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"I'm
watching a lot of on-board footage of my dad and
my teammates racing there. "It's hard to get
a feel for the G-forces that we'll experience, but
I can hear the throttle going up and down through
the turns and get an idea of the speed that I'll
need to be carrying.
"My
dad has told me a lot about the course. Hopefully
I'll be prepared when I experience it for myself.
The most important thing is knowing whether the next
turn is left-handed or right." |
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#Race
#16 :
The Detroit Indy Grand Prix
Presented by Firestone
Sunday
September 2
Detroit, Michigan
Belle Isle Park
East Jefferson and East Grand Blvd Detroit,
MI 48207.
Park Phone: (313)852-4075
Event
Promotor Address
Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix
300 Renaissance Center, Suite 2311
Detroit, MI 48243
Telephone: 313-262-1800
Fax: 313-262-1799
Event
Info:
Distance:
90 laps/188.64 miles
TV:
3.30pm on ESPN.
Ticket
Info
Race
Track Website
The
Race:
The Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone is a
weekend of professional racing featuring competition from
both the ALMS and the IndyCar Series , as well as several
support races. Held on the Saturday and Sunday of Labor Day
weekend, the races will be run at The Raceway on Belle Isle
in Detroit.
In 2007, a two hour and forty-five minute ALMS
race will take place Saturday, September 1, while a 90-lap
IndyCar Series race will be held on Sunday, September 2.
The ALMS features sports cars eligible to race at the 24
Hours of Le Mans. The IndyCar Series features open wheel
cars associated with the Indianapolis 500.
Open wheel racing in Detroit dates back to the 1920's-1950's,
when AAA held the Detroit 100 at the Michigan State Fairgrounds.
AAA also held one five-mile, non-championship race at Grosse
Pointe in 1905.
The
current race has its origins dating back to 1982 when it
was a Formula One World Championship event held on the
Detroit street circuit encompassing the Renaissance Center.
The original circuit was 2.493 miles with seventeen corners,
and proved to be even slower than Monaco. The rough, demanding,
course even included a railroad track crossing and mimicked
Monaco, with a tunnel on the main straight. While it was
advertised as the Detroit Grand Prix, it also has been referred
to under the monikor of United States Grand Prix East, due
to the fact that there were multiple Grand Prixs in the U.S.
at the time. For 1989, the race was planned to be moved to
Belle Isle, a city park in the Detroit River, but an agreement
could not be established. Instead, in 1989 Formula One left
Detroit permanently, and the U.S. Grand Prix moved to Phoenix.
To improve access to the track, a park-and-ride system,
similar to what was used at Super Bowl XL, which Roger Penske
headed, will be implemented. Further paddock improvements
and track work is slated before the race.
Changes
for 2007
On
Labor Day weekend, race car drivers in the Detroit Belle
Isle Grand Prix will re-ignite their engines and the world-famous
racing series returns after a six-year absence. Race
fans will notice improvements, too, since the Detroit Indy
Grand Prix of 2001. Today the track is wider, more bus parking
is available and fans will now walk on concrete walkways on
Belle Isle.
This year's event features theAmerican Le Mans Series and
IndyCar Series. The American Le Mans Series has four classes
of cars racing on the track at the same time, making for
exciting passes (and perhaps confrontations) and better competition
throughout the race. The Indy Car Series is the country's
premier open-wheel racing series bringing such names to the
forefront as Helio Castoneves (also the winner of the last
Grand Prix in Detroit), Marco Andretti and 2007 Indy champion
Dario Franchitti, and of course, Danica Patrick.
Talk
of bringing back the Grand Prix began after Detroit hosted
Super Bowl XL in early 2006. Roger Penske, who chaired
Super Bowl XL, saw what a success the Super Bowl was, and
soon discussions began with Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and the
Detroit City Council, said Bud Denker, event chairman of
the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix. "We need big events
every year, not just when we have the Super Bowl and World
Series," Denker said.
The parties agreedthat proceeds from the event would preserve
and improve Belle Isle. Improvements were made to prepare
Belle Isle, and spectators will see that work on the race
course and surrounding areas.
For
$5, race fans can use a Park & Ride system, available
at multiple satellite parking locations throughout metro
Detroit. Concrete areas now allow space for 13 idled buses,
instead of three, in waiting areas to transport spectators.
Grand Prix fans should see a big improvement in space for
the race on the isle. Nearly 470,000 square feet of concrete
was installed for the paddock area and fan interaction.
"We've also widened the curves," Denker said. "There's
an additional 150,000 square feet of new concrete for road
improvements and other modifications on the raceway.
"We
did what it takes to be competitive. Things have changed."
This year's event features musical acts, too, and children's
entertainment. Cheap Trick performs after Saturday's race
at the XM Radio tent and Uncle Cracker after Sunday's race.
The Meijer Family Fun Zone is an interactive family-friendly
experience featured throughout the weekend.
Denker
was pleased that grandstand tickets sold at such a brisk
pace this summer despite the Detroit area's sluggish economy. "We've
invested $10 million and it's going to make a difference
for our city and our region."
 What
is Belle Isle?
A 982-acre island in the Detroit River, Belle Isle is managed
by the Detroit Department of Parks and Recreation. It was
home to the Detroit Grand Prix from 1992-2001, utilizing
a temporary street circuit that was constructed specifically
for the CART races. Beginning in 2007, it will again host
open-wheel cars with the Indy Racing League now sanctioning
the event.
Connected to Detroit by the MacArthur Bridge, various entities
call Belle Isle home, including the Dossin Great Lakes Museum,
the Detroit Boat Club, the Detroit Yacht Club, a municipal
golf course, an aquarium and a Coast Guard post. The island
also includes a half-mile swimming beach, the only one in
the city, and a nature center.
The aquarium opened in 1904, making it the oldest public
aquarium in the United States. City officials closed it on
April 3, 2005 due to budgetary reasons, but four months later
Motown's citizens voted overwhelmingly to reopen it. The
vote, however, was non-binding.
Landscaped in the 1880s by Frederick L. Olmsted, the highlights
of Belle Isle are the aquarium and the botanical garden in
the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory. The conservatory
and the 1908 Belle Isle Casino were constructed by Detroit
architect Albert Kahn, well-known for developing open-floor
plan concrete factories. The casino building is no longer
a gambling facility, but it is used for public events.
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