Update on the new track - a speed bump

[Ludachris]

So some of you might have already seen the news, CAMA (the organization working on the new track plans) has issued a release indicating a problem with the proposed site for the new track:
http://www.camplaps.org/news/CAMA_Land_news_011006.pdf

Looks like a land developer that owns the surrounding land won't support the use of the land as a race track. If they don't change their stance by the end of January, a new site will have to be located for the track.

:rolleyes:

Hopefully they're able to locate another potential site soon. Maybe they should start looking further away from downtown Denver in order to prevent other land developers from throwing a wrench in the plans. The closer the land is to Denver, the more difficult it will be to make it happen due to the value of the land for housing development.

[bpanther]

For those of you who are wanting the new track to be built (I assume that's all of you), I encourage you to focus your energies on convincing the CAMA board to locate the new track away from Denver. I went to the proposed site near the Front Range airport a few months ago. I could see houses from the site and commented that the track would not be allowed there. This turn of events does not surprise me!!!

The CAMA board (bless their hearts), is convinced that the track must be located within 20 minutes of downtown Denver. If you ever expect to see a new club race track in Colorado (i.e. not NASCAR), it will need to be a fair distance from the population centers. In other areas of the country where they have managed to build a smaller track (i.e. again not NASCAR), the track is 2 or 3 hours from major population centers. At a minimum, the tracks are an hour away. Tracks that are within 30 minutes of major population centers are being closed down daily or have limited (i.e. $$) days for small organizations.

Colorado is changing. People are starting to commute 45-60 minutes per direction (1-1/2 to 2 hours per day) between work and home. Therefore, if we want a race track, we must be willing to tow futher than people are willing to live and we must account for the future when people are willing to commute 3 hours a day. Period. On our current path of loosing CO tracks (anybody seen the new Hospital being built right at the entrance of PMI?), we won't have any tracks by 2010. Then, a tow of 6, 8 or 10 hours to get to Sandia, Hastings, MAM, Miller, Hallet or Topeka will be our only choice. I'm all for towing 90 minutes to go beyond Limon.

Please contact the CAMA and tell them that you are willing to drive at least an hour or an hour and a half to race at a decent track. This is the only way (IMHO) to get the new track done in a reasonable time and insure it's longevity.

[Ludachris]

Do we have an alternate contact email address for CAMA? I just tried submitting a message via the contact form on their site and got an error. Apparently the form isn't working.

[bpanther]

Same here... I'll see what I can find out. :(

[ker]

when you find out, let me know.

what you are suggesting i suggested to their leadership well over a year ago before they "settled" on the site. they told me it "had" to be in the same area (or close to it) as second creek or people wouldn't come. i told them that was not the case.

is this not the group that is doing this by committee of which each member is the rep for another "committee"?

[CorSport]

Everyones got their opinions on how this track should work, but it seems to me NASA, SCCA and CAMA are not working together to bring a track to the area. It looks to me like the SCCA and NASA are just sitting around bitching at CAMA to get them a track up to their standards. The constant injecting of your own agenda/track needs, does not help. We all KNOW thats why we loss Mead. Now, in my opinion, SCCA and NASA should be kicking down some major money (enough for a large ownership %), and not as much track placement/surfacing input.

I'm sure I am out of place saying this, but I had to bring up what it looks like from the outside.

Tai
CorSport

[ker]

i don't know all the politics involved (which i am sure there are many) and we all have our opinons. my comment to one of their leaders was to move far enough away to be removed from any population center that could cause what now appears to be happening.

i also don't believe it is a sanctioning bodies job or duty (out side of folks like nascar) to build tracks.

i do know there is a private (very private for now) search under way to build a new track that is not one of the two publicly known.

[bpanther]

I'm sure I am out of place saying this, but I had to bring up what it looks like from the outside.

You'll never be beat for expressing your opinion here. The view from the outside is just as important (or more) than the fuzzy picture in my own head....

[Ludachris]

Everyones got their opinions on how this track should work, but it seems to me NASA, SCCA and CAMA are not working together to bring a track to the area. It looks to me like the SCCA and NASA are just sitting around bitching at CAMA to get them a track up to their standards. The constant injecting of your own agenda/track needs, does not help. We all KNOW thats why we loss Mead. Now, in my opinion, SCCA and NASA should be kicking down some major money (enough for a large ownership %), and not as much track placement/surfacing input.

I'm sure I am out of place saying this, but I had to bring up what it looks like from the outside.

Tai
CorSport
Tai, I would disagree a little with your statement. To my knowledge, CAMA is making their own decisions. Being new to the region, NASA will have little say, but we're still trying to offer suggestions to make this new track happen (and be successful). I believe SCCA is part of CAMA, so they are working together. As Ker said, I don't know that sanctioning bodies typically build tracks - you're implying that NASA and SCCA actually have money to throw at building a track, which might be a big assumption. Though it would be cool if the 2 sanctioning bodies were a majority owner of the new track. However, I just don't think these sanctioning bodies produce the revenue needed to build tracks.

I think what you have here is a lot of racing enthusiasts trying to offer their suggestions (and help) to try and make this work. The finances are supposedly already taken care of. It's the location that seems to be the problem at the moment and that's what people are chiming in about. Keep in mind, NASA just recently came back to the area and this project was already underway. We haven't been in the loop at all really. I'm sure Dave would agree that we would like to be involved more though. Maybe we can find out how that can happen. Dave?

I don't pretend to know everything that goes into building a track, but I know that out in CA a 1 or 1.5-hour drive to a track was nothing. Hell, I drove 2.5 hours to go to Buttonwillow a few times. In my opinion, the goal of a 20-minute distance from Denver just seems to be unrealistic and will likely hurt the chances of this project from happening. If the choices are a 1-hour drive to the track or no track at all, I'm sure we'd all choose 1-hour. Land developers are always going to be our worst enemy. We need to get just far enough away from the city to where they won't get in the way. 20-minutes from Denver seems to be right about where they'll be wanting to build in 5 years, if they don't already want to now.

[Ludachris]

Dave, have you been able to contact anyone from CAMA to so if we can somehow get involved? I'd definitely be interested in getting up to speed (no pun intended).

[leggwork]

if I'm not mistaken, SCCA is a part of CAMA. From the News page at www.camplaps.org, the members should be:
Rocky Mountain Vintage Racing, Ltd. (RMVR)
Motorcycle Roadracing Association inc. (MRA)
Rocky Mountain Region Porsche Club of America, Inc (PCA)
Colorado Region Sports Car Club of America, Inc. (SCCA)
Multi-Car Club Alliance inc. (MCCA)
(The MCCA consists of eight clubs, including: Alfa Club of Colorado; Audi Club North America-Rocky Mountain Chapter; BMW Car Club of America - Rock Mountain Chapter; Shelby American Automobile Club - Colorado Regional Chapter; Lotus Colorado; Mercedes Benz Club of America-Mile-High Section; Viper Club - Colorado Region; and Z Car Club of Colorado.)

cheers,
bruce

[Ludachris]

if I'm not mistaken, SCCA is a part of CAMA. From the News page at www.camplaps.org, the members should be:
Rocky Mountain Vintage Racing, Ltd. (RMVR)
Motorcycle Roadracing Association inc. (MRA)
Rocky Mountain Region Porsche Club of America, Inc (PCA)
Colorado Region Sports Car Club of America, Inc. (SCCA)
Multi-Car Club Alliance inc. (MCCA)
(The MCCA consists of eight clubs, including: Alfa Club of Colorado; Audi Club North America-Rocky Mountain Chapter; BMW Car Club of America - Rock Mountain Chapter; Shelby American Automobile Club - Colorado Regional Chapter; Lotus Colorado; Mercedes Benz Club of America-Mile-High Section; Viper Club - Colorado Region; and Z Car Club of Colorado.)

cheers,
bruce
Thanks for pointing that out Bruce. I forgot about that. I should edit my previous post so that people don't get confused.

[CorSport]

Great replies guys.
Thanks for getting some of that straighter in my head.

;)

Tai
CorSport