The September Round Has Been Canceled

• OMRRA is committed to operating profitable race events
• Not have enough racers & volunteers signed-up by today
• Concerns remain regarding wildfires and rain
• At least we didn’t have murder hornets

Hello OMRRA Members,

We are sad to report that the joint OMRRA / WMRRA September race event at Portland International Raceway has been canceled.

The OMRRA board met this morning to review the status of the three criteria from Thursday’s communication:

1. Revenue from race registrations
2. Commitment from volunteers
3. Air quality in Portland

In looking at these three criteria, the OMRRA Board of Directors determined the following on each topic:

1) The OMRRA board is committed to running race events that produce a positive income. With the low number of race registrations on Saturday at 10am, committing to run the September round would have resulted in a substantial financial loss, which is not sustainable for the future of racing in the Pacific Northwest.

2) OMRRA races only happen with the commitment of volunteers, both behind the scenes and on race day. As of Saturday at 10am, many of the key race day volunteer positions were unfilled, with a large enough disparity that the decision to move forward with the race event may have put the safety of racers and the efficiency of the races at risk.

3) The Air Quality Index in Portland has seen a significant improvement with the arrival of rain, so the risk of hazardous air quality was not a strong factor in the decision.

Additional Factors

In addition to the three criteria described above, there were additional factors that were considered in this difficult decision.

First, the number of licensed racers between OMRRA and WMRRA is well over 300. When only 80 racers sign up to race for a joint round, a strong signal is sent that the majority of racers cannot prioritize racing right now.

Similar to the response rate of racers, the response rate of volunteers has been low. This sends a strong signal that the PNW race volunteer community also cannot prioritize racing right now.

Additionally, a large number of Oregonians were displaced from their homes recently, with many areas still under evacuation notices. While unquantified, this has impacted the race community, and our asking of people to prioritize racing at this moment does not feel right.

COVID-19 is still a looming issue, and continues to impact our region. In July, the race event was a success, even with COVID-19 protocols in place. But, September brings additional hardship.

Rain is in the forecast. When it rains, we historically see a 20-40% reduction in the number of race registrations. The current level of registrations may have increased by the registration deadline on Wednesday, but probably not by much with the current forecast.

Finally, pushing as hard as we were to run this event did not feel like the right thing to do for the clubs. In July, we were met with a similarly difficult decision, but proceeded with the round because it felt like the right thing to do at the time – and it was successful. Right now, it does not feel like the right thing to do.

As much as it pains us to write this communication, we believe it’s the right course of action for many reasons. We now have a little more time during the off-season to put an extra shine on our bodywork and think about how good the races in 2021 are going to be.

Some Answers to Questions that Are Likely to Arise

Q: How will 2020 season championships be determined?
A: OMRRA racers will decide. Please watch your email for a ballot.

Q: Will my September registration fees be refunded?
A: Yes, in full. Please stay tuned for specific details on how these will be refunded.

Q: Is the OPRT track day still happening?
A: No. If you paid for the Friday track day, you’ll be refunded through OPRT.

Q: I bought a season pass for OPRT track days at PIR. Will I be refunded?
A: Yes. Please email [email protected] to arrange a credit or refund for your season pass.

Q: Will my gate pass be refunded?
A: No. The $80 gate pass covered all of the OMRRA and WMRRA events for 2020, of which there were 5 ($20 per event X 5 = $100 value).

Stay Fast,
The OMRRA Board of Directors

• More racers & volunteers need to commit to the September round 
• Our registration goal deadline is 10 AM on September 19th
• We will not race if the air quality does not improve in Portland
• WMRRA has canceled the October round at The Ridge
• 2020 will only have a championship if we race in September

Hello OMRRA Racers,

As you likely remember back in July, we had to clear a financial hurdle weeks in advance to the race weekend, before committing to the run the event.

For the September round, registration was opened without communication of a financial hurdle with the expectation that a combined OMRRA/WMRRA race would draw more than enough racers. This was of course before the recent events, with the fires and smoke in our area.

Needless to say, the fires in the Pacific Northwest have compounded an already difficult set of circumstances (particularly with the COVID-19 restrictions at PIR) for running the combined OMRRA / WMRRA race round scheduled for September 25th-27th.

Adding to that list, we have only 33% of the entries necessary to make the September round break-even financially for the club. This isn’t an abnormal number when we are 10 days away from a race weekend, but it is unacceptable for us to risk a round that doesn’t have strong attendance from both OMRRA and WMRRA.

The OMRRA Board of Directors is committed to running only profitable races for the club, as we are not monetarily in a position to run a race weekend at a financial loss.

We are also committed to running only races that will be safe for our competitors and volunteers. Therefore, several things will need to happen for us to have another racing event this year.

OMRRA Must Meet the Following Criteria to Run a September Round:

1) We must have and additional $25,000 in race registrations (approximately 70 more racers) by 10:00 AM on Saturday, September 19th.

2) We must have commitment from a minimum set of volunteers by this same time, in order to safely run the races.

3) Finally, the air quality index in Portland must fall to a safer level.

Here’s What You Can Do If You Want This Event to Take Place:

1) If you are a racer, then you need to sign-up now to race. Note that your race fees are fully-committed and non-refundable if the event takes place, but are refundable or credited-in-full if the event does not take place.

2) If you are a volunteer, email [email protected] with your availability and commitment.

3) If you want to support the round financially, you can donate via PayPal to [email protected] (there is a link on the main page of omrra.com as well).

WMRRA Has Canceled the October Round at The Ridge:

WMRRA has announced that it will no longer be hosting the scheduled joint round in October at the Ridge Motorsports Park.

This means that if we are indeed able to race in September at Portland International Raceway, then the weekend will be the 2020 season finale for both clubs.

2020 Championship Status:

Due to the cancelation of the October round, the ability of OMRRA to declare 2020 a championship season depends on whether or not we run our September round.

If the September races take place, then season awards will be given, as all the trophy classes will have had five races this season.

However, if the September races do not take place, then the 2020 season will not meet the necessary criteria in the OMRRA rulebook to be declared a championship, and thus the championships will have to be voided.

We obviously don’t want this to be the case, so please sign-up for the September round.

This month has been a rollercoaster of constantly changing hurdles and dynamic events that have made planning the September round incredibly challenging, and we appreciate all of the OMRRA members understanding as we adapt to the circumstances in front of us.

We really want to be on the race track with you this September, for one more weekend this year, so please register now and encourage your racing friends to do the same.

Thank you to everyone who voted for next year’s OMRRA Board of Director appointments. We’ll keep this short and sweet, the election results are below.

President:
Mark Wilson – 72 votes
Jason Doody – 1 vote
Cliff Griffin – 1 vote

Vice President:
Alex Taylor – 70 votes
Hannah Johnson – 1 vote
Bill Youngblood – 1 vote

Treasurer:
Taneka Burwell-Means – 71 votes
Keith DiBrino – 2 votes

Secretary:
Board to Appoint – 61 votes
Brandon Floyd – 3 votes
Indy Lucas – 1 vote
Jeff Brooks – 1 vote
Jason Doody – 1 vote
Justin Carr – 1 vote
Kris Porntharavongse – 1 vote
Kris Lee – 1 vote

Membership Rep:
Josh McKay – 73 votes

Members at Large:
Justin Carr – 69 votes
Patrick White – 63 votes
Alex Clarke – 1 vote
Rob Tatom – 1 vote
Kevin Pinkstaff – 1 vote
Hannah Johnson – 1 vote
Jason Doody – 1 vote

Congratulations to everyone who won their seat on the 2021 OMRRA Board of Directors.