Ladies and Gentlemen:
Just wanted to do a short wrap up for the 2016 Race Season and say Thanks to all of you for your support.
We had a fantastic race at Forest Lake on February 13th with over 200 entries and over 900 passes.
AMSNOW Film Crew and Editors were there to document and we are getting great press on this.

Speed Run Competition is gaining more and more interest and is growing, so we are very excited about 2017 Race Season and looking to again set a great Schedule.

The Chetek Winterfest is set for February 25th, 2017 and NSSR coordinated a deal to bring the Snow Outlaw Drags to Chetek on Friday and Saturday, so look for a long weekend of racing.
NSSR is working to set dates for Green Bay, Howard Lake, Fairmont, and Forest Lake again for 2017.
It appears that the Forest Lake Chamber wants to do a bigger race weekend with Kid's Pro Ice and ORA the same weekend, so triple the fun! That more than likely will be on February 11th, 2017

So to wrap up the 2016 Season:
One race held out of 5 planned and around 60 paid members, so numbers are down substantially as some paid early and some just paid when they came to Forest Lake. More had planned to join in Chetek, but that did not happen with the melt down.
Despite the Fantastic Weather and a Poor Race Season, NSSR is in Great Shape and is here to stay!
Our biggest concern is the impact financially with a poor business year for a lot of our sponsors, so let's rev up the sponsorship rally and get some more Companies on Board!

Membership is considered an annual fee, and these fees go to cover a lot of fixed overhead costs to keep NSSR Viable and sustained. Yes we have overhead as any business and even with only one race our expenditures stay the same, such as Tax Prep Fees, maintaining business status with the state of Minnesota, ISR Memberships, Insurance Application Costs, Permit costs, Web site fees, etc. NSSR is in good shape financially, as Ron and Stacy just invested more personal funds into the Race Organization.

Equipment is in great shape: we have the new Command Center Race Trailer and also added a new equipment trailer. Upgrades were made to the Race America timing system and we spent a lot of money on maintenance of the scale and the shaver this year that got a new paint job, some new wheel bearings, and all new hydraulic hoses! We also added 3 new Zamboni blades to the equipment just to keep them Sharp! The old fishbowl was again remodeled with a new window and new sheeting to make a heated room for TECH. We also had all new fresh chemicals that will now need to be replaced for the 2017 season - just more overhead! We are working toward buying or building a new shaver, and this will be a huge expense. That will give us redundancy and a backup in case something is broken. We plan to make it about the same with new hydraulics and a single hydraulic axle that will raise and lower as needed for ease of moving. If some welder/fabricator is willing to take this project on and make some added income, let Stacy or I know. We also plan to start to work on some new Pro Track Timing systems that maintain the 132 foot sensor calculation and matching NHRA standards, again a substantial expense in the future.

NSSR Reborn 10th Anniversary Year in 2017! How neat is this. CMSA fired up in 2004 for a great season bringing back the NSSR Venue and then in 2008 Ron and Stacy took over the NSSR Group known as CMSA and changed the name officially in 2009. However, we have operated under NSSR, Inc. the whole time since the incorporation.

2016 Fall Gathering/ Rules Meeting/ Maintenance Party (not much to do) So to wrap it up we will get ready for 2017 and work on a new schedule. We see no reason to do points with only one race and so there will be no plaques. Pro Racers can get there paybacks if needed, otherwise Stacy will roll over toward race entry fees for 2017. We will issue the 3 World Record Plaques that were earned at Forest Lake, these are most special!

Spring Banquet: None is Planned and while there is some interest in this, Spring has sprung and I know a lot of folks are busy now with getting ready for summer. Again, we will do a gathering and cookout/potluck in the Fall so we can talk smart about the 2017 season.

Insurance: We are continuing to work out the program with ISR and their provider. As of now we have agreed to remain an ISR affiliate, but we doing our own program which is a lot more friendly on the Race Teams for Drivers and Crew! You guys and gals are saving quite a bit of money with the current program. Our plan is to work it out so that the increase in cost is minimal.

Membership 2017 (Remodeled): Stacy and I have talked and it is evident that we need to make changes to how this is done. We have been pretty lax in getting this revenue in and hence if comes in later each year and ends up being handled at race events. This year really took a bite out of our revenue for NSSR and it is not fair to those members who are good at getting this in before the first of the year so NSSR can cover those overhead expenses without digging further into our own pockets. We are proposing to keep due costs the same for a member at the $100 for 2017, but....... it will be due to NSSR by December 31st of each year for the following race season. Those that come on or after January 1st and pay at race events, the membership fee will be increased to $150. To increase our membership, we will require that each Race Team also buy one Crew Membership under the same guideline of $100/$150. This will help with the funding of NSSR and is justified on the basis of most teams have 3 to 6 folks on the crew and only pay one membership for the Driver/Jockey. The one day Crew membership will essentially go from $25 to the $100 for the season. If you truly are a one person race competitor, and we do have a couple, then you will be exempt per approval of the Race Director. Additional Crew Passes will still remain at $25. In addition, the Daily Race Fee of $30 for the Pro Track will only be able to be used at one race event, and not be a way to get around being a member. This has become an issue as some are thinking it is better to just pay the race fee at each race as it comes out cheaper. Sorry about this folks, but that just puts more of a strain on NSSR financially, and as I mentioned, Membership is not a per race fee, it is set up to maintain an organization to present this type of race venue and cover overhead/fixed costs.

Again, I want to thank all of you for your support and enthusiasm with NSSR, Inc. We appreciate you and will work to continue to bring the only World Record Speed Run Series in North America - US and Canada!