5/12/2017
WISSOTA
WISSOTA Tracks Now Utilizing MyRacePass
DASSEL, MN (May 10) - MyRacePass (MRP), a nearly 10-year old Lincoln, NE based technology and marketing company with a flagship product of the same name, has replaced the Speednet program that all WISSOTA tracks used the past few years. MyRacePass purchased Speednet Direct and its software in the fall of 2015.
Josh Holt, one of the three co-founders of MyRacePass, offered a little history. “In 2013 we began seeing tracks who were using Speednet transition to MyRacePass. Then, in the fall of 2015 we learned that Speednet was for sale and we realized that in order to learn more about the program and the scorers that use the program, we needed to purchase the company. We wanted to learn from all the users of Speednet to see what we could do to make the program or our MRP Race Management System more efficient,” he said.
WISSOTA put together a team to sit with the MyRacePass team for four days in February to train on the newly developed software and set things up. “There have been many hours put into it and we are still making notes for more things to be added to some parts of the program,” said Holt.
Speednet was designed in the late 90s and technology has changed a great deal since then. At the time it purchased Speednet, MyRacePass already had a software program that worked for tracks, drivers, and fans. The major challenge was incorporating and updating features of the Speednet system on the administrative side of WISSOTA, including the Championship Points, Suspension Management and Track Management features.
The MyRacePass developers have been able to fix issues which cropped up with the old software and have made it easier to get this information to WISSOTA more quickly and efficiently. “Things have been amazing using the new MyRacePass system thus far,” explained Callie Sullivan of the WISSOTA office. “They generally turn around my requests in no time. I understand there is a learning curve, but after having been around when we first introduced Speednet to everyone, in comparison we’ve had a much better success rate and quicker learning curve with MyRacePass,” she added. “The MyRacePass team is dedicated to making your lives easier as promoters and scorers.”
“The MRP Race Management System is a lot like Speednet but made for the 20th century,” said Nikki Elton, a scorer for Ogilvie Raceway and WISSOTA board member.
The biggest difference is that MyRacePass is a web-based program whereas Speednet was install-based. With a web-based program, scorers and promoters are able to login to their system from multiple devices, wherever they may be located, with whatever computer or tablet they have at the moment. If there are problems, support can login directly to a track’s MRP Race Management System and help. Also, updates happen automatically; if there are issues with the software, they get fixed once and every user benefits immediately. Track employees do not need not to worry about downloading updates or backing up their database.
“There is obviously a learning process for us all. So far, after a few tracks have now run their first, second and third nights of racing, we have had good feedback and have heard mainly that track staffs are satisfied with the new MRP system,” said Elton.
Holt said, “A few people have gotten frustrated trying to adapt. If you are having any problems, reach out to us with any suggestions for improvements. The development and support staff at MyRacePass is second to none, so we need as much input as we can get to help make this better and better each and every week.”
Elton noted, “I considered myself a diehard Speednet user and was certainly not happy to change, but I took the time to learn the system, sat in the webinars earlier this spring, utilized the main points of the program and prepared myself for the first race. Our opening night was a huge success and I’ve never been able to get through the back-gate check-in process that quickly before. I’ve now had four successful weekends using MyRacePass.”
WISSOTA Driver Features:
There has been some misunderstanding of what MyRacePass does and can do for drivers. Your driver profile is shared throughout the network of MyRacePass. Drivers need to think of their MRP Profiles as if it’s a Facebook profile. Track announcers use your biography information while announcing the races, and you can use your profile to keep tabs on your own race results, sponsor information, bio information, race schedule, photos, and news articles. It does not cost a driver anything to do this - just a few minutes of time.
Drivers have the option to upgrade their account and get a website or take advantage of other options that MRP has to offer. Drivers may, but are not required to, claim their MRP?profile for free. It is a no-cost option for drivers and another way to promote race teams. If you purchased your WISSOTA license online you have already created a username and password, your username is the email address you used for the MyRacePass account. You can enter this information into the claim profile screen. It will tell you to check your email to verify your account. Follow the steps in the email and you will quickly be set up.
All drivers will receive a MRP hard card in their WISSOTA packet and that hard card has a bar code on the back. This MRP hard card is your WISSOTA license. If you are licensed in two or more classes, you still only need the one MRP hard card. Bring this card with you to the track; if the track uses MyRacePass for their race management, your card will work to get you in. If you purchased your license on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, be sure to bring your paid receipt to the next track you attend, and every track thereafter, until you have received your driver packet from the WISSOTA office which will include your MRP hard card. This is your personal racing ID card and you should keep it to use from year to year.
WISSOTA
Promoters & Scorers:
“We had many training sessions on this program and you should have made sure that your scorers have watched these and also played with the program in the MyRacePass sandbox,” said Elton. The MRP Sandbox is a tool in which you can use the system and what you do is not ‘live’.
Be sure the scorers watch the training videos and utilize the MRP Sandbox so they fully understand how to get through each night.
WISSOTA has put together a MRP committee to help with suggestions to forward to MyRacePass and its developers. Email any of the following with suggestions for improvements:
•callie@wissota.org
•nikki.elton@yahoo.com
•jbrmoffett@yahoo.com
•rob@wissota.org
For assistance, promoters and scorers can visit the help desk at www.MRPHelp.com and click on “Help” to learn more about various topics. You can also search for MyRacePass on YouTube and click on the #TeamMRP Channel to view tutorial videos.
Submitted By: Scott Hughes