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I have not contacted you in some time and you are probably wondering whether SATCAR® is still alive and well. I can happily report that I am continuing to move forward towards making this a viable road racing program. Some changes were required to make the timing and scoring program as fair as possible and these are being sorted out. This newsletter will give you an update so you can plan your racing with SATCAR® in the future.
PROGRESS
2006 - A mixed year for SATCAR®.
Early in the year I scheduled three events that were combined with other clubs. SATCAR® was to have one run group in the daily sequence. This would allow us to provide an opportunity to offer drivers a SATCAR® event without having to commit to a full track rental cost.I sent out entry information to eligible drivers within a reasonable distance from each event. I received a total of four entries for the three events. Needless to say, this was very disappointing and was also somewhat hard on the treasury as I had to commit to my share of the track rental costs.
To be fair, the notice I was able to give drivers about the events was rather short and the quantity of drivers near each of the event venues was limited, but I expected a few more entries than were received. If you want the opportunity to race using the SAFE and FAIR format and the LOW RACING COST structure of SATCAR®, I will need your support by entering our scheduled events. If you choose not to join us for some reason, please communicate with me regarding that reason. I want to make the program work for you and need to know if it is not and why not.
I have heard some feedback from drivers indicating that they want to see one of these events and get a feel for what it is about before they are willing to commit to entering. If everyone thinks this way, we will never have an event because we will have no entries.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR ANY CONCERNS ABOUT SATCAR RACING AND/OR ENTERING ONE OF THESE EVENTS, PLEASE CALL OR E-MAIL ME SO I CAN DISCUSS YOUR ISSUES WITH YOU. I WANT YOU TO BE COMFORTABLE AT OUR TRACK EVENTS!
SATCAR® was contracted by the Chicago Alfa-Romeo Owners Club to provide timing for two of their Time Trial events in 2006. This helped to provide some income to offset expenses that were incurred. The drivers were very enthusiastic about the results that we were able to provide them as compared to what was available at previous events. They were also able to get more track time with the upgraded timing and scoring system.
In the late summer and fall SATCAR® worked with the Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, IL to provide two races for members of the club, using the SATCAR® format. For various reasons, some related to Autobahn members and some related to SATCAR®, the races did not flow as smoothly as desired. This was a positive experience, however, as it showed some of the unanticipated things that can happen and showed some areas where our timing and scoring software needed some additional features. These were incorporated into the code during 2007 and final testing will take place prior to the 2008 season.
2007 - New experiences and opportunities.
In November of 2006, I received an E-mail from a gentleman who is the Director of New Products for a sports marketing firm in Singapore. He was interested in the SATCAR® racing format and offered to sponsor a trip for me to meet with them. In May I spent a week in Singapore discussing the Asia-Pacific market. I do not know at this time whether anything will grow from this but it does indicate the possibility of worldwide application of SATCAR® racing.
After the experiences of trying to schedule events in 2006, the decision was made to not schedule any events in 2007 and concentrate on completing the Private Placement Memorandum for a stock sale. This Memorandum is written to inform potential investors about the SATCAR® program and the opportunity to participate as owners of the organization. The Memorandum was completed in the Fall of 2007 and copies are being distributed to potential investors.
I also kept busy at several track events. The Chicago Alfa club contracted us to time their three events during the year. Contact was also made with a company called SuperCar Life, which offers track driving events in supercars. A proposal was made to them to offer SATCAR® type races for their events and a demonstration took place in early July at BeaveRun near Pittsburgh. A final decision on incorporation into their events has yet to be made.
2008 - The Start Of Something Big!
I am very excited to announce that SATCAR® will be offering a four event series this fall. An information sheet is included with this newsletter. To appeal to drivers with varying experience and interests, each event will be offering run groups for DRIVING SCHOOL, LAPPING/PRACTICE, and RACE, along with a TOURING group at lunch time. At the end of the series, a SATCAR® championship will be awarded for the year.
NOW is the time to show your support and enthusiasm for SATCAR® by entering these events, Pick the run group that is appropriate for your experience and skill level. There will be a group at each event that will be right for you. Entry forms are available at the SATCAR® web site for both regular mail and on-line registrations. ENTER EARLY - - ENTER OFTEN!!! Do not miss this opportunity. Even if you choose not to enter for some reason, plan on attending an event as a guest. This will allow you to see how the SATCAR® format works and to talk with some of the drovers who are entered.
To assist in promoting and running these events, two capable and interested people have joined me to help grow SATCAR®. Jim Anderson of LaGrange Park found SATCAR® on the web and sent me an E-mail titled "Why Didn't I Think Of That". Jim has worked in a variety of positions, among which was working with CART on some promotional and PR activities. Jim will be working on the same types of activities with SATCAR®.
The other significant addition is Wayne Seely as Director of Operations. I met Wayne while working on events with the Chicago Alfa Romeo Owners Club. Wayne was organizing their track events and hired us to do the timing. Working with Wayne I learned what a great organizer and detail person he is, so offered him the opportunity to work with me on SATCAR® events.
I feel that our Fall Series will definitely be the better for having these two gentlemen as a part of SATCAR®.
INVESTORS & EVENT PARTNERS
To be able to grow SATCAR® and provide drivers the opportunity to participate in this exciting new form of road racing, I am looking for potential investors in the ownership of the parent corporation and for Event Partners who will be actively planning and presenting the events at tracks. If you know anyone who would be interested in either role, please have them contact me.
SATCAR® is making road racing available to a larger group of drivers by keeping the costs more reasonable to begin, and continue, racing. As such, SATCAR® is being projected to be the fastest growing form of road racing in history. Investors in SATCAR® will be able to share in the pride of having helped to develop this concept and in growing the sport of road racing. They will also share in the growth of the company as it occurs.
Investment in SATCAR® is speculative and risky. Therefore, potential investors must be able and willing to be patient for any return on the investment and also be aware of the possibility of losing the investment. There are two requirements that any potential investor must meet to be considered for ownership.
1. The person must be actively involved with activities at road racing tracks.
2. The person must have a net worth of at least $ 1 Million.The Event Partner program is shown at the SATCAR® web site for anyone who may be interested. I am seeking individuals or groups that are interested in operating a business that will plan and present track events for drivers in their area.
Drive SAFE & FAST!!!
Kern Fischer
SATCAR® Creator
START LINE - 2008 FORMULA STREET® FALL SERIES
THE START OF SOMETHING BIG!!!
SATCAR® offers something for all drivers in their new Fall Series. Whether you have a totally stock street car or a track prepared car, you can participate. We are planning three high speed groups and a lunch time touring group. The high speed groups will be: driving school, practice/lapping, and race. All groups will run to the rules typical of driving schools and open tracking events (Passing only on straights, single file in corners, and single file starts from pit lane) so that you and your car are as safe as possible. The race group will use the unique SATCAR® handicap scoring system to insure fairness for all drivers. Drive consistently and safely and YOU CAN WIN with any car.
Be among the first to participate in this championship series offered by SATCAR®. The series will consist of the four event dates listed below. Each day of each event is being planned to have a rotating sequence of run groups. Each run group will have between 1 ½ and 2 hours of track time per day. Sessions will be a minimum of 30 minutes each. The scheduled sessions for the race group will be: morning practice, mid-day qualifying, and afternoon race. Points will be awarded to drivers based on finishing positions.
Drivers who qualify by experience will be issued a Competition License and can enter the race group. Drivers who need more experience can enter the driving school group. Drivers who want track time but are not sure about entering the race group can enter the practice/lapping group and watch the race to see if they would like to try the race group.
Visit the Events Page for more information.
Winter - 2007
It has been some time since I last communicated with you about how development is proceeding with the SATCAR® concept. The time since our last START LINE has been spent working on additional details needed to begin offering events to YOU. Many of you are in parts of the country where our fun activities have been put on hold. I assume that most of you are looking forward to the opportunity to enjoy the fun of track driving in a few months.
The primary SATCAR® effort has been toward further testing and refining the timing and scoring system to be certain that it is accurate for any anticipated situations that may occur during an event. To this end, many hours have been spent in testing and code writing to find and correct portions of the program that did not react properly to the situation presented or to the rules, as written.
To facilitate the testing and running of initial events, SATCAR® has invested in a complete AMB system, including a decoder box, battery powered transponders, and a charging case. This will allow us to perform any tests required for continually monitoring the system performance and to time events that we offer in the early stages of development. It will also allow us to conduct additional tests as new code is written for future pit stop sprint races and endurance races.
We are committed to continually bringing you new and exciting forms of racing within the SATCAR® format!!!
TIMING ADJUSTMENT
The SATCAR® Performance Parity Time system, as originally conceived, tended to favor the slower cars of a group because they had to make fewer passes and would not be delayed as frequently behind other cars in no-passing zones.
I have addressed this inequity by incorporating a correction factor into the scoring system that shortens the Performance Parity Times by a fixed percentage for all cars, to allow extra time for being delayed behind a slower car while waiting for a passing zone. This correction factor will probably be slightly different for each track, depending upon passing opportunities, and will be defined by choosing a number and then fine tuning it based on experience at that track. We will know the number is right when we see the winners coming from random positions in the starting order. The factor will then be locked into the scoring program for that track.
This is another example of our ongoing efforts to make SATCAR® racing the fairest and most equitable road racing available for all drivers.
SATCAR STARTS RACING!!!
GINGERMAN RACEWAY, SOUTH HAVEN, MI - SEPT. 17-18, 2006
This fall we were guests with other clubs and offered one run group for SATCAR® drivers. We had three races in September and October. The entry was not large in any of the races, which was good because it allowed us to test our procedures and the timing and scoring system without the intensity and time pressures that a large entry would have produced. It also forced us to combine cars that would not normally run together because of speed differences and to determine how that worked under race conditions.
The first event was run with the SVT Cobra Mustang Club at GingerMan Raceway in mid-September. We had a Saturday morning practice, Saturday afternoon qualifying, Sunday morning practice, and a 20 lap race on Sunday afternoon.
The field was quite varied, including a trio of '80s VWs, a Porsche 944 Turbo, an NSX driven by a woman, an Impala SS, and a track prepared Mustang Cobra R. As expected, the lap times also had quite a variation. One of the VWs was the slow qualifier and the Mustang Cobra, driven by Brian Groth of Minnesota, was fastest. Brian had to wait out an eight minute Performance Parity Time and the VW had almost four laps in before Brian started.
The SATCAR® timing system worked exactly as predicted. There were three breakouts during the race. The pass that won the race was made on the last lap and when the checkered flag fell, all cars were within 45 seconds (1/2 lap) on the track. They would have been closer if Brian had been able to run his R compound tires. He had corded them and ran a new set of street tires so his lap times suffered slightly. Not by much though. Brian sliced through the field, passing some cars as many as two times, to get on the lead lap within sight of the leaders when the checkered flag fell. Great driving by all!!!
The winner, and also winner of the Consistency Award, was David Talbot of Plainfield, IL in an Acura Integra Type R. Second place was Jeff Stombres, also of Plainfield, in a 1984 VW Scirocco and third was Anthony Jasinski of Aurora, IL in a 1981 VW Scirocco. The lady in the NSX ended up fourth, even though she broke out once, and was very pleased.
The drivers were very excited about how the race went and many had created various strategies to seek the elusive win. The winner said he had to be very cautious not to get anxious and overdrive the car and create a Break Out. Comments sent to me after the race were strongly positive and indicated that the drivers had a great time. Some of the comments were:
AUTOBAHN COUNTRY CLUB, JOLIET, IL - OCT. 29-30
On this weekend, we shared the track with the Northwoods Shelby Club based in Wisconsin. We used the north track on Saturday and the south track on Sunday so we had 30 minute practice, qualifying, and race sessions each day. Entries were again somewhat diverse, including the VWs, a 1980 Mazda RX7, a supercharged Mazdaspeed Miata, Mitsubishi Evolution MR, Subaru WRX STI, a new (Three weeks old) Pontiac GTO, and a supercharged 2005 Kenny Brown Mustang. About half the drivers from the first race were excited enough that they also entered this weekend's event.
The Saturday race (13 laps) had a few minor issues in execution but went off reasonably well. Chuck Lamb from Goshen, IN, in the RX7, won the race and the Consistency Award. Jeff Stombres in the 1984 Scirocco again placed second. Smiles all around again.
We created procedures for Sunday that would eliminate the minor execution issues.
The Sunday race was for 12 laps and went very well. The first two cars on the grid qualified within .1 second of each other so were sent out nose to tail at the start. The first car pulled a slight gap so was not given the pass flag. If the second car had caught and been able to hold position close to the first, a pass flag would have been shown to the first car and the second car would have taken the lead. The situation worked itself out on the first lap. The first car had a Break Out and was called in for a penalty. The second car dropped two tires off on a corner and was also called in for a penalty.
The VW Scirocco driven by Tony Jasinski that started in third place inherited the lead and held it for most of the race. At two to go, he had a 21 second lead on the second car, the Mazdaspeed Miata. The Miata qualified 11 seconds faster so it looked like a last lap shootout for the win. At the start of the final lap the time gap was 9.5 seconds. Then on the last lap Tony spun off track and gave the lead and the win to Jeff Diffendorfer from Saginaw, MI in the Miata. Todd Davis from Portage, MI, driving the new GTO placed second. Eric Meyer from Indianapolis, in the Kenny Brown Mustang, received the Consistency Award.
Jeff was very excited by his win. He said his father had raced and he (Jeff) was just getting into the sport. He had many lapping and school days but this was his first competition. To win on his first weekend of racing was extremely satisfying for him.
The two top places in this race were taken by drivers who drove safely and consistently and received no penalties. This shows what it takes to win these races. The variety of cars that were contending for the win also shows that the SATCAR® formula works to equalize the competition for drivers of all different types of car.
The winners in all three races were pleased to receive the crystal awards and I am assuming that they are being displayed in a prominent place in their homes or offices.
RACING COST COMPARISON:T H E SATCAR
V A L U E
When told the projected entry fees for SATCAR® races, some drivers have questioned why they are higher than entry fees for some other events they have attended. Several factors enter into the entry fee structure for SATCAR® as compared to other organizations. The following information is being offered to help you understand the factors that affect SATCAR® entry fees, to show that entry fees are only a portion of the total costs of racing, and to also show that SATCAR® RACING IS still EXCELLENT VALUE when compared to club racing in other organizations.
SATCAR® racing and club racing are slightly different in their content so the experience for the driver is also slightly different. However, they are similar in that they offer the driver the opportunity to enjoy driving his/her car on a road racing track at whatever speeds are desired and comfortable. They also both offer the thrill of competition and the opportunity to show that you drove best on that day during that event, and taking home an award for your efforts. In both, meeting and talking with other individuals with similar interests and cars offers the chance to gain new friends and new knowledge.
Some of the factors that influence SATCAR® entry fees include:
For safety, SATCAR® limits the number of cars in a group to 10 cars per mile of track length (SCCA allows 20 cars per mile).
SATCAR® will have paid staff operating the races - many other organizations are clubs and depend upon volunteer workers to staff the races
SATCAR® is a business that has been created to bring road racing to a large group of drivers who would not otherwise be able to participate - most clubs are non-profit organizations. SATCAR® must make a profit to be able to continue to offer these events to you, the drivers.
The following cost comparison shows some typical costs to participate in club racing versus SATCAR® racing. This comparison uses information from SCCA racing as it is the largest club racing group in the country. Other club racing groups, such as BMW CCA, NASA, PCA, and Professional Autosports may have slightly different cost structures but in almost all cases, a dedicated race car is required to race competitively and many of the listed costs will be similar.
For this comparison, the club racing costs were chosen to typify a driver racing on a budget in a class that required a modest investment in the race car and support vehicles Depending upon the choice of race car and support equipment, the costs in either type of racing can quickly escalate.
Any costs that would be similar between the two types of racing, such as meals, motels, and some car consumables, are not included in this comparison. Driving school costs are noted but are not included in the costs to get started. The tow vehicle purchase is assumed to be necessary but the vehicle will probably also be used for other purposes, so the operating, maintenance, and insurance costs are not be charged against the race program. There are other minor differences, such as membership and licensing costs, which are also factors, but are not great in magnitude, so are not included.
CLUB RACING
Requirement to participate: SCCA - Two Driving Schools (6 Hr. On Track) - Estimated entry costs - $ 350 - Four races annually required to maintain license
$ 2,200 BMW CCA - Eight Driving Schools - Estimated entry costs FIXED COSTS Race car purchase & preparation $ 5,000 to 10,000 Trailer purchase $ 500 (Used Open) to 7,000 (New Closed) Tow vehicle purchase $ 5,000 to 10,000 Driver safety items (Helmet, suit, gloves, socks, shoes) $ 600 to 800 TOTAL FIXED COSTS (Using mid-point values) - This is the payout required before driving the first mile on the track $ 19,450 Amortized over ten years @ five races/year $ 389/Race VARIABLE COSTS Entry Fee $ 200 Travel Fuel (500 Miles Round Trip @ 10 MPG @ 2.00/Gal.) $ 100 Tires (One set per weekend) $ 450 Racing Fuel (15 Gal. @ 4.00/Gal.) $ 60 Trailer Insurance (Assume $ 400/Yr. & 5 Races/Yr.) $ 80 Engine Rebuild Every Ten Races @ $ 2,000 $ 200 Crash Damage $ 200 TOTAL VARIABLE COSTS $ 1,290/Race TOTAL COSTS (FIXED AND VARIABLE) PER RACE - $ 1,679
ANNUAL COSTS FOR FIVE RACES - $ 8,395These numbers compare closely with the experience of Dick Cole, who raced a Geo Prizm in SCCA Improved Touring for 10 years. He estimated that his annual costs were about $ 8,000.
A typical SCCA race provides about 1 1/2 hour of on-track time during a two day event. Using the above cost per event, the track time costs $ 1,119 per hour.
SATCAR® RACING
Requirement to participate: A Single Two Day Driving School - Estimated entry cost $ 300 FIXED COSTS - No vehicle purchase is required since drivers can race the car they drive every day. Transponder Purchase $ 300 Driver safety items (Helmet only) $ 250 to $ 400 TOTAL FIXED COSTS (Using midpoint values) $ 625 Amortizing over five years @ five races/year $ 25/Race VARIABLE COSTS Entry Fee $ 400 Travel Fuel (500 Miles Round Trip @ 20 MPG @ 2.00/Gal.) $ 50 Tires (One Set/Season @ $ 400/Set) $ 80 Track Fuel (30 Gal @ 2.00/Gal) $ 60 Safety Inspection (Estimated/Race) $ 32 TOTAL VARIABLE COSTS $ 622/Race TOTAL COSTS (FIXED AND VARIABLE) PER RACE - $ 649
ANNUAL COSTS FOR FIVE RACES - $ 3,245This comparison shows that SATCAR® racing costs slightly more than 1/3 (38.7%) of what it costs to participate in SCCA club racing. When converted into an hourly cost it becomes more favorable. A typical SATCAR® two day event will provide each driver about three hours of driving time for a cost of $ 216 per hour. This is about 1/5 (19.3%) of the cost per hour of SCCA club racing.
OPPORTUNITY COST
Another factor that could be considered in this analysis is the opportunity cost of the investment in the race car and associated equipment for club racing. If the $ 18,825 fixed cost differential were invested somewhere else and earned a 5% rate of return, the gain would be $ 941 per year. This would almost pay for the cost to participate in 1 1/2 SATCAR® races. Spread over the projected five race per year schedule, this amount would help to defray $ 188 of the cost per race. This would drop the SATCAR® per race cost to $ 461, or about 1/4 (27.5%) of the cost per event, and $ 154 per hour, or about 1/8 (13.8%) of the cost per hour of track time.
MAINTENANCE TIME
Another difference between the typical club racing car and a car that can be used in SATCAR® races will be the amount of time required for maintenance to keep the car safe. If the owner is working on the car for fun, this factor may not be quite as important. However, most drivers would probably prefer to spend their time improving the car rather than having to maintain it. If his/her time is critical, or if the maintenance has to be done by a shop and paid for by the car owner, this is an additional area where SATCAR® racing is less costly.
Again, drawing upon the experience of Dick Cole, he indicated that he would typically spend two hours in maintenance for each hour spent on the track. Cars that are more complicated or highly developed, such as formula or sports racing cars, will require considerably more time and usually also require additional help in the form of pit crew members, at additional cost. Using Dick's experience and the weekend driving time of 1.5 hours, maintenance time for our budget racer for a typical SCCA weekend could be estimated at three hours. This maintenance would be primarily preventive, in the form of checking all systems, changing brakes and tires, and going over the car to check all fasteners. Any serious mechanical problems or damages due to incidents would add to the amount of required time.
A typical car that could be used in SATCAR® races will not require as much maintenance because it will not require the soft, sticky tires that generate high wheel bearing loads, suspension side forces, and drive train shock loads. It will not have to be extremely low and stiffly sprung, which creates high loadings into the spring and damper attachment points, leading to possible cracking of the body or frame in those areas. Tires and brakes will probably last longer and require less frequent replacement. Typical continuing maintenance items will probably be limited to brake pad/shoe replacements and periodic brake fluid changes.
The driver can choose to operate the car in a way that minimizes the wear and stress on the car and still win in SATCAR® races. Therefore, he/she can maintain some control over the maintenance costs, in both time and money, required to keep driving the car in these events. Drawing upon experience of running at driving schools with typical street cars, the maintenance time was approximately one hour for every 4 - 6 hours of driving time, and consisted primarily of changing brake pads and/or shoes. Periodic safety inspections of the car are still required but do not add large amounts of time to the maintenance schedule. Current cars are built very well and are quite reliable, even when used on a road racing track.
If any of you have any questions or would like to offer suggestions to me regarding the SATCAR® program, please contact me by mail or phone. The addresses are listed below:
Mail: SATCAR® 5N775 Campton Ridge, Saint Charles, IL 60175
e-mail: kern@satcarracing.com
Phone: 630-232-6063 (9 - 5 Central Time)
THANK YOU for your interest and patience as we develop this program for you.
Kern Fischer
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