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Chicagoland Speedway/RT66 Raceway. (1 Viewer)

T.Smith said:
Just an update with some actual quotes.

patch.com

Chicago Bears Invited To Move To Joliet | PatchPM

'Tinley Lights' documentary | Major blow in homicide case | 5 rabid bats | WTC beam at 9/11 commemoration | Fire official's DUI arrest
patch.com patch.com

Also a little hearsay, heard a raceteam owner from a different form of racing series asked if he could buy the dragstrip and was told it wasn't for sale.
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Was it the same guy who built it?
 
That's an interesting article Tony. I was under the assumption that the facility "wasn't holding any motorsport events thus year due to Covid", but this article says "now shuttered". What exactly is the actual status of the facility ? Or are they leaving everyone in suspense ? It would be a shame to lose such a great facility.
 
Al said:
That's an interesting article Tony. I was under the assumption that the facility "wasn't holding any motorsport events thus year due to Covid", but this article says "now shuttered". What exactly is the actual status of the facility ? Or are they leaving everyone in suspense ? It would be a shame to lose such a great facility.
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I work across the street from the track and it's just sitting. The grass gets cut and nothing is being torn down. The City of Joliet declined ISC on building warehouses on some of the property.

I re-read the press releases and looked at some of the NASCAR sites. It doesn't appear NASCAR will be adding Chicagoland back onto the schedule anytime soon, because even with Covid or not, the race date was going to be dumped anyway. I'd also say a NASCAR road course in downtown Chicago is a pipe dream.

I've always heard ISC could care less about the dragstrip as it doesn't make enough money for their tastes.

Most our marketing partners and business connections are Chicago based, so for us It would be unfortunate to lose RT66 Raceway and race fans alike.
 
T.Smith said:
I work across the street from the track and it's just sitting. The grass gets cut and nothing is being torn down. The City of Joliet declined ISC on building warehouses on some of the property.

I re-read the press releases and looked at some of the NASCAR sites. It doesn't appear NASCAR will be adding Chicagoland back onto the schedule anytime soon, because even with Covid or not, the race date was going to be dumped anyway. I'd also say a NASCAR road course in downtown Chicago is a pipe dream.

I've always heard ISC could care less about the dragstrip as it doesn't make enough money for their tastes.

Most our marketing partners and business connections are Chicago based, so for us It would be unfortunate to lose RT66 Raceway and race fans alike.
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I heard they tried to break the lease with the Dirt Oval. Something is definitely going on. And it's a shame the drag strip is just sitting there collecting dust.
 
i'm thinking the potential new facility in mississippi will have their pick of 'barely used' grandstands for purchase
 
tb said:
Maybe, but Roger has enough problems with Indy Car and IMS.

Dale Coyne is the one who built Route 66, he is from the Chicago area.
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The first event Dale was walking around talking to random fans, sitting in the stands, asking questions about what people liked or didn't like, what needs to be improved etc. My thoughts were this is going to be a great owner, horrible it ended the way it did. The 3 Fall events were stunning, so NHRA got rid of them and gave them dates of rain and hot summer.
 
I feel the original owners biggest mistake was getting involved in the Nascar track. That deal lead to ISC being able to buy out the original dragstrip owners. Which is probably the cause of the current situations. Would be nice to see some of the former owners buy it back !
 
Nappy said:
I feel the original owners biggest mistake was getting involved in the Nascar track. That deal lead to ISC being able to buy out the original dragstrip owners. Which is probably the cause of the current situations. Would be nice to see some of the former owners buy it back !
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Yes. Route 66 paved the way, and was a relatively local effort, with Dale Coyne being the closest thing to a big money/"corporate" guy involved. Recall also that originally Chicagoland speedway itself was a joint venture between NASCAR/ISC and Tony George/IMS. So originally both tracks had some diverse and interesting stakeholders involved. But like so many other places, NASCAR ended up taking over everything and running it into the ground. To the point where NASCAR themselves doesn't even want to race at their own track despite being adjacent to the third largest market in the country.
 
there are a couple comments over on classracer.com concerning a rumor of a national event in 2022 at joliet, and that the Jegs all-stars will be contested there as well;
which opens up so much schedule at the nationals, especially if rumor of funny car shootout at 2022 indy is also true.
 
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