Sprintcars won't race at MVS this year

Michael Sullivan, President, Northwest Sprintcar Racing Association Roseburg, Ore.

The Northwest Sprintcar Racing Association (NSRA) Board of Directors and I are disappointed that race terms could not be agreed upon between Mission Valley Auto Racers Association (MVARA) and managers of the Mission Valley Speedway (MVS).

The NSRA has enjoyed the warmth, hospitality, and the enthusiasm of the people of the Mission Valley over the past four years. It is extremely unfortunate that the annual 4th of July event will not happen in 2005.

MVARA management offered the NSRA what amounted to a 40 percent reduction in last year's purse, and racing on Sunday July 3rd. The NSRA counter offered a purse reduction of 20 percent and racing on Saturday allowing the NSRA teams two travel days to get home.

Apparently, our counter offer was unacceptable to MVARA management. Saturday competed with a late model race in Kalispell. We are told that previous sponsors for the sprint race had withdrawn financial support for the NSRA race, due to certain "dissatisfactions" with last year's event.

We explained to MVS management that the increase in fuel cost to get to Pablo would not allow the NSRA to discount the event any more than the 20 percent reduction offered, and that the NSRA has had little success racing on Sunday, especially in light of the long tow for race teams to get home.

Contrary to "the word on the streets" of Ronan, Pablo, and Polson, the NSRA Board of Directors did not simply elect to "not race Mission Valley Speedway in 2005," every effort was made on our part to negotiate an event at Pablo and Ronan.

Mission Valley Speedway appears to be in a state of transition that started two years ago. Management and promotional tactics have changed as community and commercial support for this annual event has been on the decline — according to the MVS promoter. The NSRA would like to continue the relationship with the race fans in the Mission Valley, but our organization has little control over the advertising and promotion of our event at Mission Valley Speedway.

Tracy Burland and I negotiated the first three NSRA races in the fall of each previous year at the annual NSRA banquets. Tracy understood that in order to bring sprint car race teams, many traveling in excess of 600 miles one way, to the Mission Valley on an annual basis, it would take a significant purse, aggressive coordination, promotion, and advertising to be successful. Faced with $2.50 per gallon fuel costs today those factors are even more critical now than before.

The NSRA will miss the Mission Valley visit this year. We can only hope that an event will come about for 2006, and that the communities in the valley will once again want to see the "Fastest in the West" race at Mission Valley Speedway.