In a few days we will flip our calendars from 2008 to 2009. The change from 2008 to 2009 is more than just flipping pages on a calendar for the American Sim Racing Series, it is about a brand new year and another great season.

Over the past two weeks, the American Sim Racing Series has made several changes. The new class of Championship Committee members has been selected and each has a different background and story of how they made it to ASRS. These individuals as a group will have the responsibility of reviewing penalties and incidents on the racetrack and thus will provide a level playing field for everyone here at ASRS.

New for 2009 is the "Realignment" of divisions. The National Series and Modified Series have been dropped in favor of the Late Model Sportsman Series, which will focus solely on short tracks. The Outlaw Paintshop All American Series will see a bit of an elevation in 2009 as it travels to a few slightly larger facilities and changes from three season per year to only two. The Camping World Truck Series will also see a change, as a result of a late event change, Iowa Speedway has gained the truck series, while South Boston has lost the series after three years on schedule. Iowa will become the second event in the Chase for the Championship, after the inaugural event at Chicagoland Speedway. Meanwhile, Mansfield will replace South Boston as the 23rd event on schedule, and 8th in the Chase for the Championship, after occupying a May date since 2005.

A few brand new special events will be run in 2009 in addition to the 12th Annual All American 400 in Novemeber and the 4th Annual Snowball Derby in December. While details will be forthcoming, these events will be "can't miss" races.

Everyone at ASRS is excited about what 2009 holds. The Late Model Sportsman Series has gained attention across the sim racing community and a whole new crop of rookies will take to the track in 2009. With everything going on, ASRS is the place to be in 2009. So stop by and give us a try.

Late Model Sportsman Storm into ASRS!

The 2009 ASRS Late Model Sportsman Series schedule has been released. The schedule includes two-nine race seasons. Among the 18 host tracks, many have previously hosted ASRS events, including trips to Stockton 99 Speedway, which hosted its most recent ASRS event in 2006; Colorado National Speedway, which has not held an event since 2007 and New York's Spencer Speedway, which has not hosted an ASRS division since 2005. In addition, two tracks are scheduled to host their first ASRS event in 2009 as part of the Late Model Sportsman Series, Wisconsin's Lacrosse Speedway and Southern National Raceway Park in North Carolina.

"The really neat thing about this series is that we have limited it to the short tracks, we won't take it to any track over 3/4 mile in length, and realistically my goal it keep the tracks under 5/8 mile." ASRS President Jim Foose said. "I think this is a good thing that we are going to with this series and I hope that everyone has a good time in this series. We are happy to be able to return to many of the tracks that built the foundation of this league and what we have become today."

The American Sim Racing Series has seen continued growth since its birth in 2002. Since 2005, some of the biggest names in short track sim racing have raced in the American Sim Racing Series, making it America’s #1 Online Short Track League. For more information on the ASRS visit www.americansimracing.com.

ARCA Sim Racing, the future of ASRS?

Earlier this year, The Sim Factory released it's ARCA Sim Racing title. The title was called "The Most Realistic Stock Car Sim To Date" by Sim Racing Tonight, a sim racing based webcast show. Even the sim's package touts it as "as real as it gets". When it first came out the track selection was very limited. But as the year has gone on, The Sim Factory has released numerous patches that have included more tracks and seemingly have increased the following of the title.

At first glance one would be in awe over the mass selection of cars, but would lose that feeling when they saw the limited selection of tracks. However, each track is highly detailed and nearly an exact replica of it's real life counterpart. The cars are even more impressive with the bodies and paint schemes life-like. The net code is the greatest ever offered and the physics surpass many other sims offered.

Just recently ARCA's home track, Toledo Speedway, was released by The Sim Factory. The track has become a popular stop on the ARCA schedule and packs in many fans for it's weekly offering of Late Models, Stock Cars and Figure 8. The Sim Factory's version is so close to it's real world couterpart that you have to scrape the wall just to make sure you are still driving a simulation. Toledo has changed many people's outlooks on ARCA Sim Racing and The Sim Factory and has brought the fun level of ARCA Sim Racing to a new high.

So, what does this have to do with ASRS? Well, you will be the first to know. The plan is to begin testing ARCA Sim Racing online with our league sometime early in 2009 with plans to move to the sim sometime around the midpoint of 2009. What we will look for during testing is the little details that will make it even more life-like for ASRS and we will also be learning the interface and options available to league adminstrators within ARCA Sim Racing. Our plan is to allow a few more tracks to be released before fully commiting to running a divison, but we fully expect The Sim Factory to have most of the tracks for 2009 out by the season's midpoint. We will start out on short tracks and slowly work our way up to the superspeedways. Eventually running a full ARCA season here at ASRS.

We encourage everyone to give ARCA Sim Racing a try and give The Sim Factory a chance to improve on it's maiden voyage into racing simulations. It will only get better! Despite some early issues, The Sim Factory has acted quickly and addressed many concerns from the sim racing community and along the way has improved ARCA Sim Racing greatly. You can pick up a copy of ARCA Sim Racing at http://www.arcasimracing.com

A look towards 2009

With the 2008 season just about behind us, the time is now to move on to 2009. The ASRS Officials are busying working on many things we hope will not only attract more drivers, but also imprive competition throughout the league. Among some things to be addressed this winter:

1) Regaining the loyalty of our longtime members and ensuring lengthy stays at ASRS. Not only are we going back to our roots, we are also looking at ways to build stronger, longer lasting friendships with all of the drivers here.

2) Improving championship battles, which will include a rules change in the Camping World Truck Series that will allow drivers to miss two races before being excluded from the Chase for the Championship. (The current rule allows one missed race before a driver is excluded from the championship chase).

3) Working partnerships with other leagues, whether it be through a strategic merger or just a strategic alliance. Our goal is to not only strengthen our league, but also the online short track racing community. We are in the process of debuting an "Official Partner" program that will allow supporting sites to display the ASRS logo and show their support of the league. The Official Partner program will also allow ASRS to be seen in more places by more drivers.

4) Addition of select "just for fun" events, such as a Crash O Rama and a Street Stock World National event throughout the season. These events will allow some drivers to test drive ASRS and enjoy a night of fun simulated stock car racing.

5) A few tweaks to the rulebook will be made over the offseason, allowing closer competition and higher quality racing while opening the door to even more drivers. The changes will be mostly minor updates.

6) There is talk of charging a "team ownership fee" in 2008 instead of a General Membership fee per driver. Anyone wishing to own a team within ASRS will have to have a "Team Owner's license" that will be sold at the beginning to the year. Under the proposed program, teams will be strictly limited to four teams. The license is expected to cost $10 if the proposed rule is put in place for 2009. But, nothing has been decided on in regards to that proposal.

7) Work is ongoing with the "Realignment 2009 and beyond" plan, while it appears we will continue to utilize NASCAR Racing 2003 Season by Papyrus, there is an outside chance we may switch to ARCA Sim Racing by The Sim Factory at some point in 2009. Again, plans are unclear at this time and no final decision has been reached regarding ARCA Sim Racing or rFactor. We have been very impressed by the ARCA Sim Racing sim and the quality of support the folks at The Sim Factory have given everyone in that community. With more and more tracks coming out and updates being released frequently, ARCA Sim Racing could hold the keys to the future of ASRS.

On behalf of everyone at ASRS, I want to say thank you for your support in 2008, I hope you will continue to support us through the Winter Heat program and the 3rd Annual Snowball Derby. I hope to see each and every one of you again in 2009. I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable holiday season. If over the winter you come up with a suggestion or have a comment or a concern I urge you to email me at jim@americansimracing.com and I will be glad to take a look at what you would like to discuss.

Best Regards,


Jim Foose
President & General Manager
American Sim Racing Series
http://www.americansimracing.com
Email: racerfoose42@cox.net
AOL IM: FOOSERACING42

2008 Season winds down

It's November and the temperatures are dropping nationwide, snow is falling in some places and people are hurrying out to get the latest and greatest gift for the holidays. November also marks the official end of the 2008 season for the American Sim Racing Series.

With the ASRS Craftsman Truck Series 2008 season in the books, and the 100th ASRS Craftsman Truck Series event, also the final race run under the Craftsman banner comes the long, cold winter months. But that will not be the case this winter, with ASRS Winter Heat warming up your competitiveness and keeping the racing going year-round.

Before we close the chapter on 2008, lets take a look back at the season that was:

Craftsman Truck Series:
38 drivers scored points over the 25 race schedule. 13 drivers scored a win in the ultra-competitive series that prides itself on Tough Trucks, Tough Racing. The season also marked the first time that a driver has won back to back to back to back championships in the American Sim Racing Series. Although the season had its rough spots, 2009 looks to have a great field of trucks competing for the championship.

BozPC National Series:
23 drivers scored points over the 8 race schedule. 5 made it to Victory Lane. The series was dropped from the American Sim Racing Series lineup for 2009 after a dismal year in 2008. The 2009 schedule had called for a more "premier" type schedule dominated by intermediate tracks. Unless something changes for the good, that will not happen in 2009.

Modified Series:
28 drivers made races, but only 6 reached victory lane. The Modified Series had a transition year, as it was dropped from the lineup early in the year, only to be brought back. The experiment appeared to be working successfully early on, but interest and support fell off and before the season concluded, it was announced the modifieds would not be back in 2009.

Outlaw Paintshop All American Series:
The Outlaw Paintshop All American Series saw some of the most competitive fields in online short track racing. Each season presented it own challenges to the drivers as nobody knew what to expect around the next turn. The season finale at Rockingham Speedway showcased the drivers on the largest track the series has ever competed on, and the race was exciting and had its own suspense all the way to the checkered flag. The Outlaw Paintshop All American Series is on the slate for 2009, and some changes have been considered, but it appears the series will return with a similar gameplan in 2009. It was also announced that the Outlaw Paintshop All American Series will take part in the Winter Heat program this winter, that will take the green flag Tuesday, November 25th.

2009 holds alot of promise and looks to be an exciting year for ASRS. We appreciate your support through 2008 and hope you will continue to call ASRS your home. We will have many exciting announcements this winter and really hope you will join us for Winter Heat and theupcoming 3rd Annual Snowball Derby.

Continuing the Turnaround!

For the ASRS, the 2008 season has been one of missed opportunities, but nonetheless ASRS is continuing to move forward and once again is showing the strength necessary to succeed in the sim racing world. Although car counts are slightly lower than a year ago, the racing is more competitve than ever and the quality of racing has exceeded many expectations. ASRS President Jim Foose reflects on the season and the looks to the future:

"It has not been the easiest season for us as a league, there were numerous times I thought about shutting the doors and calling it quits. But, I continued on and belive we are turning things around with our program. The elements are there to have excellent events, we just need to improve our car counts." "2009 is going to be a different ballgame, we feel the time might be here to look at other sims to utilize for the future, but also feel the flip side of that when drivers don't want to learn a new sim or build all new setups. It is a balancing act for me to make a decision on where I want to be next year and where our league should be. It definetely is coming though."

Whatever 2009 has in store for ASRS, it will be done with the same passion and professionalism as years past.

11th Annual All American 400 around the corner!

The 11th Annual All American 400 has begun registering drivers to compete in the event. This will mark the 4th event hosted and sanctioned by the American Sim Racing Series (ASRS), who took the event over in 2005 from the former USA Series. The eventful All American Speedweek kicks off with the ASRS Modified Series 100 lapper on Wednesday, November 5th and continues on Saturday, November 8th with the All American 400. The event will be split into 2- 200 lap events, one featuring the ASRS Outlaw Paintshop All American Series and the other featuring the ASRS Outlaw Late Model Series. In 2006, over 80 drivers signed up for the event with 53 officially making an attempt at starting the event.

Registration is free for current ASRS members, and just $5 for non-ASRS members. The winner will receive a trophy.

Lap Sponsorships are available for both races, $1 a lap and $10 for Laps 100 & 200 in each race.

It proves to be the biggest online short track race of the year, and is rich with tradition. Check out http://www.americansimracing.com for more information.

Event Information: http://asrs.bozpc.com/2008AA400.pdf
Entry Form/ Entry List: http://z8.invisionfree.com/ASRS/index.p ... topic=2216
Lap Sponsors: http://asrs.bozpc.com/2008_aa400_laps.htm

Don't forget the 3rd Annual Snowball Derby will take place December 13th!

The American Sim Racing Series has seen continued growth since its birth in 2002. Since 2005, some of the biggest names in short track sim racing have raced in the American Sim Racing Series, making it America’s #1 Online Short Track League. For more information on the ASRS visit http://www.americansimracing.com.

Exciting Race Ends with Close Finish @ Talladega

(Talladega, AL) For the third time, the ASRS Craftsman Truck Series headed to Talladega Superspeedway for the Mountain Dew 125. The level of excitement and action was higher than ever as the top 4 in points were separated by just 63 points.

EJ McDonell got the event started off in the right direction by winning the Speedway Action Pole Award. McDonell was joined by Johnathon Caddell on the front row. McDonell would lead the first lap, but by the time the pack of trucks completed lap 2 it was points leader, Jim Foose leading the field. The first caution flew on lap 9 for a multi truck crash involving 2nd place in points Eric Bannenberg, and fellow EB Racing teammates Steve Buhala and Caddell after contact between Buhala and Kevin Chance triggered the crash. Bannenberg continued on but limped to the finish, Buhala was eliminated completely and Caddell continued on with minimal damage. Eric Bannenberg limped around to lead a lap before handing the lead over to Jake Morris, who assumed the lead on the round of pit stops that occurred under the caution flag. The race took on a clean and green look for the next 15 laps before the competition caution flew to allow all drivers to finish the race without having to make another stop for fuel. Following the restart, Jake Morris once again led after remaining on the track under the competition caution. The JF2 Racing teammates of Wes Johnston and EJ McDonell made their way to the front, while Jim Foose, Johnathon Caddell and Kevin Chance battled behind the leaders for several laps. The first driver to make a move at the lead was Chance, followed by Foose, who with the help of Johnston passed Jake Morris for the lead. EJ McDonell had a mechanical failure and dropped out of the event on lap 30. Chance, Johnston and the Morris brothers made a move to pass Foose for the lead and sent Foose back to 4th, but Foose and Caddell once again hooked up and drafted by and back into the lead. With a handful of laps remaining Jordan Morris made contact with Jake Morris, sending Jake through the grass to avoid an incident. Kevin Chance bumped the #26 of Caddell on lap 44 and sent Caddell to the apron, Caddell continued but made contact with Chance as he regained control of his Dodge and sent Chance flying into the inside wall, ending Chance’s night. No caution flew and it was smooth sailing as the top 2 drivers, Foose and Jordan Morris pulled away from the remaining trucks. Morris would try high and low, but never could get around Foose for the lead as Jim Foose cruised to his fourth victory of 2008 by just .050 seconds and extended his points lead from 21 to 65 points over Eric Bannenberg. Jordan Morris was a close 2nd followed by Johnston, Caddell and Jake Morris in 5th.

Trucks Continue to Impress!

After 17 races this season, the ASRS Craftsman Truck Series has seen many highs and lows, but the Camping World 100 at Gateway International Raceway was a high. After a long drought, Andy Warren returned to the Winner's Circle for the first time since Atlanta in October of 2006, bringing a Toyota Tundra with him. It was only the 2nd time a Toyota had reached Victory Lane, and the first since Josh Berry took his #91 Toyota to victory at Auto Club Speedway California in February 2007. Toyota also won the pole and occupied the front row for the 60 lap event.

In fact it was an interesting route Warren took this season, after leaving the ASRS in May, Warren returned to action at Bristol Motor Speedway. Warren was running 2nd with a handful of laps remaining at Bristol when he lost control of his #6 Toyota, and losing several positions.

While the championship "chasers" did not have a very good showing as a whole, Eric Bannenberg was the shining star of that group with his 2nd place finish. Chasers Jim Foose, EJ McDonell, Wes Johnston and Dave Soja all had issues that prevented a solid showing at Gateway.

Only one Chevrolet team finished among the top 5, Corey Gordon, who made his first ASRS Craftsman Truck Series start. One Toyota, two Dodges and one Ford made up the Top 5.

JF2-Red Bull Racing played a little trick on the competition with a double take as Jim Foose and Wes Johnston both drove Red Bull Energy Drink backed Silverados. Johnathon Caddell debuted a brand new black and gree Tahoe Smokeless Tobacco Dodge, while Caleb Hindes showed off his Vitamin Water Toyota.

Many elements came together to create a great race at Gateway International Raceway, as the Craftsman Truck Series heads to New England for the 100 lap event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Round #3 of the Chase for the Championship and Round #18 on the 25 race 2008 schedule.

Server Move Complete

After a week of limbo, the ASRS Server move has been completed. As of August 27th, we have joined the NRT Redline Server family. The customer service with NRT/Redline is phenomenal and the quality of service is unbeatable. We are very satisfied with the move to say the least.

During a test at Atlanta Motor Speedway it was noted that the ping for many drivers had dropped dramatically compared to the old server. Better connections, means better racing for us all! We are happy to be with NRT/Redline and look forward to a long relationship with them.

NRT/Redline also offers servers for rFactor and ARCA Sim Racing, in fact they were involved in developing servers for ARCA Sim Racing tests prior to the public release. With NRT, we at ASRS feel our potential is greater than ever!

What does 2009 hold for ASRS?

Many options are being looked at for the 2009 American Sim Racing Series season. The possibility of a COT Series as well as the realignment of the current divisions to give each its own unique identity are options as of right now. We have several other options we are looking at but instead of creating a false sense of hope for our members we will continue to work on them before announcing any changes. Only time will tell.

Goodbye Mesa Marin, Hello Chicagoland

The 2009 ASRS Craftsman Truck Series schedule has been released and the only major change is addition of the Chicagoland event which replaces long time Craftsman Truck Series track, Mesa Marin Raceway.



Mesa Marin Raceway has hosted the ASRS Craftsman in each of the four seasons since the series inception in 2005. It was Mesa Marin where 2006 and 2007 series champion Jim Foose scored his first Pole Award. It was Mesa Marin where alot of the action the series has seen for the first four years of it's existence has taken place. But now it is time to move on, Mesa Marin has been torn down for three years, the result of a housing development. Even in 2008, the initial ASRS schedule did not feature Mesa Marin, but after much debate the powers to be agreed it was a date worth keeping. In fact, Mesa Marin was one of just three former NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series tracks on the schedule, filling the double dates on the schedule. With Atlanta dropping it's second date, Atlanta will assume the March event traditionally held at Mesa Marin.
With every door that closes, a new one opens.

Chicagoland Speedway, long known as a hotbed for testing Craftsman Trucks, since NASCAR does not allow testing at venues on the schedule and Chicagoland was the only 1.5 mile tri-oval in the United States that was not on the truck schedule. Chicagoland has also become a hotbed for ASRS testing. When the series administration felt the drivers needed more track time on the 1.5 mile tracks, it was Chicagoland that scored a testing date. When the ASRS needed a new venue for the National Series it chose Chicagoland. And now with NASCAR choosing Chicagoland for the Truck Series, ASRS has once again chosen the 1.5 mile speedway for 2009.

"What makes Chicagoland unique is that the backstretch is not straight, it is actually curved, and that really gives the drivers more room to pass and more room to race" Jim Foose, ASRS President said. "I said it after we tested there in July, the place deserves a date, I was ready to make it happen right then and there, but now I am very excited that NASCAR has chosen to do so and that opened the door for us to go there as well. In a one hour test, we ran more side by side than nose to tail. It will be one exciting race for all of us".

So as the door closes on Mesa Marin, another opens for Chicagoland Speedway. Everyone at ASRS is happy to add Chicagoland to our schedule in 2009, but we are also sad to lose Mesa Marin.

2009 Craftsman Truck Series Schedule Released

(Cleveland, OH) The 2009 ASRS Truck Series Schedule was released this afternoon. The total number of races remains at 25 events. The schedule will take the Truck Series to 25 different race tracks over the course of nine months.

Highlights of the 2009 schedule:

• Atlanta Motor Speedway takes the mid-March date from Mesa Marin. Mesa Marin had hosted the Truck Series in each year of it’s existence, dating back to 2005.
• Chicagoland Speedway receives the fall date from Atlanta Motor Speedway, the 1.5 mile tri-oval will host it’s first ASRS Truck Series race in 2009. The event will move to late August.
• Talladega Superspeedway will host it’s annual event in late October, becoming the 22nd event of the season.
• Two events will be held on Tuesday evenings, Mansfield Motorsports Park on May 19 and Bristol Motor Speedway August 18.
• Two former NASCAR Truck Series tracks will fill the double dates for Martinsville Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway. Music City Motorplex will host an event on October 22nd, while South Boston Speedway will host an event on November 5th.

2009 Schedule: http://racepointsmanager.com/pm3/?league=1192&frame=&o=schedule&s=6&season=2009

The American Sim Racing Series has seen continued growth since its birth in 2002. Since 2005, some of the biggest names in short track sim racing have raced in the American Sim Racing Series, making it America’s #1 Online Short Track League. For more information on the ASRS visit www.americansimracing.com.

Craftsman Truck Series Chase for the Championship Kicks off!

The ASRS Craftsman Truck Series kicked off the 2008 Chase for the Championship in Bristol on a Tuesday night and for the second time in three years, it was Jim Foose taking home the trophy. Foose used a no pit stop strategy to earn both wins at Bristol. Check out the slideshow of photos to see all the exciting action from the .533 mile Bullring. Foose currently leads EJ McDonell by 15 points.



2008-08-19 CTS Bristol

Chicagoland Test a Success!!!

The ASRS Craftsman Truck Series took to the Chicagoland Speedway Thursday night for some testing at the 1.5 mile tri-oval. Robert Matthews in his Last Lap Motorsports Toyota Tundra turned the quickest lap at 30.954 seconds, 174.452MPH. Matthews was followed by Skip Honaker's Chevrolet at 30.960 seconds, 174.419 MPH. Timmy Johnston in the #81, current runner up int he ASRS Craftsman Truck Series point standings, EJ McDonell in the #33, Series points leader and two time defending Champion of the Truck Series, Jim Foose in 5th and Steve Buhala's #10 Dodge turned the 6th fastest lap of the one hour session.

The drivers in attendance praised the track for it's multi-groove surface and walked away from the session pleased with the results. At the end of the practice session, the drivers ran a mock race for the final 10 minutes of practice. Foose and Honaker both took turns at the lead, battling side by side for many laps in that 10 minute session, with Foose finally edging out Honaker at the finish line as the red and black flags waved to signal the end of the session.

"Our Interstate Batteries Chevy Silverado ran great all night, we were surprised by the number of choices we were given at this track, you could run low, high, or in the middle, and we did. Our truck ran real good up high and down low and when we were in the draft we could go anywhere on the track. This track really needs a truck date in 2009, but if they don't get it, we will be back to test here again next year".

-Jim Foose, Driver #42 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet

"I agree what a fun track there where many groves to use and was a blast to test at. I think it will be a great track to have on the schedule."

-Skip Honaker, Driver #2 Camping World/RVs.com Chevrolet

"This is all of ASRS wrapped up into one track, it's got drafting, coasting, side by side action and some differing lines, it's a great racetrack. It's got everything."

-EJ McDonell, Driver #33 Roadloans Chevrolet

Track: CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY
Date: 07/31/08

Session: Practice

P # DRIVER TIME
1 88 R Matthews 30.954 Toyota
2 2 S Honaker 30.960 Chevrolet
3 81 T Johnston 31.121 Chevrolet
4 33 E McDonell 31.131 Chevrolet
5 42 J Foose 31.160 Chevrolet
6 10 S Buhala 31.177 Dodge

ASRS Celebrating 400th race with 40% off Registration!!!

(Cleveland, OH) The American Sim Racing Series is hosting its 400th race on Tuesday, August 5th with the ASRS Outlaw Paintshop All American Series Snowflake 100 at Five Flags Speedway. And to celebrate will be offering 40% off the price of an ASRS Membership as well as 40% off the cost of Race Sponsorships.

ASRS Membership will now be $3.00 (savings of $2) for the duration of the promotion, which is scheduled for the ENTIRE month of August. ASRS Race Sponsorships for regular events will now cost $15.00 (savings of $10) for the remainder of the 2008 season.

“While we are celebrating our 400th race, we also are slashing prices due to the economy” said Jim Foose, ASRS President. “We feel this is a great thing to help out anyone looking for great online racing, especially since as far as I know none of us are millionaires. Hopefully, it will bring some new faces into ASRS and we can showcase the great racing we have here to those new faces!”

The American Sim Racing Series races Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings. The ASRS Outlaw Paintshop All American Series races every Tuesday evening, while the BozPc National Series and Modified Series share Wednesday nights and the ASRS Craftsman Truck Series races a total of 25 events per year on Thursday nights. Information on each division as well as the American Sim Racing Series is available at www.americansimracing.com. Stop by and give ASRS a try!

The American Sim Racing Series has seen continued growth since its birth in 2002. Since 2005, some of the biggest names in short track sim racing have raced in the American Sim Racing Series, making it America’s #1 Online Short Track League. For more information on the ASRS visit www.americansimracing.com.

Reconnecting

ASRS has seen many great races, and as of late the cautions counts have been lower and the quality of racing much higher. But, the car count has dwindled along the way, some drivers left for scheduling reasons, others left because they felt they weren't wanted here and others left because they were a hazard on the track and finally realized that. We are not here to draw conclusions on people, and we aren't going to judge our members by how one or two races goes. But, we are here to create the BEST online racing community around, and we have worked very much to improve on our strengths and overcome and improve our weaknesses. We feel that the product (our on track action) is a great value to anyone and that our league has a very solid foundation for the future. We have begun to open up some communication lines with former members, taking criticism about our league as well as compliments.

We must face it; we make mistakes, just like everybody else. We may not have always followed this plan, but we feel it is the best policy now: Admit when you make a mistake and learn from it. If you feel wronged by a call we make, please send an email letting us know that your feel wronged so that we can do our best to correct a problem that may exist. But please avoid the name calling, profanity and threats in your email, because quite frankly these don't add anything to your facts and more than likely will result in your email being ignored. However, if you present your side in a calm manner and allow us to do our work here as officials, we will appreciate your positive attitude and will do what we can to work with you.

As we begin to reconnect to drivers, we want to remind everyone that putting aside minor differences is what the world is about and if we can all agree to put aside these slight differences we can all make ASRS a great racing league with high car counts, high quality racing and a great community surrounding it. Together we can accomplish more than we could by ourselves. We are all a part of Team ASRS, and there is no "I" in TEAM!!!

Admitting mistakes is a great way to build to trust and integrity, two things that ASRS wants to have in it's drivers and that we would like our drivers to have in us. We aren't here to screw around and play head games with our members, we are here to race and put on great racing action.

Flag to Flag at Iowa!

Sometimes everything goes right and allows a race to go caution free. The fact that it is a rarity in online racing just adds to the mystique of the caution free race. It takes a perfect track, with great drivers and patience by all in order to achieve it, but when it happens it is something truly special.

That exact scenario played out at Iowa Speedway, the 7/8th mile tri-oval in Newton, Iowa. In fact the caution free race has only occured three times in the history of the American Sim Racing Series. Let's take a look back at the three events that have gone green to checkered with no interruptions.

June 22, 2006: Craftsman Truck Series, Milwaukee, WI. Jim Foose led all 60 laps from the 2nd starting position after passing pole sitter Chuck Darling going into turn 1. Only three trucks remained on the lead lap at the finish of a race that saw Foose complete the entire event without making a pit stop.

June 5, 2008: Craftsman Truck Series, Fort Worth, TX. Nicholas Teto won the pole for the Texas event, but only led one lap before Jim Foose took the lead away, the only driver that challenged Foose was Skip Honaker, who led 12 laps around the race's mid point before relinquishing the lead to Foose again. Foose drove off with the win in that event as well. While the event did see one caution flag, it was after the white flag flew and did not slow the pace of the race whatsoever as the field raced back to the checkered flag. Again, Foose completed the event without making a pit stop.

July 22, 2008: Outlaw Paintshop All American Series, Newton, IA. Chad Williams won the pole and led the majority of the event, but was challenged by Nicholas Teto who led several times and EJ McDonell the only other driver to complete the entire 75 lap event and finish 2nd. Williams led 59 laps and took the win and for his 2nd in a row in Outlaw Paintshop All American Series.

The caution free racing shows the high quality drivers that flock to ASRS to get their racing fix and the respect that each has for the other competitors. It is simply amazing to see a race go caution free and a whole lot of fun for all. If you aren't signed up for ASRS, you should be!

Modifieds bring back the Fun!

The ASRS Modified Series returned just about a month ago now, and has provided some of the most exciting, action packed racing we have seen in 2008. With three different winners over the four events run thus far, the series has proved it's value to the American Sim Racing Series.

Drivers seem to flock to the Modified Series, many enjoying the "throwback style" of the division, where each event features a 4-lap, just for fun "trophy dash" and the previous race's winner starts at the rear of the field. The racing action has been unpredictable as well, with one of the most unlikely upsets coming this past week at Thompson International Speedway. After the dominate driver, Eric McClure, was sent down pit road for jumping a mid-race restart, a rookie, Kevin Chance assumed the lead with Wes Johnston following. Johnston would wrestle the lead away from Chance as McClure lurked in the rearview mirror. McClure would try everything he had to get around Johnston, but would come up short at the finish, finishing a close second to Johnston, who led the final 12 laps, his only laps led all season.

What the Modifieds also provide is an excellent proving ground for rookie drivers, allowing drivers new to ASRS to race with the stars of the ASRS. It also is a place for drivers to gain the experience to complete in the premier division, the Craftsman Truck Series, where rookie mistakes are far and few between and drivers must prove themselves able to control their vehicle prior to gaining entry into the series. It should come as no surprise that the Craftsman Truck Series features some of the closest, cleanest racing in all of online racing!

The ASRS Modified Series features competitive racing, a "throwback style" and provides drivers with a proving ground that is quickly developing new drivers for the Craftsman Truck Series. It also is allowing drivers to have fun racing online.

National Series back in Action!!

The BozPC National Series rolls into Sparta, Kentucky this week for the Kentucky 105. After a month break from racing, the drivers of the BozPC National Series are ready for battle and ready to attack the largest and fastest track on the 2008 schedule.

So far in 2008, the ASRS BozPC National Series has seen two winners through the first three events. Jim Foose kicked off the season with a win at Richmond and followed that up with a win at Mansfield in round #2 of the season. EJ McDonell kicked his season into overdrive with a win at South Boston in round #3. The Kentucky Speedway has provided some of the most thrilling racing action in the history of ASRS, with McDonell scoring a Late Model Series win in 2007, and teammate Skip Honaker winning the Craftsman Truck Series event in 2007. Eric McClure, who is scheduled to be making his BozPC National Series debut at Kentucky, won the Craftsman Truck Series event in 2006 at this track.

With the field stacked with talent and plenty of racing action around ever turn in the 105 mile event, Kentucky is one race you will not want to miss. After all Kentucky is known for horsepower and late race charges to victory, but it has also become the home of the underdogs.

The American Sim Racing Series has seen continued growth since its birth in 2002. Since 2005, some of the biggest names in short track sim racing have raced in the American Sim Racing Series, making it America’s #1 Online Short Track League. For more information on the ASRS visit www.americansimracing.com.

What it's all about

ASRS is all about the people. It is about creating a racing league that we all would like to participate in, and that is something we have done, especially over the past month. But it's about more: it's about being fair to everyone and being honest with our members and ourselves. ASRS is about treating people the right way and working with people to make it even better with every turn of events.

The key is to look ahead and not back, we cannot undo the past nor should we try to. What has happened in the past is history and we must move onto the future, a future that is as bright as ever.

While we pride ourselves on our history, we know change is inevitable. For example, where penalties were issued nearly every race in the past, we have loosened up the rules and provided our drivers with better racing and more excitement during those races. We have maintained our values, goals and mission along the way and have come out of it pretty well. We have created a great value with our league and we value our members and their ideas and opinions more than anything else here.

This blog has become a popular stop for many members of the sim racing community over the past few months and I hope everyone enjoys the posts here. After all, ASRS is about people!

-JF

Taking the Next Step: Moving Forward

One thing is for certain, the ASRS has some of the best sim racers around. Recently the tide has turned and we had a mass exit just a couple weeks ago, but the quality drivers remained. Cautions have dropped, competition has risen and the number of drivers who can win any given race has increased. And with those changes, more and more quality driver have joined in the fun. A quick look at the latest additions to ASRS proves that ASRS is the place to be. Eric McClure returned after a year away, and went to Victory Lane at Michigan in the Truck Series race. Johnathon Caddell joined the series this past week and put a 6th place finish in the books at Jennerstown in the All American Series and returned the next day at South Boston to score a 4th in the East Series. The South Boston race featured 1 caution flag in a 76 lap event, a far cry from the way things were just last year. Michigan had two caution flags in 100 miles of side by side racing action at that track.

Now, drivers who have built a reputation on strong racing are joining in the fun at ASRS, and it couldn't come at a better time. The action is heating up and the Summer of Fun is just getting started.

"I'm sure there is a group that thinks ASRS is dead, but I got news for them: ASRS is here to stay and we are stronger than ever, even with them gone" commented Jim Foose, ASRS President. "They did us a favor by leaving, the constant complaining and picking fights with other members got out of hand, and we are happy to be past that".

We are coming up on a great stretch of races and with our great drivers, ASRS is the place to be. All the pieces of the puzzle are in place here at ASRS for a strong summer stretch and an even stronger fall run. And don't forget, we still have the 11th Annual All American 400 and 3rd Annual Snowball Derby coming up later this year. We have some exciting things to announce about those two events here in the near future.

So look out, the Summer of Fun is upon us and the fun is not going to stop anytime soon!

As the weather outside heats up, so does the action in the American Sim Racing Series. With the Craftsman Truck Series heading into the final stretch before the Chase to the Championship and the Outlaw Paintshop All American Series declaring a Summer Champion in August, the action is hot on the track in every division. Meanwhile, the Modified Series will kick off on June 18th and the ASRS Late Model Series is back in action on June 29th. And the BozPC East Series runs a stretch of races guaranteed to produce excitement and close finishes. It's all a part of the Summer of Fun, and you could be the big winner by particpating in the best racing action available online! Stop by and get signed up at www.americansimracing.com

The American Sim Racing Series has seen continued growth since its birth in 2002. Since 2005, some of the biggest names in short track sim racing have raced in the American Sim Racing Series, making it America’s #1 Online Short Track League. For more information on the ASRS visit www.americansimracing.com.

Honest. Fair. Racing.

The American Sim Racing Series was formed in 2002, long before many leagues in existence today were created. It has survived for six years because of one principle: Honest, Fair Racing.

While other leagues have struggled to survive, the ASRS has thrived and has shown that a simple structure can go along way in the online racing community. ASRS has never been about fancy graphics or false excitement, we have been about our product on the track, and that method has succeeded for many years. With ASRS you will not see the junk that other leagues post on their website to create phony excitement, there are no smokescreens, so what you see is what you get. ASRS is a genuine racing series, we strive for perfection and accuracy in our events.

At ASRS we are often imitated but NEVER duplicated.

Our administratiors are racefans and race drivers and we strive to make the online experience as realistic as possible. We are all passionate about the sport and want to bring that passion and excitement to our league, its something ASRS has done since it's creation in 2002.

We hope to see everyone here at ASRS, providing exciting racing.

Nobody is perfect

Nobody is perfect, that has been said many times, many ways and by many people, and it's very true. Nobody is perfect. While we try to be flawless with this league, we make mistakes, we make bad calls and we do things that we wish we wouldn't have later on. Sometimes, we wait too long to make a change, other times we jump the gun. Sometimes we nail it right on the head and do it correctly, but we never can be assured of anything. I have never claimed to be perfect, we as ASRS Officials have never claimed to be perfect, we try our hardest and many times look pretty good doing so.

Over the course of the last two years, I have done things as the ASRS President that I regret, but I have also done things that wre called "stupid and crazy" but they worked out well for the league. I have made good calls and bad calls. I have made good decisions and bad ones along the way. But through it all I have had the best of intentions for this league and it's members.

Now, I ask you all to stick with us, while we are having somewhat of a downturn, we are building towards the future and are keeping out minds on the goal of giving everyone the best place to race.

Very soon you will all find out that Modifieds will be returning to ASRS, possibly as soon as the middle of June. I will have some news about a very special event later this summer and some exciting news for everyone involved in ASRS regarding our special events at the end of the year.

We're going to try alot of things with this league this year, some will succeed, other will fail. But please stick with us, it will all work out for the best. We need each other to keep NASCAR Racing 2003 Season alive and well, and all of us at ASRS are going to do everything we can to keep things going well for everyone!!!

-JF

Change on the Horizon

Change can be a good thing, and that is our expectation here at the American Sim Racing Series. We are changing for the better. Some announcements will be made this week regarding changes we are making to make the league better for our members and to promote growth.

First off, we are making a change to our membership structure. Details will be released later this week, but this change could have a great impact on the league.

Secondly, we are going to sit back a little bit and let things work themselves out. Gone are the days of penalties flying off the walls, we are still going to penalize when necessary, but we are going to be a little more laid back about it. We feel this will not only allow our drivers to not worry about getting penalized for every little offense, but it will promote better racing.

Third, We are going to take a look at the divisions offered and realign the different series to allow everyone a chance to race in the division of their choice. The exception to this will be the Truck Series, with the strict schedule and tracks we follow, there is very little room for change.

Another change will be the forum layout, we have placed sub-forums into the division forums. Most will include an "Announcements” forum and an “Event Information” forum. These forums will allow the important information to be better organized. The “Announcements” and “Event Information” sub-forums will only allow postings by ASRS Administrators, but all members can reply to topics if they feel the need to do so.

The forums will also have a new forum going live soon, the “Question and Answer” forum will be posted as a sub-forum under ASRS General Discussion. This will be a place where members (new and old) can ask a question to the community, and receive an answer from the many talented members of ASRS.

It will be quite interesting to see how these changes work out in the long run, we will be constantly reviewing these changes and addressing any issues which may arise. We look forward to serving you, the member!

If you have any questions, comments, concerns or suggestions you can email me at jim@americansimracing.com. I will be happy to speak with anyone about the changes and what we can do to make ASRS a better place for us all!

Change can be a great, great thing!

Sincerely,

Jim Foose
President & General Manager
American Sim Racing Series
http://www.americansimracing.com
Email: jim@americansimracing.com
AOL IM: FOOSERACING42

Penalties, Procedures and Some Explanation

I wish I had better news to report to all the blog readers, but I have some negative news to report. Recently a rash of suspensions have been handed down to drivers, who unfortunately did not follow the rules. So I want to take a little time to explain why some penalties are more harsh than others.

First off, as the top ranking official here at ASRS, it is my duty to ultimately decide if the penalty is appropriate and then report it to the league. This can be a challenging task at times, as different circumstances lead to different penalties. For example, a driver was suspended for an incident a few weeks back where he spun the leader after making contact with the leader no less than three times on the straightway leading up to the incident. The driver was on probation at the time (for a similar incident), and was suspended for two weeks. More recently a driver slammed another driver after the checkered flag, to pay the driver back for an earlier accident, which coincidently was not that driver’s fault. Not only did this driver hit the car he targeted, he collected the race winner and other drivers in the mess. When the smoke settled, the winner did not get to celebrate his victory with a burn out, and the other driver sat on the backstretch in smoking heap of twisted debris, but it is a simulated race so nobody got hurt. Had this occurred in a real race, the driver that retaliated probbaly would have been charged with some sort of criminal negligence. The driver was suspended indefinetely from the league for his actions and will not be eligible to return until the Series President (that’s me!) and Series Vice President determine he is no longer a threat to the orderly conduct of the ASRS.

So, two somewhat similar incidents (a driver crashes another), but different circumstances in both (one occurred during an event, the other after the event). Both drivers lost all points earned in the event the incident occurred, received probation to follow their suspension and were placed at the rear of the field, but the suspensions vary in length.

Someone is going to ask why I went through these two scenarios in detail, and the reason is this; more often than not, I hear about unfair penalties, a lack of consistency in making decisions, and bias toward particular individuals. I continue to remind our valued members that every incident involves different circumstances and therefore different levels of action that must be taken. There are some drivers who a one week suspension doesn’t matter, so a two week suspension may be issued, others are not racing for points, so a points penalty would do nothing to deter further incidents, but probation and a suspension just might. There are yet other drivers who have been suspended in the past, so a second, third or even fouth incidend should have an increased penalty.

Moreover, as much as we have tried to standardize penalties, we have realized that no two incidents are the same. What if a driver who is 27^th in points decides to crash the points leader, because his teammate is 2^nd in points and needs it to happen? Don’t think it could happen? It has.

Just two years ago, as I battled for my first Truck Series Championship the driver in 2^nd place had his teammate crash me into the wall to allow him to gain points on me. Ultimately, it led to one driver being asked not to partipate in the truck series because sadly, I was not his only victim. And even more fitting, I went on to win that championship, without using my teammates to crash the driver who pursued me. (He did not end up 2^nd in the final points, he fell out of the top battled before the season’s end).

Finally, I would like to say that while we do look at the driver’s history, the nature of the incident, who was involved, any motives we can think of, the driver’s experience with ASRS, and even the quality of the race the incident occurred in (higher series will have stiffer penalties), no two incidents are alike. Each has it’s own elements that led up to the incident and each offers its own unique circumstances.

And unlike many other leagues, we offer protests of official decisions. We set up the Championship Committee for that reason and also allow the ASRS Officials to review decisions usually the day after they are announced (before a penalty is issued, the ASRS Officials, usually two or three of them, determine the appropriate action to take and the penalty to issue).

Sometimes we let little things go, sometimes we feel as if we are being too nice and feel we must make an example out of someone, and we do. But in the end, everyone gets a fair shot. That’s what this league is about, a fair chance for us all to have fun racing online. When we lose sight of that, we lose our entire mission and purpose.

-Jim Foose, ASRS President & General Manager

It's Official 2008 has arrived!

Its official! The offseason is over. With the running of the Shootout tonight for the ASRS Truck Series we have embarked on another season.

Not much has changed during the offseason, the same officials will watch over each event and many of the same tracks and events return. Even the schedules are similar to 2007. However, the biggest change is the influx of new drivers. Moreover, while total membership may be down from 2007, the quality of competition is higher than ever. The addition of the USA Series to the American Sim Racing Series fold is just a part of the new identity for America’s #1 Online Short Track League and further strengthens that motto.

The future is bright for the ASRS and the numbers show that, not only did the series grow in 2007, but also the competition became closer. The last event of 2007 featured the first ever prize paying ASRS event, when the top 3 were awarded trophies. “We most certainly would like to continue that program in 2008, but it really depends on how our finances are in the fall” stated ASRS President, Jim Foose. “We had several race sponsorships lined up at this time last season, and right now we have zero. You can say it is a lack of performance by the league, but the facts are obvious the United States economy is in recession and businesses like individuals are cutting back on spending, especially on non-essential items, and that causes the advertising dollar to contract as people cut purchases out of their budget, but at the same time it adds value to advertising as product awareness is at a key point. We actually discounted our contingency award price to attract new sponsors, and so far it has had limited success.”

“Let’s just all focus on the good points and we will have a great year, it definitely is going to be an exciting season for all of us" continued Foose.

A look forward at 2008!

With the 2007 season officially behind us, it is time to look forward to 2008. 2007 was a great season, but filled with many problems that seemed to lurk around every corner we turned. From the imposter situation in the fall all the way back to the record car counts for the All American Series in February the season had its highs and lows. Some changes are occurring as we prepare for 2008, for one we have added the Free Pass to all events. This will not only tighten up the competition but will also give the lapped cars a chance to regain that lost lap and contend for the win.

One of the most important things we can take from 2007 into 2008 is the great competition we have seen. Drivers like Justin Trombley, EJ McDonell, Skip Honaker, and Daniel Pope have entered for the entire 2008 season along with the new drivers like Timmy Johnston, and Caleb Hindes (who had a successful partial season last fall). Throw into that mix drivers like Wes Johnston, Steve Buhala, Paul Boswell and Dave Soja and the talent runs through the field and the competition is as tight as ever. And then you throw in the part timers who always seem to dominate, NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Cale Gale will return for a partial schedule as well as Nashville area Legends driver Josh Berry.

“The addition of the USA Series has drawn positive feedback from most people; the only negative thing I have heard is that my attention will be split between ASRS and the USA Series. I look at it from a different perspective, the USA Series is a part of ASRS, to me it is just another division, much like the newly renamed Camping World Grand National Division is to NASCAR or the Indy Pro Series is to the IRL. It is another route for us to develop drivers and to bring more talent and attention to online short track racing, which is our goal with the acquisition of the USA Series name. I truly believe this will only strengthen our league. I was a USA Series Official in 2004 and then again for a brief time in 2005 until the doors were shut, and I can honestly say that Jimmy McKinley is the man when it comes to short track online racing. He taught me everything I know, and worked with me when ASRS was just some crazy off the wall idea. Nevertheless, all along, he knew I could do the job he needed to have done, and he worked with me and molded me into an official. Therefore, to be able to run a division under the USA Series name is my way of paying him back for all his help over the years.” –Jim Foose

One of the more exciting parts about the 2008 schedule is that Rockingham is on the schedule for the first time. Rockingham will see the ASRS Modified Series on the track October 15th, the ASRS BozPC East Series Grand National Division will crown the 2008 champion at Rockingham on October 22nd, and the Outlaw Paintshop All American Series will crown the 2008 Fall Season Champion on November 11th in a special Veteran’s Day event. Rockingham is a just a tick over a mile in length and hosted the NASCAR Cup Series for many years before big money business moved the race dates to other venues in different markets in 2005. The final event at Rockingham for the NASCAR Cup Series will forever be remembered for Carl Long’s wild flip on the backstretch, and the amazing finish between defending Cup Champion Matt Kenseth and rookie Kasey Kahne. The ASRS Administration is excited about the opportunity to showcase our divisions on the speedway.

North Wilkesboro Speedway will also have its first ASRS event in 2008, the track that has sat dormant for 11 years will see the ASRS Modified Series on July 9th, ASRS Outlaw Paintshop All American Series on July 15th, and the ASRS BozPC East Series Grand National Division on August 27th. These 3 events will pay tribute to the Wilkes County area and the Save Our Speedway group, who is trying to save the racetrack.

Other tracks that will host their first ASRS events will be the Minnesota State Fairgrounds and Watkins Glen International Speedway.

2008 will mark the return of the ASRS to the Richmond International Raceway, as the ASRS Modified Series will hit the track in late April for their inaugural event at the speedway, while the ASRS BozPC East Series Grand National Division will compete on the ¾ mile for the first time in May. The ASRS Outlaw Paintshop All American Series will also host its inaugural event at Richmond July 1st.

In other track news, the I-70 Speedway will replace Mesa Marin Raceway on the ASRS Craftsman Truck Series schedule. After 3 years at Mesa Marin, the birthplace of the Truck Series, the series moves the date to Odessa, Missouri for a 100-lap event.

Returning again for 2008 will be at least 2 special events, the 11th Annual All American 400 and the 3rd Annual Snowball Derby. Both events carry a lot of prestige and to win them is a honor for anyone.

As we turn our attention to 2008, we all need to keep a few things in mind. We’re all here to have fun, there is no need to go around attacking people and causing problems for each other. The ASRS is like a family, and we all should work together to accomplish our goals. We also need to work together to identify problems, nothing can be done about a problem or potential problem until after it is identified. So if you see or hear something you are suspicious about please contact one of the ASRS Officials. Lets make this a great season, and a memorable one. If we all work together, we can make this even better!

Have a safe and enjoyable holiday, and lets all have a prosperous new year!

The ASRS Administration,

Jim Foose, President & General Manager
Wes Johnston, Vice President/ Competition Director
Eric Bannenberg, Short Track Coordinator
Bud Watson, Communications Director
Skip Honaker, Race Official