RACETICKETS.COM Travel Launches New Improved Website Under The Brand MyRaceTravel.com

RACETICKETS.COM TRAVEL LAUNCHES NEW IMPROVED WEBSITE UNDER THE BRAND MYRACETRAVEL.COM

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (January 21, 2009) – Racetickets.com Travel, the preeminent provider of race travel packages to NASCAR’s most popular events including the world famous DAYTONA 500®, has launched a new website under the brand name myRacetravel.com (www.myRacetravel.com). The launch is the culmination of several months of studies and customer feedback, and better represents the company’s focus and products.

Kim Isemann, general manager of myRacetravel.com said, “We are thrilled with the successful launch of our new website and brand, myRacetravel.com.  Customer feedback thus far has been very positive, citing the website’s ease of use and easily identifiable brand.  Our growing base of customers know they can continue to rely on us to provide comprehensive travel and ticket packages to some of the most popular events on the NASCAR circuit.  We offer customizable ticket, hotel, transportation, and hospitality packages to fit every budget, all within a convenient online purchasing environment.”

“My father and I have used myRaceTravel.com for all of our NASCARA ticket and travel packages,” said Peter van Hijkoop, a resident of Holland and 13-time myRaceTravel.com guest.  “The value and convenience is unbeatable, and the service is always first class.  We simply book our trip online and we know our friends will handle the rest.  We’re looking forward to going to Daytona in February and the start of another great NASCAR season!”

To purchase tickets and travel packages to the premier major motorsports events, visit myRacetravel.com today or call 866-990-RACE (7223).  myRacetravel.com offers customizable packages including hotel, tickets, transportation and hospitality, to over 27 events annually.

myRacetravel.com is a wholly owned subsidiary of International Speedway Corporation, a leading promoter of motorsports activities in the United States, currently promoting more than 100 events annually. For more information, visit the company's website at www.iscmotorsports.com.

myRactravel.com is the official ticket and travel package provider of Auto Club Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Daytona International Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Martinsville Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway, Richmond International Raceway, Talladega Superspeedway, and Watkins Glen International.

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Media Contact: Lenny Santiago 386.681.5937

Team Royal Bourque Polaris Awesome in Owen Sound!

Royal Distributing-Bourque Polaris Race Report
Tim Horton’s Georgian Cup Snowcross

The Owen Sound track was a mix of stockpiled parking lot snow, and some natural snow we were lucky enough to get in the last few weeks.  The Royal Distributing-Bourque Polaris team had been training hard and testing during the layoff since the season opener, and it paid off big in Owen Sound.

In Saturday’s heat races, the red  Royal Polaris’ of Butler and Joanis dominated the day, rolling out heat win after heat win.  Holeshots, large leads and checkered flags were the order of the day for both riders. 

In Sunday afternoon’s Pro Stock final Lee Butler’s #73 got a 3rd place start, teammate Dave Joanis entered the first corner in 2nd place.  By halfway Joanis made a move on the leader and Butler took advantage, using experience to pass both riders and move into the lead.  Dave’s #115  moved into second in the same corner, and the teammates ran together to the checkered for a 1 – 2 Royal Polaris finish!

The stands at the Owen Sound fairgrounds were full with the milder Sunday weather for the day’s final race; the Pro Open mod final for the Georgian Cup.  All the pro racers were focused on one goal: bragging rights to the Georgian Cup for the entire year.  Dave Joanis, at 16 years old in his first Pro season, had other plans for the veteran racers.

The start was all Royal Distributing Polaris, with Butler holeshotting and Joanis following him into the first corner.  The two Polaris’s  jostled back and forth with the 73 and 115 putting on an exciting show for the crowd, not to mention the nervous team owners and mechanics.  Dave put his Polaris inside of Lee one last time with about 3 laps remaining, Lee had a small mishap after that, rendering him to 3rd place, after remounting.  Lee fought back and regained 2nd place, and that’s how they would finish, another 1-2 , with Joanis breaking Butler’s streak of final wins at 3. 

Lots of pictures included this week to give you all a feel for the action!

Your Royal Distributing Bourque Polaris team is now a perfect 4 for 4 in finals on the season.  Next up: Lindsay, ON for the first round of the Kawartha Cup, at the brand new Lindsay Exhibition Fairgrounds.  Get out and see a CSRA Pro Snowcross race!  You will be impressed!

Photos courtesy of Gary at Supernova Photo, Jackie Legge, and Phil Molto.

Thanks to our Sponsors: Polaris Racing, Walker Evans Shocks, Stud Boy, FXR Clothing, Kimpex, Ipone Oils, HMK, Oakley, OSM Magazine, Rox, Dayco, Fly, Camoplast, TekVest, Renton Coil Springs, C&A Skis, Jaws Perfomance and Digatron.

From Mark Fries / mfries@royaldistributing.com <<Philmolto.jpg>> <<JackieLegge1.jpg>> <<JackieLegge2.jpg>> <<Supernova 002.jpg>> <<Supernova001.jpg>>

Royal Skidoo Factory Recreation Race Report - Owen Sound

Royal Distributing-Factory Recreation Ski-Doo Race Report

Georgian Cup, Owen Sound, ON: Royal Pro Rider Joey Sagan is running as fast as he has ever been! Joey doesn’t really believe in luck, but will almost admit he is due some good luck soon.  After some blistering fast qualifiers, and some tough final luck at Searchmount, Joey was ready to prove he is a contender on this year’s circuit. 

On Saturday, Joey did just that.  Sagan’s # 202 XP ran 2nd in his Saturday Stock heat, and got a win and a 2nd place in his Mod heats.  The Factory Recreation Skidoo’s spent the day on the box-on the podium, right where Joey wanted them.  Everything was shaping up well for Sundays finals.

On Sunday Sagan got a poor start on the tight Owen Sound starting line, but fought hard to finish in 4th spot, and awesome drive up through the competitive pack in the short 10 lap final.

In the final race, the Pro Open final, Joey nailed an awesome start, as seen in the attached picture, as he came into the first corner in almost a dead heat for the lead.  Unfortunately a sled came up and knocked into the XP and took Sagan off the sled, in the melee he became trapped under another riders sled .  Joey remounted and charged back, shotgun on the field, Sagan fought back to an 8th place result. 

The team knows they are super fast and are looking forward to Lindsay this weekend.

Cally Ann Sagan on her Pink #502c Skidoo XP had a strong weekend with solid wins in Sport 600 Women, in both Saturday and Sundays finals!

Also, coming out of retirement, our own Jason Smith piloted the 75x to a victory in Vintage 2 leaf/slide and a 3rd in Vintage 1 leaf/bogie classes!

See you this weekend in Lindsay ON, for the Kawartha Cup Round 1!

Thanks to all of our amazing sponsors: Ski-Doo, FXR clothing, Oakley Eyewear, HMK Boots, Tekvest, Studboy Traction, Dewalt Tools, Kimpex, Ipone , C and A Pro

Photos courtesy of Gary at Supernova Photo , and Jackie Legge

From Mark Fries // mfries@royaldistributing.com

 
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ALMS Team Intersport Racing Signs Kyle Marcelli For 2009

ALMS LMP1 Team Intersport Racing Signs Kyle Marcelli For 2009

Barrie, Ontario (January 21st 2009) – Canadian Kyle Marcelli will has recently been signed by American LeMans Series LMP1 race winning team Intersport Racing. The experienced and well respected Intersport Racing team has signed Marcelli to a development program for 2009. The program consists of a full season behind the wheel in the IMSA Lites Championship in the L1 class and multiple tests behind the wheel of the team's LMP1 prototype car with the opportunity for a race drive.

Team Manager of Intersport Racing Brian Alder commented: "We are very excited about signing Kyle to the 2009 IMSA Lites Presented by Frisby Performance Tires season.  Kyle has already proven himself in other series and truly is a rising star of the sport.  We are looking forward to competing for the 2009 championship beginning at Sebring in March. This is also a great opportunity for Kyle as he has taken the first step in our ladder system that could lead him into an American Le Mans Series LMP ride for 2010." 

Kyle Marcelli said: “I am very excited to be apart of the Intersport Racing team and be affiliated with the prestigious American LeMans Series for 2009.  This is almost a dream come true for me. Ever since I can remember my Dad and I used to go to Mosport International Raceway for the American LeMans Series weekend and stand on the outside of corner two watching and cheering as the prototypes go by flat out, only dreaming that it would one day be me. Well I believe that day is almost here.”

Marcelli will be travelling down to the team’s race shop in mid February for a fitment.  The team then takes off for testing in the first week in March prior to the series opener at the famed Sebring International Raceway. They will be there supporting the 12 hr race in the American LeMans Series.

About the IMSA Lites Championship: The IMSA Lites Championship was developed as a feeder series to the American Le Mans Series, the premier prototype and GT endurance racing series in the world. The championship features multi-class racing. It presents a dimension of competition as drivers must be aware of classes with distinctly different speeds as they navigate the race tracks. This is the same challenge American Le Mans Series drivers face. IMSA Lites offers competitors from around the world the opportunity to compete in a highly competitive atmosphere at historic racing circuits like Sebring International Raceway, Road Atlanta and Miller Motorsports Park. The Championship gives racers the opportunity to sharpen their skills in a multi-class environment with a focus on preparing for American Le Mans Series competition. www.imsa-lites.com. 

About Kyle Marcelli: A resident of Barrie, Ontario, 18 year old Kyle Marcelli is one very fast, always winning, race car driver.  A proven champion and a determined young talent in the industry Kyle is on the fast track to international racing stardom. For more information visit www.kylemarcelli.com.   

For sponsorship or media inquires contact Kate Walsh at E: katewalsh@sympatico.ca // P: 705-865-6969
<<DSCF0446.JPG>> <<DSCF0447.JPG>> <<IMSA_Lites_L1.jpg>> <<LeMans Prototype.jpg>>

Squawkers in Big League Stew!

Hail to the Met? Yankee-in-Chief? To commemorate the inauguration, Big League Stew, a Yahoo! sports blog, asked the Subway Squawkers to imagine if a Met or Yankee became president.

Check it out at http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Subway-Squawking-Mets-or-Yankees-in-the-White-H?urn=mlb,135884 and tell us what you think.

And thanks to Big League Stew editor Kevin Kaduk for giving us a chance to squawk on his site.

Ohio Governor 2010

Strickland Approval:

Approve 48
Disapprove 35

Kasich Favorability:

Favorable 34
Unfavorable 24

Head to Head:

Strickland 45
Kasich 39

Ted Strickland would start out with the lead if John Kasich were to challenge him for Governor of Ohio in 2010, but it's certainly not an insurmountable advantage.

Strickland's approval rating is 48/35. In June we found it at 47/26, so while his approval has pretty much remained static over the last seven months, a number of people have moved from the 'no opinion' to the 'disapprove' column during that time.

A 42% plurality of voters in the state don't know enough about Kasich to have an opinion of him one way or the other. Among those who do, 34% see him favorably and 24% have an unfavorable perception of him.

One piece of good news for Strickland is that he leads Kasich 44-41 among white voters. The reason he only has a six point advantage overall is that the poll found him only winning 52-29 among black voters. Polling a long ways out from an election tends to underestimate black support for Democratic candidates but it seems likely Strickland will at least match the 77% he got against his African American opponent, Ken Blackwell, in 2006 or exceed it. Any Ohio Democrat who wins the white vote will win a contest for statewide office.

Nevertheless if Kasich decides to make the race this will be one to watch.

Full results here.

Highmark and Independence Kill Deal

Pennsylvania insurance providers Highmark and Independence Blue Cross say they are withdrawing their merger applications with the Pennsylvania Insurance Department. The heads of the two companies say they feel the merger is still very advantageous but believe the state will not approve the deal as they had hoped. The merger was proposed more than a year and a half ago and the state has held 10 public hearings including one in Pittsburgh in July. The CEO's of both insurance providers say they felt the state would reject the merger on the grounds that it would hurt competition. In a statement they say, "We fundamentally disagree" and "This is genuinely disappointing." Highmark's client base is strongest in the Pittsburgh market and IBS is focused mostly in the Philadelphia area however, the two companies do overlap in the center of the state. A decision from the Insurance Department was expected Jan. 28th. That decision was expected to allow the merger but with the stipulation that the merged company not use the "Blue Cross" brand. In the statement IBS says it has worked for "more than 70 years developing our brands' value..." and "Throughout the process, we have stated repeatedly that we would not give up one of our brands."

How Shuler Stacks Up

Our newest poll finds Congressman Heath Shuler trailing Richard Burr 39-28 in a hypothetical match up. You might wonder how that compares to similar polling we did two years ago against Elizabeth Dole.

We tested two Democratic members of the Congressional delegation, and found Brad Miller trailing Dole by 11 points and Bob Etheridge trailing her by 15. So Shuler's intitial performance against Burr is comparable to how Congressmen did at this stage against Dole, who of course ended up losing.

And Shuler's doing much better than Kay Hagan did in early testing two years ago. When we first looked at how she stacked up to Dole, she trailed by 16 points.

Duquesne Light Offers Free Energy Audits

Starting this month, Duquesne Light is offering a free energy conservation program to customers whose income falls between 150 and 250 percent of Federal Poverty Guidelines, which are based on income and the number of people in the household.

To set up a free energy audit, call the company's Universal Services Department at 888-393-7600. Duquesne Light spokesman Joseph Vallarian says Conservation Consultants will walk through your home or apartment and point out ways to save money. Easy fixes may include plastic sheeting on windows to reduce drafts, adding insulation, or changing the furnace filter.

Vallarian says Duquesne Light also has programs for paying the bills, but it's very important to call at the first sign of a problem.

Burr v. Shuler

Burr Approval

Approve 33
Disapprove 30

Shuler Favorability

Favorable 21
Unfavorable 21

Head to Head:

Burr 39
Shuler 28

Richard Burr's approval rating continues to languish in the 30s, the newest survey from Public Policy Polling finds. Even as he enters his fifth year representing North Carolina in the Senate, a 37% plurality of the state's voters continue to have no opinion of him one way or the other.

By comparison, former Senator Elizabeth Dole had a 44% approval rating in January 2008.

Congressman Heath Shuler, one of the Democrats being most commonly discussed as a potential Burr opponent, is an unknown commodity to 58% of voters in the state, with 21% holding a favorable opinion of him and 21% viewing him unfavorably.

Interestingly though Shuler's popularity in the Mountains, which he represents in Congress, is higher than Burr's approval in any individual region of the state. 51% of voters there have a favorable opinion of him. Burr doesn't have higher than a 41% approval rating in any individual section of the state. The fact that those who know Shuler think so highly of him bodes well for his prospects as a candidate if he decides to enter the race and start building up a statewide profile.

In a preliminary head to head match up Burr leads Shuler 39-28. This lead is largely a product of two times more Democrats saying they're undecided than Republicans. While 38% of Democrats aren't sure who they would support at this preliminary stage, only 19% of Republicans are.

A PPP survey last month found Burr trailing Roy Cooper 39-34. Polling under 40% against two potential 2010 opponents is not a good sign for his reelection prospects.

Full results here

State Party Chair Race

I am baffled by what's going on (perhaps not going on is a better description) with the race for chair of the NCDP.

Pretty much everyone I know doesn't think any of the named candidates are suitable replacements for Jerry Meek. They all have done good service to the Democratic Party and have a role to play, but none of them have shown the fundraising ability needed to keep the party running strong. As I wrote last month, the new chair needs to be someone both with a strong commitment to the grassroots and the ability to keep the coffers flowing. Having one of those skills or the other isn't going to cut it.

Although Bev Perdue has done a great job during her early days in office (we'll have some polling showing the public agrees later in the week), I am baffled by her lack of leadership on this. Under the Dome has reported that she may not take a side. She not only needs to take a side, she needs to recruit a strong candidate to run with her support. Even though the election is only ten days away the complete lack of clarity about who's running and who's not has made it entirely possible that someone could get in the race with just a week's notice and win. I don't get the sense that any of the folks who have thrown their hats in the ring have locked up a lot of support.

Maybe she knows what she's doing and is just holding her cards close because the lack of strong candidates makes it so that she can afford to wait. I certainly hope so. As our report last week showed, keeping the Obama coalition engaged is going to be critical to Democratic success in 2010, and having a plan and the money to execute it could play a real role in the ability to defeat Richard Burr and maintain a Democratic legislature next year.

PennDOT Makes Wish List

With President Obama now in office, and expected to push an infrastructure stimulus package, PennDOT has prepared by making a list of how to spend the possible money. Thus far, PennDOT is seeking for approximately $1.5 billion in funding for road and bridge projects through the state, including almost $200 million for projects within Allegheny County.

PennDOT Spokesperson Jim Struzzi reminds everyone that the list is preliminary, and it has been made to ensure that additional funding would be spent properly if they received it. He says most of projects listed within Allegheny County are existing projects that need more funding.

Key county projects include the North Side expansion and upgrade of Route 28, the Fort Duquesne Bridge upgrade, the re-organization of the Routes 22-30-60 interchange in Robinson, and Liberty Tunnel updates.

Land Trust Becomes Nonprofit

The Westmoreland Land Trust has received nonprofit status from the Internal Revenue Service. This means funding will be a much easier process for them, and donations will be tax-deductible.

Chuck Duritsa, chair of the Land Trust Board, says the organization's purpose is to preserve open space in Westmoreland County. Attaining more property faster is now underway, and their potential land acquisitions are coming from both purchases and donations. He says the year-old Land Trust is unique to the county because it serves only the county and exists only for one sole purpose.

Memorial Medical Center Cuts 47 Employees

Memorial Medical Center in Johnstown laid off 47 employees yesterday, blaming the weak economy for the job cuts. The 47 employees make up about 1 percent of the hospital’s 3,700 person staff. The layoffs consist primarily of support positions and do not include hospital nursing staff.
The affected employees have been offered generous severance packages and will be provided with career counseling and job placement assistance with some of the employees being offered internal job opportunities.
Memorial Medical President Steve Tucker says through a press release, “Careful planning went into this process and our goal was to maintain as many jobs as possible while meeting our fiscal responsibilities in this unprecedented economic environment.”
On a statewide scale, many hospitals are feeling similar effects from the economic downturn. 50 percent of Pennsylvania hospitals have reported a moderate to significant decrease in admissions, particularly elective procedures.
Similarly, hospitals across the state have also reported a moderate to significant increase in patients without insurance. Conemaugh Health System provides over $34 million in uncompensated care each year, in addition to over $2 million in charity care.
This could lead to other cost-cutting measures for Memorial Medical Center including adjustments to employee benefit packages and a possible salary-based tiered health care program sources say.
“These are really challenging times,” adds Tucker, “and this current national economic challenge does not change our commitment to continue to grow and excel!”
Historically, hospitals have depended on profit from investments to offset a decline in income. However, 83 percent of PA hospitals have seen an investment decline.

More Velcade-Style Risk-Sharing in the UK?

It appears that Janssen-Cilag feels a lot better now about its pay-for-performance scheme around multiple myeloma drug bortezemib (Velcade) than it did when the program was introduced in 2007.

The Velcade Response Scheme (VRS) came about out of desperation: cost-effectiveness watchdog NICE had turned down the drug as too expensive, so Janssen-Cilag, to its credit, said to the UK’s state payer, the Department of Health, ok, well if we promise to charge only when the drug is effective (and refund you if not), then will you give this to patients?

The answer was yes. And now, not only have all of the UK’s Primary Care Trusts have signed up to the VRS, according to a Janssen spokesperson, but this scheme “may now be a good example of how a performance-based scheme could be structured.” That’s not a statement from Janssen; it’s from a position document issued last year by the British Oncology Pharmacy Association on risk-sharing schemes.

Indeed, such schemes have, perhaps inevitably, become a rather more regular feature of the UK drug landscape—making Janssen feel more pioneering than desperate (though Janssen isn’t the first to guarantee performance; Pfizer tried with Lipitor too).

Most of the other recent flavors of risk-sharing programs around expensive cancer drugs emerged, like VRS did, as a result of a negative NICE appraisal. Merck-Serono offered the Cetuximab Cost-Share Program around Erbitux in metastatic colorectal cancer, which involved refunding primary care trusts the cost of any vials of the drug used for patients that fell into a pre-agreed ‘non-responder’ category at up to 6 weeks. Roche instigated the ‘Tarceva Access Program’ for its NSCLC drug erlotinib, offering a rebate, in the form of a credit note against any future Roche purchase, for the amount that the drug cost over and above the cost of the incumbent NSCLC treatment docetaxel (Sanofi-Aventis' Taxotere) for an average patient duration (with an upper limit on the total number of packs).

Now granted, Roche’s program was initially introduced as a means to claw market share off docetaxel, which it was struggling to do ahead of NICE guidance. But when NICE found Tarceva to be un-cost effective—with questions around the lack of comparative data with docetaxel in particular--the scheme was formally proposed to NICE as part of a re-review. In November 2008, NICE issued positive guidance—but only on condition that the overall treatment cost remained in line with that of docetaxel. Roche had to drop the price by about 7.5%.

Critics say such programs are simply a way for industry to coerce NICE into a ‘yes’. Maybe. But there’s no denying that such schemes represent a logical way to improve patient access without breaking the bank. Indeed, the new UK drug pricing contract, the PPRS, formalizes a bunch of patient access schemes, including risk-sharing programs. And NICE, as we heard from CEO Andrew Dillon last week, would prefer such schemes to be proposed up front, before a drug is submitted for review, rather than as a last-resort of the drug fails the cost-test.

Small wonder, then, that in the last three or four months since the PPRS was published, the department of health has been in contact with various companies about schemes around several “high profile” drugs, according to David Thomson, Lead Pharmacist at the Yorkshire Cancer Network and author of the BOPA position statement.

The big problem is administration. As it is, it’s complex to administer rebates and track outcomes. The more different schemes are available, the harder that becomes. “Anecdotal evidence suggests that the VRS [and a similar scheme around Sutent] aren’t necessarily bringing the expected levels of financial benefit to the National Health Service,” Thomson told The IN VIVO Blog.

Add to this the problem of patchy uptake or availability of some of the existing handful of programs across the country, and the possibility of multiple risk-programs across a single drug for different indications, and it’s easy to see why BOPA's pushing for some sort of risk-sharing plan template....and why we may not, after all, see a flood of VRS-followers soon.

image by flickr user fboosman used under a creative commons license

Big changes at Delaware Speedway

Jim Cressman of the London Free Press has had a pair of items published in the past week in which he details some significant changes at Delaware Speedway, near London, ON.

They include a consolidation of ownership (down to one from four) and a return to NASCAR sanction for the weekly racing divisions. Delaware was the first track in Canada to have NASCAR sanctioning, back in 2004, but that relationship was shortlived.

Race Director Jeff Wilcox said the track is willing to consider a NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race in 2009 if available, but it's a more realistic goal to look ahead to 2010 for that series. Facility upgrades are also in the works for this summer, according to Wilcox. They include track repairs in turns 3 and 4 and upgrades to the washrooms, concessions and other infrastructure items.

Click here and here to see Jim Cressman's stories in the LFP.

Rick Young's Rick at the Races (Jan. 17, 2009)

Rick Young's 'Rick at the Races': Canadian Motorsports Expo and the Kawartha Speedway Banquet

PIC 1   Canadian Motor Sports Expo Program Scan
PIC 2   Yours Truly meets Jacques Villeneuve
PIC  3  Chris Raabe meets Kerry Micks
PIC 4  Caitlin Johnson with her Formula Ford
PIC 5  The NASCAR Sprint Cup car of Jimmie Johnson
PIC 6 The Fiat Toppolino bodied special on the Pincrest Reunion stand
PIC 7  My Fiat Toppolino bodied BriSCA F2 stock car at the Brafield Stadium (UK) 1977
PIC 8  Brandon Watson recieves his trophy for winning the Kawartha/Capital City Challenge
PIC 9  Brandon Watson # 19 leads Rick Rump # 96 at the Capital City Speedway in 2008
PIC 10   Joey Ladouceur at the NYS Fairgrounds, Syracuse during SUPER DIRT WEEK 2008
PIC 11 Jerry Fisher greets a Dakar Rally competitor in Buenos Aries , Argentina ( JERRY FISHER PHOTO)
PIC 12  The end of the Dakar Rally in Buenos Aires, Argentina (JERRY FISHER PHOTO)

Instead of standing in the cold watching ice racing, this past weekend I attended two indoor events. I decided quite a while back that I wanted to visit the Canadian Motorsports Expo in Toronto on Saturday (17 Jan) and made plans to go with  www.rickattheraces.com  'webmaster' Craig Revelle.

On Friday night I was contacted by another buddy, Jim Clarke of Belleville, the PR man and announcer at the Kawartha Speedway. It was the tracks annual awards and banquet on Saturday night and he was wondering if I could help them out. Their resident photographer Peter Brand, was unable to attend due to sickness in the family so he asked if I could fill in.

It was only a short distance out of our way, so I phoned track boss, Derek Lynch to confirm.

I left my place in Long Sault at 5-15am on Saturday morning, and met up with Craig at the Gananoque 'Tim Hortons' just before 7-00am. It was snowing when I left home, but by then it had ended. The next stop was at the 10 Acres Truck Stop at Belleville where we joined up with Jim for a chat over Breakfast.

We arrived at the INTERNATIONAL CENTRE on Airport Road in Toronto at about 11-30 am in good time for a quick look around before the big event on my days agenda. Guest of Honor at the show was former World Champion racing driver Jacques Villeneuve. When we arrived he was busy signing autographs for the fans, but at noon a media conference was scheduled in the seminar room. This was something I didn't want to miss !

Of course most of the questions posed to Jacques, revolved around any future NASCAR SPRINT CUP plans ( if any) on his agenda, but of course I wanted to ask him something totally different !

By winning the F1 World Championship Jacques has already reached the highest level in the world of motor racing so I consider the NASCAR effort as 'another challenge'. With this in mind, and the fact that WORLD OF OUTLAW events now take place in Quebec and Ontario I asked him if he'd ever considered trying dirt racing.

Well, I'm sorry to disappoint all my fellow dirt racing friends, but the answer was emphatically no. It is something he would have no interest in doing, not even for a bit of fun. When I spoke to him privately afterwards, he told me that for fun, his choice would be karting. I guess , this isn't surprising when you consider his background and life-style in racings premier division , but I tried !

 Jacques was a real nice guy, quiet, good natured and he had plenty of time for both fans and media alike.

Two other big attractions at the show were the cars of NASCAR SPRINT CUP drivers Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jnr.

While walking around the rest of the show we bumped into Chris Raabe and his team. The young 2008 SUPER DIRT SERIES SPORTSMAN Champion is about to compete in the NASCAR CANADIAN TIRE SERIES this coming season and was in conversation with top driver Kerry Micks.

I also chatted with Formula Ford driver Caitlin Johnson. She raced at the inaugural meeting at the Calabogie Motor Sports Park that I attended in 2007. Like me, she recalls the heavy rainstorm that occurred on the Saturday.

Anyone who knows me well would have no difficulty in guessing which was my favorite car in the show . It was on the Pinecrest and National Exhibition Speedway Reunion stand. It was a vintage modified that raced at those long gone tracks of Toronto. Why did I like it so much ? Well, because it featured a cut down Fiat Toppolino body complete with full radiator grille.

It looked so much like the stock cars that were raced in the UK back in the early the 1960/70's. The Toppolino was a lovely little car and it's body was put to use by many at the time. In fact my first BriSCA F2 stock car had one fitted.

As you'd expect from a show held in Toronto the emphasis was on 'paved track' racing with very little for the dirt racing fan, but Craig and I enjoyed it and will no doubt be back there next year. It's a shame that when Ontario can boast two SUPER DIRT SERIES Champions, like Chris Raabe in the Sportsman and Pete Bicknell in the 358 Modifieds that their cars weren't on display.

By mid afternoon we'd seen everything and it was time to head towards the Kawartha Speedway. The banquet was being held in the main bar below the grandstands at the track. We met up with Jim again ( who had attended the Toronto show on Friday) and chatted with Derek Lynch about the evenings plans. After the delicious roast beef buffet it was time for me to go to work 'snapping' the award winners. I don't get to Kawartha too often so as you'd expect many of the faces were unfamiliar, but there was one guy who I had seen in action last year . It was the young Late Model driver Brandon Watson of Staynor (Ont). He not only topped the 2008 Kawartha points but the 15 year old also took the trophy for the Kawartha/Capital City Speedway Mini Series.

All of the time the banquet was taking place, snow had been falling quite heavily, which prompted a 'speeding up' of the awards. We were out of there by 9-30 for the four hour homeward bound drive in the snow. It was about 1-45 am in the morning when I pulled into Long Sault.

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Are More Rent-A-Reps On The Way?

That's what Deutsche Bank analyst Barbara Ryan suggests in an investor note after digesting the news that Pfizer is cutting about 2,400 sales reps, or roughly one-third of its sales force, as part of its ongoing downsizing.

In her view, tapping contract sales organizations makes sense, since revenues now follow a "cyclical pattern surrounding patent expirations" and most US drugmakers will lose more than 25 percent of their revenue base during this upcoming period. The answer? A new model, of sorts, that involves moving from a fixed cost to a variable cost base in order to maintain margins.

How would it work? A mix-and-match approach that calls for augmenting a drugmaker's best salespeople with a CSO. "Mature brands will be managed by less costly outsourced sales forces, which could cost as much as 25 percent less, which can be pulled before patent expirations," she writes.

Of course, such gambits are already under way. Ryan, in fact, points out that Merck tried this a few months ago by signing a deal with InVentiv Health to market Cozaar and Hyzaar just as the drugmaker axed 1,200 sales reps. These sorts of efforts, by the way, were foreshadowed in an IN VIVO article in 2006:

"The drug industry has accepted the need to outsource R&D--now, with sales productivity down, and the rising cost and risk of owning too much commercial infrastructure, why not outsource more of the sales effort, too? Big and small pharmas resist the idea but will eventually have to accept it."

And since then, the need for a new model has been hastened by a few familiar factors - more product recalls, fewer product approvals and ongoing complaints from some physicians about the number and effectiveness of reps walking through their doors. The bright side? This is one job that can't be outsourced overseas.

image from flickr user 'Howdy, I'm Michael Karshis' used under a creative commons license

INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES - Jan. 20, 2009

INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES – Jan. 20, 2009

Today’s IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines

1.      IndyCar Series announces testing policy
2.      Dreyer & Reinbold Racing tabs Conway to drive in 2009

1. IndyCar Series announces testing policy: IndyCar Series teams will be permitted six private test days in 2009, with limitations on the numbers of miles and sets of tires allowed based on the number of full-time cars the team fields. Teams can earn additional test days by providing opportunities to Firestone Indy Lights drivers.

Each IndyCar Series entrant that participates in the season-long IndyCar TEAM program (Team Enhancement and Allocation Matrix) will be allowed 800 miles or six days of testing, whichever comes first, and 18 sets of Firestone Firehawk tires. Entrants with a second car may conduct 1,200 miles of testing with 26 sets of tires, while entrants with additional cars will gain 200 miles and four sets of tires per car. Teams are not permitted to test at any track within seven days of a race.

“Our 2009 testing policy strikes a fair balance between controlling costs and maintaining a level playing field,” said Brian Barnhart, president of competition and operations for the Indy Racing League, sanctioning body of the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights. “With our diverse schedule of short ovals and superspeedways, road and street courses, it’s important to give our drivers and teams the chance to keep improving and maximize their performance. We also think there is a tremendous incentive for teams to give opportunities to the next generation of IndyCar Series drivers.”

For every 200 miles a Firestone Indy Lights driver tests with a team – up to a maximum of 600, the IndyCar Series team earns 100 bonus miles.

The testing policy also affords teams with rookie drivers an additional 400 miles and eight sets of tires for three days of testing.

“When you look back at the 13-year history of the IndyCar Series, our hallmark is the absolute best on-track competition,” Barnhart said. “This plan provides rookies, newcomers and our future drivers the chance to improve their skill set and throw themselves right into the thick of the competition.”

***

2. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing tabs Conway to drive in 2009: Dreyer & Reinbold Racing announced today that it has come to an agreement with British racer Mike Conway to become the team's first confirmed driver for the 2009 IndyCar Series campaign.

The 25-year old rookie comes to the U.S.-based open-wheel series after spending the majority of his career in the European formula car ladder. Most recently, he completed his second season driving in the GP2 Series with Trident Racing in 2008. He was also a Honda F1 Racing test driver for the past two seasons.

"I'm looking forward to the opportunity to race in the U.S. with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in the IndyCar Series," said Conway, who tested an IndyCar Series machine with Panther Racing last summer at Infineon Raceway. "I'll be visiting a lot of new tracks for the first time, especially oval tracks, but I'm very much looking forward to the challenge."

Conway has been one of the top up-and-coming British drivers for the last several years, having won the prestigious British Formula 3 championship with Räikkönen Robertson Racing in 2006. That year was also highlighted by a win in the famed Macau Grand Prix. His most recent success was winning a round at the famous streets of Monte Carlo, Monaca in the GP2 Series in 2008.

In 2004, he won the Formula Renault UK Championship, and in 2005, he was recognized twice by the British Racing Drivers' Club for his achievements in Formula 3.

"We're excited to get the things rolling in getting ready for the 2009 season," team co-owner Dennis Reinbold said. "We've made a lot of improvements in the off-season, and combined with Mike's talent, we're excited to see lots of positive results in this year's IndyCar Series events."

Conway's first test with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing will be a private rookie test before the IndyCar Series Open Test at the Homestead-Miami Speedway Feb. 25-26. These tests will be his first laps on an oval.

***

The 2009 IndyCar Series season opens April 5 with the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla. The race will be telecast live at 2 p.m. (EDT) by VERSUS. The 2009 Firestone Indy Lights season begins with a doubleheader race weekend April 4-5 at St. Petersburg.

Media Contacts: John Griffin, Indy Racing League, (317) 492-6579, jgriffin@indycar.com // Amy Konrath, Indy Racing League, (317) 492-6453, akonrath@indycar.com // World Wide Web: http://www.indycar.com

Allegheny County Launches New Website

Allegheny County has launched a new website titled "Help in Hard Times" in order to provide resources for families who are affected by the struggling economy. The website provides information and access to programs that help with employment, food, housing, utility assistance, health care and more. The county has already been giving this information out to people who ask but thought it would be easier if they made it available online. The website can be found at www.alleghenycounty.us/dhs/help.aspx.

VisitPittsburgh Searches for No.1 Steelers Fan

Pittsburgh's convention and tourism bureau is looking for the most enthusiastic Steelers fan in the world, says spokeswoman Beverly Morrow-Jones. VisitPittsburgh is accepting videos and photographs of extreme team spirit from now until January 28th. The winner of the contest will receive two tickets to a future home game, a Steelers jersey and a Super Bowl XL game ball. this is the second time VisitPittsburgh launched a fan search. The first was three years ago when the Steelers were in Superbowl XL. Creativity is encouraged in contestants. The winner of the 2006 contest carved pumpkins into football helmets and wore them to October home games. Morrow-Jones says there are more than 800 Steelers bars across the world, and the 2006 contest drew fans from as far away as Alaska and New Zealand.

Duquesne University Celebrates Obama's Inaugaration

As Barack Obama was being inaugurated in Washington D.C. students and faculty gathered at Duquesne University to share in the historical inauguration. Onlookers watched via web cast from CNN and afterward shared poems, songs, and spoken word performances celebrating the election of the nations first African American President. Many people expressed great amounts of inspiration and said how President Obama has affected their lives. The program was organized through the efforts of two student organizations wanted to create a place to celebrate President Obama's inauguration.

Matt Pritiko ready for Daytona

Matt Pritiko set to kick off year in Koni Challenge

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Matt Pritiko, from London, Ontario is ready to embark on his third season of Koni Challenge Series racing. The opening event in the 2009 Koni Challenge Series is the Fresh from Florida 200 on January 22-23, 2009.

Pritiko, is going back to his roots, as he will campaign the #76 Compass360 Racing Honda Civic Si. Pritiko began his Koni Challenge Series career with the highly touted Compass 360 team, and he is looking forward to getting back on the winning track with his new team.

Pritiko was a part of the team's roster in 2007, notching four top-ten finishes, including an exceptional fourth-place at Trois-Rivieres. He finished an impressive 15th in the overall standings in his rookie year. Matt's return to Compass360 Racing coincides with the team's move to Honda Civic Si's, after successfully campaigning Acura TSXs over the past two seasons.

"Matt is an analytical and deliberate driver," said C360R Technical Director Ray Lee. "He's a team player and the consumate professional."

"Compass 360 racing is no stranger to the podium at Daytona and I have no doubt that Travis [Walker] and I will be there," a confident Pritiko said. "The crew has been working rigorously throughout the off season to improve the performance of the Hondas and I cant wait to get on track."

Pritiko has been busy in the off season, and he is clearly pumped up to get the New Year underway. "It has been a long off season. I've been training and looking over data from past years to gain all the advantage I can get."

Matt Pritiko Fast Facts: Matt Pritiko is one of Canada's up and coming stars of motorsport. He is from LondonOntario. In 2007, Pritiko completed his rookie season in Koni Challenge, finishing 15th in the standings, with a top five and four top tens. Pritiko was a member of Sunoco's Team Ultra 94 and collected 1 win, 2 poles and five podiums in the Bridgestone F2000 Series. In 2002, Pritiko is was 2nd in F125/80cc in the Point Pelee Championships and took home the 2002 Most Sportsmanlike award. Pritiko is supported by Burwell Auto Body.

Compass360 Racing Fast Facts: Compass360 Racing (C360R) is the Motorsports division of Compass360, a marketing communications firm based in Toronto, Canada. Compass360 offers Brand Development and Deployment to clients in financial services, entertainment, advocacy and automotive sectors. Their work includes traditional advertising in television, radio and print, as well as corporate identity, logo creation, documentary film, website development and communications in non-traditional on-line media and event marketing. Compass360 Racing will field four Acuras in Grand Am's KONI Challenge in 2008, building on their third straight Manufacturer's Title and a strong second-place finish in the Driver and Team Championships in 2007.

Release prepared by Russ Bond Agency, Inc. (www.russbondagency.com ) For more information contact Russ Bond r.bond@russbondagency.com or 416-312-2900

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ARCA: Slick Mist Goes For Gerhart at Daytona; 5-time Winner Searching For 6th

Slick Mist Goes with Gerhart at Daytona; Lucas Oil Re-Signs 5-Time Daytona Winner
As……. Gerhart Searches for 6th Daytona Triumph

DAYTONA BEACH FL (1-20-09) – Bobby Gerhart Racing announced today that it has re-signed with Lucas Oil for the 2009 ARCA RE/MAX Series season.

Gerhart, renowned for his record five wins at Daytona, will debut the Lucas Oil “Slick Mist” brand on his no. 5 Chevy Monte Carlo at Daytona in the 46th running of the ARCA RE/MAX Series at the “World Center of Racing” in February. Lucas Oil is also sponsoring the race, known as the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona.

“The 2009 season marks our sixth consecutive season with Lucas Oil,” said Gerhart, whose five Daytona wins include three consecutive in ’05, ’06 and ’07. “We’re very proud of our association with Lucas Oil, a company whose longstanding race heritage speaks for itself. We feel like we’ve given them a good home. Our stuff is very competitive; it’s racy looking and provides the right image to promote their products. The wins at Daytona are obviously paramount to the overall success of the partnership.”

After finishing fourth at Daytona in 2008, Gerhart hopes to get back on track with an unprecedented sixth Daytona triumph. Gerhart’s sponsors are hoping for the same.

“The Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 ARCA race at Daytona is huge for us,” said Tom Bogner, Lucas Oil Motorsports Manager. “It’s a high-profile deal to be associated with Bobby Gerhart Racing and the ARCA RE/MAX Series at Daytona. It’s even more exciting because many of the new Lucas Oil products have been developed in Bobby’s car over the years, which makes our success at Daytona even more gratifying. Slick Mist is a newer product for us, and we’re working to make it a household name on the shelf. We can’t think of a better way to kick things off than with Bobby Gerhart at Daytona.”

In addition to testing at Daytona in December, the Gerhart clan is headed to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend for one final restrictor plate hurrah.

“We had a great Daytona test,” added 50-year-old Gerhart. “We came out with some very positive info. I’m pretty sure we’re going to race with the same car we won with in ’07, but we have a new one too that we’re not finished beating on yet, so it’s possible that could change.

“Now we’re headed to Talladega. There are a couple reasons we do that. Our newest engine packages aren’t in the cars till now. We took what we raced last year to the Daytona test, which gives us good aero information, but now we need to test the new power combination and look for all the speed we can – combine the two (tests) and go the ‘beach’.

“Overall, the information we’ve gleaned from the two tests has worked for us, so we’re not going to try and fix it. We’ll be testing Joey Coulter at Talladega too. In fact, the Coulter crew is here in the shop (Lebanon, PA) wrenching on the car right now. We’ve got room for more testers at Talladega if anyone’s interested.”

With increasingly competitive fields at Daytona mixed with ARCA’s best and a good share of fulltime Cup teams, victories at the historic superspeedway are factually harder to achieve. Gerhart is well aware of those challenges.

“It’s amazing really. It went from just a few teams that took it serious to a bunch of teams that took it serious. I think everyone in ARCA is coming to terms with just how important Daytona is, and I think our success there had a lot to do with that. There are a lot more ultra-competitive restrictor plate teams now than there were five years ago. I think we helped make everyone realize what we’ve always had at Daytona and how important it is for the teams, the sponsors and the series.”

In addition to the increasingly competitive restrictor plates teams in the ARCA RE/MAX Series, Gerhart recognizes other outside factors that are adding even more complicating circumstances – mainly, the economy.

“I think it’s going to be a very challenging year for all the competitors; it’s something we’re all going to face this year. It’s going to be extremely hard, in this environment, to race the way we want, and need, to race. I’ve got our team pulled back as far as I can to be as competitive as we’ve been.

“We can’t say for sure right now how many races we’re going to be able to run; it’s still up in the air. Obviously, we want to run for the championship; I still feel like I have it in me to get the job done. But you can’t run for the championship if your program can’t be what it needs to be. If you look at the last four or five years out there, it’s becoming quite clear, financially speaking, what it takes to run for the championship. I suppose if the racing gods line up just right all year long, you can do it for much less; but anymore, the financial side cannot be your Achilles heel. To win a championship here anymore, the financial side cannot be your weakness.

“I’ve been swinging my own bat for a long time. I’m obviously very involved financially myself. And with my businesses at home, all with their own challenges, it’s tough to keep everything going. Having said all that, we should be as strong as we’ve ever been at Daytona. I can’t wait to drive the rig through the gates. It’s just what I need right now.

“I’ve always looked at our team as underdogs. Maybe that’s part of our success; I don’t know. I’m very realistic, especially when I’m looking at the budgets we have to work with compared to the Cup teams. I’d say we’re tremendous underdogs.

“I mean if you look at the sheer facts…the amount of resources and engineering depth they have compared to what we have, it’s a long shot that we’d even be in their league. I mean, we’ve never even been to the wind tunnel.”

Gerhart, who was ARCA’s Rookie of the Year in 1988, has been an integral part of the ARCA RE/MAX Series for more than 20 years. Remarkably, some of the people who started with Gerhart 20 years ago, are still with him.

“We’re very fortunate. We have a support group that’s vital to what we do. They give me the tools to make these cars what they are.

“Right now, our sole focus is Daytona. This is, and always will be, the most important race to me. And it has been for a long, long time. I know my team will do everything they humanly can to put me in a position to win. They understand how important this place is to me. I’ve been so blessed to win there five times. To win once is a blessing in itself, but five? It still blows my mind to think we’ve done that.”

When asked about the possibility of winning a sixth time at Daytona, Gerhart said, “I’m not going to Daytona to run second.”

Practice for the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona is from 12 noon – 5:00 PM Thursday, February 5th with Pole Qualifying Friday at noon, February 6th followed by a final practice from 5:10 to 6:15 Friday afternoon. The 46th annual Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 at Daytona, which precedes the Budweiser Shootout, is LIVE on SPEED at 4:00 PM ET Saturday, February 7th.

CONTACTS: Don Radebaugh

Coroner Requests More Room

Westmoreland County Coroner Ken Bacha says his facility lacks sufficient space for the bodies he must store. He wants the county to build a new morgue and coroner's office with up-to-date equipment and more refrigeration trays. Currently, bodies are stored in the morgue at Westmoreland Manor, a county-owned nursing home. There are four refrigerated drawers at that locations, three of which can be used to store bodies. Bacha says he wants a new facility with about 18 storage drawers. He says the more space is needed because of an increase in caseload and an increase in the length of time bodies must be kept at the morgue. Bacha has spoken with Westmoreland County Commissioners about his need for more space, but no formal request for a new facility has been made.

High Marks for Obama in NC

Barack Obama may have taken North Carolina by the smallest of margins in November, but PPP's newest survey finds that he's won over a lot of voters in the state in the subsequent 11 weeks.

He receives a 66% approval rating for his transition, with just 25% disapproving.

The support for his work in preparing to take office is universal across demographic lines: voters within every gender, race, and age category that we track give him at least 60% approval.

That's particularly notable with white North Carolinians. Only a little more than a third of them gave Obama their votes, but 61% give their approval to his transition.

Although there has been some consternation from the liberal wing of the party about some of Obama's decisions in the last couple months, a remarkable 89% of Democrats approve of the transition. It's hard to get 89% of Democrats to agree on what color the sky is.

Voters most concerned about health care, education, and the economy give Obama his overall highest marks.

Full results here.

Tax Time is Coming

Tax forms are starting to arrive in mailboxes and the IRS has a few reminders, as you get ready to start work on your 1040. IRS Spokesperson David Stewart says the first thing to do is grab a folder and start putting all of the W-2’s, 1099’s and tax statements into the folder so you will be ready when its time to get down to work. He says the next stop should be the IRS.GOV web page. He says every from you will ever need is there along with instructions, tips and a long list of tools. Among those tools are links to free electronic filing software for people making less than 56 thousand dollars a year. He says 70-percent of Pennsylvania filers qualify for that free service. The software takes you through the tax forms in a question or answer format. Stewart says everyone qualifies for a new service on IRS.GOV called “fillable forms.” He says the on-line forms are exactly the same as the printed forms but they do the math for you and can be filed electronically for free. One of the biggest changes to this years tax form is a deduction for first time homebuyers.

Free Tuition Program a "Success"

15 displaced workers in the Johnstown area have stepped forward to claim a free education at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College. The School announced it would provide a year’s worth of free full-time tuition to any worker who lost a job in the last year due to the faltering economy. The program was announced January 5th and enrollment ended just 9 days later. College President Walter Asonevich says in that short period of time 100 people inquired about the program and 15 enrolled. He says the school will offer the program at the beginning of each semester for at least the next year. Asonevich says the program will allow many people who could not even think about getting a degree or certificate a chance to improve themselves. He says he expects many more to enroll in the summer and the fall. The school will make sure everyone knows the 15 new students and will make sure they are hooked up with every assistance and support program available to them. CCAC has also launched a similar program for displaced workers in Allegheny County. Enrollment for that program ends in March.

NICE’s Growing Influence on UK Drug Pricing

NICE doesn’t set drug prices in the UK, companies do. But the agency’s influence on pricing, if indirect, will nevertheless grow considerably given the UK’s new Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme, published late last year following a surprise renegotiation of the agreement.

“The PPRS has increased price flexibility quite deliberately, and NICE has a role to play in enabling that flexibility to be applied in appropriate circumstances,” said NICE CEO Andrew Dillon in an interview on Thursday.

Aside from the overall 3.9% price decrease slapped on all branded drugs from February (with a further 1.9% due next year) the PPRS formalizes options for a variety of patient access schemes, including outcomes-based programs that allow for a price increase in the light of new evidence around a drug. It also proposes conditional pricing based on the collection of additional evidence, the possibility of rebates in the event that a drug fails to deliver the promised benefits, and risk-sharing set-ups along the lines of that proposed by Janssen-Cilag in 2007 for blood cancer drug Velcade.

All this means more work for NICE, since its role is to assess any additional evidence that might justify a price increase, rebate, or price decrease. Under the new scheme companies can request a re-review from NICE based on “significant” new evidence. “We already keep guidelines up to date,” points out Dillon, but “the difference is that in the past, we decided when to re-consider [a particular drug or drug class]. From now on, companies can come and ask us.”

NICE plans to meet all those additional requests—and let’s face it, there will likely be a few—by establishing a fourth advisory committee (the current three comprise about 30 experts each) and increasing staff in its technology appraisal team. It hasn’t yet committed to responding in any particular time-frame, but “we want to make sure we deal with [all requests] as fast as we can,” Dillion told The IN VIVO Blog. Step one will be for NICE to “ensure that we agree the evidence is sufficiently materially different” to be likely to warrant either a premium price, or a change in a previously negative recommendation. Assuming it is, the product would go through the same standard technology appraisal as any new product does currently.

Companies: Apply Early

But why should NICE prioritize re-reviews that could lead to price rises, over reviewing new medicines or technologies? Well, for one thing, the PPRS allows companies to implement price rises 12 months after they propose them, unless negative NICE guidance has appeared sooner. More significantly, it’s the agency’s job is to re-review important treatments in the light of new evidence anyway. “But clearly, if a company comes earlier than expected to ask for consideration, the effect is simply to advance a review that we would otherwise have done,” notes Dillon.

So get in there early, companies, with your new evidence—so long as it’s meaty.

And get in there early with your proposals for Velcade-style risk-sharing schemes, too. These needn’t only appear as a desperate last measure following a negative appraisal. “If companies have an idea that the scheme might be part of the solution, and it’s in their heads at the time of embarking on a [first] NICE appraisal, we’d much rather hear about it at the beginning,” emphasizes Dillon. “Otherwise it just extends the process” since NICE would then have to start again to review the practicalities of a risk-sharing scheme.

Extended processes are the last thing NICE needs, given its growing workload (fee-for-advice services and masterclasses for smaller companies are also on offer) and its promise to issue guidance within six months of a product’s approval.

Let’s hope the UK government, after bailing out the banks, has enough left at the start of the new financial year in April to grant NICE the extra funds its applying for.

Sharfstein Speaks: Is He Headed To Washington?

During a Baltimore City rally for Barack Obama on Saturday, Dan Rodricks, a host for the local National Public Radio station, WYPR, got a coveted interview with a Baltimore official who has been making national headlines.

No, it wasn’t Baltimore City mayor, Sheila Dixon, who was recently indicted for perjury and theft charges (and who, may we add, did not receive a shout-out from president-elect Obama when he addressed the massive crowd).

WYPR spoke to Baltimore City health commissioner Joshua Sharfstein, one of two finalists for the FDA commissioner job. (You can read all about that story in this week’s issue of “The Pink Sheet.”) Sharfstein was at the Obama rally in an official capacity as health commissioner, directing people to warming tents and trying to prevent hypothermia and frostbite.

And while that's certainly a good story, Rodricks also asked Sharfstein whether he would leaving Baltimore to become FDA commissioner. Sharfstein was non-committal (as would be expected), but also expressed his deep admiration for Obama, and the science-based policies that he will support as president.

We’ll let you be the judge on the meaning behind his remarks. Here’s the interview, as transcribed by us from an online recording of Dan’s show, which aired yesterday afternoon:

Dan Rodricks: Are you going to go to work in Washington? Are we going to lose you here in Baltimore?

Joshua Sharfstein: I’m fully expecting to be health commissioner of Baltimore. It’s a great job, and lots to do this year.

Rodricks: OK, because there have been all these stories in the press about Joshua Sharfstein and the Food and Drug Administration.

Sharfstein: I know, my mom sends them all to me.

Rodricks: But you’re going to be around here for a while?

Sharfstein: That’s what I totally expect.

Rodricks: What do you expect from Barack Obama….Are you expecting generally more progressive ideas coming out of the White House?

Sharfstein: Absolutely. The first thing he said is that he wants to base health policy on the science. That’s a huge shift from what we’ve had. When you look at the science, you look at what things have worked, those are the kinds of things that we’re trying to do in Baltimore. I think we can expect some support for that, because we’ve got evidence for what we are doing. ...

Rodricks: Have you felt this way before about a president?

Sharfstein: I’ve never experienced anything like this. It’s been terrific. I’ve had a chance to work on the transition some, and that’s been great. From the moment—I just remember Iowa and everything, it’s just been so exciting.

Photo credit: Reuters/Jason Reed

Rendell and Casey Look to Grow Ties With Obama

"Yes We Did" was the theme of Pennsylvania Democrats' Inaugural celebration in Washington D.C. on the eve of the swearing in ceremony. Both Governor Ed Rendell and Senator Bob Casey voiced their high hopes for an Obama Administration. Gov. Rendell says Pennsylvania can claim a special role in electing Barack Obama. He says after all the resources the McCain campaign poured into the commonwealth, when it was called for Obama just after eight pm, he knew the Illinois Senator was headed to the White House. “He told me a couple weeks later that he knew at 8:06, too. So we think we were the ones that put Senator Obama over the top and we're real proud of that.” Rendell says he's hopeful that Pennsylvanians will benefit from the economic stimulus package Obama says he'll be pushing for upon being sworn in to office. Senator Casey agrees, and says the new president will have allies on Capitol Hill when that bill comes up for a vote. “I think there's a lot of unanimity across party lines to stimulate the economy. I think we'll have a lot of support for it.” Many analysts expect Casey to work closely with the Obama Administration. The two senators developed a close bond during the campaign and are said to often share a basketball court.

There's only one big story today...

It's about witnessing history. It's everywhere, and on every channel. It's all anybody is talking about. And it's a big moment for the world.

Yes, the announcement that Sal Fasano made Italy's roster for the World Baseball Classic is a super-huge deal.

Seriously, I was going to write something about how Inauguration Day is like Opening Day. While they're both times of hope and new beginnings, it's very hard to get tickets. And they're often held in bitterly cold temperatures.

But Mike Lopresti of USA Today beat me to the punch in his column comparing the two. He also had this Yankee reference:

A fresh start makes everything seem more manageable. So what if the Yankees signed Mark Teixeira and CC Sabathia, and North Korea has weapons-grade plutonium? We'll deal with it.

Yikes!

Anyhow, MLB.com has a whole special section on president-elect - and huge Chicago White Sox fan - Barack Obama, and they're streaming the inaugural live. There are several former Yankees attending today's events, including Dave Winfield and LaTroy Hawkins.

But will Obama be the most memorable No. 44 of all time? Given that Hank Aaron and Reggie Jackson wore that number, he faces some stiff competition!

What do you think? Leave us a comment!