Yes, more shedule complaining, sorry!

[Chuck]

Exactly...

Since the schedule hasn't been posted (which is rediculous imo, sorry CCS  ;D) or even officially released is there any flexability at all left in this schedule or are the dates all set in stone?  Is this a mute point and not up for discussion with CCS officials?  There are several people from my area that run the entire Great Plains Series that are a bit upset with the new schedule or lack of schedule...

[Jack_Brock]

ok, my .02

Great plains is an untapped market in my opinion.  There are a lot of people taking bikes to tracks, but mostly track days because there is not a race organization committed to this area.  CCS is there kind of(HPT, MAM), but that is only 2 races, so probably wont get a lot of converts.  It seems like a healthy schedule of events at MAM, HPT, Hallett, and Tulsa when it gets built could be a very strong series.  Hallett has dates available this year, and there is never a shortage of racers at Hallett regardless of who is holding the race, and the owners are very good to work with.

So, pretty please! :)

[Chuck]

I would soooo go to Hallett!  But I guess these are all ideas that should have been brought up along time ago while there was still some wiggle room in the schedule.  Unfortunatly we didn't know what the schedule looked like untill we got our racer package at the end of December, or wait no that one was incorrect...I guess some of us still haven't seen an official schedule... :-/

[Super Dave]

I think you have to recognize what the GP area market really is...

Ok, road races started at HPT in 1989.  Regionals started running there in 1992.

Meanwhile...

Road America has been there since time began.

Blackhawk...1967.

Big markets there.

Throw in that racers last, on fair average, two years or so.

If we look at the triad of Omaha (CB - you know whow you are), KC, and Des Moines...that's really a good place to be.  MAM, HPT, and Blackhawk.  Ok, Blackhawk's pushing it...so is RA and ACC...but you get the picture.  Might shift the center of the GP region to Des Moines to maybe around Rod Holst's place at Iowa City Motorsports...

Barber?  

Gingerman?  Hey, it takes me five hours or so to get to Gingerman from the Milwaukee area.  850 miles to Barber.

[9flyer]

Eric; I so understand scheduling is not easy.  I deal with it in my job every month.  But, improvements through ideas and suggestions must always be considered.  I can't change the present, but maybe I can help the future.

Chuck and Jack; the Tulsa (Oklahoma in general) direction from the Omaha market (and even closer for Kansas City) is a great idea and maintains a radius almost exactly the same as Blackhawk and ACC.  Which I think would be acceptable to other racers from here and better for those south of here.  It's a good idea I believe and hopefully nothing that would prevent it from the CCS side.

Super Dave; Thanks for your words of support for the general thoughts and ideas I'm trying to convey.  

[tstruyk]

Here's a quick question, why nothing at Putnam?  Did I over look it or is CCS not there at all?  Just curious.

tim

[Super Dave]

Putnam...

Ok, I'll try to give an overview.

Track was built by a family.

CCS had some races there.  Having certain characteristics that are found at a few tracks built by certain designers, a racer was killed there in the earlier 90's.  I believe, that CCS wanted those things changed.

The family was a bit insenced by the whole thing and kind of banned CCS racing.  I raced AHRMA there in 1996, and I was almost collected by the same spot.  A few years later, another guy that was riding the same bike I raced in 1996, was tossed over the guard rail in the same spot and into the cold pit area.

The father of the family died recently.  I'm not sure if the animosity has necessarily died.  I believe that CCS always tries to take the opportunity to get in.  After the ownership of CCS changed in 2000, that was one of the first things that was done, but Putnam didn't want a part of it.

Things happened last year, and WERA didn't race there.

The family makes a motorcycle engine powered GT style track car.

[tstruyk]

hmmmm politics...gotta love it

would that be turn 10 spitting you back onto the straight?  kinda slippery there.  I did a TD there last year and they where very adament about telling the riders to be careful through there... inda slippery and not much runoff right into a guard rail.  It looked like they had moved the cold pit wall back about 30 yds though.  I did like the lay out except for that turn.  Fun track.

[Super Dave]

Yeah, I think it's been moved three times.

Similar things at MAM and Gingerman.  Grattan ran clockwise.

[PJ]

I don't think anyone races at Putnam anymore. No CCS, no WERA, no AHRMA.

[Super Dave]

'Cause track day org, car and bike, have cornered the market and are willing to pay.

[Mongo]

LOL - I love stories like these about Putnam.   Roger Edmondson or someone working for him pissed off Dick (track owner)  long before Eric Bienias got killed.  The wall in T10 got moved once at our request (almost exactly matches a drawing I did on a napkin for Dick one weekend - not perfect but much much better) and the track did do a lot of things in the beginning to make things safer for motorcycle racers.  Things have changed and basically they took offense to me telling our riders that we couldn't open the gates any earlier because of the contract we had with the track.  It was true but still pissed them off for whatever reason, same type of shit that lost CCS dates years before, no surprise it finally happened to us.

Hadn't heard that Dick died, interesting but Chris holds a grudge like Dad so it'll be a while til either org goes back would be my guess.