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Copyright
Baskervill Motorsports Design. Permission to copy granted
with proper credit
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On June 22,
2006 CanadianRacer.com attended the combined Cayuga / CASCAR press
conference at NASCAR Speed Park in Vaughn.
The big announcement was to introduce the new owners of Cayuga Speedway
and to get an idea of where the track is heading. The new owners
are Jerry Santucci and Dean Rose. Both were in attendance and said
a few words. The track is now known as Cayuga International Speedway.
The immediate plans are to prepare for the CASCAR Super Series race
on the Labour Day Weekend.
This will be the last event on the current Cayuga oval. Some work
will be done to improve the appearance of the track before the final
race. The weekend will also feature a tribute to long-time Cayuga
owners Bob and Leone Slack.
After the Labour Day event is over, the heavy equipment moves in
and the current facility will be completely demolished. The conceptual
drawings shown here will give an idea of the vision of the new owners.
The track was only sold in late May so everything is just beginning
to come together. There will be an open house / press conference
at Cayuga on July 23 where more detailed plans will be announced.
The new facility is being designed by Mark Lindsey of Baskervill
Motorsports Design (www.baskervill.com) and Junie West of Timmons
Group. Both firms have provided design services at Richmond International
Raceway in Richmond, Virginia. Cooper Construction will oversee
the construction management.
The goal is to build a very state-of-the-art motorsports complex.
There will be VIP areas, box seating, hospitality rooms and an pubic
midway plaza. The midway will include fan and driver interaction
zones, multi-media displays and more. There will be new concessions,
souvenir stands and restrooms. The RV park and camping area will
be refurbished.
I had a chance to speak with co-owner Dean Rose to get more information.
The actual length of the new track has not been decided but it appears
that the rumours of it being 3/4 to 1 mile are false. More than
likely it will be around 1 km in length. Seating will be built in
stages but can potentially reach 60,000. Mr. Rose stated that he
would like to work with the other tracks in the area, so I would
assume that a weekly program will not be happening. The plan is
make use of the space for more than just racing.
Several CASCAR
Super Series drivers were on hand including Kerry Micks, Scott Steckly,
Don Thompson Jr, Dave Whitlock, Jim Lapcevich, Mark Dilley, Robin
Buck and JR Fitzpatrick. Bob Slack was also in attendance.
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