Aasa

[Hybrid]

Just noticed on RaceTime that Phillip Smiles is to leave the Australian Auto-sport Alliance Inc.
No bad blood just his tenure is up.
I wonder who will fill his shoes ? any suggestions ?

[Crash Test]

Surely the plan would have been to stick around for a little longer??

[Hybrid]

I would have thought so to. I just hope they keep going as competition is a good thing.

[Crash Test]

Absolutely. It's great that CAMS has dropped their license fees, but there is still a ways to go... 2004 will be a very interesting year...

[Hybrid]

It sure will. One of the things I am working on at the moment is to try to sort out Category management deals. I can not see how someone like CAMS can have the right to have a commercial arm that sells the rights to a Category.

[PVDA]

My ear to the ground has heard the track permit fees have sky rocketed for next year so to pay Peter it looks like Paul is being robbed (better hide my wallet).

Now I've not seen anything official on this but it certainly makes an interesting discussion piece until the fee structure is made public.

Oh and by sky rocket I mean more then triple, with a rise like that it must be a furphy (I hope).

[Zinger]

Justed had there second meeting according to racenews

Winton Raceway
Dec 8 2004
Ken Leigh HQ 4 Hour heads back to SA again

The Winners of the Ken Leigh HQ Four Hour Classic at Winton Motor Raceway, the second event run under Australian Auto-Sport Alliance (AASA) sanctioning, accepted their trophies in honour of former South Australian, the late Ken Leigh at the weekend

Ken was a great supporter of the HQ Racing class for many years before he lost his fight for life to cancer. It was fitting that the reigning Champions, the South Australian HQ Team, of Neil Corey and Bruce Heinrich accept the trophy in his honour.

Forty-six cars and 92 drivers competed in this inaugural event that was run under AASA for the first time at Winton Motor Raceway in its 7-year history at the circuit.

The AASA was ecstatic with the smooth running of that event that ran for two hours on Saturday and Sunday with not one single Safety Car period.

“It was good clean side by side racing on both days,” said AASA Steward Bruce Robertson. “It is very unusual to see even a V8 Supercar meeting run without a Safety Car Period these days.”

The AASA Stewards brief was short to the competitors. Race cleanly and fairly and all infringements will be fare and doubt with immediately with a drive through penalty. AASA’s idea is to keep the racing exciting for competitors, ensuring that the racing is kept on the track and out of the Steward's room.

It was local competitors Michael Fitzgerald and Richard Whyte's 11th year as partners in the event. They tried there best to bring the trophy back to Victoria in the M&M’s HQ, after winning the race in 2000. The pair finished second in the two-hour race on Saturday after suffering some distributor problems on Friday.

“We just got them (Corey/Heinrich) on the line” said an excited Michael Fitzgerald directly after race one. “They just ran out of fuel with the line in sight. After last year we were determined to be back on the podium”

Wayne King and Peter Holmes, a Northern Territory HQ Competitor, won the Saturday race while the Corey/Heinrich HQ was third behind Fitzgerald and Whyte.

In race two on the Sunday it was the Corey/Heinrich car first, followed by Fitzgerald/ Whyte and Michael Hibbert and Keith Davidson were in third.

V8 Supercar driver Steven Richards made his presence felt in the Sunday race, after fuel leak problems hampered HQ 80 on the Saturday. He started in 37th place pushing his way through the field to finish 14th.

In the final results, which works off the results of both events Corey/Heinrich were the overall Winners, Fitzgerald/Whyte were second and the King/Holmes HQ Holden was third.

[Crash Test]

PVDA- that rumour has hit up here... that'll make things interesting! If CAMS goes down that path, it would be AAA's chance to give them a wedgie and a half! In the current environment is it in CAMS best interest to give all of their detractors a shed full of ammo?

[Allan Moffatt]

Heard that Mr. Smiles contract was up, so no renewal. Could be aother cost saving for motorsport in general.

[Zinger]

Queensland Raceway will run a series under AASA next year as well as many other activities from this press release.


Another Record-Breaking Year For Queensland Raceway...But It Only Gets Bigger And Better in 2004


It's a well-known fact in motor racing that if the mechanics of the machine are right the rest will usually take care of itself. At Queensland Raceway there's little doubt the administrators of the sport are turning the right screws and hitting the right buttons to ensure a successful motorsporting product all year round.

2003 has raised the bar even higher as Queensland's home of motorsport, attracting record-breaking crowds including Round Seven of the 2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series, the BigPond 300 in July.

But apart from the obvious it's been the holistic approach to running a successful venture in the spectrum of the lucrative sports and entertainment industry, that will see Queensland Raceway make even bigger inroads during 2004 which will be highlighted by the staging of a double-header round of the V8 Supercar and V8 Konica Minolta V8 Supercar Championship series on July 2-4 during the BigPond 300.

"It was certainly a sight to behold as more than 50 000 people shuffled their way through the gates during the three days of the BigPond 300," said Queensland Raceway General Manager Rob Colgan.

"While it's quite easy to do the number crunching based on those events to see that this year has provided many positives for the Raceway, it's been what we've been able to achieve at a more basic level that is reaping the greatest rewards.

"We're developing a motorsport culture within Queensland through some of our commercially driven activities.

"Individuals who participate in these activities, which include the V8 Race Experience, U Drive Formula Ford driving school and the monthly Queensland Raceway Saturday afternoon sprint series, come away from the track with a greater appreciation of the skills and fitness required to compete in the sport at the elite level."

"It has always been our intention to provide the motor racing experience to the general public and that will be lifted to another level in 2004."

A four-round AAA race series, the QR Top Gear Classic, will be open to all drivers of pre 1990 vehicles next year.

The only requirement will be the purchase of a Raceway licence to cover insurances.

But even with the anticipation of bigger things on the Queensland Raceway calendar next year, there's still some unfinished business to be sorted out before the Christmas break.

"This weekend will mark the final round of our Saturday afternoon sprint series so it's a chance for those who've honed their skills over the past 12 months to show what improvements have been made in their driving ability as they compete for a range of trophies.

"We've enjoyed tremendous support for the sprint series initiative over the last three years and with more than 300 drivers having competed in the 2003 sprint series this represents another record for the Raceway.

"We stand by the catchcry of Queensland Raceway - 'the fun place to race' by incorporating a safe environment for the general public to test themselves out on the track.

"It's hoped through such a provision we are contributing to safer Queensland roads by providing the ideal alternative, especially as we approach the Christmas holiday period."

[Crash Test]

A bit OT- but a quick question, knowing that there are a number of people here who know the AAA system intimately.

With CAMS, you must be a member of an affiliated car club, what is the situation with the AAA? With CAMS it costs a bit, but we at least know that people are going to join up to various clubs.

Thanks in advance.

[Morris 1100]

Under Commonwealth law Cams can not force people to join a club to get a licence.
My guess is that AAA would not enforce a rule that is against the law! (unlike CAMS)

[Crash Test]

But there in lies the death of car clubs. That's going to really endear the AAA to a lot of club minded folk! Might explain why nobody has really had the AAA explained to them locally at a club level...

[Morris 1100]

It is not the AAA at fault,
It was the trade unions!

In reality nothing would change, the licence form would have a space to fill in your clubs name and people would fill it in. It is just against the law to refuse a licence due to a blank space!

[Crash Test]

But I can tell you this, there are a lot of people out there who wouldn't be in a club unless they had to. Of course you will get some people who join up to 26 car clubs, and you will still get those who get value out of a car club. But there are still an awful lot of people out there who screw up their newsletter, don't go to social functions etc, people who only join up because they have to.

I only really brought this up out of curiousity, because when the AAA was first mooted a while back, this was one of the questions I asked. I was told that the futures of clubs would be assured, blahdy blah.

I dunno, what do other people think? Don't take me as a AAA basher, because I'm sure when the new CAMS fee structure hits the street, I'm likely to have a mega spat... but I'll wait until that happens

[Morris 1100]

They can restrict the entry of race meetings to members of invited clubs ....

To run at a club level meeting you would have to be a member of a club!

[Crash Test]

I don't think under CAMS you necessarily need to be a member of a club to get a license, but you need your club membership to get through scruitineering.

Ok, will AAA meetings do run to the "invited clubs" model, or the evil cams method?

[Morris 1100]

CAMS check membership when you submit your licence renewal, I have never been checked in scruitineering for club membership.

[Crash Test]

Hrmmm, interesting. Just out of curiosity, when was the last time you were scruitineered? I believe the old system was that clubs would have to periodicaly submit member lists every now and then, but that lapsed. In the last few years, at least around this part of the world, you must provide proof of club membership at scruitineering, so you can't exactly dodge a bullet, unless of course you are a club secreary and you write yourself a new membership card at every race meeting

[Morris 1100]

Ahh! The last time I was foolish enough to give CAMS some money was Bathurst 99!

[Crash Test]

There ya go

The system that they have currently works, just judging by the number of people who call me from interstate, at the front of the scruitineering queue needing proof that they are members of a club

[pete55]

Morris 1100, i just wanna know how they got it out of you. I have heard it's not an easy task

[Zinger]

If clubs are only surving by forced membership then there a serious problems a drift. I rember 3 blokes turning up to a sprint day $100 entry $90 CAMS L2 $100 club membership they only had about $150 on them each. They went home and never caught the motorsport bug.

[Crash Test]

I don't think club are struggling to survive, but it would be rather significant if punters wouldn't subscribe because couldn't be stuffed.

$100 membership cost? For that you'd want them to wash your car once a month!

[Morris 1100]

I know that if I was in scruitineering and they said that I had to show proof of club membership I would be starting legal action!

The other thing... What is the scruitineers job?
It it to make sure that the competing cars are safe, or is it to make sure that CAMS are getting their cut?