COTA out for 2014.

[kflyer]

Looks like no race at COTA this spring. Man I was looking forward to that race and showing Darryl Wills how it's done! -Kevin

http://www.scca.com/events/news.cfm?eid=6551&cid=51694

[Rob Leonick]

Why don't you come to NOLA and do it. It's a great track. Check it out.

[mousecatcher]

not surprised

[rickb99]

Sounds to me like COTA (since their success with Formula One) has decided to cancel all club style events and live off the pro events.

Bad news COTA doesn't realize is, there just aren't enough pro events in a year to keep the track busy and eventually, the attendance level at any given event will drop off and their track vendors service people will move on with maybe an exception for F1 that draws a world wide crowd to any venue.

If they don't support club racing in the long run it will bite them. Laguna Seca, Sears Point, Road America, Watkins Glen, Portland International, Mid-Ohio have all learned that.

Heck even Indy cannot live solely on the 500 once a year.

[Steve Bamford]

From what I read it wasn't economically feasible for the SCCA to hold an event there without raising entry fees to levels that the board didn't feel would make sense for club racers.

I didn't read anywhere COTA saying they wouldn't host an SCCA event. If others are willing to pay more to use the track then why is it the tracks fault?

[Purple Frog]

With a fee of supposedly somewhere north of $150,000 for the weekend COTA has priced themselves out of the "everyman's market".

There was a lot of upbeat talk about NOLA at last weekend's ARRC. February weather, just before Mardi Gras, with the French Quarter near by... should generate a good showing.

[Rob Leonick]

Your right Purple! Might I add, very club friendly. We don't have any pro races on our schedule yet. Just 30 minutes from the airport or downtown. Plenty of hotel rooms close by ( we do super bowls ). Acres of paved paddock...! Smooth track surface, just 1.5 years old, 2.75 miles. Lots of runoff with no gravel traps. Ok,Ok thats my chamber of commerce moment. Check out their web site for the rest.
Rob
Y'all come on down and make it a vacation!

[Terry Hanushek]

Sounds to me like COTA (since their success with Formula One) has decided to cancel all club style events and live off the pro events.

Wait until they find out that F1 is not forever ... Bernie giveth and Bernie taketh away

Terry

[kea]

With most of the workers for their events being local, SCCA trained members, I never understood why the local clubs don't "encourage" their workers not support those events unless the club gets an event of their own at a "reasonable" rate !
Without these workers, which for a road course are substantial, they don't run.

[turnbaugh]

I met with the COTA folks. They are trying to decide what they want to do. What product do they have and what should it cost.

They can hold a concert for 6 hours on a Saturday night and make $1,500,000.

Or they can have a lot of race cars for a 3 day high risk event and make $150,000 with everyone complaining how expensive it is.

They also seem to be able to book these private days for "you and 17 of your friends for $55,000" without much trouble.

I do know the Lambo Club is coming back in February.

It is a little strange. Silverstone, Spa, Barcelona all seem to have very full schedules for lots of different kinds of clientele. It works for them.

[racerdad2]

IMHO... COTA is seemingly going against racing traditions. The BIG Pro events allow for the LITTLE amateur events. IF they are completely booked solid at $150k + per weekend, kudos ! If NOT, over charging amateurs is just short-sighted foolishness. Where do they think their fan base & pro participants come from ? As a business model, isn't a $50k weekend from clubs better than NO income ? Especially considering the good will that generates ? All this just makes NOLA all the more attractive.

[turnbaugh]

racerdad,

you are being way to logical. : )

For me being local it irks me that I don't have more access to such a nice facility.

TWS has something almost every weekend that makes that track available to me and they like seeing me show up and like my money.

[Amon]

Still trying to figure out how Road America got TWO Majors for 2014?? I understand
providing one for the June Sprints, but two? Also, being in Ohio, the closest Major
is one hour away (M-O), while the remaining are +6 hours with GingerMan & Grattan being the next closest. It appears that the SCCA elected to place the remaining Northern Conference races around / near Chicago which really hurts those of us out East.

Just needed to vent a little over scheduling that doesn't make sense?


Mark


88' Citation
92' Citation

[Purple Frog]

Geez... i never knew Medina Ohio was "out East."

Majors events have to be held at 'major' facilities.

[B Farnham]

Geez... i never knew Medina Ohio was "out East."

Majors events have to be held at 'major' facilities.

MIS or Indy would have been better choices than running at RA twice. Medina Ohio is about as east as you can get in the northern conference.....

[Amon]

Purple Frog:

You're telling me that Blackhawk Farms is a "MAJOR" facility? That's really a
stretch when compared to other circuits. They may as well add Nelson ledges
to the list if that's their criteria...

Mark

[Purple Frog]

Mark,

Great point!

[GT1Vette]

The Northern Conference is made up of GLDiv and CENDiv. We wanted to have three race weekends in each division. Where else in CENDiv would you have a Majors weekend?

[cory mcleod]

The earlier comment about attendance dropping off over time at big pro racing events is already being proven at COTA. Last year - no single day tickets and all GA sold out months in adviance. This year - COTA pushing single day tickets and GA still not sold out.

I had pretty much already decided not to go back to the USGP next year, but now I'll be writing a letter to COTA explaining the link between being club racing friendly and my attendance at the USGP.

[Amon]

Butch:

Since you asked, how about two at Mid-Ohio since RA received two weekends, or
how about moving one of the RA weekends to MIS??

Mark

[racerdad2]

Cory

Good idea. I'll be sending a similar letter / email to COTA. Perhaps more will join in...

[rave motorsports]

Better than a letter I commented on their Facebook post today advertising tickets. In dealing with major corporations I've found that to be way better than an email that gets buried away and never dealt with.

[GT1Vette]

Butch:

Since you asked, how about two at Mid-Ohio since RA received two weekends, or
how about moving one of the RA weekends to MIS??

Mark

1. Three weekends in each division.
2. MIS did not have a workable date available in 2014, so WMR opted for Grattan.

You didn't ask, but Brainerd is an option for CENDiv but it's even further away from the center of the conference than Road America is. Autobahn was not seen as a viable option by those who would be conducting the event.

On edit - And remember, you only get to count your best 8 races of the 12 in the conference, so it's not like you have to go through Chicago twice in one year to contend for the conference championship.

[Amon]

Butch,

I guess we'll head East to The Glen and Summit Point along with M-O next year.

Thanks for replying!

Mark

88' Citation
92' Citation

[racerdad2]

Rave

Thx for the heads up