2005 CCWS schedule

[luke]

Good news Champ Car fans the 2005 CCWS schedule will be released late september.

Confirmed for 2005..

Long Beach is April 10th
Portland June 19th

And of course the userals...
And new races in San Juan, Seoul, Buenos Aires and maybe Calgary and, also if a 2nd race in Australia is going to be anouced shortly.

The futures' looking Bright

[macdaddy]

Good news... The earlier they can get the schedule out, the better it will be for teams wooing sponsors. Let's just hope that it's not littered with TBA's.

[racinthestreets]

I hope for no TBA's

[Kicking-back]

Indeed.

We need a solid schedule by the end of October.

If a race isn't ready to be confirmed by then, leave it for 2006.

[indycool]

Luke, where do you get that?

Other than Long Beach and Portland, the rest are all in the rumor stage

[Muzza]

Truth (albeit awful) be said: it will be rather difficult for Champ Cars to keep Long Beach on its schedule beyond 2005. Very difficult.

[macdaddy]

Only too true, Muzza. That's why I'm hoping that Vegas turns into something big, perhaps it can be a replacement if worse-comes-to-worse.

[Snrub]

Why do you guys think it'll be hard to keep Long Beach beyond '05?

[Kicking-back]

Toyota and IndyCar want it in that series - and are likely to get it.

[racinthestreets]

Just looked at my ticket renewal for Long Beach, April 10 2005 - it is Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

I hope that Toyota does not stay in the IRL past 2005. That alone may help CCWS maintain Long Beach. As much as I like the festival at Long Beach, the races of late have been non eventful. I will send email to longbeachgp.com and a letter with my renewal for tickets promoting CCWS and informing I am not interested in renewing for IRL cars.

[theracegypsy]

Well I missed Long Beach this year, I was either on one leg or three.

Will have to try for 2005 especially if, heaven forbid, it goes from Champ Car schedule after that.

I certainly need the full year schedule quickly, so I can get mine sorted. One date in already, 10-12 June, no guesses whwew I'll be that weekend.

[rustyfan]

Long Beach has lost much of its former glory, IMO.

Does it provide a fantastic setting and atmosphere? Hell yeah.

But is it a good race track? Hell no.

Before it was raped it was a good track, but not anymore - not with the current layout.

[paul-collins]

Hey, Bob, missed you this year. Glad you'll be there next.

[Muzza]

Originally posted by rustyfan
[...]
Before it was raped it was a good track, but not anymore - not with the current layout.

Valid comments as usual, Rusty.

Let me just add the Long Beach lay-out had to be changed due to real estate development and other constructions in the area. The lay-out of several streets used by the track has been re-configured along the years, and some of them - as the area formerly occupied by the Michelin S - have disappeared altogether (The Pike shopping mall now occupies the Michelin S area).

Having said that, it would be wonderful to see Ocean Boulevard re-incorporated to the track (remember those rollercoasters up to and down from it?), but I personally discussed the matter with members of the LBGPA (Long Beach Grand Prix Association) and of the local police; regrettably these two entities believe that traffic and business disruption entailing from a closure of Ocean Boulevard would be too much to bear.

Also, the people at LBGPA prefer to keep the fans closer around the Convention Center where the so-called Lifestyle Exhibition occurs (actually it is a pretty interesting fair).


Muzza

[Muzza]

And Bob,

I am glad you are back to two legs!

[Dov]

From the MontereyHerald.com:

Meanwhile, Gill Campbell, Laguna Seca's general manager, doesn't believe this weekend's Grand Prix of Monterey will mark the last time the Champ Cars race there. ''They would be looking at doing both,'' Campbell said. ''They would do the San Jose street race in the spring and then us in the fall. Anything that creates new fans and keeps the interest going is great for everybody.''

But Mauk indicated that it's unlikely Champ Car would race in both places. ''It's very rare that we would have two races in that close proximity,'' he said.

[rustyfan]

Originally posted by Muzza
Let me just add the Long Beach lay-out had to be changed due to real estate development and other constructions in the area.

Yes, I'm aware of that but that doesn't make me like the new layout any better

If I remember correctly something similar was the reason they redesigned Vancouver, and I guess that is unfortunately something that comes with the territory when using street circuits.

[macdaddy]

But Mauk indicated that it's unlikely Champ Car would race in both places. "It's very rare that we would have two races in that close proximity," he said.

Cleveland, Mid-Ohio, MIS, Belle Isle, Toronto, and even Chicago.
All within a few hours' drive from my house.

[rustyfan]

I hope the San Jose is a truly extraordinary street circuit if it was to replace Laguna Seca.

Is there a track layout available somewhere?

[evo]

Originally posted by macdaddy
Cleveland, Mid-Ohio, MIS, Belle Isle, Toronto, and even Chicago.
All within a few hours' drive from my house.

Of course they only race at Toronto and Cleveland now.

[Muzza]

Originally posted by rustyfan
I hope the San Jose is a truly extraordinary street circuit if it was to replace Laguna Seca.

Is there a track layout available somewhere?

In my opinion - and of a lot of other people too - all this talk about San Jose is a hot baloon (or hot baloney) to push Laguna Seca to review the race contract.

I have been trying to track this rumour but it leads to absolutely... nothing. It has only been mentioned in the mouth of OWRS people and in a few forums (actually first at forums and then by guys like Eric Mauk!). I called a friend who works at Stanford, lives in San Jose and races bikes (usually a well informed chap) and he says that no-one in the Valley has heard anything about it, and that they are all surprised with these stories.

Let's see, there is a writer from the Bay Area calling some people today, let's see what he finds.

To be followed.

P.S.: To me it is completely insane to OWRS to promote a race in a (new) street circuit considering it is still (and it will be or years to come0 a high-risk venture and that promoters are not exactly lining up outside OWRS offices to host a race.

Even more strange, why San Jose, that has little (to put it mildly) racing tradition and has a relatively small racing following? (I am up there quite often, so I can speak about it).

It makes little, very little sense.

[Muzza]

Or, as a friend of mine said, probably someone mistook San Juan (Puerto Rico) by San Jose and all these rumours started.

Seriously, I would not be surprised if that's how the story begun. I have seen similar tales in the past (remember when the CART Montréal race was suddenly "reallocated" ba mistake by a journalist to Mont. Tremblant - she just made a mistake when typing the schedule - and a lot of people started to talk about a race there?)

[The Snout]

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/merc...rts/9607114.htm

Better tell the city officials of San Jose it's a hoax Muzza.

[Muzza]

Cheers, The Snout,

I had read the report at the Mercury News; I am not saying it is a hoax (*), but I question how serious OWRS is about this matter.

Pitching one site against another (San Jose against Laguna Seca in this case) is an often-used technique by promoters (and businessmen in general) to be in an advantageous position during negotiations. Many companies do that when choosing sites for factories, shopping malls, etc. And racing series promoters deploy this approach all the time.

(*) the fact that the rumour was first reported in internet fora of questionable accuracy makes me wary.

Let's wait and see. This is one of those cases in which I hope to be wrong - but, man, this sounds very, very weird.

Regards,


Muzza

[Tim Northcutt]

Originally posted by macdaddy
Cleveland, Mid-Ohio, MIS, Belle Isle, Toronto, and even Chicago.
All within a few hours' drive from my house.

If they are worried about that, Milwaukee and Elkhart Lake are not far from each other as well...

Personally, I think a race in the Spring and a race in the fall is a GOOD idea...