Brainerd

[Edmonton]

How much work would Brainerd need in order to have major sportscar racing again?

[Tim Northcutt]

I asked that question last spring and was told "A Lot" to accommodate a major series like the ALMS....doing the renovations for the track plus added accommodations like luxury suites and hospitality areas for sponsors, etc. would not be cheap..

I also remember some saying that there would be a need for meeting FIA speca that have changed over the years....not sure exactly what those changes needed to be, but I remember it being a costly concern of others on this forum who weighed in on the issue......

I think it came up when the ALMS announced the 2004 season, adn we were talking about othr possible venues....

One Question I had was how much would Brainerd cut into Road America's crowd???

and being in Minnesota, the window for racing weather that would be decent for the fans and the teams is not a large one...

But boy...I sure like the looks of circuit and it's layout.

[Mackmot]

Brain Nerd hahahaha

[Karl Kling]

Originally posted by Mackmot
Brain Nerd hahahaha

"Careful with that joke - it's an antique!"

[blueflagger]

Okay, here goes. Brainerd is (was) my home track. There are several problems that need to be remedied for SCCA to recertify the track. I understand that some remedies and workarounds are being discussed because Brainerd has gotten the okay for a NASCAR second or third string event this summer.

Problem one is that the berms need to be shored up again. This is a re-occuring problem because they are made of sand and start slumping down in dry weather. That turns them into launching ramps for out of control cars.

Problem two is that the track owner (well, the owner's ex as I understand it) put up a condominium building at Turn 10, which is also the staging area for drag races. No big deal except that track pavement leads right up to the doors of the building with nothing but air to block projectiles.

Problem three (this is the toughie) is the road that was built across the track from the Turn 9 infield to the track-owned convenience store. It, too, creates a ramp for out of control cars.

There are other issues as well, but I think they could be worked out fairly easily.

The big issue is that BIR doesn't see why they should effect all these repairs because road racing cars have not brought them more than rental money in recent years. Drag racing and bike racing have. My personal belief is that the prior management team and racing groups did not do enough to promote road racing events at the track and attendance dwindled to nothing.

There is another problem with Brainerd and that is it's location. The area is beautiful, there's plenty to do, but it's a 10-hour haul with a trailer to get there from Chicago or Milwaukee. "So?" you say, "Teams crisscross the country all the time." Ahh, but most of those other tracks have major interstate highways, airports and cities less than 90 minutes away. The teams find Brainerd a long haul to transport crew too. And many series-following spectators feel the same way.

Brainerd was a terrific track for big-bore cars. I sincerely hope management chooses to come back to it. If you want to see racing there, find their website and send them an e-mail that supports automobile road racing!

[Cheyne]

As my daughter used to joke that BIR was the track that we would never get to, but in a GT1 car the track is a blast. It was one of the fastest tracks I have raced at, but it is just so dang far away from the rest of the world.

Cheyne

[blueflagger]

Welcome to 10-Tenths Cheyne!

[Tim Northcutt]

Thanks for the extensive insight, blueflagger!

Excellent explanation

[blueflagger]

Oh, and one question I forgot to answer. The past has shown that Brainerd cuts into Road America's crowd very little. Sometimes big shows at RA, cut into BIR's crowd though. They've lost many a club-race worker to big shows at RA the same weekend.