growth. Go team!
Customer service was the big buzzword at the National Convention, and St. Louis Region member Carla Russo gave an outstanding keynote presentation on the subject. Carla was honored for her work in promoting customer service excellence throughout SCCA, as were region members Jose Hernandez, Lynn Wilson, Chuck DeProw and Jan Rick. Be sure to thank them for being such great representatives of our region and for all their hard work spreading this important message!
The Midwest Division SCCA conference followed shortly after national, and St. Louis region was again well represented, a highlight of the event was Dave Whitworth's presentation on Solo data acquisition. Many St. Louis drivers were honored for division series wins, including Soloist Andy Hohl, and Club Racers Chris Albin, Sean Maloney, Curt Weilandich and Harold Tubbs
The budgets are complete and though we had to be conservative and plan for a lean year due to the loss of Gateway, we expect a break even or slightly profitable 2011. Financially, we continue to stand on very solid footing, with strong cash reserves, but we would like to increase cash flow to improve the quality of our programs and increase member benefits. The best way to do this is to grow!
St. Louis region is partnering with Des Moines Valley Region for a club race in June, and we're asking everyone (not just club racing folks) to get behind this partnership and support our friends in Iowa any way you can. DMVR and St. Louis have a long history of cooperation and this could lead to a great long term partnership and help us strengthen ties throughout the Midwest Division.
Finally, you've probably heard the news by now that Gateway could come back online as soon as this year. Your BOD and program committees are working hard to make sure that we do whatever we can to help make this happen, and that we're ready to take full advantage if and when the track reopens.
Thanks for your continued support and we hope to hear from you either by e-mail or in person at the March membership meeting.
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| Coming Events |
● The next Region Social is Monday, March 21 at Spazio's Westport. The regular membership meeting is from 7:00-8:00, get the latest updates on club activities and finances, and most importantly tell the BOD what's on your mind! Come early for a drink or dinner in Spazio's Bistro.
● The 2012 Tech-o-Rama will be Sunday, March 27th at Wild Country Night Club in Collinsville, Illinois. Several car clubs will be joining us and we will have technical presentations, great door prizes (including a set of Hoosier tires!) and a charity 50/50 drawing, plus free food, and drinks for sale inside the club. Of course tech inspectors will be on hand so you can get your annual inspections done early. Come for an inspection, get your car weighed and balanced, or just stop by for the fun of it, you'll be glad you did! For directions and more details, see the region website www.stlscca.org.  ● Don't miss the first autocross of the year at Family Arena Sunday, April 3rd. Registration is open at motorsportreg.com. Club Racing drivers come out and play in the new index class just for you! For more details and the complete Solo schedule, visit the Solo Program Website. ● Solo specialty training on sound, registration and timing and scoring are being held this month. There's a lot more to working an autocross than shagging cones, come find out what goes on behind the scenes and how to get involved! Visit the Solo Program Website for dates and details. Remember to check the region calendar for the latest on upcoming events. If you use Google Calendar you can even add the region calendar to your own and never miss a beat - just follow this link!
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Program Notes
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The Road Rally program is really starting to come together, with a series of game show themed GTA (Game, Tour, Adventure) rallies in the works. We have extended an invitation to local car clubs to join in the fun, and already have two signed on as partners; give a big thank you and hearty welcome to the Matt Osmoe and the Audi club as well as John Hoffner and the BMW Car Club. The committee still needs your help - get in on the ground floor of this exciting rejuvenation by contacting Dave Jones or Ron Ferris!
The Solo Committee has been busy preparing for the first event of an exciting season at the great new Family Arena site. The 2011 budget is complete, and although it will be very tight, the program expects to break even. With the new venue, new promotions, and more fun then ever, we expect solid growth this year, be a part of it! Attention club racers: There will be a special solo class this year especially for you - bring your race car out to keep the cobwebs at bay and challenge your reflexes. This is an index (handicap) class and no matter what class you race in, your car is welcome. To enter, choose PAX class "Club Racing" when yo
 | | Salem MO during the 100AW |
u register online.
On the Club Racing front, we are very pleased to announce that we will be partnering with Des Moines Valley Region in their Regional/National race June 4th and 5th at Mid America Motorplex. Workers and Drivers - please make every effort to support our region and this partnership by attending this race. The committee is working on some fun ideas to help promote this and make it easy to attend (party bus, anyone?), so stay tuned. Contact Bryon Prokopf for more info on how you can help.
The PDX group continues to leave no stone unturned in its search for a place to play. For both Club Racing and PDX, there is light at the end of the tunnel, as things are really looking up for both Memphis and Gateway. The latest news is that one or both could be online this year. We continue to push hard to make sure we get back on the track as soon as possible.
The Performance Rally folks are getting some much needed rest after another hugely successful 100AW. There were 52 competitors, up six from last year, and aside from some last minute scrambling due to flooding on Friday, things went very smoothly, thanks to the hard work of over 400 volunteers. Thanks to all who helped! If you want to be part of a truly world-class event, contact Curt Faigle or Tom vonHatten to find out how you can be a part of the action in 2012.
We have a new RallyCross chair and he needs your help! Brian Schwantner has agreed to lead this exciting program and is now assembling his committee. Please send him an e-mail if you can help, and be sure to thank him for stepping up. We look forward to a great season of RallyCross in 2011!
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Editorial: 1000 Members
- Steven Burkett, Regional Executive
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I propose a rallying cry for our region, composed of two simple words: " 1000 Members". That's where we need to be. Our market can support it, and there are too many car nuts in our area who are missing out on the chance to be part of our club simply because they don't know who we are and what we have to offer. Now please let me tell you why we need to get there, and what's in it for you to help us achieve this goal.
Do it for Yourself:First off, it's money in your pocket. For ever new member you refer, you'll get $10 in "SCCA Gold" that can be used toward your membership renewal, national event registration or SCCA merchandise. There's no limit! Refer 10 members, that's $100 for you! Plus, for each referral, you'll get an entry in the national drawing for big prizes - a Skip Barber Racing School, a $1500 Tire Rack certificate or a $500 in SCCA merchandise. Not only that, but the new member you refer also gets a $15 discount on their membership. As an added bonus, the national recruitment and retention program can again put a little money in the region's coffers if we meet the targets for 2% growth and 80% retention in 2011. Do it for the Region:1000 members means more excitement, more fun, more help, and better competition at all our activities. It also means that we can financially do more as a club for our members, and our individual programs can put on better events. Right now, the region dues alone are not enough to run the club. As a result, each program must contribute a portion of their proceeds just to pay for accountants, mailings and the like. Remember that only $20 of your membership dues come back to the St. Louis Region. At the 1000 member level we turn that situation on its head. With 1000 members our dues cover our overhead and then some. That extra money can go toward things like just-for-fun region events, better member benfits, more participation in community charity and investment in our future. Plus, it lets our the programs spend a bigger chunk of the entry fee on making the event fun and rewarding for everyone involved. That in turn will lead to more competitors, more volunteers, and more new members! It's a virtuous cycle and will spur the club to truly new heights. Do it because it's Right:Money's great, but it can't buy happiness right? Here's where "1000 Members" can help us focus on the things that really matter. The only way we'll get to 1000 Members and stay there is by being a club that people want to be a part of. That means we can't just put on events, we have to put on fantastic events. We can't just go through the motions, we have to provide outstanding customer service. And most importantly, we can't let our new participants feel like membership is just a tax they pay to play, we need to help them see that they are becoming a part of something truly special. So "1000 Members" can be a shorthand way to remember our core values. Want 1000 Members? Then truly commit to great customer service. Want 1000 Members? Be warm and welcoming to newbies and old hands alike. Want 1000 members? Share the history and importance of your club, take a rookie under your wing, bring your friends and family out to events, and above all spread the word. Call me Crazy:Now I said in my introduction we were looking for over the top ideas, and you might be thinking this all sounds fairly reasonable, so here's the crazy part. If we want it bad enough, we can be there by this time next year. I am asking each of you reading now who is not a member to join us. You wouldn't have read this far if you didn't care about our club - become a part of it! Follow the link below and make sure you get the referral discount, you can even put my name down - my member number is 272654-1 and I'll donate the referral bonuses back to the club. (But if I win Skip Barber I'm keeping it!). If you're an SCCA member, but not a St. Louis Region member, add us on when you renew, we love dual members! And for those of you who are members, I hope I've convinced you. Now go out and call two friends who you know love cars and should be members of our club. Bring them to an event, really make an effort. You'll feel great about bringing them into our family, and they'll thank you for it. If everyone asks two people, and a quarter of them sign up, 1000 members is pretty much in the bag. So how fast we get there is up to you, but I hope you'll join me in taking 1000 members to heart - it's not just a number, it's a reason to be the club we want to be and should be, every event, every day. To join SCCA, or to find more about the benefits of the benefits of being a member, visit the SCCA national website and click "Join NOW".
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 Ghost of Wheelspins Past
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Thanks again to Dan Landiss, the 1975 Wheelspins through June are now online at:
landiss.info/racing/Wheelspin/
The big news in March 1975 was the commitment of Falstaff to sponsor the season, bringing IMSA racing to MAR in Wentzville. Much of the credit for this accomplishment goes to current region member Ted Haines!
You'll likely find the highlight of that issue to be Dick Durants' hilarious (and timeless) exposition on the fine art of trailer construction (see pages images 10 and 11).
Member Julia Briggen has been digging into our sordid past, and managed to amass a collection of nearly 400 old Wheelspin issues. Still, about 200 are unaccounted for. If you have some stashed away, or know for a fact that none were published during a particular time, please drop her a line. We especially need issues prior to 1970. |
Membership Report
| Welcome to our newest members. Thanks for joining us!
Lingyu Long 3/3/2011 Jessica Rekart 3/2/2011 Evann Richards 3/2/2011 Randall Richards 3/2/2011 Alex Rosick 2/22/2011 Branham Rosick 2/22/2011 Eva Rosick 2/22/2011 Philip Kaiser 2/20/2011 Pete Wells 2/16/2011 Michael Sebert 2/15/2011 James Rosick 2/11/2011 Cynthia Spray 2/11/2011 Rob Kennedy 2/8/2011 Ian Huskamp 2/1/2011 Eric Burkard 1/29/2011 We are currently just 419 members short of 1000, which is up 6 from last month.
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Help Wanted!
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We currently have numerous openings - no experience required. The compensation package is great - you can count on the satisfaction of a job well done, the appreciation of hundreds of St. Louis Region members, and the reward of working with a great team of people!Wheelspin Editor: This is a great opportunity to assemble a team to write articles, gather news, and keep our region up to date and perhaps even entertained. As editor you will have full editorial control, and the support of the region program chairs, the Regional Executive, and the BOD in your endeavor. RallyCross Committee Members Help us develop this exciting program. With the youngest demographic in SCCA, you will be helping to build the future of the club, attracting new members, and putting on low pressure, high excitement events. Contact program chair Brian Schwantner to help. Warning: this position may increase your car wash expenses dramatically. Road Rally Committee Members Road Rally has a long tradition in SCCA and we are committed to growing this program by leaps and bounds this year. Planning and executing a successful rally is great fun and a very creative and rewarding process, give it a try - we think you'll be glad you did. Contact Ron Ferris or Dave Jones to help. Create-your-own Maybe you have a job in mind that you think needs doing or just want to get more involved and aren't sure where to start.? Don't wait another minute. Call or e-mail Steve Burkett, Dave Jones, or your BOD right now, we guarantee we'll find you a fulfilling position within the St. Louis Region! The unemployment rate among here at the St. Louis Region SCCA is 0.0%. We aim to keep it that way.
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Random Nonsense
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This week Mazda announced the recall of 52,000 Mazda6 sedans for a creepy reason. Apparently the little guy pictured at left has a peculiar affinity for the four cylinder version of this particular car. Mazda was concerned that yellow sac spider webs building up in fuel tank vent lines could lead to a fire, prompting the recall to install a special spider-proof check valve. Here are a few more totally bizarre recalls issued in the past year: Toyota discovered a defect in a driveshaft weld on certain Tundra pickups that could result in loss of vehicle control. Fortunately the problem was caught early. Toyota's press release indicated that they were "in the process of contacting the two drivers affected." Bentley Motors announced a recall of approximately 600 vehicles, due to a possible problem with their iconic "Winged B" hood ornament. Bentley was concerned that corroded hood ornaments might fail to retract properly on impact, potentially skewering an unsuspecting pedestrian. What a way to go. Volkswagen recently announced the recall of 27 New Beetles manufactured between Sept. 1st and Sept 22nd of last year. These vehicles fail to meet a new federal safety regulation that went into effect September 1. The fix? Volkswagen will replace the defective cars with slightly older vehicles - built before Sept. 1st - that still don't meet the specification, but then, they don't have to! Have some motor sports trivia, a joke or some other random nonsense to contribute? Send it in. We'll publish it here and give you full credit. It's a sure way to impress your friends and awe your competition!
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Wheelspin is sent on behalf of the Board of Directors of the St. Louis Region Sports Car Club of America. You are receiving this because you are a member of the region, or have expressed an interest in the region and SCCA. If you don't wish to receive e-mail from the region in the future, please follow the unsubscribe link below. Past issues of Wheelspin can be viewed by visiting www.stlscca.org.
Thank you for reading, and our thanks to each of you for your support of the St. Louis Region SCCA!
Sincerely,
2010 BoD
St. Louis Region SCCA |
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