Race track building business in the modern era

For some time, a fence covered with a black tarpaulin has been in place along the way to the decades-old 1.5-mile Charlotte Motor Speedway oval. among friends NASCAR Told me they had passed it countless times without paying any attention, thinking it was just construction. But if they had looked, they might have caught a glimpse of a sign peeking over the fabric: the corner of a race track.

That hidden track is the Ten Tenths Motor Club, a new facility designed to serve a completely different purpose from its larger, sister track across the street. Instead of the spectator-oriented NASCAR track that is Charlotte, Ten Tenths will be a car-centric country club — an idea that Marcus Smith, CEO of NASCAR track-operating giant Speedway Motorsports, said has been a decade in the making.

“We did a lot of work over those 10 years, but the idea remained rampant at the top,” Smith said of Ten Tenth’s recent debut. “When we first thought of it, a separate track was not part of the plan. But the demand for track time is increasing not only at Charlotte, but at other facilities as well, and people need a place to exercise (performance) cars that are actually better suited for the track than the street.

Tracks for “normal” drivers (not just professional spectator racing) are not new, and they exist in many forms. In California alone, tracks like Willow Springs and Thermal Club are just a few hours away from each other. Willow Springs charges an affordable daily fee to drive with your friends, while joining the Thermal Club costs about $5 million between membership fees and purchasing a home at the track.

The tenth part serves as the middle path. The track is meant to be a 100-acre facility that includes a 20,000-square-foot event center, cigar lounge, track lighting at night and garages for members who own supercars. Members will receive track time, but attendees at less exclusive on- and off-track events will also receive time. (Ten Tenths has not yet announced subscription or rental fees.)

“These car clubs across the country are typically built around real-estate sales and membership,” Smith said. “It’s really built (on the idea) that the business already exists for us, to have a full schedule at Charlotte Motor Speedway. We know there is huge interest in the live-action car experience, so members won’t have to bear the full cost of running the venue, which I think is a real plus.

Speedway Motorsports created the Ten Tenth in partnership with Rick Hendrick, owner of approximately 100 car dealerships, and the Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR team. Hendrick’s proposed offering to members includes a concierge-type maintenance program with their dealerships’ service departments, where their staff will pick up cars from members’ garages, perform necessary work on them, then return the cars to their next on-track outing. Will return before. ,

Hendrick also sees Ten Tenth as a track that could host company retreats, new car launch events and vehicle testing. The multi-purpose approach isn’t just possible at Ten Tenths because of the facilities – it’s because of the track itself, which can be played three ways: a full, 1.7-mile layout, with elevation changes and a banked corner; A shorter 1.1-mile course with faster, more technical turns; and a flowing, half-mile “inner loop” with wide turns, which can be irrigated and used for drifting.

“We have 20-something sponsors that love to come (to Charlotte),” Hendricks said. “We go to the drag strip, set up an autocross course with cones, and we have cars with timers so they can go out and try to beat each other. They love it, but then we have to take it apart and move it. Now, we’ll have all that scoring, and I’ll just have to bring the cars.

In concept, Ten Tenth recognizes every problem racetracks around America have — and the ownership group has created a track catering to solve them, while making it accessible and (hopefully) affordable to non-members. . By comparison, tracks that focus on spectator racing have to book events frequently to survive, while tracks for amateur drivers need to have enough hobbyists in the area to support the facility. Is. Manufacturer test tracks are generally off-limits to the public, and some pay-to-enter club tracks are off-limits by default due to cost. The all-in-one approach ensures that the track will be used often, and switching from one event to the next doesn’t require too many changes.

Other clubs are not technical enough as track drivers. They’re flowing and fast so people coming by feel fast, but they lack the braking zones, tight corners and challenges of better racetracks. It’s like you go to a high-end store and your women’s pant size goes from a 7 to a 3: It’s designed to make you feel good, but it doesn’t apply to the outside world.

Jeff Gordon, four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, was involved in the design of the Ten Tenths track, and believes it to be a great experience course.

“The thing I love about it is that when it finally got fixed and I got a chance to run some laps at a faster pace, there were just different challenges,” Gordon said. “The course has everything you want. You want the high-speed section. You want sections that flow, where you actually load the car left and right. You have some blind crests that will challenge you to make sure you keep the car in the right position. It has some heavy breaking sections. There are areas that are very technical and there are areas that are very fluid and fast.

“Then, on top of that, keep in mind that you can go in the opposite direction and take a completely new course.”

TenTenth doesn’t even feel like another business. When I attended the track debut and groundbreaking ceremony, the excitement felt more than corporate. Since it’s so new, I’ve only ridden it around the track, but as a traveler at speed, it had the perfect balance of tight, technical corners and high-speed sections. It’s not a long track, but within its 1.7 miles, you can speed up, hit heavy braking zones, run some sweeping carousel-style turns, and make changes up and down in elevation. I wanted to run it that day, and I wanted to stay as long as possible.

The Hendrick and Smith families, considered NASCAR royalty, felt the same way. They spent the entire day there: socializing, riding horses, and driving around the track. Hendrick brought a handful of supercars for display, letting friends drive one of his expensive Porsche track cars and allowing influencers to sit in his car. $3 million Mercedes-AMG One supercarGordon took countless rides in a two-seater version of NASCAR’s famous Garage 56 Le Mans car, and while the engineers prepared it for hot laps, he spent half an hour talking to my husband. They had just met.

Even after most of the guests had left, Hendrix, Smith and Gordon stayed, talking and smiling. It was a stark contrast to many of the events I attend; Generally, the guest of honor does not treat it as a social outing. They appear for a few minutes and leave through a side door.

Ten Tenth’s debut felt like a swanky, high-end social outing for people who loved cars – like an automotive country club, if you will. If this is the measure of success, it already exists.