I helped out with LOL's soloII program in the past and it is true that
there weren't many event's in the twin cities.
However, there were events throughout much of our region. From LaCrosse,
WI to South Dakota and between. Part of this is because those who
stand up to be event masters usually put on events close to where they
live. This also gives us a lot of variety in the courses, from airports
to parking lots. Site availability seems to be easier outstate also.
Also site fees are considerably less outstate.
In the past couple of years there were efforts made to search for people
who were willing to take charge of an event in the twin cities and after
some time, events have been co-sanctioned with MAC.
I, for one, liked traveling to the various events but I know there are
others who are not interested in traveling.
Jason DeJoode
Burnsville, MN
Phil Ethier wrote:
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Murray, Matthew D. <MDMURRAY@gwns.com>
> To: Teamdotnet <autox@autox.team.net>
> Date: Wednesday, June 07, 2000 3:00 AM
> Subject: Phil's Membership
>
> >Phil:
> >
> >I understand and accept your "willingness" to mess with rules set-up by
> >clubs
> >that you are not a member of. What I don't understand is why you dropped
> the
> >
> >SCCA membership after rejoining in '97 after not being a member for X years
> >for the Driver To National's deal. You do get Sports Car as part of the
> >membership package. :^) It isn't really that much of a fee. It works out to
> >less than 18 cents a day.
>
> It is just that local autocross is my favorite sport. Land O' Lakes Region
> is still a bit player in local autocross in the Twin Cities. MAC has more
> events and better events in the Twin Cities. I now belong to two clubs with
> a local presence: Minnesota Autosports Club, the purveyor of the MOWOG
> Series, a series of autocrosses which predates Solo2; and Lotus Owners Of
> the North, a small marque club which does mostly social events and whose
> members often show up at autocrosses now that I have come along to tell them
> what autocrosses are.
>
> I don't mean to denigrate the few LOL members who are dedicated to Solo2.
> Chris Baye and Tom Fisk spring to mind as examples. But they are swimming
> upstream as far as the Region's commitment to Twin Cities autocrossing. LOL
> ran a full schedule of Met Council events in the sixties and early
> seventies.
> Now they can't put on a full set of events in the Twin Cities without the
> help
> of other clubs. Why not just cut out the middleman and go to those clubs'
> events?
>
> I used to be a road-race worker and official. I think that phase of my life
> probably won't be back. There does not seem to be much interest among the
> Region's road-racing folks to support Solo2, so reciprocity there is not
> likely.
>
> If I ever get to the point where I can travel (nearest tour event is 500
> miles away, I think) then SCCA membership would make sense. But for local
> events in my locality, SCCA just isn't the club that's doing it.
>
> And maybe that's not wrong. LOL has a fine road-racing program, and they
> have an award-winning rally program, including Pro Rally. They were one
> of the main regions behind the RallyCross program. So maybe they are not
> wrong to play to their strengths and essentially concede Twin Cities
> autocrossing to MAC and Corvettes of Minnesota.
>
> I am taking some time off of the organizing end of autocross after a decade
> of being the go-to guy in The Cities. Rejoining LOL and trying to make it
> a force in local autocrossing is not what I have time for right now.
> Whatever
> time I can put into autocrossing, MAC has first dibs.
>
> Phil "No longer wearing all the hats, but I have them in my closet" Ethier
> Saint Paul Minnesota USA
> 1970 Lotus Europa, 1992 Saturn SL2, 1986 Chev Suburban
> LOON, MAC
> pethier@isd.net http://www.visi.com/mac/
> "If I can do it, it's not art" - Red Green
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