Primus Racing track

[Loren]

Some folks from the SunRiders club did a recon mission on the track today. Things are coming together with us and the owner. We have dates that have been reserved for us and we are close to finalizing the costs.

Here's a rough sketch of the track from my feeble memory. Scale is probably way off, but it will give you the general idea. The yellow lines indicate the configuration that the SunRiders will be running, obviously there are other configurations and the course can be run in either direction. (we found clockwise to be a little more fun) The full course that we played on today was about 90 seconds from a standing start. The pavement is 26 feet wide all around with concrete curbing adding another foot on the inside/outside of most of the tighter turns.

We will likely be insuring and running our events here as more of a "track event" than an "autocross". This will preclude the need to put out a bunch of cones, and we will likely only add a slalom to the longest straight to slow things down a bit. (besides, we like a good slalom) We'll still be running one car at a time, of course. This track won't support wheel-to-wheel for anything bigger than a kart.

Keep your eye on the sticky "schedule" thread for more info on these events. (I just put a note on there with proposed dates)

Neal, Leonard, somebody... get with me off-list, I have contact info for you. They're looking to fill out their schedule for next year. (the more dates that get filled, the better rate he'll be able to offer to everyone) They have lots of groups interested. Karts, sport bikes, car clubs, etc. Opportunity is knocking.

Lastly... how much would you experienced autocrossers (we don't feel comfortable putting novices out on this track) be willing to pay for about a dozen runs on this track? And how many of you are there??? It's looking like if we keep the entry at a comfortable 40-50, we can get costs down to somewhere between $60 and $80 per driver. Including lunch, of course.

Hmmm... let's see if I can figure out how to do a poll...

[Loren]

Just noticed a path that I'd left off of the map (going to the left from the pit area). It completes the "short course" that was intended for kart racing.

[Leonard]

Oh yeah. I wanna run there. I haven't seen the site, but I see no reason SCCA can't swing novices.

Loren, Where is the access to/from the track at? Is there a paved area (or gravel) nearby that can serve as a paddock? (I presume these guys won't want people changing tires on their nice asphalt.

[Loren]

Hey, Leonard.

There's not much there right now. There is a building (which will eventually be the owner's manufacturing facility) and parking around it, but really not that much parking. The plan is to build garages just South of the pit road, don't know if that will add more parking options or not.

There is no gravel. Everything is asphalt, what's not asphalt is either grass or lake. The lake is on the inside of the big sweeper.

This is one of the reasons I'd like to keep entry down to 40-50 drivers.

You guys definitely need to get with the track owner and go check the place out.

The entry point is to the East of the pit road area. The building is in the open corner on the map, parking is on the North side of the building. I wasn't paying enough attention, but I would guess that there aren't more than 30, maybe 40 spaces... if that.

BTW, if you want to look up the location, the address is:
10101 Us Highway 41 N
Palmetto, FL

[Slash]

How do i prove i'm not a novice? bring my GCAC tokens with me?

I also forgot to check the 6+ events tag as well

[Loren]

Originally posted by Slash
How do i prove i'm not a novice? bring my GCAC tokens with me?

I also forgot to check the 6+ events tag as well

Good question. No really good answer. Most people who have been around the local autox scene for a while we (the SunRiders organizers) will either know or they will show up with someone that we know. On the odd chance that an unknown face shows up, I think we could determine whether or not they were a novice in a fairly short conversation.

Our Primus events will be pre-registered, so we should know who the drivers are well before the event and "check up on them" if we feel the need.

The main thing we're after is a level of driving experience that will keep the driver from making a newbie mistake and wrecking. Unlike the typical autox where overdriving normally can't get you into too much trouble, overdriving on this track could send you spinning off into the grass at speeds of up to 70 mph. Even though there aren't many obstacles around the course to hit, this presents the risk of hooking a wheel in some of that good ol' Florida sand and tossing you on your roof.

[obrien2]

Since I am wanting to get into this kind of thing, I need to start participating in some events. That track looks like it would be a blast. My auto-x experience isn't that extensive, but I have done a few of them. However these were in electric cars that we built in a high school program, and we ran on a fairly small course. The highest speeds I ever remeber seeing were about 45 or so. Track times were in the 35-60 second range just depending on the track that year. Either way, I need to get together with you guys and start having some fun

[Slash]

Yeah ive been doing events down with GCAC (I lived in Fort Myers) for a couple years now.. however I am new to the sunriders, ive only seen some of ya'll down at GCAC with us a few times thats about it..

[perdition79]

i gotta get some more autocross experience. that course looks fun. and i can see what you mean about not letting novices on the course.

i wouldn't try that for at least another year. i'll stick to the police training course on the southside until i gain some experience.

[Loren]

C'mon guys, 159 views and only 15 responses to the poll?

Help me out here. If we can't demonstrate the potential for 40+ entries, we'll be forced to budget for what we KNOW we can attract and that will drive the price up.

If we know we'll hit our current 48 car limit every time, then we can budget for that and the cost will be very reasonable. My gut tells me that we'd get our 48 if we can keep the cost below $60... but it's hard to bet my club's autocross budget on that.

With that in mind... please, do the poll, give me some feedback.

Thanks!

[Chin]

Dude, im totally in with my blue 240sx! HOA!!!

[w0rd]

Originally posted by Loren
If we know we'll hit our current 48 car limit every time, then we can budget for that and the cost will be very reasonable.

Don't you think a lot of the GCAC crew would come up for this track? If so, you would definitely hit your 48 car limit.

[PseudoRealityX]

Originally posted by w0rd
Don't you think a lot of the GCAC crew would come up for this track? If so, you would definitely hit your 48 car limit.

They usually don't go ANYWHERE... sad but true.

[Loren]

Originally posted by w0rd
Don't you think a lot of the GCAC crew would come up for this track? If so, you would definitely hit your 48 car limit.

Yes, I do. I think we'll draw from all over the area because it's a great facility and there is nothing else like it anywhere near us. Closest thing is Sebring, which is better... but more costly and 3 hours away.

I'm just reaching for a good solid "warm fuzzy" from this group, especially regarding the cost issue. Insurance, actual site rental fees and possible EMT coverage (which the site owner didn't say he was requiring, but hinted that he is very much in favor of) are all still in the air at this point, so we don't know exactly where we're going to end up with total costs.

I think there's a good sample of drivers who are likely to attend these events right here on TR. Knowing what this group is thinking will be a big plus.

[mofugga]

better be really good for $60!