Quote Originally Posted by jplracing
Quote Originally Posted by The GECCO

Another reason we won't add races at other venues is that because the MRA is a part owner of HPR one of our main concerns is to make sure HPR stays in good financial shape. If keeping both the club and the track afloat means that we go to a shorter season and only race at HPR in 2010, that's what we'll do.
It is important to remember that the MRA's responsiblity is to keep the MRA afloat. I understand that the MRA and its members are highly invested in HPR. However any investment comes with inherent risks. As such, it is my opinion that the two organizations need to be run as separate organizations. Should the MRA, in its efforts to keep the MRA solvent, decided to utilize HPR to a great extent then so be it.

With that said I think only racing HPR now and in the future will be doing a great disservice to the members of this club.
To the contrary, the disservice would be doing things that negatively effect the feasibility of the club and/or the track. The clubs cannot survive w/o HPR and HPR cannot survive if the clubs start going out of business. While it may not be as enjoyable, a series running only HPR may be the only way to save the club. Obviously there are not enough people out there that can run an 11 race season (or maybe even a 9 race season) to keep the club profitable. I say that because, frankly, right now the club is in serious financial trouble and we are going to have make even more changes to insure our survival. When less than 80 people show up at Hastings and less than 90 at Pueblo, we lose enormous amounts of money (>$20,000 loss at MPH, >$10,000 loss at Pueblo), and the events that have been in the black haven't been barnburners from an income standpoint. This isn't something we're doing because we think it's a neat idea.

In order to keep participation numbers up high enough to have events in the black we may have to trim it back to a 6-8 race series next year, and we should run as many of them as possible at HPR. If your family owns a grocery store, you do your shopping there, don't you? Of course you do - it's cheaper for you and it also helps your own store stay open. You may also shop at other stores occasionally but if your food budget gets cut in half, you shouldn't continue to shop at other stores while neglecting your own.

Have we already gotten so spoiled that the idea of only racing at the newest and best track in the region is so awful?