Walt Disney World Speedway: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
m robot Adding: pt:Walt Disney World Speedway |
←Replaced content with 'jenna loves to blow trees!!!!!!!!!!' |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
jenna loves to blow trees!!!!!!!!!! |
|||
{{Motorsport venue| |
|||
Name = Walt Disney World Speedway| |
|||
Nicknames = The Mickyard| |
|||
Time = GMT-5| |
|||
Location = Floridian Way<br>[[Walt Disney World Resort]]<br>[[Bay Lake, Florida]]| |
|||
Coordinates = | |
|||
Image = [[Image:Wdwspeedway.jpg]]<br>[[Image:WDWSpeedway.JPG|300px]]| |
|||
Image_caption = | |
|||
Capacity = 51,000 - temporary bleachers (1996)<br>43,000 - temporary bleachers (1999)<br>30,000 - temporary bleachers (2000)| |
|||
dimensions| |
|||
Owner = [[Walt Disney World]]| |
|||
Operator = [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway|IMS]] Events, Inc. (former)<br>[[Walt Disney World]] (current)| |
|||
Broke_ground = [[June 6]], [[1995]]| |
|||
Opened = [[November 28]], [[1995]]| |
|||
Closed = | |
|||
Construction_cost= [[United States dollar|$]]6 million| |
|||
Architect = Kevin Forbes| |
|||
Former_names = | |
|||
Events = '''[[Indy Racing League]]'''<br>Indy 200 (1996-2000) |
|||
'''[[NASCAR]] [[Craftsman Truck Series]]'''<br>Chevy Trucks Challenge (1997-1998)| |
|||
Layout1 = Tri-oval| |
|||
Surface = Asphalt| |
|||
Length_km = 1.6| |
|||
Length_mi = 1| |
|||
Turns = 3| |
|||
Banking = Turn 1: 10 degrees<br>Turn 2: 8.5 degrees<br>Turn 3: 7 degrees| |
|||
Record_time = 0:19.847| |
|||
Record_driver = [[Buddy Lazier]]| |
|||
Record_team = [[Hemelgarn Racing]]| |
|||
Record_year = 1996| |
|||
Record_class = [[Indy Racing League|IRL]] [[IndyCar Series]]| |
|||
}} |
|||
'''Walt Disney World Speedway''' is a racing facility located on the grounds of the [[Walt Disney World]] resort near [[Orlando, Florida]]. |
|||
It was built in 1995 by IMS Events, Inc., a subsidiary of the [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway]] Corporation, and was designed primarily as a venue for the Indy 200 at Walt Disney World, an [[Indy Racing League]] event. |
|||
Currently, the circuit's primary use is as a venue for the [[Richard Petty]] Driving Experience, a program that allows fans to drive or ride in a [[NASCAR]]-spec stock car. It no longer hosts any professional competition. |
|||
''[[AutoWeek]]'' magazine and the ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'' dubbed the track '''"The Mickyard"''' (a [[Portmanteau word|portmanteau]] of the Disney icon [[Mickey Mouse]] and [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway]]'s nickname, the "Brickyard"). |
|||
==History== |
|||
The track is a three-turn [[tri-oval]], designed by Indianapolis Motor Speedway chief [[civil engineer|engineer]] Kevin Forbes and the location was chosen in September 1994 by Greg Ruse of [[Lake Buena Vista, Florida|Buena Vista]] Construction. The track is situated on a triangular plot of land adjacent to the [[Magic Kingdom]]'s [[parking lot]]. Plans for the track were first announced on [[January 23]], 1995. The track was designed to fit within the boundaries of the existing infrastructure, requiring minimal rerouting of existing roads. |
|||
On [[June 27]], 1995, [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway]] Chairman of the Board [[Mari Hulman George]] took part in a groundbreaking ceremony. She presented the track with one of the original paving bricks from the famous "Brickyard." In a rather compact schedule, the one-mile (1.6 km) track was completed with ten miles (16 km) of safety restraint cabling, two acres of fencing, {{convert|1800|yd|m}} of concrete for outside walls, {{convert|2300|ft|m}} of concrete for pit walls and 5,200 tons of asphalt for the track surface. Despite 1995 having the wettest June-July in Orlando on record (75 inches of rain), including [[Hurricane Erin (1995)|Hurricane Erin]], the construction was completed on-time, with final paving was completed [[October 18]], 1995. |
|||
The track was dedicated on [[November 28]], [[1995]]. [[Indy Racing League]] drivers [[Arie Luyendyk]], [[Eddie Cheever]], [[Eliseo Salazar]], [[Lyn St. James]] and [[Davey Hamilton]] drove a five-car "Flying V" formation amongst fireworks. Initial testing at the facility for the Indy Racing League took place [[November 27]]-[[December 9]], 1995. |
|||
The track officially opened in January 1996 as the first-ever event of the Indy Racing League, the Indy 200 at Walt Disney World. The date for the 1996 Indy 200 had been announced during a press conference on [[April 13]], 1995. The date was chosen as a Saturday, the day before the [[Super Bowl]]. In 1999 only, the race was held on a Sunday, during the bye week between the [[AFC Championship Game|AFC]]/[[NFC Championship Game|NFC]] Championship games and the Super Bowl. It was effectively, the first major auto race of the year in the United States. In 1997-1998, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series held races at the track the weekend before the IRL event. Support races for the two events included [[Formula Ford]] 2000 and [[United States Automobile Club|USAC]] Silver Crown. |
|||
== Design == |
|||
Walt Disney World Speedway was constructed on a very limited budget. By design, permanent features of the facility were built at a minimum. The track plans called for only the track surface, retaining wall, and catch fence to be constructed. The remainder of the facility, such as seating areas, restrooms, and race support areas, would be built on a temporary, as-needed basis. This strategy had never been used on an oval race track, but had been widely successful for years in temporary [[Road racing|street circuits]] (such as [[Long Beach Grand Prix|Long Beach]] & [[Monte Carlo]]). No permanent garages were built on the premises, however, this was not entirely unusual. Race teams would simply work out of their transporters, a practice used frequently at street circuits and other tracks without garages. |
|||
The initial savings in construction costs was significant. Temporary bleachers and restrooms would be erected each year beginning in November, in preparations for the January races. The lack of permanent grandstands also allowed track officials to adjust the configuration and capacity of seating annually, reflecting ticket demand. This practice, however, would prove to be inconvenient, and increasingly expensive in the long run, since the grandstand area encompassed portion of the [[Magic Kingdom]] parking lot. That area would be unusable for nearly three months, including during the busy [[Christmas]] and [[New Year's Eve|New Year]]'s holiday season at the theme park. |
|||
Three linked ponds in the track’s infield are formed in the shape of [[Mickey Mouse]]. The pond, dubbed "Lake Mickey", was built a year after the track opened due to drainage concerns. |
|||
=== Parking problems === |
|||
Initially, the track location, adjacent to the Magic Kingdom parking lot, was seen to be convenient. However, after a couple years, traffic control was overwhelming. Since the race spectators would be arriving at the same time and place as regular theme park visitors, overflow parking was required. In 1996–1997, Disney officials reacted by parking all race spectators in the Magic Kingdom parking lot, and sending all visitors to the Magic Kingdom to the [[Epcot]] parking lot. Race spectators would walk to the nearby Speedway, while all guests to the Magic Kingdom were required to take the [[Walt Disney World Monorail System|Disney Monorail]] or a [[Disney Transport|Disney bus]] from Epcot, a trip of several minutes. Several complaints surfaced. In 1997, the IRL race was shortened by a sudden rainstorm, and fans scurried to their cars. The resulting rush created a severe [[gridlock]] of [[Florida State Road 536|World Drive]] and surrounding roads which lasted several hours. |
|||
Starting in 1998, spectators to the race events were diverted to park at Epcot, and were taken by shuttle bus to the Speedway. Visitors to the Magic Kingdom were directed to park as usual, in the Magic Kingdom parking lot. While this eased many guest complaints, it also was now inconvenient for race patrons, and resulted in a significant cost increase for operations. The [[Disney Transport]] infrastructure did not own enough buses to smoothly run the operation, and outside bus companies had to be hired to run the shuttle service. In addition, it necessitated race spectators to arrive earlier to account for the additional transportation time. |
|||
== End of professional racing == |
|||
In its first few years of operation, the track was used frequently as a year-round test facility, due to the warm winter weather in Orlando. However, the track suffered three major accidents. During a week of preseason testing, on [[January 11]], [[1997 in IRL|1997]], IRL driver Eliseo Salazar crashed in turn one. He suffered a fracture of his lower back, and missed two races.<ref>[http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=7412&FS=IRL http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=7412&FS=IRL]</ref>. Two weeks later, on [[January 23]], 1997, IRL driver [[Davy Jones (racing driver)|Davy Jones]] broke his neck after a practice crash in turn three<ref>[http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=7487&FS=IRL http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=7487&FS=IRL]</ref>. On [[January 6]], 2000, IRL driver [[Sam Schmidt]] was [[paralysis|paralyzed]] after a crash in preseason testing. The track was built before the [[SAFER barrier]] was introduced, which many feel may have lessened the injuries in all three cases. |
|||
After the [[2000 in IRL|2000]] IRL season, series officials and Walt Disney World were not able to come to an agreement for a race date for [[2001 in IRL|2001]]. IRL officials were unsatisfied with the January date, as it was seen to be too early for most teams to be prepared for the season. There was typically a six week gap until the second race of the season. Disney officials also were concerned with the impending conflict with [[Super Bowl XXXV]], to be held in [[Tampa, Florida|Tampa]] presumably the same weekend. Initial talks planned to move the race date to [[Labor Day]] weekend, and ultimately to a new facility to be built near U.S. 192. The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series had already declined to renew their contract with the Speedway for similar reasons after 1998. The talks quietly ceased between the IRL and Disney, and the race was not scheduled for [[2001 in IRL|2001]]. It was ultimately removed from the IRL schedule permanently. |
|||
===Richard Petty Driving Experience=== |
|||
During the off-season in 1997, the track began hosting the ''[[Richard Petty]] Driving Experience'', a stock car-based racing organization that allows the general public to drive real [[NASCAR]] machines, or ride along with a professional driver. That now serves as the track's primary function, year-round. It is the only track used by the ''RPDE'' that, weather permitting, operates 365 days a year. To assist in the increased ingress and egress, a one-lane automobile [[tunnel]] was built for the 1997 season. In the summer of 1999, a new visitor's center and gift shop was built to permanently house operations for the ''Richard Petty Driving Experience''. A new modest garage facility was built for them also. The operation had previously worked out of trailers and tents, without significant utilities. |
|||
===Other uses=== |
|||
*On February 19-20, 1999, the track hosted the 7th Annual SunDay Challenge Alternative Energy Vehicle Rally. The highlight of the meet featured the [[Formula Lightning]] teams of [[Ohio State University|Ohio State]], [[Kettering University|Kettering]], and [[Florida A&M University|FAMU]]/[[Florida State University|FSU]]. The event was covered by [[Central Florida News 13]]. |
|||
*On [[April 9]], [[2002]] the first test of the new [[Indy Pro Series|Infiniti Pro Series]] was conducted at the track, with [[Robby McGehee]] driving over {{convert|100|mi|km}}. The series debuted later that season. |
|||
*The track has been part of the [[Walt Disney World]] [[Marathon]] course in some years. |
|||
== Track records == |
|||
===Indy Racing League=== |
|||
{| class="wikitable" |
|||
!'''Type''' |
|||
!'''Distance''' |
|||
!'''Date''' |
|||
!'''Driver''' |
|||
!'''Time''' |
|||
!'''Average Speed<br>([[Miles per hour|mph]])''' |
|||
|- |
|||
| Qualifying || 1 lap (1.0 miles) || [[January 25]], [[1996]] || [[Buddy Lazier]] || 19.847 seconds || 181.388 |
|||
|- |
|||
| Race || {{convert|200|mi|km}} || [[January 27]], [[1996]] || [[Buzz Calkins]] || 1:33:30.748 || 128.748 |
|||
|} |
|||
== Past race results == |
|||
===Indy Racing League=== |
|||
The [[Indy Racing League]] [[IndyCar Series]] Indy 200 was the first event held at the track. The 1996 running marked the first race conducted by the [[Indy Racing League|IRL]], and the original intent for the facility. |
|||
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" |
|||
|- |
|||
! Season |
|||
! Date |
|||
! Race Name |
|||
! Winning Driver |
|||
! Chassis |
|||
! Engine |
|||
! Team |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[1996 in IRL|1996]] || [[January 27]] || Indy 200 at Walt Disney World by [[Oldsmobile Aurora|Aurora]] ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Buzz Calkins]] || [[Reynard]] || [[Ford]] || [[Bradley Motorsports]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[1996-1997 in IRL|1997]]† || [[January 25]] || Indy 200 at Walt Disney World by [[Oldsmobile Aurora|Aurora]] ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Eddie Cheever, Jr.]] || [[Panoz|G-Force]] || [[Oldsmobile|Aurora]] || [[Team Cheever]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[1998 in IRL|1998]] || [[January 24]] || Indy 200 at Walt Disney World by [[Oldsmobile Aurora|Aurora]] ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Tony Stewart]] || [[Panoz|G-Force]] || [[Oldsmobile|Aurora]] || [[Team Menard]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[1999 in IRL|1999]]†† || [[January 24]] || TransWorld Diversified Services Indy 200 ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Eddie Cheever, Jr.]] || [[Dallara]] || [[Oldsmobile|Aurora]] || [[Team Cheever]] |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[2000 in IRL|2000]] || [[January 29]] || Delphi Indy 200 ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Robbie Buhl]] || [[Dallara]] || [[Oldsmobile|Aurora]] || [[Dreyer & Reinbold Racing]] |
|||
|} |
|||
*† Race shortened to 149 laps / 149 miles due to rain |
|||
*†† Race scheduled for and held on a Sunday |
|||
===NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series=== |
|||
The '''Chevy Trucks Challenge''' was a [[NASCAR]] [[Craftsman Truck Series]] event held at the track from [[1997 in NASCAR|1997]]-[[1998 in NASCAR|1998]]. It served as the season opening event of both years. The race was discontinued after 1998 due to the wide gap (10 weeks) it created until the second event of the season. |
|||
{| class="wikitable" |
|||
|- |
|||
!'''Year'''!!'''Date'''!!'''Driver'''!!'''Car Make'''!!'''Winner's Prize<br>([[United States dollar|USD]])'''!!'''Distance<br>([[mile]]s)'''!!'''Average Speed<br>([[Miles per hour|mph]])''' |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[1997 in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series|1997]] || [[January 19]], [[1997]] || {{flagicon|United States}} [[Joe Ruttman]] || [[Ford]] ||$55,800 || 200 ||88.159 |
|||
|- |
|||
| [[1998 in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series|1998]] || [[January 18]], [[1998]] || {{flagicon|United States}} [[Ron Hornaday]] || [[Chevrolet]] ||$48,625 || 204‡ ||94.033 |
|||
|} |
|||
*‡ 204 laps due to [[green-white-checker finish]] rule |
|||
===USAC Formula Ford 2000=== |
|||
The '''Formula Ford Walt Disney World Challenge''' was a 50-lap, 50-mile race for the [[United States Automobile Club|USAC]] [[Formula Ford]] 2000 series was held as a support race for the first three years of operation. |
|||
*1996 {{flagicon|USA}} [[Sam Schmidt]] |
|||
*1997 {{flagicon|BRA}} [[Urubatan Helou, Jr.]] |
|||
*1998 {{flagicon|AUS}} [[David Besnard]] |
|||
===USAC Silver Crown Series=== |
|||
The '''Silver Bullet 50''' was a 50-lap, 50-mile race for the [[United States Automobile Club|USAC]] [[United States Automobile Club#USAC Silver Crown Series|Silver Crown Series]]. During its first running, it was held in support to the [[NASCAR]] [[Craftsman Truck Series]] race. For 1999-2000, it was held as a support race to the [[Indy Racing League]] event. |
|||
*1998 [[Brian Tyler (racecar driver)|Brian Tyler]] |
|||
*1999 [[Mike Bliss]] |
|||
*2000 [[Brian Tyler (racecar driver)|Brian Tyler]] |
|||
==References== |
|||
<references/> |
|||
==Links== |
|||
*[http://www.1800bepetty.com Richard Petty Driving Experience] |
|||
*[http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/moreMagic/otherRecDetail?id=OtherRecRichardPettyDrivingExperienceDetailPage Official Page] |
|||
*[http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.indy200.com www.indy200.com at Internet Archive Wayback Machine] |
|||
{{Indy Racing League}} |
|||
{{coord|28|23|48.02|N|81|34|39.61|W|region:DE-BR_type:landmark|display=title}} |
|||
[[Category:Motorsport venues in the United States]] |
|||
[[Category:Indy Racing League tracks]] |
|||
[[Category:NASCAR tracks]] |
|||
[[Category:Sports venues in Florida]] |
|||
[[Category:Walt Disney World Resort]] |
|||
[[Category:Sports in Florida]] |
|||
[[Category:1995 establishments]] |
|||
[[Category:Visitor attractions in Orlando, Florida]] |
|||
[[Category:NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races]] |
|||
[[Category:Former IndyCar Series races]] |
|||
[[fr:Walt Disney World Speedway]] |
|||
[[pt:Walt Disney World Speedway]] |
|||
Revision as of 15:07, 9 October 2008
jenna loves to blow trees!!!!!!!!!!