New Road Courses Add Excitement to IRA Road Racing By Joe Brittin MARCH 1, 2002 - With several new road courses in various stages of construction, the MG Tires Championship Enduro Series and the SSC Racing Shifter Kart Pro Series have much to look forward to. The nearly completed facility, which is on the IRA schedule for this year, is the Mid-America Motorplex located in Pacific Junction, Iowa. Mid-America Motorplex is a 2.23-mile, 40-foot-wide road course, which was designed by Alan Wilson who also designed GingerMan Raceway and Kershaw. The 15-turn road course includes four straight-aways, the longest being 2220 feet. The facility will also include a 3/4-mile, 26-foot wide sprint kart track, which is scheduled to open later this year. The sprint-kart track will feature four different configurations. On-site facilities will include a timing tower, on-site fuel, medical rooms, bathrooms with showers, concessions and a merchandise shop. The final paving was completed last fall and an open house test session was held on November 11, 2001. Initial testing indicates this will be a fast but safe track, with plenty of run-off area. Future plans for the facility include a jetboat lake and a 1/8-mile drag strip. All four facilities will be able to be used concurrently. Mid-America will offer memberships that allow practice during the week. Karts will share practice time with motorcycles on Wednesdays from 2 p.m. until darkness. Practice time will also be available to members on the Thursday before their weekend event. For more information see www.midamericamotorplex.com. Another new track under construction is the 384-acre BeaveRun Motorsports Park located in western Pennsylvania near the Ohio border. Land was cleared last year for this facility. Excavation is almost complete and paving is to begin this spring on the north course, the vehicle dynamics area and sprint track. Plans call for two road courses with a combined length of nearly 4 miles that can be run in five different configurations. According to Tim Silbaugh, a principal partner of BeaveRun, "We are doing our utmost to create the best outdoor karting center in North America." The north course, which is planned to be open early this summer, will be 1.6 miles long and 36-feet wide with elevation changes of 67 feet. The south course will be about 2.2-miles long with 111 feet of elevation changes and is scheduled to be completed in 2003. An 8/10-mile sprint kart track is also planned. Financing for this facility has been secured and will be partially funded by membership fees. This track will offer personal memberships through the BeaveRun Track Club that will allow practice during the week or on one of the courses while the other course is being used for club events. Club members will also have access to a private clubhouse. This track was also designed by Alan Wilson, a former car and motorcycle racer himself. The design incorporates safety features that are similar to GingerMan raceway. Amenities include a classroom, administration building, restrooms with showers, kart shop, and food service. The clubhouse and garages will be added in the second phase in 2003. The IRA will probably schedule an event at BeaveRun in 2003 and may possibly have a practice day in 2002 depending on the construction progress. For more information see www.beaverun.com. A third track, which is still in the planning stages, is the Autobahn Country Club of Joliet, Illinois. This track is situated on 325-acres located about two miles from the new ChicagoLand Speedway. This facility will feature an 11 turn 2.2-mile road course, a 13 turn 1.7-mile road course, a combined 4-mile road course with 22 turns, and a 1-mile sprint kart track that can be split into two separate configurations. The property has been purchased, the zoning is in place and the final engineering work is being done for this ambitious facility. This facility was also designed by Alan Wilson, who has designed tracks all over the world. This project hopes to eventually include country club type amenities with a clubhouse, pool, dining rooms, banquet facilities, locker rooms, and on-site car storage for its members. Membership is available at several different levels, with a total of 550 memberships available. Members will always have access to one of the tracks, while the other track will be available for rent to car clubs and sanctioning bodies such as the IRA. The IRA hopes to include this track on next year's schedule. Co-founder Mark Basso "hopes to eventually have an on-site kart shop and arrive-and-drive kart rentals available". "Kart racers who become members would have practice time available nearly every day." "This facility will be primarily for club racers, but several special events will be scheduled each year on the four mile track," said Basso. A fall 2002 completion is planned. With pavement curing time planned over next winter, look for a spring 2003 opening date. For more information see www.autobahncountryclub.net. For more information on the International Racing Association and it's affiliated race series' please visit the IRA website at www.internationalracingassociation.com.