Gee John, sounds like the same issues we face up here with Mather and
McClellan. I suspect that every person in North America, charged with the
responsibility of obtaining sites for autocross, goes through these gut
wrenching problems with the added pressure of knowing everybody in the Club
is counting on them.
I was talking to a guy at Nationals that said they live in Atlanta and have
to drive six hours to the closest event.
We are lucky.
Ray Miller
-----Original Message-----
From: John Kelly [mailto:76067.1750@compuserve.com]
Sent: Wednesday, December 20, 2000 10:04 AM
To: Smokerbros@aol.com; Kevin Lahey
Cc: ba-autox@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: SFR Calendar for 2001 is posted
-------------------- Begin Original Message --------------------
Message text written by "Kevin Lahey"
">Do you realize that we don't get to choose when we get the sites? John
has
>scheduled everything he can in the Bay Area. There are no other dates for
us
>to switch to. We compete with a lot of other events at Oakland. We're
the
>small potatoes. I don't see how we could better serve the members,
frankly.
Ouch. No, I didn't realize that. If I had, I certainly wouldn't have
bothered to complain, since the whole point was to try to get some
different dates (and possibly different venues). Thanks for the
straight dope.
Kevin
kml@patheticgeek.net"
-------------------- End Original Message --------------------
Perhaps ENLIGHTENMENT has been achieved?
Obtaining GGF involves considerably more than a phone call. (I've made
personal visits to get acquainted so they know they're dealing with a real,
mature person.) We have to file a request for a Business License with the
City of Albany for the SPECIFIC dates we will be operating. Then we have to
pass muster SEPARATELY with the Albany Police Dept. and the Albany Fire
Dept. That took over a month of time, calling every several days, prior to
the '00 season.
(This is better than the first time around 10 years ago when we had
to make a personal appearance before the City of Albany Planning Commission
which met in Council Chambers. We won one lost one in that deal.)
Once we've obtained ALL the permits, we can then proceed. But we've
been locked into specific date(s). While it can always be changed and last
year everybody involved was reasonable, it took several days to move dates
around.
Oakland is a little easier but we're on 30 days notice of
cancellation. Just because we list it doesn't mean it will happen.
3 Com rents out to other entities one of which make constant points
they don't want us. That's so they can keep the site for themselves.
Actually their leader's impoliteness works aginst them.
Stockton dates are becoming rare. Between the Gun Shows, the
Mexican dances, and other entertainments, we're lucky to get one (1) date.
It was always "interesting" to encounter one of the Gun Show vendors who
insisted on driving across our course mid-event. So Stockton won't rent to
both of us on the same day any more. Plus the management, two years ago,
said once the new go-kart track is built they won't rent to us any more.
The track has not been built yet.
Marina is a chore because they have internal problems and we have
to do everything twice. They're nice people, just disorganized. I got a
call before EACH of last year's events informing me they didn't have our
money, the insurance certificate, nor the contract. Actually the guy who
goes to the post office box had all three. He just didn't tell anybody else
in Marina Motorsports about it. Finally I used Registered mail to send all
of our material. That took several hours of time in the week prior to each
event when we thought we'd covered everything.
After our get-acquainted event in November 1998 on the Laguna Seca
paddock, I was a little late requesting a date for 1999. For 2001 our
request was early enough for a summer date in June. What Laguna offers is
some variety compared to our other sites. On track that day will be a
motorcycle school.
In sum, I find it annoying in the extreme to read the public
bitching about wanting SFR Solo II to move a date because YOU live closer
to one site than another. Or your club has this date way over yonder, like
16 hours towing time away, or soemthing equally silly, and SFR should move.
I once went through this kind of stuff when the NorCal Council was active.
Nobody needs it. It takes a lot of time to put together a schedule.
--John Kelly
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