You're Hired !!!

[macdaddy]

The phone rings, waking you out of bed. You're pretty grumpy until you realize that you're being invited into a conference call with Christopher, Bernard, and Gerald.

They've reached a dilemma. Seems that they can't agree on a schedule for next year, and so they've decided to simply draw a fan's name out of a hat and let them decide.

How they got your phone number remains a mystery...

Whatcha gonna tell them?

If it were me, (granted I got out of bed in the first place)...

St. Petersburg
Monterrey Mexico
Rio deJaneiro
Long Beach
{Off-weekend}
Brands Hatch
Eurospeedway
Spa
(Off-weekend)
Las Vegas (Night race, Memorial Day weekend)
Milwaukee (Saturday night)
Cleveland (Saturday night)
Toronto
(Off-weekend)
Portland
Washington, DC
Road America
Michigan
Montreal (Night race, something new to F1 fans)
(Off-weekend)
Australia (Saturday)
Jerez, Spain
(Off-weekend)
Beijing (Saturday)
Vancouver
Laguna Seca
Mexico City
Fontana(Saturday night)

That's 23 events, trying to keep travel expenses to a minimum. (If that's possible). Mid-Ohio gets dropped in favour of Spa. Who's gonna argue with that? Denver gets dropped for Vegas. And Miami for Washington. That keeps up the American content, while China, Brazil and Spain are added. (The latter for Jordi's sake).

Michigan gets added, and Eurospeedway becomes a 500-miler, thus recreating the Triple Crown.

The Beijing date would be contingent upon Air China taking care of the transportation costs for the season. We'll throw in a bunch of track signage.

And it wouldn't be long until rumours of a street race in Chatham Ontario surfaced. Speculation that my street could be used as pit lane and my backyard as a cramped paddock area.

BYOB to that one. But I'll supply the hotdogs.

[macdaddy]

Amendment #1:
Throw in a race in Honolulu between Beijing and Vancouver.

[429CJ]

Australia-Jerez-Beijing?! Nice detour in Europe between Australia and China?

[tanalised]

any chance of a detour over to the united states of new zealand? We have great roads for motor rallies

[gaines]

Mid-Ohio gets dropped in favour of Spa. Who's gonna argue with that?

All the Ohio fans who have supported CART over the years who would get screwed in favor of European fans. Not that Euro fans aren't good but don't screw the family for a new friend.

[racefanatic]

St. Petersburg
Interlagos???
Monterrey, Mexico
off weekend
Long Beach
off weekend
Spa
Brands Hatch (on the better track)
Germany
off weekend
Portland
Las Vegas
Toronto
off weekend
INDY!!!
Cleveland (under the lights)
Road America
Michigan International
off weekend
Montreal
Mid-Ohio
Nazareth
Laguna Seca
off weekend
Surfers Paradise
off weekend
Vancouver
Phoenix
Mexico City
Fontana (I like the at night idea!)

Ok, maybe I have too many races on there... oh well.

[Lee Janotta]

Anyone got a schedule from around ten years back? I can't remember the traditional dates for the races I'd like to restore to those dates.

[¡As-de-mim!]

They called Macdaddy because he has those V-10 Vipers in his garage and Pookey really wants a V-10. Actually he wants about 20 of them.

[Lee Janotta]

I'd have no second off-season, and I'd have to knock down walls to get a few tracks and CART to agree on safety standards. But they're desperate, right?

Sunday, February 1st: Jacarapagua, Rio, Brazil (Road course)
Sunday, February 8th: Brasilia, Brazil (Road course)
Saturday, February 21st: St Petersburg, Florida (Street circuit)
Saturday, March 6th: Texas World Speedway, College Station, Texas (Superspeedway, 500 miles)
Sunday, March 21st: Monterrey, Mexico (Road course, sorta)
Sunday, April 4th: Long Beach, California (Street ciruit)
Saturday, April 17th: Road Atlanta (Road course)
Sunday, May 2nd: Brands Hatch GP Circuit, Kent, United Kingdom (Road course, LeMans Tournament or FIA SCC or GT to run on Monday. BTCC also crammed onto schedule, F3 if possible)
Sunday, May 9th: Spa-Francorchamps, Francorchamps, Belgium (Natural road course)
Sunday, May 16th: Eurospeedway Lausitz, Lausitz, Germany (Speedway, 500 miles)
Saturday, May 29th: The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, Wisconsin (Short oval, night)
Saturday, June 5th: Mont Tremblant, St. Jovite, Quebec, Canada (Road course)
Saturday, June 19th: Portland, Oregon (Road course)
Saturday, July 3rd: Burke Lakefront Airport, Cleveland, Ohio (Airport circuit, night race)
Saturday, July 3rd: Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Street circuit)
Saturday, July 17th: Concord Pacific Place, Vancouver, BC, Canada (Street circuit)
Saturday, August 7th: Gateway, Madison (St. Louis), Illinois (Speedway, night race, kicking out the IRL and taking their date)
Saturday, August 21st: Pocono, Long Pond, Pennsylvania (Superspeedway, 500 miles)
Saturday, September 4th: Mid-Ohio, Lexington, Ohio (Road course)
Saturday, September 11th: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin (Road course)
Saturday, September 25th: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (Road course, sorta)
Sunday, October 9th: Mexico City, Mexico (Road course, and with the Mickey Mouse parts removed)
Saturday, October 2nd: Miami, Florida (Street circuit)
Saturday, October 16th: Laguna Seca, Monterey, California (Road course)
Sunday, October 31st: Surfer's Paradise, Queensland, Australia (Street circuit, set so the last 10 laps are run with the street lights on)
Saturday, November 13th: Las Vegas, Nevada (Street circuit, night race)

[oily oaf]

Dont forget that 1/2 mile dirt track in South London where I race bangers every other Sunday. A bit bumpy I grant u but its nice and handy for the 197 bus from my house.

[DNQ]

Round 1, St. Petersburg.
Round 2, Interlagos.
Round 3, Long Beach.
Round 4, Mexico City.
Round 5, Fundidora Park.
Round 6, Brands Hatch Indy.
Round 7, Lausitzring.
Round 8, Milwaukee.
Round 9, Portland.
Round 10, Cleveland.
Round 11, Mont Tremblant.
Round 12, Toronto.
Round 13, Vancouver.
Round 14, Montreal.
Round 15, Mid-Ohio.
Round 16, Road America.
Round 17, Michigan.
Round 18, Fontana.
Round 19, Surfers Paradise.
Round 20, Laguna Seca.

20 Races, 4 outside North America (Surfers, Interlagos, Lausitz, Brands).

In - Michigan, Interlagos, Mont Tremblant.
Out - Denver, Miami.

Mexican/Canadian/European races grouped together. Brazil finally has a much deserved race back in place...the Canadian's get another race at Mont Tremblant.

Importantly, the first and last races of the season are in the United States, as is the bulk of races leading to the decider. Lausitz, Fontana, Michigan are 500 mile races. Laguna Seca restored as finale. New races are all in the Americas, to build series identity. In light of CART's struggles, this schedule is built to help the series in the American market. Michigan is back! The number of races is kept at 20, with a view to expand to 22 the following year (Spa, and another US race).

It is not a very spectaculor calendar, but continuity and stability is what CART needs atm. As soon as the future is 100% secured, and a nice TV deal is in place...then we can look at some fancy venues

[DNQ]

Forgot to add, there will be two weeks between each race, with the exception of the European double header (1 week apart), the Michigan/Fontana double header (1 week apart), and the Canadian races (1 week between each). This will result in a season that is 35 weeks long.

The season will be designed to start so that it finishes after the IRL season has ended (when full attention can be directed towards CART).

Cleveland and Milwuakee remain under lights.

[Lee Janotta]

Originally posted by oily oaf
Dont forget that 1/2 mile dirt track in South London where I race bangers every other Sunday. A bit bumpy I grant u but its nice and handy for the 197 bus from my house.

Hey, NASCAR races their collective butt off, and look how popular they are. I think there's a connection there!

[Lee Janotta]

Had to correct a few typos and one ommission. Up to 26 races now. The 6 ovals basically have to stay there, but we could drop some road or street circuits that don't work out. I can't think of a bad one among them. Well, at least a bad one that also doesn't draw well.

The races in bold represent the 500-miler Triple Crown, which will pay a large bonus for a driver who wins all three. Likewise, the 5 races in italics represent big weekends for the road racers, with big prize money and prestige. These are the big 8 events that CART should show off to the fans and sponsors.

Sunday, February 1st: Jacarapagua, Rio, Brazil (Road course)
Sunday, February 8th: Brasilia, Brazil (Road course)
Saturday, February 21st: St Petersburg, Florida (Street circuit)
Saturday, March 6th: Texas World Speedway, College Station, Texas (Superspeedway, 500 miles)
Sunday, March 21st: Monterrey, Mexico (Road course, sorta)
Sunday, April 4th: Long Beach, California (Street ciruit)
Saturday, April 17th: Road Atlanta (Road course)
Sunday, May 2nd: Brands Hatch GP Circuit, Kent, United Kingdom (Road course, LeMans Tournament or FIA SCC or GT to run on Monday. BTCC also crammed onto schedule, F3 if possible)
Sunday, May 9th: Spa-Francorchamps, Francorchamps, Belgium (Natural road course)
Sunday, May 16th: Eurospeedway Lausitz, Lausitz, Germany (Speedway, 500 miles)
Saturday, May 29th: The Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, Wisconsin (Oval, night)
Saturday, June 5th: Mont Tremblant, St. Jovite, Quebec, Canada (Road course)
Saturday, June 19th: Portland, Oregon (Road course)
Saturday, July 3rd: Burke Lakefront Airport, Cleveland, Ohio (Airport circuit, night race)
Saturday, July 10th: Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Street circuit)
Saturday, July 17th: Concord Pacific Place, Vancouver, BC, Canada (Street circuit)
Saturday, August 7th: Gateway, Madison (St. Louis), Illinois (Oval, night race, kicking out the IRL and taking their date)
Saturday, August 21st: Pocono, Long Pond, Pennsylvania (Superspeedway, 500 miles)
Saturday, September 4th: Mid-Ohio, Lexington, Ohio (Road course)
Saturday, September 11th: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin (Road course)
Saturday, September 18th: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (Road course, sorta)
Saturday, September 25th: NHIS, Loudon, New Hampshire (Oval)
Saturday, October 2nd: Miami, Florida (Street circuit)
Sunday, October 9th: Mexico City, Mexico (Road course, and with the Mickey Mouse parts removed)
Saturday, October 16th: Laguna Seca, Monterey, California (Road course)
Sunday, October 31st: Surfer's Paradise, Queensland, Australia (Street circuit, set so the last 10 laps are run with the street lights on)
Saturday, November 13th: Las Vegas, Nevada (Street circuit, night race)

[Lee Janotta]

As long as we're on the subject, I've revised my design for a Las Vegas street circuit. This one's cut down to a reasonable size, about 2 miles

It runs counter-clockwise, which I failed to note in the image.

The blue portions represent an optional chicane, and the short course cut-off for the slower support races.

The pits & paddock are located in the parking lot of the Hotel & Casino (H&C for the rest of this post). Turn 1 should be a ton of fun, like Mile-Wide Turn at Denver. There's a lot of runoff at the outside of the turn, but then the circuit bottlenecks between natural obstacles, before heading into the tight turn 2. Cars will accelerate through turns 3 and 4, emerging onto Fashion Show Lane. A tight right-hander then leads the cars onto Las Vegas Boulevard, better know as The Strip. Unless the optional chicane is used, the drivers will be going straight and flat for 3/4 of a mile down the street. They'll then have to stand on the brakes to make the tight left-hander into an alley between the Stardust and Westward Ho! H&Cs. Another left leads in the Stardust parking lot, through a tight complex of turns behind the casino, then over Desert Inn Drive again, back onto the pit straight.

[Fish_Flake]

I think that CART should try to avoid using the term "Grand Prix" in the names of its races, like how the Brands Hatch race is named the London Champ Car Trophy. For example, if Lee's opening round at Jacarapagua takes place, avoid the obvious "Grand Prix of Rio" moniker and give the race a unique and memorable name that reflects the track's location: the "Copa do Pão d'Açucar," (Sugar Loaf Cup) after one of Rio de Janeiro's most recognizable landmarks.

[Crash Test]

It's just my opinion, but races around car parks suck.

[avsfan733]

hmmm Summit Point maybe, I'd like to see what times they turn and at what speeds, Summit has the long ass front straight which would make for an interesting first turn

[Raven]

St. Petersburg, USA,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Long Beach, USA
Road Atlanta, USA
Brands Hatch, UK
Lausitzring, Germany
Estoril, Portugal
Denver, USA
Portland, USA
Cleveland, USA
Watkins Glen, USA
Toronto, Canada
Phakisa Freeway, SA
Montreal, Canada
Laguna Seca, USA
Houston, USA
Vancouver, Canada
Road America, USA
Guia, Macau
Surfers Paradise, Australia
Fontana, USA
Mexico City, Mexico


My calendar has 22 events, 11 in USA, 3 in Canada, 3 in Europe, 1 in Mexico, 1 in Brazil, 1 in Australia, 1 in Macau and 1 in South Africa. Here the series will race on 6 of the 7 continents combining 8 street courses with 11 road courses and 3 ovals.

[evo]

Woah! That Phakisa Freeway track is cool. I assume you would have them run on the oval? That'd sweet. I wonder why they've never made a pitch to CART. I think Macau would be a bit tight though.

Personally I'd like to see a few more ovals and fewer street courses, but it's not going to happen. Unless some road courses or ovals start getting built closer to major centers.

[DNQ]

Originally posted by evo
Woah! That Phakisa Freeway track is cool. I assume you would have them run on the oval? That'd sweet. I wonder why they've never made a pitch to CART. I think Macau would be a bit tight though.

Phakisa is in the middle of no-where though, isnt it?

[f1manoz]

You are correct DNQ. MotoGP currently race there, and they get a decent crowd for where it's located, but in reality the track is in the middle of nowhere and who's to say South African's will turn up for a CART event... Has a race in South Africa ever even been considered by CART? I see no reason why they would.

[rustyfan]

Some really nice suggestions for schedules in this thread, but one thing I can't understand is this fondness for Fundidora Park - it's so uninspiring and boring it doesn't deserve a CART race.

[Lee Janotta]

Big crowds, rustyfan. When the fans stop showing, I say dump the place.

[rustyfan]

Originally posted by Lee Janotta
Big crowds, rustyfan. When the fans stop showing, I say dump the place.

Yes, but for me watching it on TV in Sweden the crowd doesn't mean a whole lot. The on-track action and the cars negotiating the track layout (preferrably with nice, long straights, sweeping turns and plenty of elevation changes) are what interest me - a slow, endless parade on a oversized go-kart track in front of a big crowd, however, does not.

For all I care they don't need to wait until the fans stop turning up - they should move the race to Interlagos ASAP. A much more interesting track and the crowds would most likely turn up in healthy numbers there as well.