[Rick277]

The 2002 Wild West International ProRally is shaping up to be an action packed event in the NWR of SCCA. The Wild West is round 9 of 10 for the SCCA ProRally Championship, round 5 for CNAR, and includes the Sou?wester and Simpson ClubRallies. The rally, scheduled for September 7th and 8th, will cover 130 special stage miles over 13 stages. A superspecial stage at the ORV park will start the rally, where spectators, crews, and other teams can watch the expected 80-car field show their stuff. Saturday also features a grueling 24 mile stage that will test car and driver endurance. And each day will have 3 fantastic spectator locations to get real close to real cars racing real fast on real roads.

The field may have to be limited to 80 entrants, but no favoritism will occur on selecting who gets in. Entries will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, with surplus entries placed on a waiting list. Fees are $400 for both ClubRallies, $750 for the ProRally, or $850 for Pro/Club or Pro/CNAR, provided entry forms are received by August 23rd (after that date, add $100).

CARS MUST BE CLEAN WHEN PRESENTED FOR SCRUTINEERING. Clean your cars inside and out, underneath and under the hood. Dirty cars will not be allowed to start and entry fees will not be returned. No exceptions.

Wild West will be run under FIA-style rules, with regrouping controls before each service, exactly 22 minutes for service, then refueling outside of service. And for the Pro entrants, you will have 45 minutes of service after the last stage Saturday before cars are locked into parc ferme overnight.

Schedule, supplemental regulations, entry forms, and spectator directions can be found at http://www.nwr-scca.org/rally/wildwest.html within a couple of weeks, but until then, rest assured the organizers are working hard to hammer out the details to provide a fun and challenging rally for all competitors.

See you in the woods,
Rick

 

[Brian Scott]

With the added expense associated with 22 minute services (i.e. more crew members or paid mechanics) is there prize fund for Wild West. It is part of the CNAR.

Brian

 

[Over Exposure Racing]

>With the added expense associated with 22 minute services
>(i.e. more crew members or paid mechanics) is there prize
>fund for Wild West. It is part of the CNAR.
>
>Brian

Brian, I don't mean this in a bad way but you keep posting questions about where the money is for CNAR etc. and I gotta ask.

Why do you think there is actually money to be won in rally?

Except for a few (one really) exceptions there is NO prize money avaliable in rally in the US and not likely to be anytime soon.

Bradney A. Boli
Over Exposure Racing
Honda Accord #311

 

[Brian Scott]

I completely understand that fact. My issue is we now have the CNAR which is hosting FIA sancitioned events, pushing Gp N and Gp A. We also have the SCCA raising fee's etc. Entry costs have gone up and stage notes have increased the cost.

Everything seems to be getting bigger and better yet there is NEVER a mention of prize money or any form of marketing or a series sponsor.

You currently have people spending a lot of their own money and to me at some point in time people are going to realize that fun can be had elsewhere and cost significantly less (I have an EVO so I realize what expenditures there are).

Why should people run in the CNAR? To win the championship? Okay that's fair. However there ARE HUGE QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED. I have a Gp N legal car. I am one of the people that should be really excited about the CNAR. I ran Laughlin in 01' and Quebec in 02' (both CNAR events)

I have hit the wall with what rallying costs (I brought this problem upon myself so I'm no BLAMING anyone).

If I'm spending thousands per event to run an FIA CNAR event or an SCCA PROrally then I'm very interested in prize money.

Currently there is nothing to offset ones own personal expense.

Maybe I'm just angry at reality, but I don't think I'm the only one.

Brian

 

[Dave Clark]

I bet a lot of people would be interested in this apparently little known fact. A prize fund used to be a REQUIREMENT in order to get a National PRO Rally sanctioned. I haven't seen a copy of the Rules For Organizers in several years but back when I was organizing Divisional PRO Rallies (ClubRallies to all you newbies) it was in there. I guess somewhere along the way that requirement got dropped. Probably in the lean years when it was really difficult for the organizers to even break even on a rally.

Seems like with all the good work Kurt and the SCCA has been doing to make "Pro"Rally more popular than it's ever been and with all the manufacturer interest there must be all kinds of sponsors chomping at the bit to help support the series, right? I mean, just look on TV, Kurt's turned the sport into a big PROFESSIONAL series, right? Seems like there oughta be afew sponsors out there that would put in for a modest prize fund for each event. Then it actually would be a professional series.

-DC

 

[JohnLane]

Dave---- When drivers make enough money from driving to have Lake Washington waterfront property, and fly the twirlybird to local events 'cause it is just a lot quicker then driving, we will have a professional series. As it is, those of us who bust our butts to go out and have fun in the woods are seeing only much higher costs, without any visible benefits. JohnLane.

 

[Over Exposure Racing]

>You currently have people spending a lot of their own money
>and to me at some point in time people are going to realize
>that fun can be had elsewhere and cost significantly less (I
>have an EVO so I realize what expenditures there are).

Unfortunatly racing is expensive, I can come up with MUCH cheaper ways of having fun that have nothing to do with a car but I seem to be hooked on the rally thing (drugs would be cheaper). I offset the expense by doing all my own work but I often wonder how much it is worth it when the ratio of racing to preparation is on the order of 50 to 1.

>I have hit the wall with what rallying costs (I brought this
>problem upon myself so I'm no BLAMING anyone).

Step back to Gp2 in club (or CRS P-Stock). Racing, especially at the level that we are at should be all about going out with some good people for some good natured competition and having fun. When it gets to be a burden you need to change what you are doing or risk really souring your opinion on the sport we all love. Step back to a level that is more fun for you. That may sound simplistic but it could be pretty important to think about.

>If I'm spending thousands per event to run an FIA CNAR event
>or an SCCA PROrally then I'm very interested in prize money.

Don't forget that the people running fast enough to actually be in the money if there were money are in reality the ones who don't need the money (factory teams). We are a long way off from a truley professional sport in USA if it is even possible. The reality of racing is that 99% of the people involved in racing don't make money at it and a very small percentage even make expenses. I have read that there are a number of CART and IRL teams that are little more than rich guys diversions.


>
>Maybe I'm just angry at reality, but I don't think I'm the
>only one.

You are not the only one, I am comming to terms with the reality of racing and trying to figgure out how I am going to still persue my goals in light of this reality. Currently I am thinking Lottery


Bradney A. Boli
Over Exposure Racing
Honda Accord #311