Hello Fellow Autocrossers,

2012 was a great year for Equipe Rapide and for autocrossing in the metroplex. We conducted our regular 10 event schedule. The 2012 season could not have been such a success without the hard work and dedication of the members, competitors, and board of directors.

The annual awards ceremony will be held on Saturday January 19th at 6:30 at my office at 2865 Market Loop, Southlake, TX 76092. We might change venues if we have an unusually large crowd. Expect it to be as fun as in years past. If you or your company would like to donate door prizes for the event then please contact me at equiperapide@gmail.com. To register for the banquet please send $20 per person to equiperapide@gmail.com paypal address. There is a buy it now button on our website that will make this easy for you. Banquet registrations can also be mailed in. Contact me at equiperapide@gmail.com for the mailing address.

2013 is going to be an exciting year for Equipe Rapide competitors. We have made a few tweaks to the rules.

We have made Rapide PAX mandatory for all eligible competitors. It was infrequent that an entrant did not participate in Rapide PAX and was a hassle for everyone else who had to deal with the additional registration requirements.

We have eliminated the "R". You will not need to register for Rapide PAX, have an R or W in your online registration garage, or place an R or W on the car at any time during the event.

All your runs will count towards your class trophy position.
All your runs will also count towards your Rapide PAX position

We have set a target of 8 runs per event in 2013. If we have a large turnout then we may have to reduce to 6.

Cars will run in the same heat with their class. That means that all STR cars run in the same heat, all Tire class cars run in the same heat, all X class cars run in the same heat, etc… The worker chief will post preliminary run/work order prior to the event as other local clubs do. He will tweak the order after registration closes on the morning of the event. The classes will rotate from event to event so that the same class does not always run first or last heat.

We will be running ABBA heat structure unless conditions require changes. This allows each competitor to have a morning run time and an afternoon run time.

If you have a work assignment that is not during a heat such as registration, clean up, setup, etc… then you are still required to run all your runs in the heat with your class.

There are a few other minor changes to the rules to accommodate the changes already outlined here. Look for the complete set of rules to be posted on our website in the near future.

Fees for 2013 are as follows:

Members $35
Non-members $40
Single membership $20
Family membership $25

We are offering 10 for the price of 7 as a pre-pay option for a total of $245. This requires you to purchase a membership. You can purchase the membership and the season pre-pay online at the Equipe Rapide club store in axware.

https://axwaresystems.com/axorm. These season pre-pays help us pay for insurance, online registration, and other expenses that must paid prior to the season starting. Season pre-pays also secure your desired work assignment for the year. If you always dreamed of being the starter, announcer, tech inspector, or just a plain corner worker then get your season pre-pay in early. We fill those spots on a first come first served basis.

For 2013 we are excited to have Dallas Raceway in Crandall, TX and Mineral Wells Airpark for all of our scheduled events. We will be conducting a pre-pro solo in Mineral Wells on March 17th. It will give you a chance to practice your mad skills. The calendar can be seen at http://autocross.com/er

I am looking forward to my third year as president of Equipe Rapide. I appreciate all those who offered words of encouragement and helped me in the past. The positive energy and enthusiasm that you all bring to the events makes this sport stand out among motorsports. You are a great bunch of guys and gals and I am eager to see you all again.

Sincerely,


Andy Cost
President – Equipe Rapide