IN
THE
WIND
P34
REMAINDER OF EBR SOLD OFF
T
he final nail has been put in the Erik Buell
Racing coffin with news that the remainder of
the business has been sold at auction to Atlantic
Metals Group for $2.25 million. The result saw
the overall sale of the defunct company reach $5
million. This came after EBR's main stakeholder,
India's Hero MotoCorp, bought the consulting
wing of EBR for $2.8 million in a previously an-
nounced deal, a deal that also saw Hero drop any
future claims against Buell.
Early court records showed EBR had $20.8
million in assets and $20.4 million in liabilities,
with employees owed $202,000 in paid time
off. Others owed substantial amounts of money
include Japanese design firm Mito Tech Co., who
are owed $733,000 and Porsche Engineering
Group ($390,000).
Employees, secured creditors, the court-
approved receiver, consultants and lawyers will be
the first in line to get what they are owed, with un-
secured creditors forced to fight over what's left.
No word has come from Atlantic Metals Group,
who, by purchasing the remainder of EBR, ac-
quired all the factory machinery, tooling, motor-
cycle inventory, parts inventory, accounts receiv-
able and intangible assets, although as suppliers
of rare metals and alloys, it's unlikely they will now
venture into the motorcycle manufacturing busi-
ness. CN
And that's
all she wrote
for Erik Buell
Racing.
KEEP LAGUNA SECA LOCAL CAMPAIGN BEGINS
T
he not-for-profit Sports Car
Racing Association of the
Monterey Peninsula (SCRAMP)
has started the "Keep Laguna
Seca Local" campaign to maintain
control of the historic Northern
California racing venue.
The campaign comes as the
Monterey Council enters a 90-day
due diligence process with Inter-
national Speedway Corporation
(ISC) about a possible change of
operator, a move that would see
SCRAMP's association, which start-
ed back in 1957, come to an end.
ISC is a for-profit organization
founded by the France family and
is part of NASCAR's business
operations. Another France family
business, Daytona Motorsports
Group, was responsible for the very
unpopular running of the AMA Pro
Road Racing Championship until
the end of last year and it currently
runs the AMA Pro Flat Track cham-
pionship.
An open letter from SCRAMP's
Board President Gregg Curry high-
lighted the organization's plight:
"Since January 2014, the
Monterey County Board of Su-
pervisors has conducted closed-
session meetings to discuss a new
Concession Agreement without
SCRAMP's knowledge," he said.
"These closed-session meetings
resulted in the Board of Supervi-
sors entering into a 90-day due
diligence agreement with Interna-
tional Speedway Corporation (ISC)
to take over management and
operation of the raceway. ISC is
a for-profit, publicly traded corpo-
ration based in Daytona Beach,
Florida, whose primary business is
the ownership and management of
NASCAR racetracks.
"SCRAMP is requesting a fair
and open process where we
be given equal consideration to
continue to improve and manage
operations of Mazda Raceway
Laguna Seca, and that this pro-
cess be held in the open with the
benefit of public participation and
review." CN
The full letter can be viewed
here: http://www.mazdarace-
way.com/announcement/keep-
laguna-seca-local
