Tony Quinn, and the tracks

[old fart]

Originally Posted by peckstar

i know. imagine how good the forum would be if some of the meatheads on here had some sense knocked into them when they were younger

It must have been an empty can that hit you.

[peckstar]

Originally Posted by old fart

It must have been an empty can that hit you.

I rest my case!

people with any sense know that you dont throw away full cans of beer

I will remind you though that cans were steel back then

But back to tony quinn buying race tracks

Is there any likelihood that Calder is for sale? even if not "officially"

[mountainstar]

Originally Posted by peckstar

I rest my case!

people with any sense know that you dont throw away full cans of beer

I will remind you though that cans were steel back then

But back to tony quinn buying race tracks

Is there any likelihood that Calder is for sale? even if not "officially"

Calder just doesn't strike me as the kind of place Mr. Quinn would want to buy. It's pretty beat down and you'd almost have to level it and start over and is that really the most ideal property to do so anyways?

[Tourer]

Originally Posted by peckstar

Is there any likelihood that Calder is for sale? even if not "officially"

Unlikely - it's been a sore point between Bob and Rodney. bob has been saying to a number of people recently that he's 100% going to be back in control, sounds like some kind of settlement could be coming.

There was substantial upgrade work due to commence on the drag strip in late 2014 and it hasn't started yet - adding fuel to the stories about Bob as the theory is that Rodney might not want to spend money on the strip if the track is going back to Bob.

Whether the Janes keep it or sell, regardless of who owns / runs it there would need to be an ocean of money thrown at it if it was going to get back to its glory days.

[peckstar]

Originally Posted by mountainstar

Calder just doesn't strike me as the kind of place Mr. Quinn would want to buy. It's pretty beat down and you'd almost have to level it and start over and is that really the most ideal property to do so anyways?

Not saying you are incorrect.

Just saying why calder is a good option

only 30 mins from melbourne. Next to a freeway, Close to public transport ,lots of parking, lots of space, No noise issues, basic infrastructure in place. a history of motorsport.

Would be a reasonable purchase for someone wanting to build a race track

But yes would depend if Bob/Rodney want to sell

[Umai Naa]

The whole joint needs a serious rearranging of its facilities and infrastructure, as its pretty much no longer what would be an efficient use of space.

The existing pit complex needs to go, in favour of a dedicated pitlane and pit garage building for a start.

As it is, pit lane is now the front straight due to the drag strip being made a permanent fixture.

[porsche91722]

Pure speculation on my part, but I get the impression that if Tony Quinn were to get into circuit ownership in Australia, he would do so, by doing it properly with a track built from scratch, similar to what he has done in NZ with Highlands Motorsport Park. I'm guessing the costs would be a hell of a lot more, but I can't see him reworking some existing $hitebox track here like Calder or Qld Raceway. This is probably wishful thinking on my part, as I would be hoping it would happen up here in S.E.Qld, which is crying out for something better than what we have now.
Just on the beer can incident, I'm thinking it was a full can, direct hit and he never quite recovered, which would explain all the irrational garbage that pours forth on a regular basis.

[smokin'joe]

Originally Posted by porsche91722

Pure speculation on my part, but I get the impression that if Tony Quinn were to get into circuit ownership in Australia, he would do so, by doing it properly with a track built from scratch, similar to what he has done in NZ with Highlands Motorsport Park.

if only that was how the track actually came into being !!

track was designed, consented and possibly partial groundworks done before Tony got wind of it.

Tony merely fast forwarded it's completion

[porsche91722]

Originally Posted by smokin'joe

if only that was how the track actually came into being !!

track was designed, consented and possibly partial groundworks done before Tony got wind of it.

Tony merely fast forwarded it's completion

Thanks, I wasn't aware of that. Never been there, but the track and surrounds look great. Not knowing the background, would it have got to the standard it's at now, without his input?

[smokin'joe]

Originally Posted by porsche91722

Not knowing the background, would it have got to the standard it's at now, without his input?

eventually

[GHOGH]

Originally Posted by porsche91722

Thanks, I wasn't aware of that. Never been there, but the track and surrounds look great. Not knowing the background, would it have got to the standard it's at now, without his input?

My perception is the 'highlands' track had stalled for quite a few years due to the lack of funding even though the consents had been processed.
It took the Quinn financial go ahead to complete the track to where it is.
http://racingcircuits.info/australas...l#.VQdvko6Ud-4

I think TQ's experience with Highlands and what has subsequently happened, a greenfields project where a circuit / project development can be designed from scratch would likely be a future project.

[EfiOz]

They'd never get anything built like that in Oz to that budget or time frame.

[GHOGH]

Originally Posted by EfiOz

They'd never get anything built like that in Oz to that budget or time frame.

The plans for the Wyong circuit have resurfaced recently.
Here is an article from 2013, circuits can take a long time to get built.

http://www.motoring.com.au/news/2013...al-coast-38556

[GHOGH]

Unconfirmed reports that Tony Quinn has 'purchased' Hampton Downs race circuit with the intention to complete the track and other facilities.

http://www.driven.co.nz/news/motorsp...ref=NZHNetwork

I guess that puts any Australian track purchase on hold for a while.