Runoffs may change today

Was in my email from NER this morning.

The Capital-Journal
The Topeka-based Sports Car Club of America has scheduled a news conference for 1 p.m. today amid speculation that it was bringing a major racing event to Heartland Park Topeka. A statement from SCCA says the nation's largest active member-based motorsports organization "will make a major announcement impacting the entire state of Kansas, specifically Topeka." Steve Johnson, SCCA president and chief executive officer; Gov. Kathleen Sebelius; and Mayor James McClinton are scheduled to attend. Last fall, the Topeka City Council approved spending $5 million to improve the road track at Heartland Park. Raymond Irwin, owner of Heartland Park, said at the time Heartland Park would bid to acquire a three-year contract that would begin in 2006 to host the SCCA National Championship Runoffs, which attract more than 700 drivers. Neither officials from SCCA nor Heartland Park would comment Wednesday on whether the event was moving to Topeka from the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, where it has been for 11 years.

If true, this really really makes it important for me to make the Runoffs THIS year. :(

That move would be an unmigitated disaster. Moving from majestic Mid Ohio to plain featureless Topeka.
Nothing against the folks there, but the Runoffs need to be at a really spectacular track like MO, RA, Laguna.
Obviously our paid staff in Topeka is not making what is important to the membership their first priority in their decision process. I know I will get flamed for that comment and nothing is meant about where the Runoffs are held, but about the quality and majesty of the track.
The Runoffs transcend being just a race, but are THE race and need to be held at an appropriate venue.

Why do I not feel like part of a club?

This sort of surprise press announcement is more characteristic of a private corporation than a real club. It's a surprise to most (and perhaps all) of us, yet as club members, shouldn't we have known about this all along? Indeed, shouldn't this have been our idea? Why is it that the decisions and motivations of our club leaders are so often a complete surprise to us as members?

I don't even live in the region, and I'll probably never make the Runoffs, but it still bothers me.

Fellas;

Why are the Runoffs a perennial event for so few select tracks? Road America and MO have had it since my incipient involvement, circa 1973. Someone needs explain why this can't be a traveling venue, let's say 3 years at a track before rotating to another. I could easily provide a half dozen reasons why this would be a boon to both the tracks America wide and the SCCA et al.


Iverson

Rick,
The Runoffs spent 20+ years at Road Atlanta before moving to MO.
They were where they were because the tracks in question provided the best financial bid to SCCA. Another good thing about MO is that it is pretty close to the geographical center of the membership concentration.

In years long long time ago, the Runoffs rotated between Daytona and Riverside. That put everyone who did not live in California or Florida at a huge distance from the Runoffs. But that was before the concept of divisional standings to qualify was introduced and guys quite literally ran from coast to coast and from border to borderr to win a national championship.

Confirmed!

The 2006-2008 Runoffs are at Heartland Park!

So, does anyone know where Kansas is? Isn't it like a parking lot for Colorado or something? :D







For the mentally impaired in the crowd, that was a joke. ;)

For Immediate Release
January 6th, 2005

Heartland Park Topeka Awarded Bid to Host
SCCA National Championship Runoffs® in 2006

TOPEKA, Kansas – The signature event of the Sports Car Club of America, the SCCA National Championship Runoffs®, will be coming to Heartland Park Topeka in 2006. With today’s announcement Heartland Park Topeka will become just the fifth track to host the SCCA National Championship Runoffs in the 41-year history of the event.


http://www.hpt.com/SCCARacing.jpg
More info about SCCA 2006 National Championship Runoffs®.


Heartland Park Topeka was originally built with the goal of hosting the SCCA Championship Runoffs,” said Heartland Park Topeka Owner Raymond Irwin. “We now look forward to showcasing our community and facility to SCCA drivers, crew and workers from across the nation as we host the next era of this prestigious event.

The National Championship Runoffs have been hosted by Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio since 1994. As a result of a December vote by the SCCA Board of Directors, Heartland Park Topeka will host this prestigious event for the 2006 through 2008 seasons. For the first time in over 30 years the event will be held west of the Mississippi River.

Heartland Park Topeka was constructed in the capital city of Kansas at a cost of nearly $23 million and opened in 1989. In its first ten race seasons, Heartland Park hosted major events for the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA), International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), SCCA Pro Racing, and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

NHRA drag racing has remained a consistent part of the Heartland Park Topeka schedule, but high-profile road racing at the facility has lagged since the late 1990s.

Irwin purchased the facility in March of 2003, and earlier this year received a $5 million commitment from the Topeka city government for road course upgrades, as part of a major property renovation. Several improvements will be made prior to the 2006 SCCA National Championship Runoffs, including a complete repaving of the road course and changes to the track layout, new road course garages, a road course control tower and timing facility, showers and bathrooms, additional concession areas, improved spectator viewing areas, and an expansion of the current paddock to accommodate additional participants.

Heartland Park Topeka, a multi-purpose racing facility located in Topeka, Kansas, annually hosts NHRA POWERade drag racing, Championship Off-Road Racing (CORR), and the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) in addition to many other events throughout the race season

http://www.hpt.com/roadcourse.htm

Here's what the track is supposed to look like in 2006
http://www.hpt.com/06runoffs-map.pdf

The SCCA post:

http://www.scca.org/Index.asp

and here is my commentary

http://www.cendiv-scca.org/06area_4/...tter050106.pdf

There...now that is how I like it!!
_________________

Thanks Erik for the input! I appreciate the work you guys put into this and other decisions.

I find it interesting that three years ago bidders were dismissed if they did not already have the facilities in place at the time of bid (e.g. Barber Motorsports Park), yet this year we seem to be betting on the come. Am I off-base?

It will be successful, even if we have to slightly redefine what successful is. But I'm going to miss trees and elevation changes. It doesn't look like a "racers" course, but we will race on it. I guess motels room availability has a higher points value than the track itself. :skull:

Seriiously, thanks for your input and efforts. Great to have a racer on the board.

I hope the facilities at Heartland are better than Blackhawk Farms (another Irwin track). Mid Ohio was soooo nice.

Does anyone else have a problem with someone on the board of Heartland Park being on the evaluation committee? I'm sure Michelle Trueman (Mid-Ohio) could have provided some impassioned pleas/arguments to have it at their track. Was she able to plead her case and vote? Were any national racers queried as to their thoughts on the top 3? I'm with Steve on this one, why place your signature event at such a no-name track? I've got to believe that some back-room politics were involved at a higher level -"Give us a great tax break for moving our organization here and we'll see about getting the run-offs brought to your town..." Once again the racers/members thoughts and input were ignored and/or not solicited and decisions were made that are in our best interest by people (outside of Erik) that are out of touch. I hope the same people making these decisions will have enough backbone to admit they were wrong when fan attendance falls, participation levels fall and member feedback states that the track stinks. I have no problem with moving it every few years but at least make it at a real road course.

Looks kinda flat, I expect the '06 runoffs will be too.

I can say positively that no person from HTP was on any evaluation commitee for the Runoffs.Come on now!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Purple Frog

But I'm going to miss trees and elevation changes.

---

Yeah, it's short on trees. But one year when I was in Topeka for the Solo II Nationals, I visited the track (it's literally next door to Forbes Field). Parts of the track are flat, but other parts have elevation changes. Not like Mid Ohio. But it's not flat.

Just saying. Not debating the right or wrong of this.

Jim

Atleast with the move some guys from west can show up..If it does move;cuts my travel down from 4-5 days to 2..Great news!!

I apologise up front for being a bit FC selfish here given the broader audience of this site, but it may help put some impetus behind the ACC class within the Zetec Pro series. If the numbers of drivers were to increase significantly and it attracted some of the quality that have regularly beaten me up in the NE and Central Div, then I would bite the bullet on the extra travel and look to that series for 06.
Brent

Trying to be the spin doctor here... Thinking positive.

It sounds likre there were only two bids submitted. So other great tracks such as Road America, VIR, Barber, Laguna, etc. were not interested in SCCA's business or were not interested in SCCA's terms and conditions. Bids can be written to predetermine the winner. (oops, i fell back to being a cynic. sorry.) So, it was a race between two entries, no backmarkers to get in the way.

To those of you that hang close to M-O and know all the track staff by name, etc. I have to tell you that the track has a "user friendly" reputation somewhere around second from the bottom (second only to Daytona) amoung a lot of folks outside NEOhio. I wonder if that played into the decision?

Change could be good...

If HPT is hungry for the business maybe they will bust butt to make us happy.

HPT is closer to the geographic center of the "48", so maybe the left side of the country will start showing up.

There won't be an advantage to those that have already hammered out years of laps on the Runoffs track.

There won't be a fight over a paddock space in the shade. (oops, I'm slipping again)

Maybe on Friday and Saturday nights we can have challenge drag races with our haulers on the drag strip. :)

The county roads approaching the track look a darn sight better.

We won't be cruising for seconds at a time in a 25/26 gear.

No trees blocking my Sirius radio reception.

... more later... it's happy hour. :skull:

What they should do is run all races in one direction and reverse it for the runoffs so no one has a home track advantage! :D I know that works as I went to drivers school at Brands Hatch [UK] and to pass you had to do a lap in the Reverse direction within a very small window of your original time! :rolleyes:

I calculate that it is a round trip savings of 1500 miles for us up here in Northern California. That is 30 hours of driving....Also, MO was never my favorite track anyway. I also see a lot of cars at the runoffs pitting in grass....The one thing I can say for the track is that it was the best cared for facility I had been to. I didn't want to go to a track out here near Bakersfield called Buttonwillow. Alway thought is was flat and no fun. Turn's out that I liked it alot! Hope we hear from people who have driven there. Also, how is the weather that time of year? As far as home track advantage being lost for MO, I have learned from years of doing this that the fast guys and girls will be fast anywhere. I wouldn't count on the central division folks not being up front..........Douglas
www.brennerfabrication.com

Add this too Frog's Positive's.....No tow or travel through Chicago.

Dale- I can't believe you slammed one of my favorite tracks, Blackhawk Farms! Now if you're referring to the bathrooms, that's another story. But I'm making an effort to keep evaluating tracks based on the actual track and not the facilities. The last thing I want to do is be like Bernie. ;)

I've never been to HTP. It would be nice to hear from some more forum members who have actually raced there.

After racing at Mid-America Motorplex in Iowa, I have gained a new appreciation for trees, hills and grass. :)

Hi everyone.

There won't be much of an advantage for us KC guys as many of the technical sections won't be run except for durring the runoffs. Racing during last year (corners were numbered not named) heading down front strait flat in 5th through sly dog (going 2 wide = lotsa pucker factor : ) ) uphill blind L-R crest hill then slight L then downhill hard braking into wildcat short (passing opportunity), sl uphill into off camber R fork in the road (passing opportunity) downhill hard braking into swamp turn (passing opportunity) then flat out blind uphill sweeper hard braking into Jay (passing opportunity) flat out though baby jay/ jayhawk downshift into 4th med. braking into fast sweeper tunnel turn brake 3rd gear through coyote / brake 2nd gear for council corner full throttle down hill under bridge 3rd gear braking hard for 2nd gear R into tornado alley full throttle blast then brake hard L turn onto strait.

Righty tighty and the carousel will be repaved and used for the runoffs - ichabod hollow will be brand new and used for the runoffs. I haven't herd of any other changes in the corners but now is the time for anyone who has run there to make suggestions as they are going to repave the whole thing!!! There are some flat sections to the track but there are some interesting elevation changes also. Sly dog is a blast! I think there is some concrete that needs to be moved to make some of the corners safer - at least a couple gravel traps or tires in front of them. This is an interpretation from my 1st year racing so be nice!!

Jason

I think this link will work - closest video of what track layout will be for runoffs (using righty tighty and carousel but not ichabod hollow). Old vid. still using dragstrip front strait. http://asevet.com/media/hpt25b.ram Looks flatter than it is!

Didn't I read somewhere a "Runoff's only" configuration would apply???

If true, home track advantage-smantage....

Owning an FSCCA it might be a long, long time before we get there but......

Kansas, the last time I checked, was part of the Union,

if it becomes more accessible to the west coast people, that sounds like it is "inclusive"

No "Trees," and "flat," sounds like a "new age" F1 course.

GOOD FOR SCCA to make a decision that rebuffs the status quo!

Besides, I would quess the "test day" fees are going to be reasonible.

See you in Kansas in say 3-4 years....

MB

Kansas is going to be great..Already had two guys call that would us to take them to the Runoffs in 06..That never even had the desire to make the trip to M-O before..

I am sure that Heartland Park with do their best to make a good show - but - Truth is that there are only five world class road courses in the US today - Mid Ohio, Road America, Leguna Seca, Road Atlanta and Watkins Glen - and Heartland Park is not in the same league as those five. It was kind of cool to conduct the Run Offs in that kind of environment for the last 20+ years.

David Keep
Crossle 63F

i'm glad i got out to mid-o for the runnoffs this year as there is no chance in hell i'm driving to kansas

SCCA just made The June Sprints the most important race of the 2006/2008 seasons...........

I would travel to California for the Runoffs before I spend two weeks in Kansas

1) The object of the Runoffs for me has always been to win. Where it is held will have little effect on that. I get so intense during the Runoffs that it wouldn't matter if it were held on the moon - I still wouldn't notice the scenery. :rolleyes:

2) M-O has always charged whatever the traffic would bear for anything they could make a buck on. It could be that Heartland Park will be considerably better for the competitors in that regard. :)

3) I think that ANY track will be very interesting when the objective is to optimize the car's and my performance, especially on a track that I haven't run before.

4) I missed the atmosphere that spending the time at the (Road Atlanta) Runoffs away from home, totally concentrating on the racing, provided.

This will be interesting! :D

Couple of quick thoughts:

I agree with Dave, that from a competitor perspective, it won't matter where the race is held, the racers that show up, show up to win. I think being in the middle of the country will provide the opportunity for more left coasters to make the tow and diversify the field a bit.

As far as Mid Ohio goes, it's definitely got a great race track, but as far as the facilities go, they are average at best. There has never been enough paved paddock, and the showers and other facilities leave much to be desired. What few garages they have are nice, but there are not enough of them. It really wasn't that long ago, that most of the paved paddock was that gravel/tar combination. And they have the Mid Ohio drivers school that has taken up an entire paddock area the past couple of years as well. They sure don't have any problems charging a huge premium to rent the track either. They are not easy to work with as well. No test days before a regional, and only $900.00 test days before a National. I think the writing might be on the wall for Mid Ohio if they don't get their act together as far as head line events go.

Regarding Kansas, I think the driver entries will go up, but I think the spectator attendance will go way down. Kansas is NASCAR country. Topeka is in the middle of nowhere. Mid Ohio was a couple hour drive from some MAJOR cities: Chicago, Indy, Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh etc. So, weather permitting, you could count on a good crowd at Mid Ohio. Kansas on the other hand. . . They will definitely be able to move the event back into October! It stays warmer in Kansas longer than Mid Ohio area. I was there last week and it was 70 degrees when I left!!

It is a shame, though, that the SCCA didn't poll their membership in some sort of democratic fashion to take a vote on where the race should be held. I would have to agree that they run the "club" more like a business, than a paid membership club. . . (and I realize that it boils down to bids and money and stuff, but it would have been nice for SCCA to come to us and say "here are the X race tracks that have given us a bid for the Runoff's" give us your vote, as members, where you would like the event to be held.)

TDR

You knew that something had to be in the works. And you know that no matter what decision is made not everyone will be happy. I think if this brings in more people from the other side of the country that would be great. I also agree that those who want to try and win will come. What we don't know is what the costs will be to race and stay there. We might be suprised and find that some deals have been worked out for you all. As to the worry of the number of spectators, I truly do not understand. I've seen more spectators at a high school JV basketball game than at the runoffs. While there are some that show, I don't think it is as big a factor as some of you seem to think. Dennis...

Regarding the argument that club racers won't want to make the drive due to the extra distance .... The Solo II Nationals, also held in Topeka, draws about 1,200 entrants for 6 minutes of track time.

Tim,
Are you talking about the same SCCA that asked us about funding new cars through "Enterprise", and then did it before we could respond.
Because the membership does not respond to most issues, they (main office) take it upon themselfs to go ahead with what every they want. This has been the case for the 30+ years that I have been a SCCA member. If given a chance, the members have added to the direction of the club.
I agree with Dave, most serious racers will race hard for the "National Championship", no matter where it is held. But some locations do have a better image, because of their history.
I have always felt that a more central US location would better serve the membership as a whole (even if it's membership center is located differently).
Keith

I agree 110% with Dave (although not having qualified for the Runoffs since 1982) that the whole atmosphere and driver focus is much enhanced by being "away from it all". At a typical race weekend, you just start to get in the rythm of things and it is time to go home.

MO is probably the worst track there is for squeezing every nickel they possibly can out of the drivers and their rules (but not most of the people) are not user friendly at all.

But it is truly one of the top five tracks in the country on the basis of driver challenge. The CART guys repeatedly said that it was the most physical and mental challenging track they ran.

But I agree that if our BOD had the guts to do the right thing the bids from each track would be made available to the membership, who pays for the running of the club.

I personally would like to congratulate Erik for having the guts to hold out for what he felt was right until it became obvious that he was fighting a losing battle.

I know that change is always a tough pill to swallow.But I believe the Runoffs should change location every so often.The track is only a location it does not make the event. The competitors and participants make the event.

My comment regarding a Heartland Park Official being involved in the evaluation came from Erik's letter stating that Charlie - Director of HPT and myself (Erik) were comfortable with the HPT decision. Sorry to paraphrase but Adobe wouldn't allow me to cut and paste. Sorry for the confusion if that was not an accurate statement. I still think the members should have some input as to the location of their national race.