I attended the Road America shareholders meeting yesterday. Following the repavement of the track last year, further updates include: For 2024- - Turn 1 has a new bathroom and shower building with an RV pump out station. - The pit lane now is lit with a series of new high tech lights. - Turn 7 will have a new video board - Additional viewing added in the Carousel - The "Beach" at the Kink has been expanded, with a new Tiki Bar and more sand and seating. Mission will have naming rights. -"The Bluffs" is a new tiered viewing area above the Kink. - There is a new golf cart and walking trail from turn 13 to Canada Corner that can have you now avoid the 190 stairs down to the corner. The new path runs along the trackside fence. For 2025- The main straight Bridge will be torn down. A new bridge will be built a bit further north, towards Turn 14. The bridge will be much wider and longer. It will be able to have cart and pedestrian traffic both directions. It's wider, because they are also putting in a new Road from the far north paddock, inside Turn 14 to the False Grid that will run near the track and pit lane, and have competitors be able to easily get to the false grid without going up the hill and dodging all the oblivious pedestrians walking around the GearBox concession stand and forcing the drivers to kill their clutch stopping and starting on the hill for those that don't look or move out of the way.
Pretty lucky to have in our back yard. They treat the kart and supermoto guys really well. Can you ask them to pave the gravel parking lot by the Motorplex please and thank you
Are these on the inside of T1 or outside? Our camping spots are in that vicinity and having a dump station there would be really nice.
Know someone that wants to sell their share. The waiting list is as long as those waiting for Packer season tickets. If a share comes available and goes up for general sale, it becomes a bidding war. I probably can't say what they are going for as of late, but your first thought is probably too low. Think the price of a new automobile from what I heard. I think there is just over 200 shareholders. I'd have to go back and look at the annual report to get a better idea. I do keep all the annual reports as they are unique memorabilia. I also have a ton of original event posters, pieces of the blue green epic guardrail, an RA flag that used to line the paddock and one of the old slippery surface corner working paddle that was used before they went to flags. That pales in comparison to what a buddy has. He could open an RA museum with what he has.
I forgot to mention, the new front straight bridge for 2025 will be taller too, allowing bus tours to go around the track. Track President Mike Kertscher made a comment that I don't think many caught, but I did. He stated the increased height of the bridge meets FIA compliance. But until they get pit lane garages........
I had such low expectations for "The Beach" when they announced it. It turned out to be one of my favorite viewing spots when I went out to watch the World Challenge races at RA last year. Cool to see it's being further expanded and should offer a cool vantage point of the bikes using The Bend. I'm sure I'll be spending a bunch of time there for the MA races come June. Thanks for sharing these updates.
Awesome, thanks for the updates. I always look forward to seeing what improvements are made at the track each year. They have been really killing it the past few years for sure by adding lots of great access. I've thought The Beach (we always called it "Afghanistan") has been so under utilized since they opened up that area. I spend a fair amount of time there each year, it's a great spot, you are very close to the track and there's lots of passing. I always thought more seating, PA and a jumbotron would make that area perfect. Can't wait to check it out this year.
I remember mistakenly experiencing 'target fixation' while first learning the track for the 1981 or '82 WERA 6-hour National Endurance weekend there. Memories of that 'blue green epic guardrail' in the Kink, Kettle Bottoms, and especially Canada Corner will remain etched in my mind forever.
Certainly not the safest area in all of motorsports ha ha. When I first started racing in '98 or so, we still used the Kink for cycles. Approaching the corner you really couldn't see the exit, you were just looking right at that guardrail. I just remember the line being so narrow through there. Saw some wicked crashes there too, it was so easy to run wide on the exit, then there would be haybales everywhere on the track, later - airfence and bikes bouncing back onto the track. When they added the Bend it was a bummer and a relief all at the same time.
