17 replies to this topic

[Berner]

I know, I know, it's the Nostalgia Forum. But I was curious... any TNF'ers have happy news about new circuits being built (besides the obvious F1 ones) in their neck of the woods? While I enjoy the reports on searching out the remains of old bygone tracks, I was hoping against hope that new ones might spring up to replace them.

I know of one being built outside Ottawa, Canada (www.calabogiemotorsports.com) and another private facility near Edmonton, Canada (www.stratotech.ca). How about chez vous?

[David Birchall]

I thought this was far too important an issue to let fade away.

We have had several false starts on tracks in the Vancouver area. The most recent one-on native Indian land which would have allowed them to bypass all the local legislators-fizzled out after a major backer-who I will not name since he is heavily involved in motorsport-pulled out.

There is another project planned, sort of started, but apparently paralysed due to lack of funds about a 150 miles east of Vancouver.

We keep hearing of tracks closing down, lets hear about some opening!

[scheivlak]

http://www.tilke.com

[Rob29]

Cities currently with circuits planned include;
Bilbao,Spain or Basque?
Durban,S.Africa
Auckland,NZ
Berne, Switzerland,subject to new law.
Seoul,S.Korea

[Rob Semmeling]

There's gonna be a new track in Germany, in the province of Nord-Rhein Westfalen if I'm not mistaken.

[Manfred Cubenoggin]

A new facility well along in the planning stages outside Tamworth, New Hampshire, USofA.

http://www.clubmotorsports.com/

[FredrikB]

Gotland ring

[schuy]

Originally posted by scheivlak
http://www.tilke.com

Hmmm, the website states the Shanghai circuit will have a 400,000 capacity...

[mctshirt]

Originally posted by Rob29
Cities currently with circuits planned include;
Bilbao,Spain or Basque?
Durban,S.Africa
Auckland,NZ
Berne, Switzerland,subject to new law.
Seoul,S.Korea

Auckland has indeed got a plan for a street race as part of the Australian V8 Supercar Series and has made a formal application to the ruling body AVESCO for a second New Zealand round. The Pukekohe round will remain on the calendar. However Transit NZ, the roading authority, is not happy with closing Fanshawe Street for 3 days as Auckland is pretty close to gridlock now without making things worse...which is good news for Manfield track organisers in the Manuwatu who have made an application for the extra round also. There was talk of the Taupo circuit being extended and upgraded and I wondered if this was with a view to host the extra round. Unfortunately Wellington has decided not to revive the waterfront street race (Monaco of the South) although they did have a good hard look at it.

So Auckland remains a circuit on paper until AVESCO decides to accept their bid...

[rdrcr]

There is a widely reported effort for a motorsports complex in Merced County, CA - though I wouldn't hold my breath on that one coming to fruition.

[Frank S]

Originally posted by rdrcr
There is a widely reported effort for a motorsports complex in Merced County, CA - though I wouldn't hold my breath on that one coming to fruition.

Just down the road from Madera (See No. 10), innit?
Yosemite Motor Speedway diagram
Map


Fank S

[rdrcr]

Well there is that one... but I was referring to the "new" Riverside Motorsports Park being championed by Founder and CEO, John Condren.

[Ray Bell]

On a bare paddock outside of Kilcoy, principals of the Historic Car Club of Queensland are planning to lay out an interesting Club level circuit.

Kilcoy is about 100kms NW of Brisbane...

[rjl850]

BeaveRun Motorsports complex, about 20 miles (32km) from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, is a pretty nice facility.

The 1.6 mile-long (2.6km) "north" track is completed and hosts track days for car clubs, motorcycle clubs, including the occasional vintage event. No really big name series yet.

The 2 mile-long (3.2km) "south" track, always intended to be part of the complete, longer circuit, has never materialized. I don't know if it ever will, although the web site implies that it already exists -- which it doesn't.

There is also a .8-mile (1.3km) karting track, with which I am intimately familiar , and a large, flat, paved area for autocross events (do they have those in other parts of the world?).

http://www.beaverun.com

-Bob

[WGD706]

They Built Them . . . So Go Already
Written by: David Phillips
Pittsburgh, Pa. – 3/30/2004
http://www.speedtv.c...industry/10444/
“If you build it, they will come . . .”

So goes the refrain from Kevin Costner’s feel-good film Field of Dreams, in which he builds a wonderful little baseball park out in the cornfields of Iowa; and is subsequently besieged by the legions of purists, drawn by a fierce and enduring love for America’s pastime.

It’s hardly news these days, but scores of Costner-clones have been following a similar path when it comes to grass-roots sports car racing. The list of wonderfully unpretentious road courses that have been built in recent years across the United States is impressive: Barber Motorsports Park (www.barbermotorsports.com), Birmingham, Ala.; BeaveRun (www.beaverun.com), Big Beaver Borough, Pa.; Buttonwillow (www.buttonwillowraceway.com), Buttonwillow, Calif.; Carolina Motorsports Park (www.carolinamotorsportspark.com), Kershaw, S.C.; GingerMan (www.gingermanraceway.com), South Haven, Mich.; Mid-America Motorplex (www.midamericamotorplex.com), Pacific Junction, Iowa; Putnam Park (www.putnampark.com), Mt. Meridian, Ind.; Sandia Motorsports Park (www.sandiamotorsports.com), Albuquerque, N.M.; Thunderhill (www.www.thunderhill.com), Willows, Calif.; and, most impressive of all, the born-again Virginia International Raceway (www.virclub.com), Alton, Va. Sadly, of course, one of the newest – Arizona Motorsports Park – is currently embroiled in legal battles, but that’s another story for another day.

All of these hip-pocket tracks differ in some respects, the various track layouts being the most obvious, of course. Some host professional racing of the two- and four-wheel variety, others are quite content to focus on club racing and performance driving schools while serving as test facilities for race teams, auto and tire manufacturers and various aftermarket suppliers. The amenities differ as well, ranging from a country-club setting at VIR that compares favorably to Augusta National to the rather more, er, basic luxuries found elsewhere.

BeaveRun, about an hour west of Pittsburgh and 90ish minutes southeast of Cleveland, is my neighborhood “hip pocket” track. Though it opened in 2003 and still has some rough edges, there are big plans for posh facilities including on-site condo-garages and a conference center/club house as well as a state-of-the-art driver training center.

As it is, BeaveRun boasts a 12-turn, 1.5-mile road course designed by Alan Wilson. If it is somewhat lacking in “pucker factor” turns, there are blind brows and elevation changes enough to keep most Michael Schumacher wannabes on their toes. As well there’s a world class karting facility – named for the aforementioned Mr. Wilson – that can be configured into five different layouts (and which hosts various WKA and Stars of Karting events), a vast skid-pad/vehicle dynamic area, a rally-cross section and even a rally course stretching through the nearby woods.

Plans are on the board for a second road course, one that will operate independently from – or in concert with – the existing circuit.

Again, while there’s no shortage of rough edges at present, BeaveRun’s a veritable Disneyland for motorsports enthusiasts. As well as a host of performance driving programs ranging from rudimentary “new” driver training schools to advanced street, performance and winter driving schools, BeaveRun offers introductory rally driving programs, on-track classrooms and open lapping days where you can run what you brung – provided it passes some basic safety checks.

Karting? A fleet of 100cc, direct drive karts is available for rent or, of course, you can bring your own and partipate in the welter of karting series and championships contested there. Motorcycles? The Wilson Circuit’s 26 foot wide, 0.8-mile “Long Course” hosts various two wheel activities and WERA sprint races. Autocross? The vehicle dynamic area hosts autocrosses on a regular basis.

If this all sounds like an ad for BeaveRun, it is . . . and isn’t. Of course, I’m enthusiastic about having a modern motorsports facility in my area, but the larger point is that increasingly, there are similar facilities and programs available around the country to many if not most people visiting this Web site.

So, like the title reads, “they’ve built them . . . so go already.” If you’re lucky enough to have one of the many new motorsports theme parks nearby, take advantage of it. You’ll be glad you did.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Ray Bell
On a bare paddock outside of Kilcoy, principals of the Historic Car Club of Queensland are planning to lay out an interesting Club level circuit.

Kilcoy is about 100kms NW of Brisbane...

Oh, yes, it's on the road from Kilcoy to Villeneuve...

[Berner]

Thanks for the link WGD... I see a road trip in my plans for this summer!

[gdecarli]

There are many of them. You can find several on Racingcircuits.net or on my website. The first I recall now (in unsorted order) are:

• Santa Cruz do Sul (Brazil): due to open next september, both me and Dan King were sent aerial pics taken on March 25th that shows track under construction
• Vallelunga (Italy): well, this track was first used in 1950s, but this year should be lenghtened and it will be more suitable also for international racing and F.1 tests (it can already host F.1, but it's quite short, now)
• Racalmuto (Italy): minor track located in Sicilia, it should be open soon
• Bilbao (Spain): street circuit, first race should be in 2005
• Dubai (United Arab Emirates), first race should be next October 10th 2004
• ...

In Italy we have many minor circuits under construction or proposed (Autodromo di Franciacorta, Cervesina, Chiesuol di Fosso, Salmour, ...) but they have problems and I don't know when and if they will be ever finished.

Ciao,
Guido