Filler for eNews

Filler for eNews

Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned 100 years of case law related to the agreement to set minimum retail or resale prices. SEMA-member companies need to stay aware of the recent developments on antitrust laws related to minimum advertised pricing (MAP) programs and other pricing issues. SEMA has several resources available to help members learn the legal and practical significance of these decisions and how it can affect their retail business.

The latest webinar session covering MAP programs and the recent developments in the related antitrust laws will be available online at www.sema.org/webinar within the next week. The session addresses the following regarding MAP programs:

• What are the antitrust laws related to set retail pricing?
• What are the legal decisions on minimum advertise pricing (MAP)?
• How can these antitrust laws affect your retail business?

Get Familiar With MAP
Discover the fundamental elements of MAP programs by accessing the previously conducted webinar, "MAP Programs: How to Influence Product Prices Legally Through Minimum Advertised Pricing." Presented by Barbara Sicalides of the Law Offices of Pepper Hamilton LLP, the session can be accessed below.

• To download the audio and video portion of the webinar, click here.
• To download the PowerPoint presentation as a PDF file, click here.

SEMA's Webinar Program
The SEMA webinar program brings the world-class business seminars featured during the SEMA Show Education Week right to your desktop. Different business-building sessions are constantly being added to the program, offering members the latest insight and practices from today’s leading speakers. All SEMA webinars are conducted live and are open to all employees of SEMA-member companies free of charge. To participate, all you need is a computer with Internet access and a telephone.

All previously conducted SEMA webinars are available to download anytime by clicking here. To view upcoming presentations that you can attend via the telephone and Internet, click here.

For additional information on the SEMA webinar program, contact Pat Talaska-Benson at patt@sema.org.

Are you making money or losing money? Are your expenses in line with sales or excessive? Is your gross profit retention covering your expenses while providing a reasonable return for your efforts? How can you tell? Passion for the business you’re involved in aside, it’s the “bottom line” that makes the difference. 

Check out SEMA's webinar, "Analyzing the Income Statement: The Nuts and Bolts," on Thursday, March 6, (10:00 a.m. PST) to learn how to use your company's income statement to manage and determine the financial health of your business.  

The income statement is a vital device for reading a business' financial tea leaves. It’s one of the most important management tools that help you determine your business' financial success or lack thereof.  And for most managers and owners it’s a “score card” of the operational efforts they are responsible for during any one given period of time, such as a month, three months or one year.  A solid understanding of what the financial statement is, what it includes, how to read it and use it is essential to your ongoing success.

• Learn the basic income statement structure.
• Understand the different elements of the income statement and their relationships to each other.
• Discover how net profit is affected by sales, gross profit and expenses.
• Learn three effective methods for income statement analysis.

For more information, visit www.sema.org/webinar.

SEMA's Webinar Program
The SEMA webinar program brings the world-class business seminars featured during the SEMA Show Education Week right to your desktop. Different business-building sessions are constantly being added to the program, offering members the latest insight and practices from today’s leading speakers. All SEMA webinars are conducted live and are open to all employees of SEMA-member companies free of charge. To participate, all you need is a computer with Internet access and a telephone.

All previously conducted SEMA webinars are available to download anytime by clicking here. To view upcoming presentations that you can attend via the telephone and Internet, click here.

For additional information on the SEMA webinar program, contact Pat Talaska-Benson at patt@sema.org.

Scheduled for a 2011 model year debut, Jaguar's new XJ replacement is caught here winter testing in Sweden by Brenda Priddy and Co. photographers. Cloaked in current-model sheetmetal, the new XJ, codenamed X351, is expected to follow the new XF design cues. It's also, according to Priddy's sources, set-up to ride on the current model's aluminum chassis and have a four-door coupe feel, a la the Mercedes-Benz CLS. Primary power is expected to come from Jaguar’s 5.0L V8.

Filler for eNews

The U.S. Congress passed legislation designed to protect children from injuries or deaths in non-traffic vehicle incidents. President Bush is expected to sign the bill (HR 1216) into law. The measure directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to require new vehicles be equipped with a means of alerting the driver if a child is behind the vehicle when it is being backed-up. The specialty-equipment industry has been at the forefront of offering cameras and sensors to address the issue. 

It is estimated that at least 1,350 children have died in back-over incidents since 2000. According to the NHTSA, some vehicles, such as SUVs, are particularly vulnerable to blind spots. Under the legislation, the NHTSA is directed to establish performance requirements within Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 111 (Rearview Mirrors) to effectively mandate installation of cameras or sensors on new cars. The NHTSA will have three years to establish the requirements and up to four more years to phase-in full compliance on new vehicles. 

The bill also directs the NHTSA to consider requiring power windows and panels to automatically reverse direction if there is an obstruction in the path, such as a child’s head or arm. If the agency decides this is impractical or unnecessary, the NHTSA will be required to explain how it came to that conclusion. Additionally, starting in model year 2011, all cars with an automatic transmission will have to have a brake shift interlock to help prevent vehicle roll-away. The driver is then required to apply the brake in order to shift the vehicle out of park.

For more information, contact Stuart Gosswein at stuartg@sema.org.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) ruled that 12,000 acres of the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area in California must be closed to the public so as to protect the Peirson’s milk-vetch plant. The agency excluded 10,000 acres of dunes where most off-road activities take place. The plant was placed on the endangered species list in 1998 and the FWS was required to designate critical habitat to protect the plant on land which is managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

Also known as the Algodones Dunes, the recreation area is a favorite destination for off-roaders using desert dune buggies and other all-terrain vehicles. The off-road community demonstrated that there would be disproportionate economic harm if the critical habitat designation included the Gecko and Glamis Management Areas encompassing the 10,000 acres.

SEMA is reviewing the rule. The association generally supports a balanced approach between land access and conservation which includes advice from the local community. Many SEMA members produce parts and equipment used by off-road enthusiasts.

For details, contact Jason Tolleson at jasont@sema.org.

CLOSING IN: As of Wednesday morning, officials of the Indy Racing League and the Champ Car World Series were closing in on an agreement, that would bring the two factions of open-wheel racing together for the first time in 13 years. When agreed to, remaining Champ Car teams and some of the series’s dates would become part of the IRL IndyCar Series under the direction of IRL founder Tony George.

LONG TIME COMING: It took nearly 30 years, but team owner Roger Penske finally won the Daytona 500. Driver Ryan Newman grabbed the surprising victory on the last lap in the 50th running of the event, handing Penske, who has won the Indianapolis 500 14 times, the victory.

NEW CAMPAIGN: The FIA, governing body for Formula One, is set to launch a worldwide anti-racism campaign. It will kick off at the Spanish Grand Prix in April. Black driver Lewis Hamilton was the subject of racist abuse while testing in Spain earlier this year.

MORE CHANGES: As part of the effort to change the face of the United States Auto Club (USAC), new USAC President Kevin Miller announced that the new-generation Silver Crown car, which debuted in 2006, will be “re-evaluated,” with the traditional-style Crown car returning to competition on asphalt race tracks. In addition, USAC has introduced a substance-abuse policy for the first time.

HALL OF FAMERS: Michael Andretti, Buddy Baker, John Force, Richie Ginther, Wayne Rainey, Paul Goldsmith and Betty Skelton are the latest members of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. The group will be induced August 13 at the Fillmore in Detroit.

SAD ENDING: The remaining assets of the International Race of Champions, which featured the world’s best drivers in identically prepared cars, will be sold at auction March 7–8 at IROC headquarters in Tinton Falls, New Jersey.

POWER RANKINGS: Donny Schatz clung to lead the National Speed Sport News Power Rankings, but NHRA’s Tony Schumacher and dirt-late-model ace Billy Moyer are close behind.

SUBSCRIBE: National Speed Sport News has been published weekly since 1934. To subscribe to National Speed Sport News, click on the following link for a special industry rate: www.nationalspeedsportnews.com/subscribe.html?pid=NQ%2BVfhkepT4%3D.

NEWS NUGGETS

PHOENIX BOUND; POWERade SERIES DRIVERS PREPARE FOR CSK NHRA NATIONALS THIS WEEKEND: After an impressive start to the 2008 season, the NHRA POWERade drag racing season heads to the Valley of the Sun this weekend for the 24th annual Checker Schuck’s Kragen NHRA Nationals at Firebird International Raceway in Phoenix. Heading to a track known for record-setting times and speeds (including defending world champion Tony Pedregon’s national record for e.t. in Funny Car, 4.659 seconds, set at last year’s event), each driver recognizes how important the second race of the season is to the POWERade championship.
      “Last year we were in the final with Tony Pedregon, and we lost the race at the top end when we had a malfunction,” said 2007 world champion runner-up, Robert Hight, who would have won the championship in Funny Car with a national record-setting run. “We were going for a national record to beat or back-up our 4.636-second run from earlier in the race (last year). If we get good conditions there again, I think we can put up some more big numbers.”
      “You know, it’s a time of uncertainty for us,” said Funny Car driver Del Worsham, who, after being offered a one-year extension by his title sponsor, hopes to drive his CSK Chevy Impala to a win at his sponsor’s event. “I think it would be pretty big, and pretty emotional, for a lot of people if we could have a really good weekend.” 
       For more information on the Checker Schuck’s Kragen NHRA Nationals, visit www.nhra.com. 

COUNTING DOWN THE COUNTDOWN: After its inaugural season which saw all four POWERade world championships crowned at the final race, the Auto Club Finals in Pomona, California, the Countdown to the Championship has begun its “sophomore season” in the POWERade Drag Racing Series. To see all the new changes made to the 2008 Countdown and also to follow the story lines pertaining to the 2008 Countdown to the Championship, visit the new Countdown website at countdown.nhra.com.

‘SCHOOLING’ THE COMPETITION; DRAG RACING INSTRUCTOR HAWLEY RENEWS FUNNY CAR LICENSE: Drag racing legend and founder of the Frank Hawley School of Drag Racing, driver-turned instructor-turned driver, Frank Hawley, took his instructing skills to the dragstrip, literally, as Hawley renewed his Funny Car license this past week. Hawley, who plans on driving Mike Ashley’s second Gotham City Dodge Charger R/T, starting at the Gatornationals, made his first ever 300-mph pass down the quarter-mile at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 
      “What an amazing feeling,” Hawley said. “I think that remaining actively involved in the sport made a huge, huge difference when I got into the car. Talking about it all the time in my classes and working with the drivers, I visualize things myself, and that helped a tremendous amount.”
      “A lot has changed since I drove last in 1991, but, really, my job is the same now as it was then—get the car straight down the track.”

COMING ATTRACTIONS

CHECKER SCHUCK’S KRAGEN NHRA NATIONALS, FIREBIRD RACEWAY, FEBRUARY 22–24: This second race in the regular season features two defending event winners who eventually launched serious attacks for 2007 POWERade Series titles—Tony Pedregon, the season world champion in Funny Car, and Rod Fuller, who earned runner-up honors in Top Fuel after the best season of his career. Kurt Johnson (Pro Stock) also reached the winner’s circle in Phoenix last year.

ACDELCO NHRA GATORNATIONALS, GAINESVILLE RACEWAY, MARCH 13–16: The Pro Stock Motorcycle category opens its 2008 season at the Gatornationals, annually one of the most popular stops on the NHRA POWERade Series tour. Defending event winners include: Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel); Ron Capps (Funny Car); Greg Anderson (Pro Stock); and Karen Stoffer (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

O’REILLY NHRA SPRING NATIONALS, HOUSTON RACEWAY PARK, MARCH 28–30: The fourth race in the regular season, drivers in all four categories in the POWERade Drag Racing Series will dual it out for a Texas win. Defending event winners include: J.R. Todd (Top Fuel); Ron Capps (Funny Car); Jason Line (Pro Stock); and Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

HE SAID, SHE SAID

ON BORROWED TIME: Entering the 12th year of his sponsorship with CSK, Funny Car driver Del Worsham enters the Checker Schuck’s Kragen NHRA Nationals, his title sponsor’s event, in the middle of a one-year extension on the sponsorship of his Chevy Impala SS. Not mincing words about his situation and the difficulty of competing in the highly competitive Funny Car category, Worsham describes what a win this weekend would mean to him and his team.
      “There’s no getting around the fact that this would be a very cool time to win one for everyone at CSK, past and present, who helped us every step of the way for the last 11 seasons,” Worsham said. “This would be a great time to have a big weekend, at ‘our house!’”

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

4.636: The track e.t. record in Funny Car at Firebird International Raceway, set by Robert Hight at last year’s event. Hight’s time was quicker than current POWERade world champion Tony Pedregon's national record of 4.659 seconds, which was also set at last year's event in Phoenix, but Hight was unable to back-up the time. Subsequently, at the Auto Club Finals, almost nine months later, Hight needed to break the national record for time to surpass Pedregon and win the championship, but came up short in the final round.

DRIVERS TELL ALL

HEADING TO ‘THE PROMISED LAND’: With back-to-back wins at Firebird International Raceway, it is hardly any wonder why Top Fuel pilot “Hot Rod” Fuller is so excited to return to Phoenix. 
      “To me, Phoenix is the promised land. The last two times I’ve raced there we’ve won, so we have a great streak going on. Arizona is like a second home. We did really well in testing, and we have a good combination for that race track. I’m very excited going into Phoenix.”