This being my first visit to VIR, my report will focus on the track and the facilities. The race was wonderful, as all of you by now know, and the track facilities only added to the enjoyment.

I didn’t really know what to expect of VIR. I’d read its history on the web, viewed the pictures of the track old and new, and I watched last year’s visit by the Rolex series. I also caught a few motorcycle races on Speed Channel. From those inputs, I had formed an expectation of the track and surrounding facilities. I expected a well-groomed circuit and grounds, a rather flat track, sparse and perhaps primitive facilities. I was at Mid-Ohio many times before Jim Trueman worked his magic there, and frankly I thought VIR would be very similar. In a phrase, functional but lacking. Boy was I ever wrong!

Let’s start with the track itself. I was amazed by the elevation change. Television does this track no justice whatsoever. From race coverage you’d think the esses up to Oak Tree were flat or maybe a slight elevation change. It is actually a pretty good climb. This section of the track is amazing to watch. After another climb up the back straight, the track falls away in a hurry down to the final turn. I’ve never seen the Corkscrew at Laguna Seca (Mazda Raceway now) in person, but I can imagine this section of VIR is very similar.

The paddock was wonderful. No garages as I’m use to at Mid-Ohio, but very well done. There are paved “roads” with crushed stone areas for the haulers and crew. It was very smooth and there seemed to be plenty of room for everyone. With the BMW club, the NASA competitors and Grand-Am Cup joining the Rolex folks, it made for a full paddock. There is great viewing of the pits as well. The entrance end is graded about 6 feet below the paddock, so you have great viewing of those pit stops. Also, there was no separate admission for the paddock. One price at the gate and you had the run of the place.

The grounds around the track were wonderful. After Isabelle dumped huge amounts of water there just a few weeks ago, there were only two spots with evidence of standing water. The drainage is quite good. A chain link fence (painted dark green) separates the people from the action and most places it is 4 feet high. In some spots, such as the run-off area at turn 3, it’s considerably higher, maybe 10 feet, and likely due to the closeness of the track. Although I’m not a big chain-link fan, it is tastefully done. The parking was well done, and mostly in the higher sections of the infield. It’s $10 for weekend infield parking. It saves you a good walk and I’d say worth it. After crossing into the infield, you can drive to many of the viewing areas and park as well. There are a few grandstands placed about, however “grand” is not really the right adjective here. They are all small, most only four or five rows high and 20 feet wide. The seats at Oak Tree are the exception, higher and wider. All of the “North Course” can be watched from the infield, but only the Oak Tree turn and along a short section of the backstretch is accessible to spectators in the “South Course” section. The entire track is viewable however, except for the turn at the end of the backstretch.

Above all, the trip was well worth the drive of 8 hours. The VIR people have done their homework. The track is a wonderful circuit for racing and the drivers had nothing bad to say about it. This is certainly a track everyone should have on their “must see tracks” list. I’ve crossed it off mine. Now, where is my map of Wisconsin…

Got comments on this article? Discuss it on the message board!