Membership Meeting 1/25/09 Notes

The membership meeting this morning was well attended, and they received a lot of news and information from President Steve Reynolds and Board member Barry Kingsley.

The first order of business was the election of officers and board members for the 2009 season (the results are posted on the sideboard of the blog). After that, Steve got right down to business.

The schedule was first on the agenda. We have one firm date (6/19) at SPENCER SPEEDWAY, with www.sbsracingnews.com as a sponsor for that race. Thanks to Chris Porter for coming on board and supporting NORA! Barry Kingsley and Jay Andrews recently had a meeting with John White, owner of both Spencer and Chemung, and he was very glad to have us again this season with the possibility of a second race there as well. It pretty much sounds like we just have to give him a second date at this time. The race at Spencer will be 25 laps, a $35 pit pass, and a purse from the track.

Steve has also been in contact with Mr. Lydecker from ADIRONDACK INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY. He is very interested in having the SBS series at AIS, however his schedule is still in progress, but we will be in contact again soon. He did offer us a Friday night race (7/31) in conjunction with the CAMPING WORLD EAST SERIES of NASCAR, but as its the night before the MR. SBS race at Oswego, it was turned down for fear of low car count. Another date that was discussed was June 27th as Oswego is closed for graduation. The membership present was not adverse to that idea, so it will be discussed further with AIS.

As posted on the blog yesterday, the ROC race at Oswego is now the weekend after Classic, with the SBS series to run on Saturday, Sept. 12. This will be a 35 lap feature, with owner/promoter Andrew Harpell again offering the same purse--$4500 for a 24 car field.

After the RoC announcement, Barry was in contact with Amy Stilson at SHANGRI-LA II SPEEDWAY, as we had previously scheduled a race that night with them. Amy stated that they are looking at their schedule to see where they can fit us in. A list of possible dates was given that don't conflict with the Oswego schedule. She said she will get back to us ASAP. June 27th is a possible date there, among others.

CHEMUNG SPEEDWAY is another possible race date if we can get a schedule for both Shangri-La and Chemung on a Saturday/Sunday AFTER CLASSIC.

As mentioned before, NORA has obtained sponsorship for both the Spencer race and also a sponsor for the RoC. Andrews Auto is also coming aboard as a business sponsor in 2009. Thanks, JJ!

Discussed was the possibility of a fundraiser of some type to assist with expenses and increase the purse/points fund. More on this as it unfolds.

All races will pay $500 to win, with $100 to start the feature. We are looking at raising $1000 minimum between fundraisers, membership fees and sponsorships for a points fund. A long discussion regarding points--driver or owner--took place with many great ideas coming forth. It was decided that we would utilize the Eagles Fan Club plan; monies paid evenly to owners who support the series at every race would get a certain amount; then decreasing in proportion to owners who are present less than the full series of races. Drivers will be awarded trophies for the top places. Race lineups will be decided by a draw for heat races, with the top half of the drivers redrawing for feature starting positions. This will be done at EVERY race.

A MEMBERSHIP DRIVE will take place soon; the officers and board will meet shortly to decide the membership cost; there may be a discount if you sign up before May 1.
Registration will be for the CAR only, instead of owner and driver as before.

Tech was also a topic of discussion. It was put forth that if we can get the track tech people to do it, we will. It was suggested that if we cannot do this, we have a committee of 3-5 NORA people do this. If anyone on the committee is involved in any way with a top 5 finishing car, they would abstain from tech that night and another person would be selected. A suggestion was put forward re: a list of pre-determined items to be inspected that would be made available to the tech people prior to the start of the feature. That will be taken under consideration. Mike Bozzuto and Brenda Rice were both present at the meeting today, and were approached about the possibility of helping in this matter; both said they would consider it. The rule book for NORA will remain the same as Oswego Speedway. That concluded the NORA meeting. Look for more information to be posted here as the season gets closer.

Tom Aaserud spoke after the NORA meeting regarding the Oswego Speedway/SBS relationship. He has been in contact with Steve Gioia regarding some issues, and he presented them to those in attendance.

The first item discussed was a 2-TIRE RULE. One big item of note: there is available for purchase a scanner that will scan the barcode on the side of each HOOSIER tire. This would allow for considerable monitoring of the 2 tire rule as each tire would be scanned and assigned to a specific car, and would be a big money saver for the teams. If it was found that a tire was on a car NOT assigned that tire, it would result in a penalty of $100 and 10 championship points taken away. After much discussion among those present, it was decided that purchasing the scanner would be looked into, and it would be kept and monitored by someone affiliated with the SBS division ONLY. Also discussed was the "lenient" penalty; it was suggested that the penalty be more points taken away and a disqualification for the night.

Mike Bozzuto spoke about TENTATIVE rule changes as put forth by the speedway:

1). BELTS. The new polyester silver belts from Simpson have a 5 year usage. The nylon belts are good for 2 years only. UV rays, weather, etc. do damage to the nylon.

2). TOTAL WEIGHT. The speedway is becoming much more strict regarding the enforcement of this rule. The SBS total weight is 2350lbs. If a car is found to be either too light or too heavy, a fine, DQ or both will be enforced. The same will occur if a car is found to be over the 57% Left Side Weight rule.

3). CUBIC INCHES. The tech inspectors will be doing much more testing and checking of this issue.

4). INSPECTION HOLE. The 1" inspection hole is mandatory; if not present, the tech inspector will REQUIRE THE BELLY PAN BE REMOVED.

5). CARBUREATORS. The legal carb. is 44/12. If a carb. is found to be illegal, it will be removed, and possibly confiscated, along with other penalties. The rules regarding this will be STRICTLY ENFORCED!


6). TIRE SOFTENER. Here is the big one, folks! If a team is found with tire softener on their tires, it will be a MANDATORY ONE YEAR SUSPENSION! Tech inspectors will be checking all tires every week.

The last item of business was asking for representatives from the SBS division to participate with the speedway. Tom had ballots distributed, one for each team, to make a nomination for 2 people that would be able to work in a professional manner with speedway officials for the betterment of the SBS series. If anyone would like a ballot who was not present, contact Debbie Bond at the track, as she has them now. Ballots will need to be sent back to Debbie no later than February 12, 2009. When she has the names of our new reps, she will notify us, and that information will be posted here.

NORA would like to thank everyone who attended the meeting and thank you to Tom for his efforts. NORA looks forward to working with the new SBS reps in conjunction with our weekly home the Oswego Speedway to promote SBS racing in 2009.