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THE HUDSON VALLEY'S NEWEST OLD NEWSPAPER | |||
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Start Your Engines
Will Wawarsing Greenlight Rally Race?
At last Thursday's Wawarsing Town Board meeting, Ivan Orisek and Rich Otis of Rally New York made a pitch to use some 20 miles of roads in and around the town for their September Rally New York Event.
Orisek, Rally New York's president and Otis, its chief communications officer, have been involved with rally car racing for the last seven years. The competition began seven years ago in Delaware County and moved to Sullivan County in 2004. Some complaints, which Orisek and Otis maintain are “trumped up charges,” caused Narrowsburg, which has hosted previous racing events, to deny access to some of its roads. The decision was reached by their board in June, which is why the racing pair is only now coming to the Town of Wawarsing, just six weeks before its event on September 7 and 8. The roads (see listing at end of article) would be closed for three to five hours each day. In addition to using town roads, the race's organizers expressed interest in holding the event's opening and closing ceremonies in the Village of Ellenville. When asked about this possibility, the village board said that it was waiting to here from Ellenville Police Chief Phil Mattracion for his assessment. Town Supervisor James Dolaway began the group's presentation by reading a letter written by Ulster County Tourism Director Rick Remsnyder into the meeting's minutes that supported bringing the race to Wawarsing. Both he and the Rally New York representatives both emphasized the race's ability to draw visitors to the area and raise the town's profile in the Hudson Valley. Orisek and Otis explained that the races generally draw 35 to 50 entries. Each of the entries include a two-person racing team (pilot and co-pilot) and a crew of four. In addition, the races tend to draw large crowds, which could make an economic benefit to the area. In a letter from Rally New York to the Town of Tusten in Sullivan County, the group states, “If we just use the drivers and their support staff for an average of three nights, that amounts to over $100,000 spent in Sullivan County for this event. Adding incidentals and the trickle down factor, Rally New York created approximately $200,000 in visitor spending.” The board was interested in exploring the event's possibilities but were also somewhat leery of what the race would mean with regard to safety concerns, the inconveniencing of town residents, and wear and tear on town roads. The races that are being proposed for Wawarsing are timed races. Orisek made it clear that there would be no “wheel to wheel” racing. Instead, each car will leave its appointed starting line at one-minute intervals. The best times from each of the stages is then added up to decide the winner. With regards to safety concerns expressed by the town board, Orisek responded, “In the seven years we have been doing this we have never had a wreck. Our primary concern is the safety of the residents and the spectators. The drivers understand the risks that they take but fortunately, we have never had a bad incident.” Orisek and Otis are looking for as much as a three-year commitment from the board. The board said it wants to see proof of insurance from race coordinators and have a contract in place delineating their responsibilities regarding road maintenance. The board is also seeking some direction from town residents regarding their feelings about the race. The board will decide by its August 2 meeting whether it will approve the race or not.
The roads to be closed and the distances they are requesting are listed below:
COMMENTS about this article (22) Copyright © 2007, Electric Valley Media Corp. All Rights Reserved. |
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