Acceleration At The Station
 By Mark ForsytheThe Kansas City Post Instead of boring you all with my usual wonkish blather about tax increment financing or environmental issues, I thought I'd take a summer break and throw out another one of my crazy ideas. Something frivolous and fun. Definitely not environmentally friendly, but hey, even I can loosen up once in a while. This was a concept I had in the back of my mind when I was running for office. I was hoping to bring a little excitement and enthusiasm to town. Partner with private industry, and do a little something to elevate Kansas City's profile. Aside from the occasional visit of the Big XII Men's Basketball Tournament the only significant tourist events occur all the way out at the Kansas Speedway. I think we've already established that people probably won't come from miles around for the purpose of eating St. Louis Style Ribs in downtown Kansas City. So what to do? How do we attract the kind of crowds that will come to Kansas City, stay in our hotels, eat at our restaurants and otherwise pump up the local economy? How about The American Le Mans Series? Fast cars. Big dollars. National television. Thousands of fans. Granted we have one major obstacle. A temporary race course through city streets requires a very smooth surface. Right now Kansas City is not known for its quality of streets, but maybe with a little extra work we could manage to prepare a course that wouldn't shake the bolts out of a Sherman Tank.  Established in 1999, the American Le Mans Series is relatively young. It's still fleshing out its season, adding three new cities in 2007 for a total of 23 different venues. Eight of those venues are temporary street circuits including St. Petersburg, FL, Long Beach, CA and Detroit’s Belle Isle. The other five temporary street circuits are Adelaide, Australia; Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, Canada, Washington, DC, Miami, FL and Houston, TX. I ran this idea past my brother Steve, who is a major fan of anything involving more than two vehicles trying to outrun each other to a finish line. Originally he thought the Downtown Airport would be a good place. I told him I was thinking of something that actually ran in the streets of Kansas City. Maybe down Pershing in front of Union Station? That's when he really saw my "vision." Here was part of his excited email to me. OK! How about around Union Station, the old Post Office, Crown Center and Liberty Memorial Mall? It's just that wherever the course is, it would have to be locked down for about two days before the event for practice and qualifying. The Union Station parking lots would be a great staging, paddock and pit area. And a great back drop for TV and Kansas City.  I was thinking somehow if they could get into the Liberty Memorial, around the Mall, and down and around Union Station somehow. Lot's of elevation changes, wide streets, long straights, sweeping turns and tight turns. I just think the area around Crown Center, Union Station, Liberty Memorial lends itself to a great course and a great back drop for those type high performance machines. Plus the sound of a tightly wound 800 + HP engine bouncing off high rises would be worth paying for. Lot's of grassy areas to erect temporary grandstands, porta johns, concession areas, etc. Too bad you wouldn't be able to close off Hospital Hill because that would be a blast too. It can be done. It would take a little "vision" and the right people to be willing to help make it happen. You would need an event sponsor to guarantee the purse and cough up promo $$$'s to Speed TV to carry the event. The Boulevard 250 at Union Station, presented by _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _? Whoever would be the primary sponsor or anyone of the presenting sponsors could not be in competitive conflict with any of the series sponsors. Rolex, Crown Royal, Coca Cola, Sun Trust Bank and so on. So how about it Kansas City? Ready to go racin'? |
posted by Mark at 10:07 AM
Comments on "Acceleration At The Station"
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DaveKCMO said ... (10:44 AM) :
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Frank said ... (10:51 AM) :
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Mark said ... (10:56 AM) :
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James said ... (11:00 AM) :
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Xavier Onassis said ... (12:20 PM) :
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Speed Demon said ... (1:21 PM) :
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Frank said ... (2:47 PM) :
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Mark said ... (3:07 PM) :
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MichelleD said ... (10:50 PM) :
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Mark said ... (8:48 AM) :
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Xavier Onassis said ... (8:50 AM) :
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Kyle said ... (9:02 AM) :
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speed demon said ... (9:28 AM) :
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Xavier Onassis said ... (9:57 AM) :
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Kyle said ... (10:04 AM) :
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Mark said ... (10:25 AM) :
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Alan Birch said ... (11:05 AM) :
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Mark said ... (11:51 AM) :
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frank said ... (12:12 PM) :
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Xavier Onassis said ... (12:24 PM) :
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Ba‘al Zebûb said ... (12:26 PM) :
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Xavier Onassis said ... (12:26 PM) :
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Ba‘al Zebûb said ... (12:27 PM) :
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Xavier Onassis said ... (12:28 PM) :
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Area Code 817, Formerly 816 said ... (12:54 PM) :
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mainstream said ... (10:44 AM) :
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Anonymous said ... (10:33 AM) :
post a commentracing in the streets is far sexier than racing in circles. let's go for it! why not do a real stand out and make it a scooter/vespa le mans? that way you still get to race and use a bit less fuel.
Love the idea, actually.
Ford/GM could sponsor, with an assist from Century 21;
Boulevard Beer, Le Fou Frog, Fiorella's Jack Stack, Winstead's, Backyard Burgers and Foo's in the concession area;
Bring out the young and trim local on air talent to have their skirts whipped about by the drafts as the minis zip by;
Have a 2 night festival featuring a couple of name blues bands and perrenial locals ("Gatemouth" and that glass harp kid from Kansas);
We could call it the 'Kansas City Cow Course'...
; ' )
davekcmo,
As always I have EV's in the back of my mind. Toyota just won a race in Japan with a hybrid race car. Could an all EV series be far behind?
frank,
The festival idea is awesome. I believe most cities with temporary road courses do events outside of racing. We already have experience with events at Union Station and Penn Valley Park.
Cow Course? No so much... ;-)
I think it's a fabulous idea! This is a great example of the kind of creative and different endeavors that Kansas City needs to pursue in order to stand out and draw more tourists. Mark, this is the fourth or fifth idea of your's that I've been impressed with since I started reading your blog 2 months ago. Keep it up!
Fantastic idea. You should have brought this out during your campaign. You would have won.
anonymous 12:27PM,
One thing I learned in the campaign was that ideas don't mean squat. It takes money, and a lot of it.
James,
Thanks for the kind words. It would take a monumental effort to bring such a plan to fruition. If I wasn't chasing another one of my cornball ideas right now I would definitely consider putting together a non-profit to pursue a race in Kansas City.
Perhaps this is something for which the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission would be suited?
I like it. Sound a lot more fun than driving an hour to see a bunch of rednecks speeding around in circles.
I love this idea. What "cornball idea" are you chasing that prevents you from exploring this Mark?
What I really love about this idea is it doesn't involve a tax increase, or TIF, or tax abatement, or money in the pockets of Copaken, White and Blitt.
It sounds like you've done a little bit of research on this. Any sponsorship ideas? What KC company would have the kind of dollars to be the primary sponsor?
Hallmark: "When You Care Enough to Speed Through Town"
speed demon,
Can't share my other project yet. I'll post on that soon enough.
"It sounds like you've done a little bit of research on this." Who, me? ;-)
A primary sponsor doesn't have to be local. The American Le Mans Series is turning into a big draw for big dollars. Check this:
American Le Mans Series Demographics
* 51% are between the ages of 25 to 49
* 48% earn more that $90,000 per year
* 13% have a net worth of over $1 million
* 22% have a net worth of over $500K
* Source: Nielsen Media Research - July 2006.
Those are the kind of demographics I would like to have come to town and spend some dollars!
I think any number of companies might like to sponsor such an event. The key is to make it exciting. Like commenter Frank's festival idea.
How about the US Armed Forces as a sponsor? I know they sponsor race teams in other series. Might make a nice tie in with The Liberty Memorial. Maybe an air show out of DT airport, some howitzers on the hill. Hell if we're going to have 800 HP cars screaming around we might as well go for the gold on the noise front!
I notice you only have pics from GT1 and GT2. Not a fan of the LMP classes? I don't blame you. I prefer the door slammers myself.
anonymous 4:14PM,
Guilty as charged. I like the GT2 class with the Porsches. I'd like to see some American muscle in that class though. I wish Ford would run their new Mustang.
Who knows? Maybe the right person(s) will see this post and take the ball and run with it.
Maybe around Swope Park?? I don't see the city gingo for it thru the core. They won't even let you carry a beer around on First Friday - closing down streets for multiple days to let cars drive around really fast! Where oh, where would people PARK?!? Oh the humanity!
Another great idea Mark!
Mark would you please ban thepaintman? He creeps me out.
michelled,
I forgot about parking! Oh my goodness! Scratch everything.
I did think about the Truman Sports Complex as another possible location. Plenty of asphalt out there for a race course. And parking too!
paintman,
"I never heard of you."
I've never heard of you either so that makes us even.
"A race track in downtown is a terrible idea because of pollution, noise, more pollution, more noise."
Nobody is talking about a permanent race "track." A temporary course would only cause disruption for about a week. The noise and pollution would be no worse than what comes out of the P&L District or Arena construction sites, and a race would generate far more economic activity than either of the aforementioned projects are currently producing.
anonymous 9:07AM,
He creeps me out too. I'm close to granting your wish.
paint - "A race track in downtown is a terrible idea because of pollution, noise, more pollution, more noise."
You obviously have no idea what Le Mans Series racing is all about, do you?
Come on guys, why not use the track being concidered by the airport? I love the idea of bringing more to the City otherwise.
Do you really think roads downtown would be replaced for a race course?
"Do you really think roads downtown would be replaced for a race course?"
Actually Kyle, what Mark is proposing was already done over 20 years ago. Back in the 80's we sectioned off a course around Penn Valley Park for a vintage grand prix race. Most of you probably aren't old enough to remember the Folly Classic Vintage Grand Prix.
I remember it. I can't believe kyle and paint don't get it.
No new racecourse! No circular track at the airport! No replacing downtown roads with a racecourse!
You just block off a challenging course using existing downtown roads for ONE WEEKEND and let them race on it. Then it's back to normal.
No capital investment required!
you are correct, Speed, I would have been under 10 and not in KC.
I fully support it I just think it would be doubtful to have the roads redone for a race when we can't even get the steel plates removed in under two years!
speed demon,
A quick search revealed this page:
http://www.na-motorsports.com/Tracks/MO/KansasCityFollyGP.html
Almost the exact course I envisioned! I remember the Folly but I thought it ran up around Crown Center. I thought wrong.
Mark, now you're stealing MY ideas! I've been ranting about this for years at the bar. Unanimous approvals, always.
It wouldn't be much of a race down there where you're talking about, or anywhere in downtown / crossroads / midtown / plaza, for that matter: All of the cars would be stuck sitting at ENDLESS, poorly timed stoplights! I guess that'd keep the accidents to a minimum, though.
Good luck getting Hallmark to sign on to that. Also, good luck getting all of the hipster yuppie crossroads condo owners to go for it, too. For that crowd, any kind of auto racing conjures up images of ballcap-wearing rednecks. And that's not compatible with thier shiny shirts and black monk strap shoes. All of that noise and commotion might interefere with their quiet enjoyment of their lofts and their sushi.
I'm all for it, on the other hand. And while we're at it, lets bring back the American Royal cattle drive through downtown!
alan,
I'm an equal opportunity thief. Maybe you and I frequent the same watering holes and I absorbed your genius through osmosis?
Every idea has its detractors, and I'm sure there would be those upset by the sound. It would be a very loud event. But isn't that part of the fun? I intended for this to be a whimsical post, I had no idea how much interest it would generate.
To overcome the "stigma" of racing being a strictly blue collar event, you just have to make sure you over-pronounce "grand prix" or "le mans" in that Thurston Howell III snobby accent. With sponsors like Rolex and Crown Royal I think it's plain to see they're targeting a more upscale demographic.
...the paintman - for those of you more curious than creeped out - is the alter eago for the guy that blogs Tony's Kanas City: he keeps weirdly stupid and off-tangent conversations going in the comments section that way.
I always suspected that about thepaintman.
I'm an attention whore, but even I never stooped to creating an alternate-alternate ego just to carry on bogus conversations with myself in the comments.
Yes you did!
No I didn't!!
Did so! Liar!
Huh uh! Did NOT!
xavier - just go with it, d00d.
Wow, what did you start? This has generated more interest than any other post.
K.C. has no problem blocking off roads in and around Crown Center and Downtown for St. Patrick's Day Parade, the American Royal Parade (now, there's some genuine polution) and a host of other festivals. Parking never seems to be that much of an issue for these events.
These finely tuned engines cleanly burn 104 octane unleaded racing fuel. There would be less exhaust polution in the area during the race, than on a normal weekend.
Capital investment? Yes, there would have to be some, just a question of who would pick up the tab for the infrastructure and course improvements necessary. But, a bunch of other cities have done this. A little fact finding tour would go a long way to answering those questions. The course barriers have to be set up and then taken down after the event.
Maybe the residents around the course wouldn't be excited about he noise and crowds, until they find out what they could rent their bird's eye view for.
I say let's go fast and play loud for a few days. Assuming of course, that the Rolex Grand-Am Series would consider racing through the streets of a cow town.
area code 817, formerly 816 -
*AHEM*
Kansas City Cow Course ®©
Love it. Has anyone from the sports commission or the EDC seen this? What about Union Station?
somebody get some press on this. amazing ideas and sounds like so much fun. where can i get my tickets?
Mark, I'm a little bit disappointed in you. This goes against much of what you're about. You have given in to the lure of shameless promotional events.
Your proposal glorifies all of the human behaviors that are driving this world to its tipping point.
This idea promotes
- overconsumption of gasoline, increasing our reliance on oil. Who wants to see a bunch of Toyota Prius' racing, even though Gore Jr. has demonstrated their 100+ mph capability?
- pollution! (of course) these are super emmision vehicles
- overconsumption, period. More is better. Why ride and bus or a bike, when you should really have something with muscle! Get that SUV, or that 300 hp whatever.
Fundamentally, we will only save our Earth by thinking smaller. After all, the best way to protect the environment is to live frugally. Don't buy the bottled water because the plastic can be recycled (a terrible myth, btw)- consume in a way that eliminates the need for recycling.
But noooooooo, now your message is more more more!
Now, if your proposal was to have a Le mans thing with cars like that $250,000 electric supercar we've read about, I'd still say it was a terrible idea. Do you know why?
Here's one answer, but it's the wrong one: you won't get professional drivers and owners to develop the racing teams/talent for years to come, it's not realistic in the short term.
Here's the right answer: that $250,000 EV took more carbon emmissions to manufacture than it would take to make 5 regular compact cars, and more carbon emmissions that 10 regular cars will produce in their running lifetime.
I'm very disappointed in you, Mark. I sincerely hope you will come to your senses some time soon.
wow - Mark's mom just scolded him in public!
stream,
At last, someone challenges my premise! What fun is an editorial if someone doesn't take a counterpoint to my point?
"Who wants to see a bunch of Toyota Prius' racing?" Probably only Ed Begley Jr. but what about a hybrid Toyota Supra? It's already happened.
http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/more/38800/
Racing is where automotive manufacturers make most of their progress when it comes to technology. Toyota admits they're racing the Supra as an experimental platform for batteries, motors, etc. Now that they've won with it, can other manufacturers be far behind? I'll give odds that Honda will be bringing out their own racing hybrid very soon.
Any gear head will tell you electric motors are all torque which is what you want to go very fast very quickly. As soon as racers can figure out a way to either make batteries and supercapacitors last an entire race, or bring the recharge time down to minutes or seconds, internal combustion engines on racing circuits will be a thing of the past.
So I say keep racing! There is a method to my madness. :-)
Points well-taken, Mark.
However, one could also note that electric motors need far, far less maintenance than internal combustion engines.
Without internal combustion, you only need about 5% (or whatever the right percent is, I just made that up) of the replacement parts that internal combustion engines need; and only about 5% of the car maintenance, which eliminates the major profit generator of car dealerships.
Electric motors will eliminate the vast majority of the revenue for after-market parts and most of the car mechanics in the U.S. Body and tire shops may stay in business, but not much else.
My point is that the auto industry will lose HUGE of revenue and profit with the mass adoption of electric vehicles, so I can't see them being at the forefront. Hybrid yes, but my guess is that they will definitely drag their feet with EVs - provide lip service and not much else substantively.
I would guess that true EV's on a mass scale will be pioneered, as we are seeing today, by new companies and the big automakers will substantively respond only when they have to...
"the auto industry will lose HUGE of revenue and profit with the mass adoption of electric vehicles"
Not the industry as a whole. Only the parts of the industry that cannot adapt. I wouldn't want my entire business to be making spark plugs or oil filters, that's for sure!
The vehicle manufacturers themselves shouldn't care. Instead of buying engine blocks from one manufacturer they will buy motor windings from another. Instead of cam shafts from Cleveland they'll buy voltage controllers from Vermont. The days of raw steel and rubber going in one side of the building and a completed vehicle coming out the other are long gone.
It's the suppliers that will be left out in the cold if they can't adapt quickly.
Six months ago Toyota was telling everyone that plug-in technology for the Prius was ten years away. I read yesterday that Toyota just received certification to begin road testing a plug-in Prius in Japan.
Change is happening. Faster than people think!
That's good thinking, Mark. And I appreciate your optimism combined with your technical perspective.
Note to Paintman: If you're interested, I've composed my own Led Zeppelin version of "Lightrail to Heaven". If you'd like to listen, I"ll send you the mp3.
As a former SCCA race car driver, I say "great idea."
I would love to see some of the economic impact studies from the first year races in Houston, Tampa and Denver to see how much in the hole the first year gets. I do know most street races do not generate positive income until after a few years.
While a scenic route (Swope parkway) may seem more appealing, it is the fact of being downtown that is the draw. These are three to four day events (with support races that easily could include your Prius race!) that draw people from their offices during the week.
I have actually done some marketing work on similar sports events...maybe you should hire me to run the whole thing :)
Paintman, is that you in the white dress?
Paintman,
Yeah, I'm Jeff Gordon but I want to hide. Seeesh.
I was an amatuer racer...only a weekend warrior. No need to document that, there are literally thousands of us. Nothing special. No need for self-promotion. I only mentioned it because it helped explain my interest in Mark's idea.
P.S. If need be, my bet is Mark could document my claim with a simple google search...my name + SCCA.
Racing doesn't have to be environmentally unfriendly - even Bernie Eccleston & Max Mosley recognize that Formula 1 needs to be more enviro friendly. Indy is off of the 2008 calendar. < sarcasm > Maybe we can come up with $20-30MM to bring F1 here < / sarcasm >