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Barber announces planned improvements
07/28/2007
By GARRETT DALE
Register Citizen Staff
LAKEVILLE - Lime Rock Park president Skip Barber announced Thursday the projected schedule for track and facility improvements, funded by the revenue that will be raised through the sale of memberships in the "Club at Lime Rock Park". The club, which Barber introduced last week, will enable a select 300 members with unprecedented access to the historic track, where it is currently impossible to rent even an hour.
"We have made many upgrades to the track and the facility over the last few years, and with the launch of The Club at Lime Rock Park, we plan to make even more significant improvements in the immediate future that will guarantee Lime Rock Park remains the premier race course in the Northeast for the next fifty years," Barber said.
The Club at Lime Rock Park is an opportunity for a limited number of people to have significant track time to choose from while also enjoying the company of like-minded enthusiasts. Members will be allowed to choose twenty dates, out of a possible sixty dates annually.
The new and improved Lime Rock Park will feature:
Member clubhouse and press facility. Lime Rock Park has received permission to rebuild the current press building and create a first-class clubhouse for The Club at Lime Rock Park members. Renowned architect Sam Posey is designing the new building, which will also serve as a press facility four weekends per year. A temporary clubhouse is planned to be fully operational by the summer of 2008. The permanent clubhouse should be completed late winter/early spring of 2009.
The park's new clubhouse will also be cutting edge in an ecological sense. "We've made a commitment to make Lime Rock Park the greenest, most environmentally-friendly racing facility in the country," said Barber. "The new clubhouse will be entirely self-sustaining through renewable energy sources such as solar energy panels and efficient design. The design will utilize traditional New England architecture, while at the same time allow for modern renewable energy sources."
Exclusive members pit lane. "We have identified the new location for the members' pit lane which will begin at the middle big bend and re-enter in the left-hander," said Barber. It has a scheduled completion goal of next summer.
New water and drainage systems. "The first step in redesigning these systems is to engineer the whole property - focusing on water and drainage," said Barber. "This was never done in the past, and this time it must come first." The engineering phase should be done in the spring and the earth moving and drainage should be in place next fall.
* Repaving the track. "We are talking to the sanctioning bodies and drivers about some changes to the track," said barber. "We have four objectives: Slow down the faster corners, make the track more fun to drive, eliminate the bumps, and greatly reduce the chance of vehicle damage." New runoff areas should be repaved in 2008, with the projected final repaving set for 2009.
* New entranceway and renovated bathrooms for 2008. "We're going to build a new wider entrance," said Barber.
* Family-friendly facilities. "Our plan is to provide air-conditioned facilities in the chalet so that the entire family can relax in comfort and enjoy the activities on the track. We're also including a children's play area," said Barber. The facilities should be done by next summer.
Barber noted that it is extremely important to him that Lime Rock is significantly improved without losing any of its charm or character, something he has always worked for with the improvements made at the track.
According to Barber, more than $2 million has been invested over the past few years on facility improvements. The track improvements have included.
* Eliminating the brown. "We have focused on eliminating the 'brown' - the dust and mud - and instead make everything black or green. We've paved virtually all of the main paddock - and the roads through the parking area." The irrigation system is also fully operational, which means that much of the grass at the park can now be watered.
* Creating better barriers for driver safety. "The Armco barriers have been raised; trees and barriers have been moved further from the track at the esses; barriers have been moved further back from the track on the uphill on the left; we've widened the escape area and paved it; and catch fencing has been added up the back straight on the outside of the approach on the downhill and main street," said Barber.
The track has recently been inspected by Charlie Whiting, the Formula One race director, and been granted an FIA Grade B license. This is one step below a Formula One license.
* Extended the pit lane and the false grid.
* Improved drivers' sight lines. "We've pushed back the earth on the driver's right going up the back straight, improving the driver's sight line, and put new barriers there for spectators," said Barber. "We've done additional earth moving to increase the view of the back straight and the entry to it,"
The membership cost for The Club at Lime Rock Park is $100,000 and the length of membership is 50 years. Membership can be passed down in the immediate family or resold through The Club.
The membership dollars will be used to improve the entire Park. The Club at Lime Rock Park's first full season will be 2008. However, there are four dates reserved this fall for qualified Club applicants to sample the facilities. Barber will be offering personal track tours, including lunch, a presentation, and a question-and-answer session for prospective Club Members.
He will be providing all the details of club membership, privileges and amenities, as well as a preview of the planned improvements that will make The Club at Lime Rock Park the premier motor sports club in North America. Track tours will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the following dates: Aug. 4, Aug. 5, Aug. 12, Aug. 25 and Aug. 26.
http://www.registercitizen.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18638604&BRD=1652&PAG=461&dept_id=464186&rfi=6
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