Posts Tagged ‘race city’
I started my dream with my hands gripped on a Canon 20D. Being a diehard fan of motorsports, cars, tuning and the entire scene it created it was only natural that in 2006 I stumbled into the gates of Race City with a shiny new Canon DSLR.
What I found was a plethora of activities in front of me. A magical mist of petrol, melted rubber, and air purified by the smell of race gas and burning tires lingered over the entire facility. Straight ahead of me was pro-stock racers powering their machines down the lustrous 1/4 mile, to my right was a group of cas cars roaring in the oval and the stands full of spectators taking in the days events. If you’re a car guy like me, then you’ll know the feeling you get the second you come through the front gates. Your trek through Calgary’s large urban sprawl was rewarded with the grace of love, power, scent and freedom.
I spent the next 4 years honing my skills as a motorsport and automotive photographer. I experienced every type of event possible at this race track and documented it with this Canon 20D to share with friends and family once it was over. Everything from drag racing, lapping track days, CMRA, CCRA, Spec-D, DMCC, Chump Car Racing I was in and around it like a kid on a cupcake. A true motorsport enthusiast does not judge, does not pick and choose which events to watch and participate in. A true enthusiast enjoys them all, and will do everything in their power to see it all. This was me, it did not matter what engine, how big or small the wheels nor how many wheels there was I loved it. I was at home. You can ask anybody who has ever come to Race City with me how big my smile was when I arrived to the track, ask them how bright I became and how happy I was.
More after the jump, including a gallery of pictures
Spec-D and Revwerks will be hosting their 3rd collaboration track and drift day tomorrow on July 20th, 2010 at Race City Motorsports Park. There’s still space available, so whether you’re a drifter or a lapper, get your cars out there and tear it up! If you’re just getting into drifting and not comfortable with drifting on the roadcourse, you can start your practice on the oval and move on to the roadcourse once you get the hang of it. For the Beyond photogs, media passes are available if you want to shoot some pics and videos of the action.
You can get all the details right here. Thanks ercchry for setting it up!
The BMW Club of Southern Alberta and the Northern Alberta BMW Club are hosting an advanced driving school exclusively for ladies at Race City Motorsport Park on Saturday July 16, 2011. The school will provide participants with classroom instruction, on track exercises, and full lapping experience on the full road course.
The fun and thrill of driving in a performance situation does not mean that you have to be sitting behind the wheel of an open-wheel race car. The BMW Club of Canada (BMWCC) offers many opportunities to experience the thrill of driving your own vehicle (BMW or otherwise) at or near the limit under safe and controlled conditions.
The purpose of the BWMCC Advanced Driving Schools is to instruct students in the art of advanced driving technique. Even if you have attended our schools or attended other similar schools in the past, there is always more to learn and experience. Through our Advanced Driving Schools, expect to polish your driving skills through excellent one-on-one, in-car instruction on a closed-road track. In-car instruction is supplemented by classroom sessions and specific skills are further reinforced by exercises on the skid pad.
Membership at either the Northern or Southern Alberta BMW club is mandatory to participate in this event. Registration fee is $325, and helmets are required. Helmets will be available for rental for $20. For more information on this event contact the event registrar Bruce Borstmayer at borstmayer@bmwcsa.ca or register online.
This year Spec-D and Revwerks have teamed up to bring you affordable road course time!
This will be open to all cars and the participants will be able to either lap their cars or drift them. you can pre-register for $80 (a $40 deposit is required and can be made on the website) till May 10th. The drop-in rate after the 10th will be $120 and will have to be paid at the gate, if there is still room.
Drifting and lapping will not be mixed, they will be separate groups.
Where to make deposits and more info can be found here:
http://www.spec-d.ca/p/calgary-practices.html
Check out Beyond’s forums for the discussion thread on the first practice:
http://forums.beyond.ca/st/332127/may-17th-spec-d-and-revwerks-first-collaboration-night/
Spectators are welcome and are $10 at the gate.
If you have any other questions please feel free to email Eric at eric@spec-d.ca
With the recent announcement that Calgary International Speedway is suspending all Race City operations, many members on our forums and other forums began planning protests against the City’s inaction to find and lease new land so a replacement race track can be built. I thought I would share some tips on how to protest effectively to get the results that we want.
There are many stages to getting want you want from organizations and the Government is no different. An attack plan has to be formed and followed. This is how leftest and extremist groups get their jobs done in Canada. Rogers was pressured to adjust their pricing plans because websites like ruinediphone.com were created to help organize everyone that was not happy with the iPhone plans at the time.
1. Organize & Protest
Be professional, polite and mature. Do not get heated. Be approachable to the average joe, you’re trying to appeal to them! Have fliers and hand them out. Be able to defend your position. Have signs and make sure people KNOW what you stand for.
For example the protest in the coming Fridays. Although I don’t agree with the time its being hosted this CAN be turned into success.
- Make signs and wear them.
- Have supplies on hand to make more.
- Write on your car with bingo dotters
- Have hand outs about what has happened
- Invite all media/alderman. Email, call, phone.
- Prepare a spokesman and have a good speech scheduled.
- Remain legal and obey the police who will show up
Gathering is fine but have something to look forward too. The media will eat this shit up. Explain the history of Calgary racing, what we want, why we want it and the downsides of not having a legal race way close by.
2. Be persistent & professional
Aldermen are our figureheads in government. Although mostly useless you will find a good one out of the bunch. Aldermen Ric MicIver has been very outspoken but their are others we have to win over.
View your alderman
Once you know who your aldermen is click on their picture and you’ll be forwarded to their contact page. Click “Contact me!” and fill out your personal information properly. Fill in your message. DO NOT USE A TEMPLATE MESSAGE! Write a message in your own words. Make sure to check off ‘Reply Requested’. They will have to get back to you now.
All the messages are read first by the aldermen’s assistant. If your message is ass they will garbage it. Basically don’t be a fucking douchebag.
When I got word of Race City closing I sent a simple email to Ald. Ric McIver and within 5 hours…
Hello Toms-SC (Real name removed to prevent e-stalkers),
Thank you for your e-mail. I will keep it on file for Alderman McIver to review.
Have a great day!
Kim Stark
Administrative Assistant to
Alderman Ric McIver, Ward 12″
The City of Calgary
Go to city counsel meetings. They are open to the public! Once the session is out attempt to grab them when they head to their offices. Move quickly and be polite. Don’t give up if you are turned down the first time.
3. Stat pad
Everybody is aware of where the illegal street racing takes place. Since it was announced that the City was pulling the lease on Race City the Calgary Police Service has been keeping track of traffic near and around the area. As much as I hate to say it and I’ll draw heat for it I’m sure. Show up! Get involved. Head there and grab a coffee, shoot the shit for 15 minutes and head home. This will pad the stats of traffic. Having facts and figures always help in getting your message home.
4. Spread the word
Tell your friends. Simple but if each aldermen gets 10,000 emails every month for 12 months about the topic they should address it.
In a letter posted on the Race City website, Rome Awde General Manager of Calgary International Speedway Inc. (CIS) announced his company will be suspending all racing operations at Race City. CIS is the operating company for Race City since 2005 when it stepped in to save the track from closure.
We regret to inform that at 1:00pm Tuesday Sept 9th, 2008, all racing operations by Calgary International Speedway Inc., the operating company for Race City, are suspended until further notice. All scheduled racing events for the remainder of the 2008 season have been canceled.
We would like to thank all our Volunteers, Staff, Fans, Sanctioning Bodies, Sponsors and Racers who have supported us through the last three years of operation. CIS set out to save racing in Calgary after the announced closure of Race City in 2005. Unfortunately, the rainy weather and lack of major sponsorship support and low spectator counts to pay for the racing events that have been held at Race City over the last few years has left us with no choice but to cancel all racing and shut down operations.
All rental operations under Speedway Track Rentals Inc. are still in effect.
Race City Inc. will resume with business operations for the remainder of 2008 and beyond. Art MacKenzie of Race City Inc. is in the process of deciding what racing events and rentals will be held at the facility for the 2009 season. Please see www.racecity.com or call 403-272-7223, for further information.
Rome Awde
Calgary International Speedway Inc.
All track rentals for the remainder of the year will continue as originally scheduled so if you’ve signed up for any driving schools, or lapping days they will still go on unless you are told otherwise. The events that are cancelled are the ones run by CIS such as the Friday Night Secret Street drag racing.
The city announced earlier this year that it would not be renewing the lease for the land that Race City is located on that expires October 29, 2009. It has also not shown any interest to help relocate the racing facility and the track would likely have been closed by next year. It was a valiant effort by Rome Awde and CIS to try to save the track but unless some sponsors with a lot of cash step up to help fund a new facility, there will likely be no legal venue for racing next year.
To say that we are dissapointed is a huge understatement. For the six years that Beyond.ca has been in operation we have been advocating taking street racing to the track with our “Keep it on the Track” campaign. Secret Streets, a street legal drag racing event put on by Race City every Friday allowed car enthusiasts from Calgary and the surrounding area to enjoy their sport in a safe (and legal) environment. With the cancellation of all events for the remainder of the year and most likely next year with no plans in place for a replacement facility, the streets are going to be dangerous place in 2009 and beyond.
With no racing facilities nearby, even strict laws designed to curb street racing and extra enforcement of these laws will do nothing to control the inevitable. The lack of a proper and legal racing facility will make it difficult for those discouraging street racing, including us. There is one sliver of hope in all of this. City Alderman Ric McIver has asked the city to look for additional land on the city’s outskirts that it could lease to Race City. There is no word yet on the outcome of that request. There is also an online petition urging the Calgary City Council to consider making the relocation of Race City a priority. There are currently 8,059 signatures.
Please sign the petition, and/or leave a comment by responding to this post. I would like to forward the link to this post to Ald. Ric McIver as well, so here’s your chance to let the City of Calgary know that we need a local track whether it is Race City or a new track run by a new group of people.
*update 9/12: Race City has announced Secret Street will continue for the remainder of the 2008 season: Secret Street Announcement
Beyond Media, Inc.
