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2007 Race Schedule Posted (My Version Anyway)

If I were running the show (which I'm not), paying for track rentals (which I'm not), and making sure tracks were cooperative, affordable and good enough to race at (again, which I'm not), this would be my 2007 WERA North Central schedule. This doesn't take into account scheduling conflicts (which would surely arise) and a host of other variables that make booking a date more of a challenge than many (including myself) think. Explanations to follow:

1. BeaveRun
2. Nelson Ledges
3. Grattan Raceway
4. Gingerman Raceway
5. Nelson Ledges
6. Grattan Raceway
7. Gingerman Raceway
8. BeaveRun
9. Mid-Ohio

First off, notable exceptions from this list are Putnam Park and Autobahn Country Club. I love Putnam Park, but due to the owners being "challenging" (which is the nicest I can put it from the numerous stories I've heard) and WERA acknowledging they won't visit there again unless some small miracle happens, they're off the list. That's fine, as we have a lot of good tracks in the region, but it's also a shame as Putnam is a nice track, with a great layout and smooth pavement. I wouldn't think twice before packing up and heading out to race there, even with it being one of the longer drives (6-7 hours) for us personally.

Autobahn is off the list because they're too expensive. They cater to car guys and not motorcycles (from my experience last year), which is somewhat understandable up until the point that a motorcycle racing organization is paying good money to rent the facilities and shouldn't be treated like a second-class citizen. Autobahn has nice facilities (if you're a paying car member and can use the members only clubhouse) and offers two courses. The South course is decent, but for as new as it is, it's extremely bumpy from the cars. The North course is nice, but it's short; and it presents safety concerns when bikes go down in one specific area. I've heard rumors of an Autobahn repaving (I believe just the South course, but I'm not sure), which would surely make the track rental price higher than it is now. For those reasons, they're off the list.

Another track excluded is Nashville Speedway, which was on the 2006 schedule for the first time. Some will say it's part of the region, but it only seems to be the people who live close to Nashville and I disagree. Maybe I'm biased and have been spoiled by the high number of good tracks that are in the core of the Midwest, but if you try to classify Nashville as a Midwest track, I just don't think that's accurate. A regional schedule is called that for a reason. Some people live closer or further from tracks within their region, but that doesn't change what the actual region should be. To me, the Midwest is Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania might be a stretch for some, but considering BeaveRun is on the western end of the state (and only roughly 30-40 minutes past Nelson Ledges), I think it qualifies. Some may say Kentucky could be part of the region and they might have a point, but Nashville is just too far south to classify as Midwest.

To detail the tracks that are on the schedule, BeaveRun starts it off. A relatively new facility, they have good track management (in my limited experience), above average facilities and a fun layout. They always have a number of events going on between their road course, a karting/motard track, a motocross track, and a skid pad for cars. The road course itself is a bit short, but they're expanding the layout to over three miles in length; a welcome addition. WERA included BeaveRun on the schedule twice in 2004 and 2005, but only once in 2006. I included it twice in my schedule, as it's a solid track and core part of the region. The only downside is that due to scheduling, the first race is in late April, so there's a good chance of snow, rain, and/or general cold weather. You can't predict the weather, so it's hit or miss. Also, the track addition will probably increase the price to rent the track unfortunately; something that may or may not be later be deemed worthwhile.

Nelson Ledges. It worries people that haven't been there due to its claimed "rough conditions", but the track has vastly improved in the past couple years. It's a great and extremely fun layout, although there are safety concerns in a couple areas. The facilities aren't the best, but they are improving. The bonus is that the track management is extremely pleasant to deal with and they're doing everything possible to constantly improve the track. They repaved most of it two years ago and recently did a major overall to improve runoff in the T3-T4 area. The carousel is their next area of focus, as more runoff is needed there. The track has its bumpy spots, but the fun factor generally makes up for this.

Grattan Raceway. This is my home track, so I'm slightly biased. I've heard countless times since I first started racing, "If you can go fast at Grattan, you can go fast anywhere.” and that's true. It's one of the most technical tracks in the United States. It's has slow corners, fast corners, off-camber and on-camber corners, elevation changes everywhere, and a long straight away. It really is a great track to ride on and never gets boring. I'd list it three times on the schedule if there weren't a number of other good tracks to visit. It flat out makes you a better rider. The downside to Grattan is that the track gets a couple new bumps and sealer patches every spring. A full repave would be nice, but I don't see the Grattan owners doing this anytime soon, as they're focusing much of their efforts on the motocross track they have across the road.

I would also run all the events clockwise. WERA runs it in both directions and I don't feel running it counter-clockwise is safe. People will say it is, and they're right – until someone runs into the guardrail going through the hairpin, or through T1. Running the track clockwise makes it one of the safest (if not the safest) track in the region.

Gingerman. It's a fun track and has a good layout. While not extremely long, it's long enough and challenging enough to keep a rider's interest. The facilities are very respectable and the surrounding local area is very touristy, so it's a great track to bring the family to. Another added bonus is that it's close to Chicago. WERA hasn't had Gingerman in some time; so hopefully adding a track on the western side of the state will draw more riders. CCS (or now referred to as ASRA) had it for some time, so this may get some CCS riders who like Gingerman to try some of the other Midwest tracks WERA offers. The downside to this is, I don't think it will happen overnight. It may take 2-3 years and Gingerman isn't exactly cheap from what I've been told. I hope WERA can stick with it long enough to make it a worthwhile and featured addition to the region.

Mid-Ohio. It's the most prestigious track on the schedule. Actually, one of the most prestigious in the country. It has everything. It's technical, long enough, just had a recent repave to the entire surface, has great facilities, and the AMA races there. It's a shame WERA can't visit more than once, but Mid-Ohio seems to dedicate a large amount of their events to cars, rather than bikes (hopefully that will change in the future). The WERA event isn't just a regional race either, it's part of the Grand National Championships put on by WERA and the AMA, so it's a great way to end the season.

So that's the schedule; at least how I'd like it anyway. I think it brings a sense of consistency for each track listed (being on there twice), and would get a good base of riders in a region that is currently growing. There really are a lot of good tracks within the region and I hope people appreciate that. I think Grattan and Nelson for different reasons, make riders better. Granted, every track does that to some extent and for that reason, it's a shame Putnam Park isn't available, and Mid-Ohio only is once.

Who knows how close the actual 2007 WERA North Central schedule will look like, but we'll soon see.

Cheers,

- eddie

Monday, November 27th, 2006 | POSTED AT: 7:01 AM
FILED UNDER: General