News

Mar 11, 2012 - Daytona Party

Join us at Melrose on Saturday March 17 for the 71st running of the Daytona 200! Superbike Race 1 starts at 11:30 am, the 200 is from 12:30 - 3pm, and Superbike Race 2 is from 3-4 pm.

CMRA has reserved space but get there early to join your fellow riders in kicking off the 2012 AMA season!

Nov 6, 2011 - CMRA 2012 Exec Nominations

CMRA 2012 Executive Committee Nominations

While the loss of Race City Motorsport Park is obviously going to slow things down in 2012, I am optimistic about the future of roadracing for Calgary and area riders. The CMRA will continue operations, providing opportunities for riders to come together to plan trips to other tracks for schools, track days, and racing. CMRA will provide expertise and advice to new riders who want to get started in the sport, and existing riders who want to continue racing. If and when a new track is developed, CMRA will be there to provide input on the needs of our members at a new facility, and to host racing events as we have for the past 25 years.

Although the scale of what we do will be significantly reduced in 2012, there will be work to do. Three of our Executive committee members are completing their terms, and I would like to thank Mike, Gail, and Kel for their very significant contributions to making racing possible for all of us.

The CMRA is accepting nominations for the following positions:

Secretary (formerly Mike Sutherland):

Treasurer (formerly Gail Gerber):

Director (formerly Kel Davidsen):

You can nominate yourself or recommend a fellow club member. Executive committee members are voted in for a three year term. This is a great opportunity to get involved with YOUR club and keep things rolling.

Nominations will be submitted with name, address, and phone number of the candidate to: cmra@roadracing.org

Closing deadline for nominations is Sunday November 20. Nominees will be contacted to determine if they will accept the nomination and run for the position, and then an e-mail vote will be sent to all members, with voting due back on Sunday November 27. The results will be circulated to all members.

I hope you will all consider this opportunity to make a difference and keep roadracing going in Calgary!

Tim Johnson

President, CMRA

for position descriptions see chapter 4 in the bylaws

Sep 5, 2011 - Friday Night CMRA Practice / Qualifying Presented by HardNoX Track Dayz

CMRA Rounds 5&6 and the Western Canadian Championships

September 16 – 18, 2011 Gate opens 3 pm Friday, 7 am Saturday and Sunday.

Friday night Sept 16 there will be CMRA Practice / Qualifying Presented by HardNoX Track Dayz, rain or shine. The double header format makes time very tight on this weekend, so the Friday night practice will permit riders to get settled before Saturday’s races. CMRA hopes to be on track by 4:30 or 5:00 pm, and will practice until approximately 8:15. Saturday and Sunday will follow the regular Sunday race schedule, which is available in the Race Day Handout posted at www.roadracing.org

Friday set-up/Track Entrance

Riders are welcome to come to the track on Friday night to set-up their pits and get prepared for the weekend festivities. Tech will be available that night but priority will be given to those that are riding and qualifying. There will be a $10 gate fee for all entrants on Friday night

Registration and Tech Inspection

Online pre-Registration and pre-payment is a must if you want to guarantee being on track Friday night. Registration will only be open from 5-7 pm on Friday night, and 7:30 - 8:30 Saturday and Sunday mornings. Cost for the practice evening will be $100. Only licensed racers can register for Friday night practice. Tech sheets and timing tags will be available Friday night, and tech inspection will open at 4:00 pm.

Registration is due Thursday September 15 at 5:00 pm. Refunds for the Friday night practice will be available anytime if you can’t make it, so please pre-register and pre-pay. This change in refund policy will apply for this weekend only.

Practice and Qualifying:

Riders will be split into 20 minute slow/fast practice sessions (1:28 and over, and 1:27 and under). Qualifying will be done via the Zoomius timing system, with riders gridded in order of their best times on the weekend for the following classes:

Am/Ex Superbike (both Race 1 &Race 2), Am/Ex Middleweight Sportbike and Open Thunder

Qualifying will also be available during Saturday morning practice for all riders, to permit those who were unable to attend Friday night to get their best lap times in for gridding. Your fastest time from the Friday night and the Saturday morning practices will be counted towards your final qualifying grid positioning.

If for any reason the qualifying sessions do not work out as planned, grids for all races will follow the normal process where riders are gridded by points standings, and then by order of registration.

Questions? Please contact Rob Darlington at rdarlington@shaw.ca or call me direct at 403 860-9609

Last chance to race at Race City folks – SEE YOU THERE!!!!!!!!

Aug 23, 2011 - AUGUST UPDATE

August Update

By Tim Johnson – CMRA President

I hope everyone is enjoying the warm weather – summer is finally here, and at the same time it seems it is almost over! At the half-way point of our 6 round series, I wanted to provide an update on the CMRA season and what we’ve got coming up in the next couple of months.

Race City Update

After 25 years of CMRA racing, this is our final season at Race City Motorsport Park. The earthmovers have been busy since May and the ring road will be constructed across the northeast portion of the roadcourse in 2012. Other parts of the land are destined for developments associated with the Shepard Landfill.

There is a group called MARCS that is currently working with city and municipal officials to search for land for a new multi-use facility in or near Calgary that would include a motorsports facility. Suitable land location is one of the big stumbling blocks to race track development, and the group believes that if a good location is found, the money will follow. The group is making good progress, and you can watch for updates at: http://marcscalgary.blogspot.com/

Finances

I am pleased to announce that the your Treasurer Gail Gerber and I applied for and received $2000 in hosting grants for Rounds 5&6 of the Western Canadian Championships from the Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation (ASRPWF). This is not the first time the CMRA has benefited from ASRPWF, and we really appreciate their support for our sport! This is also a good time to remember to SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS – the businesses that advertise with the CMRA sponsor every rider in the club – make sure you buy from them and say thank you when you are in their stores!

The change in class structures and fees for 2011 have also made a big difference for our organization. CMRA continues to operate with a positive balance and we are looking forward to a financially successful year.

Speaking of class changes, how about the new format for Superbike! In 2010 this class was open to both Amateurs and Experts, but grid sizes averaged 8 riders per race. In 2011, the average number of riders per race has more than doubled to 17, a 113% increase in attendance! Not only does the increased attendance benefit the club financially, it is more fun to watch, there are more riders racing and improving their skills, and don’t forget that some of our 600 riders have been on the podium in this open class (Chris Mah, Todd Starchuk, and Tanner Taniguchi). Nice work guys!

Round 3 Update

Round 3 was fantastic. Not only did we have great weather, but we ran the entire race day Sunday with NO RED FLAGS. Let’s keep that record rolling!

Volunteers

Our volunteers are critical to the success of our events. With out all of you our race weekends simply wouldn’t happen. I want to personally thank each and every one of you. Thanks to everyone who has tirelessly helped out: the corner marshals, tower communications, timing and scoring, the Executive committee, registration, website and Race Day Handout design, sponsor reps, and those who have helped with track set up and tear down (including pumping water on short notice - thanks Team HardNox!), garbage collection, tech inspection (Thanks Redline guys!), and the numerous other items that we need to put these weekends together. If you know of someone who deserves a special thank you, let me know because we have a Thanks program for that!

For Round 4 we are still in need of a Race Director! Please contact myself or Dave Dunbar (via the “contact us” link on the website) if you or someone you know is interested in this position. We can’t race without one!

Media

You will notice CMRA coverage in upcoming editions of Inside Motorcycles, thanks to volunteer Patrick Lambie who has been reporting on each CMRA event. Unfortunately Patrick will not be available for Round 4 (so if anyone can cover it and write an article contact me!), but he’ll be back for Rounds 5&6 to provide coverage of our two rounds of the Western Canadian Championships!

Banquet

The 2011 banquet could be our last one for a few years, and we should make it a good one. If you have any ideas for the banquet that you would like to help implement (location, special thanks, music, special themes, an after-party, whatever) please contact our Secretary Mike Sutherland.

Western Canadian Championship (WCC)

Looking forward to Rnds 5&6, we are going to have some out of town visitors coming to the Calgary round of the WCC. Let’s show some hospitality! If anyone wants to stay at my place for the weekend we have a spare queen bed, a big well-lit garage, and I’m about a 25 minute drive to the track. Interested? E-mail me. I encourage the rest of the Calgary riders to consider doing the same – just post a note on the message board if you either have a room or are looking for a spare bed.

We are hoping to have a Friday night registration and practice session, possibly with qualifying for Rnd 5 on Saturday, so stay tuned to roadracing.org for more information on that.

INVITE EVERYONE YOU KNOW to our last race weekend at Race City. This may be our final opportunity for some time to showcase road racing in Calgary. If you have ideas on how to promote this last round, contact Chris Crump or myself and let’s get some people in the stands! Call all of your friends, e-mail your coworkers and classmates, get on Facebook, Twitter, and get the word out!

Lastly, let’s find a restaurant/lounge/pub for Sunday night Sept 18 after the races. Ideally it would require lots of parking (riders with trucks and trailers), and a good size space for riders, volunteers, and spectators. If anyone has suggestions for a suitable venue, let’s discuss it at Round 4 during the riders meeting.

If you have questions or ideas regarding any of the above, send me an email. Best of luck to you all for the remainder of the season – ride safely, have fun and enjoy it! See you at Round 4!

Tim Johnson

President, CMRA tim_johnson@shaw.ca

Jul 11, 2011 - MARCS Examines Options

Motorsports, Arts, Racing, Culture and Sports (MARCS)

Update Meeting – Cardel Homes Theater

by T.Johnson

The MARCS committee has been meeting every two weeks since the spring, and have opened up a new dialogue with the city. On June 29, Rick Coutts and Alderman Shane Keating provided an update on their progress to date.

MARCS has been testing political support for the new concept of a multi-use facility that includes motorsports, and so far the plan seems to be supported by many Calgary city council members. In the past, the issue of a facility that included motorsports was polarized – people were either for or against it. Now there seems to be general support for the concept, the quality of dialogue with the city has improved, and there has been a positive change in the tone of the discussions. One of Alderman Keating’s key messages is that this type of facility should receive the same kind of support as other recreation, arts, sporting, and community related facilities. Although there is no will to provide financial aid, it is clear that that support will be stronger for a not-for-profit organizing body (similar to the not-for-profit Calgary Stampede board) rather than a for-profit business venture.

The committee has looked into maintaining the current facilities at Race City Motorsport Park, however it is clear that the existing roadcourse will be closed for several reasons:

- The new ring road is under construction and will encroach on the NE corner of the roadcourse when the 2011 season is complete.

- Waste Services has been moving ahead with its storm water plans for the landfill to the west of Race City, and the cost to change direction has risen as time has moved on.

- Several aldermen have informally discussed the issue, and it appears that 1/3 to ½ of the aldermen have given negative feedback with respect to the idea of maintaining the current facilities.

The failure to maintain the existing facilities at Race City does not preclude the community from pursuing new facilities at the site through a complete tear-down and reconfiguration, but in that case it is prudent to also consider other sites for development.

One of the more promising locations is adjacent to a newly proposed industrial facility, namely a cargo airport development proposed near Airdrie. This location is close to “complimentary use users”, in other words the facilities would not tick the neighbours off.

Alderman Keating has presented a “notice of motion” in Calgary city council, requesting that the city develop a list of all lands greater than 80 hectares (200 acres) that could accommodate a facility that includes a race track. The following Calgary Sun article covers that story:

http://www.calgarysun.com/2011/06/30/search-for-race-track-back-in-gear

Next steps for the committee are to obtain a positive result on the notice of motion to review possible sites in Calgary, and to continue to flesh out potential opportunities in sites that they are presently aware of.

MARCS committee members are:

Rick Coutts

Alderman Shane Keating

Rick McIver, Former Calgary City Alderman

Ryan Oakey, President of Cardel Homes

http://marcscalgary.blogspot.com/

Jan 13, 2011 - Registration is OPEN

Membership, licenses, and schools are all on sale on the CMRA website - simply go to the home page and click on the Registration button to get started. If you are a new registrant, you will need to contact our registrar Crista Lindenbach for a username and password. Crista can be reached by e-mail at crista@hardnoxracing.com

Crista will also assign race numbers to new licence holders. If you held a 2010 CMRA race licence, don't forget that in order to reserve your number for 2011 you must purchase a membership and licence ($100) by the February General meeting, which will be held at the Laugh Shop in the Blackfoot Inn on Monday February 7, 2011 at 7:30 pm.

Round 1 race registration will open a few weeks before the event. The actual date will be communicated in advance to give everyone a fair chance to register first and get on pole!

Questions regarding registration should be directed to Crista - thanks.

Jan 12, 2011 - Race City in Calgary Herald

More news on Race City in the Jan 12 Calgary Herald - see the article at:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/Alderman+says+Calgary+will+lacking+without+motorsport+park/4094425/story.html

And an editorial and bike photo from Ric McIver in the Jan 13 Herald:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/McIver+Race+City+Motorsport+Park+benefits+everyone/4099692/story.html

Nov 9, 2010 - November 1 General Meeting Notes

Here are the highlights from the November 1 General meeting:

Motorcycle Show (Jan 7-9, 2011) Kel and Mike Sutherland are organizing - Sign up sheet available – contact Kel Davidsen.

Revenue Growth plan for 2011

The CMRA has five main sources of revenue:

1. RaceSchool

How can you help – market and sell our school, and volunteer or instruct at the school.

2. Sponsorships (class sponsors, series sponsor, advertisers in the Race Day Handout)

How can you help – contacts, know people with a business who want to advertise? Contact Carey Fougere if you can connect a business that wants advertising to the CMRA.

3. Fundraising

How can you help? When CMRA gets a Casino, we will need your participation!

4. Gate fees (riders and the general public)

How can you help – bring friends & coworkers, put up posters, Facebook, Twitter

5. Riders (memberships, licenses, schools, practice and race fees)

CMRA race fees are among the lowest of all race organizations in Canada and the U.S. northwest, however to balance the CMRA budget there will be fee increases in 2011.

Membership and licence fees ($100/rider) and race school fees ($280/student) will remain the same for 2011.
Free racing for Executive members has been eliminated.
Practice and race fees will be increased to balance the budget.

2010 2011 Fees

Sat Practice fee $120 $140

First race $75 $100

Each subsequent race $35 $40

Novice Races $30 each $50 each

Exec Committee Voting – there are 6 new members for 2011

President Tim Johnson

Vice President Rob Darlington

Treasurer Gail Gerber

Riders Rep Dave Prendergast

Director Carey Fougere

Director Chris Crump

Director Rupert Collins

Rule change voting Results

1. The new Ducati Cup HP limit is 125 HP (was 118 HP).

2. The Open Superbike rules will be replaced with Heavyweight Sportbike rules.

Other Class Changes from the Executive Committee

1. L/W Sportbike class will be removed due to a lack of participation.

2. The Executive approved the addition of a “Ducati GTO” class (190 HP or less), to be run concurrently with the “Ducati GTU” class (125 HP or less). The Ducati GTO class will have a HP limit equal to that of the Superbike class. Novices will only be permitted to enter the GTU class.

3. The Executive approved the addition of a “Women’s Cup” race. The Women’s Cup will be based on Middleweight Superbike rules with a 125 HP limit.

4. The Amateur Superbike class has been re-instated. The class will run simultaneously with Expert Superbike with no waved start.

5. With the change in Superbike rules, the CMRA has created a new 12-round Superbike championship, replacing Heavyweight Sportbike and Open Superbike. Each Superbike race will be twelve laps, with Race #1 Sunday morning and Race #2 Sunday afternoon. Registration for each Superbike race will be done individually to offer flexibility and maximize participation.

6. Prize money has been eliminated from all CMRA classes. Entry fees for the former money classes will reduced to become the same as other classes to encourage more participation.

Registration Update:

Membership/Licence sales will go on sale ASAP – target end of November 2010.

Race School will be on sale as soon as we have a date from Race City.

Race Registrations can go online after dates are available from Race City. Remember that your order of registration sets the grid for Round 1.

Aldermanic Survey

2010 WCC CMRA Rounds Results

Sep 30, 2010 - Banquet Tickets On Sale

BANQUET TICKETS ON SALE

Tickets for the 2010 CMRA Awards Banquet are now available online through the following link at the Pumphouse Theatre website:

http://tickets.pumphousetheatre.ca/default.asp?SearchText=roadracing&Go=Go

Please print your tickets and bring them to the banquet. Tickets online are $30 plus the $2.50 fee, and track volunteers can also purchase tickets half price.

The deadline for purchasing tickets is Wednesday October 20 - the Austrian Club needs to know how many are attending and tickets will not be sold after this time. See you on the red carpet!

Aug 28, 2010 - Round 4 News

Check the link to the Calgary Beacon at:

http://www.calgarybeacon.com/2010/08/novice-thrills-at-cmra-round-4/

Jul 20, 2010 - Round 3 News

Round 3 news from the Calgary Beacon - check it out!

http://www.calgarybeacon.com/2010/07/confusion-mars-cmra-endurance-race-but-good-sportsmanship-triumphs-in-end/

Jul 13, 2010 - Mosport Report

News from Mosport from the Calgary Beacon - click on the links:

http://www.calgarybeacon.com/2010/07/szoke-sweeps-superbike-at-mosport-matechuk-has-disappointing-weekend/

http://www.calgarybeacon.com/2010/07/szoke-blistering-at-mosport-calgary-riders-finish-back-in-the-pack/

Jul 5, 2010 - Parts Canada Superbike Wrap-up

Thanks to the Calgary Beacon for their coverage of the Calgary round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship. Click here to see the story and video.

Apr 13, 2010 - Race School Update

Race School Update

Testing continues on the new CMRA Registration website, but we expect it to be online shortly. Although we prefer students to sign up for the school online, if just can't wait please contact our head of Registration Crista Lindenbach at: crista@hardnoxracing.com

Feb 10, 2010 - Race City News from Calgary Beacon

Race City News from Calgary Beacon

Writer and Editor Markham Hislop has rebranded the former "SE Calgary News" to the "Calgary Beacon". The online newspaper has been providing excellent coverage of the Race City issue over the past year, and yesterday provided the following news article and editorial opinion (read both articles):

http://www.calgarybeacon.com/2010/02/video-race-city-negotiates-2-year-reprieve-from-city-hall/

http://www.calgarybeacon.com/2010/02/time-for-calgary-motorsport-community-to-step-up/

Feb 9, 2010 - Race City gets Two Year Extension

TWO MORE YEARS!.. Yay!

Just released in this Calgary Herald article - click on the link to read the story.

Jan 4, 2010 - CMRA Voting Results are in

Votes are in!

The results from the CMRA voting are in. A total of 36 members cast their votes for a participation rate of approximately 25% of eligible voting members. Congratulations to the new Executive members, and thank you to the members who cast their votes, and to all of the nominees for offering their support to the club – even if you weren’t voted in we can still use your help!

Director: Lee Smith

Lee Smith 13

Mike Sutherland 9

Mike Zottmann 11

Riders Rep: Curtis Lindenbach

Carey Fougere 15

Curtis Lindenbach 19

Volunteers Rep: Dave Dunbar

Dave Dunbar 21

Ben Wheeler 11

Secretary: Mike Sutherland

Peter Meier 11

Mike Sutherland 19

The results for the rule changes are as follows (number of votes precede each option).

Rule Change 1

Change section 5.7.2.1 from:

“Motorcycles in Veterans class can have any street-based engine.” to

“Motorcycles in Veterans class can have any street-based or dirt-bike based engine."

12 A. Yes, I approve of this change

4 B. No, I do not approve of this change

17 C. I do not participate (or plan to participate) in this class, so I abstain from voting.

Rule Change 2

Change section 5.7.2.3 from:

"Liquid-cooled engines must be at least ten years old." to

"Liquid-cooled engines (other than dirt-bike based engines) must be at least ten years old."

12 A. Yes, I approve of this change

4 B. No, I do not approve of this change

17 C. I do not participate (or plan to participate) in this class, so I abstain from voting.

Rule Change 3

Change the Exception in section 5.7.2 from:

"GP bikes are only allowed if they run a street-based 4-stroke single engine." to

"GP bikes are allowed if they run a street-based or dirt-bike based 4-stroke single engine."

13 A. Yes, I approve of this change

3 B. No, I do not approve of this change

17 C. I do not participate (or plan to participate) in this class, so I abstain from voting.

Rule Change 4:

Change section 5.7.3 from:

“Only treaded tires may be used.” to

"Non-treaded slick racing tires are allowed."

12 A. Yes, I approve of this change

6 B. No, I do not approve of this change

15 C. I do not participate (or plan to participate) in this class, so I abstain from voting.

Dec 14, 2009 - 2010 CMRA Voting

Voting ballots have been sent out by e-mail for the 2010 CMRA Executive Committee members and rule changes. Make sure you get your votes in by December 31! If you have questions or if you are a 2009 CMRA member but did not receive an e-mail ballot, please contact cmra@roadracing.org to make sure your voice is heard.

Thank you to Carey Fougere (Riders Rep), Kelly Gingras (Secretary), Edwin Herrenschmidt (Director), and Stu McColl (Volunteers Rep and a founding member of the CMRA) for their tireless efforts and service to the club in 2009.

Dec 2, 2009 - McIver Right on Race City

SE Calgary News gets it right again - check the latest story at:

http://www.secalgarynews.com/opinion/hammer-time/stick-to-your-guns-ald-mciver-no-need-to-apologize-over-race-city-remarks/

Nov 30, 2009 - December 7 General Meeting

There will be a CMRA General meeting at the Laugh Shop (formerly Yuk Yuk's) at the Blackfoot Inn on Monday December 7 starting at 7:30 pm. We will be discussing what the club has planned for 2010, and provide an update on the future of Race City and what you can do to promote the health of motorsports in Calgary.

Members may have noticed that the Executive and rule change voting have not arrived in your inbox. Our Secretary has unfortunately had to resign due to other time commitments, and the role is open for nominations. If you are interested in the position, nominate yourself or someone you think would be good for the role! A description of the duties of Secretary can be found in the Bylaws. Nominations will close at the end of the meeting Dec 7, and voting will commence later that week. A BIG thanks to Kelly Gingras for all of his contributions as Secretary over the past two years.

If someone wants to bring a DVD, we can watch a little racing and talk about plans for next year - it will be interesting to see how 2010 shapes up! See you at the meeting.

Nov 24, 2009 - City Budget Imposes 3000% Rent Increase at Race City

See the article on SE Calgary news at this link:

http://www.secalgarynews.com/news/calgary/city-hall-tries-to-impose-3000-rent-increase-on-race-city-and-related-nonsense/

Oct 8, 2009 - Banquet Moved to Danish Canadian Club

Due to a scheduling error, the banquet has been moved to the Danish Canadian Club in downtown Calgary, at 727 11 Ave SW (just a couple blocks west of what was formerly know as "Electric Avenue"). All other details are the same - cocktails at 6, dinner at 7. If you haven't purchased tickets yet, use the registration button on this website. PLEASE NOTE: If you signed up for tickets on the registration website but have not figured out how to pay, click on the "Messages" button in the menu and there should be a link that says "click here to review payment item list". That will take you to the screen where you can pay by PayPal.

Oct 4, 2009 - Race City Survives City Council Vote

Visit SE Calgary News at the following link to learn more about the Race City vote in Calgary City Council: click here to find out more.

Sep 28, 2009 - Race City Gets the Green Light!

The Race City lease has been extended for five years, and they even got the photo right! See this Calgary Herald article.

Sep 28, 2009 - Fight Over Race City Heats Up

Read the latest news from Markham Hislop from SE Calgary News at the following link:

http://www.secalgarynews.com/featured/video-fight-over-race-city-heats-up-in-anticipation-of-mondays-council-vote-to-save-race-track/#more-7722

Sep 27, 2009 - Executive Nominations Due Monday

CMRA Executive nominations are due Monday September 28, and the latest nominees are as follows:

Volunteers Rep: Ben Wheeler

Director: Lee Smith, Michael Sutherland

Riders Rep: Carey Fougere, Curtis Lindenbach

Members are encouraged to nominate themselves or other members that would like to contribute to the organization. Send your nominations to cmra@roadracing.org before the end of Monday Sept 28.

Sep 27, 2009 - City Hall Displays Red Light to Boys in Blue

Calgary, AB (September 25, 2009) - In light of the political pressure exerted on the various law enforcement officers that were to be involved in the “The Battle of Alberta, Law Enforcement Style” and the Beat the Heat Charity events, the Motorsport Council of Calgary is forced to remove these events from the Secret Street program scheduled for Friday, September 25th at Race City Motorsport Park.

The Blue Line Racing Association, a volunteer group of officers from the Edmonton Police Service has also been forced to cancel their drag race demonstration. The association holds approximately twenty similar events each year at Edmonton area race tracks in an attempt to reduce illegal street racing by providing education, heightened awareness and safe racing alternatives. This would have been the first appearance of the Edmonton police drag race cars in Calgary.

The regular Secret Street program will be run as scheduled. During the event, the Motorsport Council of Calgary will hold public information sessions on the pending Park closure and the pending impact of illegal street racing on the citizens of Calgary. A large group of performance and race cars from the entire racing community will be on display throughout the evening.

Everyone is invited to attend. Gates open at 6:00PM. Action gets underway at 7:00PM and admission is $5.00.

For more information, please contact Rick Francescone, chairman of the Motorsport Council. He is available by phone at 403-250-2845 (work) or 403-850-8773 (cell).

WCC - Round 5+6 results (PDF)

WCC - Round 5+6 results (Excel file)

Sep 23, 2009 - WESTERN CANADIAN CHAMPIONSHIP - ROUND 5 & 6 RESULTS

The results from rounds 5 and 6 of the Western Canadian Championships have been tabulated and members from our CMRA have done spectacular with many top 5 placements!

Posted above are a PDF file of the top 5 places in each category and an Excel spreadsheet showing all the racers, points and finishes.

As the trophies will be handed out at each clubs respective year end banquets, the names have to be in to the trophy shop by Friday noon. Therefore, if there are ANY protests, the deadline is Thursday Sept 24, midnight.

Just a quick note to explain a little bit on the scoring so there will be no confusion on how it worked. As explained at the start, there would be points granted on basis of 25, 20 etc down to 15th place. There were several instances where there were some ties for points. Since this series was designed to reward the racers that attended the most events, in the event of a tie for points, the rider who attended the most races broke the tie. There was one case where we had to go a step further and the tie was broken by where the rider placed in the last race against his/her competitor.

Congratulations to the following CMRA Racers:
Expert Superbike

Dave Stokowski 2nd Place
Mike Zottmann 3rd Place

Intermediate Superbike

Pete DeGraaf 1st Place
David Amyotte 5th Place

Expert Open Supersport

Dave Stokowski 1st Place
Mike Zottmann 4th Place

Intermediate Open Supersport

Pete DeGraaf 1st Place
David Amyotte 5th Place

Expert 600 Supersport

Rob Darlington 4th Place
Matt Schmidt 5th Place

Intermediate 600 Supersport

Trevor Bernhardt 4th Place
Tom Bodrovics 5th Place

Congratulations to all you above on your great showing! I would like to also congratulate ALL the racers from CMRA who participated in the WCC especially the following racers who attended all 3 rounds and showed up for all 6 races:

Claude Bergeron;
Colin Foster;
Curtis Lindenbach;
Rob Darlington;
The Entire Hardnox team including their manager Trayr Gabert; and
Dave Stokowski.

We are very proud the way you represented our CMRA club at both Mission and Edmonton.

To Matt Schmidt and Mike Zottman who attended the Mission rounds. And to any one else I might have missed.

Thanks to all who participated and all the volunteers who allowed us to host this great event. We learned a lot and Mayor Dave willing, we will be part of the 2nd Annual WCC in 2010!

Congratulations,
Joe P.
VP CMRA
WCC Coordinator

Sep 23, 2009 - BOYS IN BLUE RACE AGAINST SPEEDWAY CLOSURE

Blue Line Racing Association, a non profit organization formed by a volunteer group of Edmonton Police Service officers, will drag race their high performance police cars at Calgary's Race City Motorsport Park. The event is part of an initiative by the Motorsport Council of Calgary to illustrate the benefits of the speedway to the community and the potential negative impact the proposed closure of the facility might have if displaced racers take their cars back to the streets.

Friday night at Race City law enforcement officers from Edmonton and the Calgary area will be competing for the title of “Alberta’s Fastest Cop” to help publicize the perils of illegal street racing.

The impending closure of the Calgary motorsport facility will me an the end of the Friday Night Secret Street program, which for many years has provided a safe and legal outlet for drivers wanting to race their street cars.

The Motorsport Council of Calgary (formerly the Calgary Motorsports Association) and Race City Motorsport Park will host “The Battle of Alberta, Law Enforcement Style” on September 25 at 7 p.m. at Race City, 1150 – 68 Street S.E.

The Blue Line Racing Association, a volunteer group of officers from the Edmonton Police Service and teams from the Alberta’s Sheriff Department and the RCMP will be competing against each other and talking about the dangers of street racing and the likelihood that it will grow with the closure of Race City.

The City of Calgary claims Race City defaulted on its lease in 2000 when it was several weeks late providing a notice of renewal, which is required every five years. The City has told Race City it must vacate the property by March 31, 2010. The City plans to use the 160 acres to expand the Shepard Landfill.

In addition to the demonstration races by law enforcement officers, the weekly Friday Night Secret Street program will be run. The event sees over 175 racers and hundreds of their friends fuel their passion for racing in a alcohol and drug free environment. The competitors race in a safe and controlled environment with emergency personnel in attendance and on a racing surface separated from the spectator area.

Also in attendance will be youngsters that participate in their various forms of organized Motorsports, from Miniature Nextel Cup Cars, Mini Road Racers, Junior Dragsters to Karting Racers. Other members of Calgary's diverse racing community of drag racers, oval racers and roadcourse racers will be showing their cars along with business from the automotive after market sector.

Gates open at 6:00PM. Action gets underway at 7:00PM and admission is $5.00.

About Blue Line Racing Association

Blue Line Racing Association is a non profit organization formed by a volunteer group of police officers who are all members of the Edmonton Police Service. The association aims to promote traffic safety, responsible driving and strives to reduce illegal street racing by providing heightened awareness and safe racing alternatives while cultivating positive relationships between young drivers and police.

Blue Line Racing is funded solely by community partners without the support of federal, provincial or municipal tax dollars and currently operates four race cars; a 1972 Plymouth Duster, a 2003 pre-production model Hyundai Tiburon, a 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8, and a Supercharged 2009 Ford Mustang GT that are painted to resemble police cars.

The association and Edmonton area race facility, Castrol Raceway, hold approximately 20 Street Legal race events each year averaging 175 participants and 1500 spectators at each event. For more information, visit www.BlueLineRacing.com

About Motorsport Council of Calgary

The Motorsport Council’s mission is to bring together all forms of motorsport enthusiasts and be a positive voice in the quest to curb illegal street racing on the streets of Calgary and surrounding communities.

For more information, please contact Rick Francescone, chairman of the Motorsport Council. He is available by phone at 403-250-2845 (work) or 403-850-8773 (cell).

(Editors Note: The CMRA has been represented on the Motorsports Council of Calgary (MCC) by Joe P. and Tim Johnson since it's inception in 2008. CMRA members are encouraged to put on a display this Friday at Race City to show their support for this initiative.)

Sep 23, 2009 - EXECUTIVE NOMINATIONS DEADLINE EXTENDED

The date for CMRA Executive nominations has been extended to Monday September 28. The nominations so far for the open three positions are:

Volunteers Rep: No nominations yet (Stu McColl declined his nomination)

Riders Rep: Carey Fougere (accepted the nomination) and Curtis Lindenbach (accepted the nomination)

Director: Michael Sutherland (accepted the nomination)

The Executive Committee is responsible for charting the direction of our club, organizing events, and taking care of the "business" side of the CMRA. It is an excellent opportunity to give back to the club that gives us so much fun, and a great opportunity to develop your skills in a not-for-profit organization while getting to know some of your fellow riders a lot better! For more information on what is involved with being on the committee and you you can help, contact cmra@roadracing.org.

Sep 18, 2009 - Exec Nominations and Rule Changes due Sept 20

Sunday September 20 is the deadline for submitting rule book changes and for nominating new Executive members.

Executive: The CMRA Executive positions that are available for 2010 are (the current Execs in these positions are in brackets):

Director (Edwin Herrenschmidt)

Riders Rep (Carey Fougere)

Volunteers Rep (Stu McColl)

If you or someone you know has an interest in contributing to the running of the club, please send your suggestions to cmra@roadracing.org or contact Brad Gavey (President) or Kelly Gingras (Secretary) this weekend at the track.

Remember:

- you can nominate any member of the CMRA, even the person who currently holds the position.

- Executive members are voted in for terms of 3 years, although they may opt out after one or two years.

Rule Changes:

Members may submit proposals for rule changes to the CMRA at any time, with an annual deadline of the last race of the season. Rule change submissions must:

specify proposed wording of the question you wish to be put to vote by the members,
explain the reason for the proposed change,
outline potential pros and cons of the change, and
clearly detail how the change will be accommodated and/or implemented by the club.

The CMRA rulebook committee meets next week to review rule change submissions from the members. Proposals are reviewed a second time by the Executive committee, then put to a simple majority vote of the membership in November. Changes are reflected in the next year’s rulebook draft in December, which should be published in January.

If you have any questions or for more information, please talk to one of the CMRA Executive.

Sep 9, 2009 - McIver Motion on Race City Lease

See the following links to SE Calgary News to read more about Alderman Ric McIver's new motion to honor the existing lease between the City of Calgary and Race City Motorsports Park.

http://www.secalgarynews.com/opinion/hammer-time/a-public-challenge-to-aldermen-fox-mellway-and-ceci-for-the-upcoming-race-city-motion/

http://www.secalgarynews.com/featured/ald-ric-mciver-back-for-last-ditch-attempt-to-save-race-city/#more-6857

Jul 16, 2009 - Round 3 Detour to Race City

The City of Calgary Transportation Infrastructure department notified the CMRA yesterday that there will be a detour around 114 Ave starting Saturday morning at 7:00 a.m. Detour routes are noted in this excerpt from the notification:

“As part of the 52 St. SE Road Widening project, a total road closure on 114 Ave. SE between 68 St. and 52 St. is required in order to connect a new storm system with an intermodal pond. The closure will take place from 7 am Saturday, July 25 until 10 pm Monday, July 27, 2009.

This closure will not affect traffic on 52 St. SE.

A detour will be established to ensure access is maintained into Race City Speedway facilities:
From the south: Travel east on Marquis of Lorne Tr. to 84 St. SE…north on 84 St. to 114 Ave….west on 114 Ave to the entrance of Race City Speedway.

From the north: Travel east on Glenmore Tr. to 84 St. SE….south on 84 St. to 114 Ave….west on 114 Ave to the entrance of Race City Speedway.

The reason for the closure is the installation of a storm sewer across 114 Ave. This is needed to ensure there is proper collection of stormwater so that work on the 52 St. Road Widening project can continue without interruption.

Thank you for understanding the need for this road closure.”

Jul 1, 2009 - More News from Parts Canada Superbike Championship

June 30: http://www.secalgarynews.com/homepage/video-mike-zottmann-a-real-road-warrior-at-superbike-championship/

June 29: http://www.secalgarynews.com/featured/video-mccormic-rubs-szoke-on-second-last-turn-wins-superbike-championship-race/

June 27: http://www.secalgarynews.com/homepage/video-local-racers-are-hurting-but-still-in-the-hunt-at-superbike-championship/

June 27: http://www.secalgarynews.com/homepage/video-szoke-takes-pole-position-for-superbike-championship-race-sunday-at-race-city/

Jun 30, 2009 - WCC Rounds 1 and 2 Mission

Well folks, we just got the updated results from Rounds 1 and 2 from the gang at Mission. It looks like we had a great turn out from our members of the CMRA. For those who ventured out to Mission, these points will be critical at end of the season. We know that many of our racers do great in Edmonton and then will own the track when it comes to the final rounds on September 19 and 20^th in Calgary.

A couple of things to point out, Mission calls one of the classes “Open Supersport” which is what Edmonton calls “Open Sportbike” and Calgary calls “Heavyweight Expert and Amateur”. There is an Amateur (Intermediate) and Expert for each of these.

The next 2 rounds are in Edmonton on July 11^th and 12^th with the winners being crowned at the final round in Calgary on September 19^th and 20^th.

We hope that there is a large turn out from the CMRA at the Edmonton rounds.

If you have any questions, please contact me.

Good luck!

Joe P

VP CMRA

The PDF (see below) shows the standings after Mission Rounds 1 and 2.

See more here.

2009 WCC Points (32Kb PDF)

Jun 28, 2009 - Bad Blood at Race City?

News and video from today's riders at the Parts Canada Superbike Championship:

http://www.secalgarynews.com/featured/video-szoke-vs-mccormick-bad-blood-at-race-city-this-weekend/#more-5411

Jun 15, 2009 - Round 2 News

Watch the video interviews from Round 2 at SE Calgary News!

Jun 2, 2009 - Welcome to Calgarysuperbike.com

Welcome to Round 3 of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship. There will be nothing better than being part of the action at Race City Motorsport Park on June 26 to 28, 2009.

This will be a special event for all of us. Although this may be our last season at Race City, I am proud of the “firsts”. This is the first time in Calgary’s history that this event has been organized by racers from our motorcycle racing community. Calgarysuperbike.com is the first ever website dedicated to the Calgary round. One Track Mind is hosting the first “ladies night” in conjunction with this event. Two lucky spectators will win a two-up ride by purchasing tickets online, and fans can enter the dyno shootout. Other firsts will include Stephen Avenue mall shows the week before the races, a press conference, and other special events to raise the profile of our sport in the community.

This is Calgary’s chance to show what can be done when our racing community pulls together to host the premier Canadian roadracing series. As always, this exciting competition is only made possible by the selfless efforts of the race officials, marshals, and volunteers. It is my privilege to acknowledge their dedication and to thank them for the very special part they play in Calgary’s 2009 Parts Canada Superbike Championship weekend.

I look forward to seeing you all trackside to see Canada’s best in action.

Tim Johnson

President, Fast Track Promotions