SCHEDULE
The schedule as it stands now encompasses fifteen race dates and three TBA’s. The league is still negotiating with promoters on the TBA’s and will announce those dates when they are confirmed.
PIT PASSES
During the off-season, the league discussed raising pit pass fees to $30, which is more in line with what the majority of the local tracks are charging. As a benefit to our participants, we will leave the pit pass fees at $25 for the 2015 race season.
LICENSE & REGISTRATION
2015 driver license and car registration fees will remain the same, $50 per driver and $50 per car. To compete in an MTQRL sanctioned event all drivers must be properly licensed and pay the appropriate license and registration fees. These are one-time annual fees and no additional entry fees are charged per race.
INSURANCE
As a benefit to our participants at tracks where the MTQRL purchases the Participant Accident insurance (Rushville and Shelbyville) there is $50,000 excess medical coverage and $10,000 accidental death and dismemberment coverage for all who enter the Restricted Pit Area. This is substantially more than the $10,000-$15,000 excess medical coverage provided by most local tracks.
The supplemental secondary insurance coverage is now optional. If you do not wish to purchase the insurance you do not have to provide proof of coverage, you may just sign the waiver declining coverage. The MTQRL still believes this is a tremendous benefit to our drivers, and will continue to subsidize a portion of the cost to those who choose to purchase this additional coverage.
If the supplemental secondary insurance is purchased it will offer an additional $50,000 in excess medical coverage (with a $50,000 deductible) at all MTQRL sanctioned events. This coverage may not take effect until three business days after the supplemental insurance fee is received by the MTQRL so please plan accordingly.
MINOR RELEASE FORMS
As per K & K Insurance regulations, any minors that wish to enter the restricted pit area must have the appropriate Parental Consent forms signed by BOTH parents, or legal guardians.
If BOTH parents, or legal guardians, will attend the race with the minor the forms may be completed at the track. If BOTH parents, or legal guardians, will not be attending with the minor there is a form requiring notarized signatures that may be completed in advance. Contact Sandy Lowe at mtqrl.pr@gmail.com or (812) 614-9398 for a copy of this form.
Once a completed Parental Consent form is on file with the MTQRL the minor may gain admittance to the Restricted Pit Area at all tracks where the MTQRL is in charge of the pit gate (Columbus, Rushville and Shelbyville). Minors must adhere to track policy when the MTQRL competes at Montpelier and Kokomo.
There are no exceptions to this rule so please plan in advance so that your minor is not refused admittance to the Restricted Pit Area.
OFFICIALS
Chief Steward Tom Wilson announced the officiating crew for the 2015 MTQRL race season. Returning officials include Greg Stanfill (tech inspector), Bonnie Bastian (scorer), Kimb Stewart (announcer), Bobby Jones (pit steward), Dave Rose (pit steward) and Debby Stanfill (registrar).
Joining the MTQRL officiating crew as flagman will be Tom’s son, Dave Wilson. Dave has many years of flagging experience at the Lawrenceburg Speedway and the MTQRL welcomes him to the officiating crew.
The league feels we have one of the best officiating crews around. Nearly all personnel have previous experience with sanctioning bodies such as USAC or other local tracks. We are looking forward to another successful season.
GREG STAAB
Tom Wilson met with Greg Staab last week. At this time, Staab has placed himself on “injured reserve” for the 2015 MTQRL race season, but would be more than happy to help in any way that he can.
The MTQRL wishes Greg a speedy recovery as he continues to recuperate from his illness.
SPONSORS
There are several new and returning sponsors for the 2015 MTQRL race season. The league is always looking for additional sponsor partners and can customize a sponsorship package to meet any individual of business needs. 100% of all sponsorship dollars acquired go to the participants; the MTQRL does not retain any portion for overhead or administrative fees.
Jenmarco – Title Sponsor
Jenmarco returns for the fourth season as title sponsor of the MTQRL. Their financial contributions to the league encompass a wide variety including the purchase of equipment, subsidizing insurance fees, providing all of the trophies and awards distributed at the awards banquet, etc.
Duane & Sonja Alexander – Hard Luck Award
MTQRL benefactors Duane & Sonja Alexander return as sponsors of the Hard Luck Award. A $50 cash prize will be awarded at each race to the driver/team with the worst luck of the night. The Alexander’s will award a $500 cash prize at the banquet to the driver/team with the worst luck over the course of the season.
Jackson Oil & Solvents – Duel for Fuel
Jackson Oil, a sponsor of the league from day one, return to sponsor the Duel for Fuel, a trophy dash for the fastest four qualifiers. Each Duel winner will be awarded a gift certificate for $50 in product from Jackson Oil. Jackson Oil will also award another $50 gift certificate to be distributed via a random drawing to a participating owner at each drivers meeting.
Doyle Family – SSG Jeremy W. Doyle Memorial Award for Most Improved Driver
John Doyle and family will once again present the Most Improved Driver Award in honor of John’s son, Jeremy, who was killed in action in support of “Operation Iraqi Freedom” in 2005. The award is given in honor of the improvement Jeremy made in his life and the improvement the Doyle Family sees in others.
Perfect North Slopes – Heat Race
Perfect North Slopes returns for their fourth season as sponsor of all MTQRL heat races. Each heat race winner will receive a pair of snow tubing passes ($50 value) that may be used for the 2015-2016 winter season.
Watson Racing – Quick Time Award
Watson Racing returns for the second year as sponsor of the Quick Time Award. At each race where time trials are held, Watson Racing will award a $40 cash prize to the fast qualifier. An additional $10 will be placed in a fund to be awarded to the Quick Time Champion – the driver with the quickest cumulative qualifying times over the course of the season.
Steed Motorsports – Hard Charger Award
Steed Motorsports joins the MTQRL in 2015 as sponsor of the Hard Charger Award. Steed Motorsports will award a $40 cash prize at each race to the Hard Charger, the driver who advances the most positions in the feature from their original posted starting position. An additional $10 per race will be placed in a fund to be awarded to the Hard Charger Champion – the driver that advances the most positions over the course of the season.
Rookie of the Year
To be announced.
Leader of the Pack
To be announced
FORMAT
If a semi-feature is needed at a race where qualifications are held, the starting order will continue to be by qualifying times – fastest to slowest. The semi-feature drivers that transfer to the feature will continue to start behind all heat transfers, but will now be in order of semi-feature finish versus the previous order of qualifying times.
Chief Steward Tom Wilson reminded everyone that we are at the track to put on a show for the fans. For a low car count, we may need to run qualifying races in addition to our scheduled races. If we have a car count of twenty we will run a semi-feature (for the fans), even though all cars will start the feature.
Wilson also stated that we need to be more aware of the time and pick up the pace of our program to make our races more enjoyable to our fans. There will be no more than a ten-minute intermission between the final heat race and the semi-feature. When the semi-feature is running, the heat transfers need to be presented to the lineup chute so that as soon as the semi-feature cars leave the track the heat transfers can be pushed onto the front stretch for driver introductions.
SHOW POINTS
For the 2015 MTQRL race season, show points will be increased from 10-points to 25-points. In case of a rain out or race cancellation show points will not be awarded unless the draw has been closed.
SAFETY EQUIPMENT
MTQRL Tech Inspector Greg Stanfill spoke to those in attendance about various items he looks for when teching cars. Cars owners need to be aware of the requirements that the life of the seatbelts shall not exceed two years and must be date stamped by the manufacturer.
Drivers must make sure that their helmets meet the SFI Foundation 31.1 specifications as found on a label inside the helmet. It is also each driver’s responsibility to have a working radio/Raceceiver so that the MTQRL can communicate with them during the race.
TECH EQUIPMENT
The MTQRL has purchased a new set of heavy-duty scales with aluminum ramps that offer a big improvement in durability over the previous equipment used.
PROTEST PROCEDURES & PENALTIES
Stanfill went over the new protest procedures and penalties for fuel and engine displacement. A $500 fuel protest fee, and $1,000 engine displacement protest fee, were announced with both penalties a forfeit of all monies earned for the night and all points earned for the season. Both the owner and driver shall also be suspended for 365-days and be assessed a fine of $500 each.
A discussion was held regarding the fuel protest fees and procedures. The league will take the items discussed under advisement and have a ruling on these matters prior to the first race of the season.
1. There needs to be a competent official available to check cars for damage under red flag conditions.
During the race the MTQRL will station an official in an area that is accessible to the teams. That official will be able to relay any questions or concerns to the Chief Steward or Tech Inspector.
2. Does the car or driver make the feature in case of a driver change?
As is standard with most racing organizations and tracks, the car makes the show not the driver. In case of a driver change, the car will have to start the event behind all transferred cars.
3. Is the league looking into making improvements to the racing surface at Rushville?
Cunningham stated that the MTQRL is serious about improving the racing surface and will try to work with the fair board to make a better racing surface for our competitors. Discussions have been held about the MTQRL hiring someone who is experienced in track prep to assist the fair board.
4. If the participants do not feel the racing surface is safe can the MTQRL cancel an event?
Wilson said safety is one of his main concerns – If the competitors feel something is unsafe they need to tell him. If a majority of the teams feels the racing surface is unsafe, we will cancel the event.
5. Does the MTQRL have a plan for making fuel bladders mandatory for safety reasons? Is it possible to contact the other TQ organizations and get all groups on board to make bladders mandatory by a specific date? Is it possible to make a rule that all cars constructed after a certain date must utilize a fuel bladder?
The league will take this under advisement. In the meantime, all teams need to maintain their check valves to prevent a fuel spill in case of an accident.
