ALMS cancels Washington, Mexico City

[paul-collins]

Due to numerous issues that have caused cancellations by both event promoters, American Le Mans Series events that were to be run in 2003 in Mexico City and Washington, D.C., will not be held, series officials have announced.

The sports car endurance racing series was to have held a new event on April 5 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, and June 29 at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., in a return engagement of a successful event held in 2002. Series officials indicated that they are actively seeking replacement events to be held in 2003.

-IMSA

[veeten]

NOOOOOOOooooooo!!!

[IanGrohse]

That sucks!

[Fogelhund]

[Speeddemon555]

That's &^$& up and especially Washington D.C where the first race was very good. Any word on the replacement of D.C. and Mexico???

[muggle not]

Not good. RFK was one of the better surface tracks. It is not good for road racing when they cannot depend on holding a race as scheduled. It will hurt ALMS, Trans Am, and World Challenge. Darn, I was planning on going to the DC race.

[rdjones]

A real shame. Let hope the replacement race is in Europe.

WHY


:confused:

[Lee Janotta]

Aww man! How could they screw up DC?!?!

[cybersdorf]

D.C. isn't so much of a surprise, though; there was opposition against the race last year already.

Mexico does come out of the blue; I wonder, was it love or money?

[Liz]

I suspect it's War. With the kind of border tightening going on already here in Canada, and with Mexico's current intransigence in the matter of UN resolutions, I would expect that it would be well-nigh impossible to get the logisticals sorted out to bring huge transporter-loads of gear and fans across an international border. Not to mention the nightmare of security.

I would also suspect that, in addition to all the usual suspects in DC with their hands out for baksheesh, the idea of having a major car race in a "target rich environment" while a war is going on might have been the NSC's worst nightmare.

Those are ONLY my speculations but they do make sense to me. Shame about DC though, I was going to attend that one.

[Speeddemon555]

I think the ALMS race should go to Lime Rock and the new Brimingham, Alabama road course since Grand Am is doing it in two months.

[cybersdorf]

Originally posted by Liz
With the kind of border tightening going on already here in Canada,...(

Ah so that's where the iron curtain went!

[muggle not]

I would like the DC race to go to VIR.

[LouisTheShark]

" suspect it's War. With the kind of border tightening going on already here in Canada, and with Mexico's current intransigence in the matter of UN resolutions, I would expect that it would be well-nigh impossible to get the logisticals sorted out to bring huge transporter-loads of gear and fans across an international border. Not to mention the nightmare of security."

CART is managing just fine with the same set of circumstances for their March race in Mexico.

Money not War is the real reason behind both.

[Tim Northcutt]

I also would like to see the DC race go to VIR....Where would they sub something for Mexico City into their schedule????


Won't be in May...too much hassle for teams to go from LM testing to the US then back again like last year...

Your thoughts would be appreciated....

[paul-collins]

Originally posted by LouisTheShark
CART is managing just fine with the same set of circumstances for their March race in Mexico.

From another thread on the CART forum on this board:

With 17 days left until the next race, only 31 percent of the tickets have been sold for the race in Monterrey, Mexico.

http://tentenths.com/forum/showthrea...threadid=34664

[LouisTheShark]

Paul, the issue addressed was war, logistics, and security, not ticket sales or money.

[muggle not]

I seriously doubt that the reason for cancellation of the RFK race was fear of security. If road racing is going to be successful in the U.S. thay must come up with a "set schedule" that fans, teams, etc can rely on. The constant cancelling every year at the tracks like RFK, San Diego, Miami, is hurting road racing. I wish that ALMS, Trans Am, and World Challenge could get together and run together at all the great road tacks where the chances of cancellation would be extremely slim. Obviously, there are a few street tracks that could be relied on.

[paul-collins]

LtS: Fair enough. I just felt your statement was a bit "blanket." I guess I read more into it than you meant. Sorry 'bout that.

[Liz]

Once the balloon goes up, we'll see what the CWS race does.

Cybers, a friend of mine just got back from a holiday in the Southland, and she said that ALL her hand luggage was opened and inspected, and she was cross-examined to a scary degree coming from here to there. Coming home, of course, no problem. You can bring atom bombs into Canada, but don't bring any liquor or cigarettes. It's the only thing they care about.

[Chevyguy]

The Mexico race is what doesn't surprise me. I thought, no way they're gonna race in Mexico. I just wasn't buying it. Maybe if it wasn't six hours. But the powers of both venues REALLY messed up. The ALMS is a growing series. Why then are the venues so fickle about putting on the show? And DC, how could they not see what they are throwing away?

Something to be said for Don Panoz, don't give up on this man. He has brought top notch machinary and drivers to the States. His series is the most fascinating in the whole world. We all know this. It's not his fault. It is each our responsibilty to pull for the ALMS every chance we get. Or maybe you want to watch DPs next year Sebring?

[muggle not]

City Panel Blamed In Loss Of Race
Council Members Cite Poor Planning

By Serge F. Kovaleski
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, March 9, 2003; Page C01

The cancellation of Washington's 2003 Grand Prix auto race resulted from poor planning by the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission that alienated residents near the track and left the critical responsibility of noise abatement with an out-of-town promoter who had misled the District before, several D.C. Council members and activists said yesterday.

The demise of this year's event also is a setback for Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D), who had hailed last summer's inaugural race on the grounds of Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium as "enormously successful" and said that the Grand Prix was "vitally, critically imperative" to show that the nation's capital can host world-class events. The mayor said at the time that more investment would be needed to reduce the din from dozens of race cars competing on a track within 150 feet of homes.

But that money never materialized, while residents in the Kingman Park section of Northeast Washington adjacent to RFK increased the legal and public relations pressure to have the 10-year race contract rescinded. Over the weekend, the sports commission's executive director, Robert D. Goldwater, lamented the loss of the race and criticized the North Carolina-based promoter, National Grand Prix Holdings LLC, for failing to remedy the noise problem. Goldwater said the race generated about $12 million in direct spending in the District in 2002.

Before last summer's competition, however, Grand Prix Holdings misled District regulators when it told officials that a Canadian expert would build a high-tech sound wall along a 700-foot section of the 1.7-mile track. It is unclear who built the sound-dampening fence that measured only 584 feet and was missing numerous tiles, inspectors said.

"It was technically silly . . . and by again putting the matter of noise abatement in the hands of people who failed, the sports commission is undermining its own credibility and its commitment to the neighbors," said Dorn McGrath Jr., professor of urban and regional planning at George Washington University.

During July's Grand Prix, McGrath measured the race-car noise in Kingman Park and, like District regulators, determined that it far exceeded what is allowed in residential areas.

D.C. Council member Adrian M. Fenty (D-Ward 4) yesterday assailed the commission, a quasi-independent arm of the D.C. government whose board is appointed by the mayor, for not taking a greater role in noise abatement.

He recalled that the sports commission had been less than open in discussing the planning and financing of the Grand Prix.

"Maybe these guys are just too independent and that clouds their judgment about how responsive they should be to the residents and the D.C. Council," Fenty said. "Because of this failure to openly consult, the noise issue has exploded in their faces."

Said council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2): "The noise issue has come home to roost. Clearly, relying on Grand Prix Holdings after their track record last year was a risky proposition that has now backfired."

Goldwater said yesterday that the sports commission expected Grand Prix Holdings to handle the noise predicament because it is contractually required to do so.

"There is no question at all that it was the promoter's responsibility . . . but we had no evidence whatsoever that a meaningful noise plan was being undertaken," Goldwater said.

Goldwater quoted the Grand Prix contract: "NGPH acknowledges the necessity for (a) considering the needs and addressing the concerns of residential neighborhoods in the vicinity of the commission property."

Goldwater said that Grand Prix Holdings canceled this year's race but not the entire 10-year agreement. He noted, however, that the promoter had not mentioned resuming the race in 2004, and a high-ranking Williams administration source said it is unlikely that any future Grand Prix races would be held with the current promoter.

A source with the American Le Mans Series, the sanctioning body of the Washington Grand Prix, said the organization believes that Grand Prix Holdings violated its contract by not dealing with the noise matter properly.

Christopher J. Lencheski, co-founder and board chairman of Grand Prix Holdings, did not return four calls yesterday seeking a comment.

Williams said in an interview that if the noise from the race cannot be brought down to an acceptable level, then the event should not be held in the future. "Neighborhood impact is important, and there is a point beyond which you should not go," he said.

Williams said it was too early to tell whether the District would be able to recoup about half of the $5.1 million the sports commission was authorized to put up for construction related to the race.

Under the race contract, the promoter has the duration of the 10-year agreement to repay about 50 percent of the $5.1 million in what amounts to an interest-free loan with no guarantor.

Goldwater said that the sports commission has received some of that money -- "in the low six figures" -- but the remainder still is in question. He said the sports commission is examining its legal options.

Council member Harold Brazil (D-At Large), chairman of the Committee on Economic Development and a past supporter of the Grand Prix and sports commission, declined to comment on the cancellation.

John Capozzi, an activist who opposes the Grand Prix, said, "The sports commission should have had an exit strategy in place to protect the money they put up and any future expenditures or losses they anticipated."

[BSchneiderFan]

This is all most depressing. What about a 6 hour race at Lime Rock Park and a street race in Toronto to plug the gaps?

[Fish_Flake]

Lime Rock Park will never get an ALMS date of any kind, let alone a six-hour endurance event. 1.53 miles is not enough to hold as many cars that run in ALMS at one time. However, joining CART on one of their street races is a good idea.