Feffman

Mid-Ohio Owner Sells Racetrack Indianapolis Group to Continue Legacy of 2.4-mile Course Thursday, March 3, 2011 02:53 AM By Tim May THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH After 25 years as the leader of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Michelle Trueman-Gajoch sold the venerable Lexington racetrack to Indianapolis-based Green Savoree Racing Promotions yesterday. The parting was bittersweet, she said. During her tenure, she tried to carry on the legacy of her late father, Jim Trueman. The Red Roof Inns founder had bought and revitalized the 330-acre facility in 1982, then died of cancer in 1986. "When I set out to do this 25years ago, I had no idea what the next day was going to bring, nor did I have any idea where to start," Trueman-Gajoch said from her Dublin office. "I was purely driven every day by my father's memory. It's that same thing that made me realize it's time to find somebody else to carry that legacy forward." She said she worked behind the scenes for the past three years to find the right buyer but never literally hung a for-sale sign on the property. Then came Kevin Savoree and Kim Green, former partners with Michael Andretti in the Indianapolis 500-winning Andretti Green racing team, and owners through their Green Savoree company of the St. Petersburg and Toronto IndyCar races. They plan to keep the current Mid-Ohio management team intact. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Savoree said he and Green understand that they aren't just buying a 2.4-mile road course but a piece of racing history that is celebrating its 50th season this year. Every manner of road-racing vehicles - from sports cars to Can-Am cars to prototypes to IndyCars to motorcycles - has competed there, with the crown jewel being the IndyCar race, scheduled this year on Aug.7. "Kim and I have had a lot of exciting moments in racing, and today is such a special experience," Savoree said. "As much as anything, Michelle Trueman and the Trueman family have been so gracious to Kim and myself. They are big shoes to fill, and Kim and I are looking forward to continuing the great legacy. We're up to the race, and we're looking forward to that."

Putnam Park is Sold Out. E-mail Feffman@MVPTrackTime.com to get on the reserve list. Now, on to Autobahn's full track June 6th. Feff

2011 MVP Track Time Schedule Good Morning CR: MVP Track Time (www.MVPTrackTime.com) is excited to announce our 2011 track events. We hope to add a few new events as the year progresses. MVP Track Time’s goal is to bring great value to you with more actual track time at each event for less money. Our three run groups (Novice, Intermediate and Advanced) allows us to maximize actual time driving on the track. Below you will find our initial 2011 schedule, subject to possible revision as the year progresses with additional events. April 16 – 17: Putnam Park (Greencastle, IN.) - SOLD OUT! June 6: Autobahn Country Club (Joliet, IL) - Full 3.56 Mile Track August 8: Autobahn Country Club II (Joliet, IL) - Full 3.56 Mile Track October 15 - 16: Road America (Elkhart Lake, WI) – 2nd Annual “Cheese Heads on Track” November 19 – 20: Road Atlanta (Braselton, GA) - 3rd Annual “Flyin’ Turkey Trot” Registration (on line or mail in) for all our track events is available at: http://www.MVPTrackTime.com/id47.html We schedule a minimum of six, 20-minute sessions for each of the three (Novice, Intermediate and Advanced) run groups daily with qualified instructors available for the Novice run group. I hope you’ll join us in 2011 for plenty of on-track excitement with MVP Track Time. All are invited and welcome. Please, don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions about any of our track events or if you are interested in working with MVP to host a track event near you. Happy Motoring and I hope to see you at the track! Mark Pfeffer - MVP Track Time www.MVPTrackTime.com (314) 249-3770 Feffman@MVPTrackTime.com

Good Morning CR: A Lotus pal of mine, Dannie French, is selling one of his Esprits. Info and photos for his 1997 Esprit V8 twin turbo are on the E-Bay link below. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Lotus-Esprit-ESPRIT-1997-LOTUS-ESPRIT-BEAUTIFUL-HOT-ROD_W0QQitemZ110514979425QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item19bb34c261 Feff

MVP Track Time's Putnam Park April 10-11 track weekend is Sold Out!. Call (314) 249-3770 or e-mail Feffman@MVPTrackTime.com for the reserve list. Autobahn Country Club on June 7th is already 1/2 full. Happy Motoring! Feff

Thanks everyone for the input on Nelson Ledges. Since looking into an event at Nelson, we've added Road America (October 16-17, 2010) :thumbup: to our 2010 schedule. I think I'm going to jump in an event with PCA, BMWCCA, etc. for 2010 at Nelson to get a feel for it and decide if MVP wants to do an event there in 2011, just don't have the room on the 2010 schedule. Hope to see you all at Putnam Park in April! Feff www.MVPTrackTime.com

Feel free to join us (www.MVPTrackTime.com) at Putnam Park, Autobahn Country Club, Road America, etc. in 2010. Feff

Sounds like Blackhawk Farms (BHF) near Beloit Wisconsin. Fell into disrepair until the new owner starting upgrading three years ago. They are doing about 1-2 buildings/infrastructure annually. Like Nelson Ledges, BHF is a little bumpy but not too bad. Thanks for all the input. Feff www.MVPTrackTime.com

Yes, we bring a group of qualified SCCA, NASA, PCA, BMWCCA instructors to assist the Novice drivers. We are looking at a weekend event at Nelson. May be a little more then their "Fun Days", but you won't have to take off work either. Track time will be from 8:00AM - 5:00PM. Thanks for the insight all. How is the track surface at Nelson Ledges? Feff www.MVPTrackTime.com

Good Day and Happy New CR: I hope Santa was kind to everyone. He brought me several parts for the track car. Gotta love the fat guy in the red suit. What's the common consensus on Nelson Ledges for a track event? We've never driven there, not run an event at NL, but are looking at it for 2010. Any insight is duly appreciated. Feel free to drop me an e-mail at Feffman@MVPTrackTime.com Mark "Feff" Pfeffer - MVP Track Time www.MVPTrackTime.com

Hi All and Happy New Year: I received the note below from Brad Poppel at Bluegrass Motorsports Park after an inquiry about getting on the track in 2010. Not encouraging at all. Feff www.MVPTrackTime.com

Here's our full preliminary 2010 schedule, subject to revision as the year progresses. Look for the addition of more track events throughout 2010. April 10 – 11: Putnam Park (Greencastle, IN.) - ”4th Annual Tax Freedom Track Weekend” June 7: Autobahn Country Club (Joliet, IL) (FULL 3.56 mile track) August 9: Autobahn Country Club II (Joliet, IL) (FULL 3.56 mile track) October 23 – 24: Eagles Canyon Raceway (Decatur, TX) - “Cars of Northern Aggression” November 20 – 21: Road Atlanta (Braselton, GA) - “2nd Annual Flyin’ Turkey Trot” Registration (on line or mail in) for all our track events is available at: http://www.MVPTrackTime.com/id47.html I hope you’ll gear up for plenty of excitement with MVP Track Time in 2010. All are invited and welcome. Feel free to contact me if you have questions about any of our track events. Happy Motoring! Mark Pfeffer - MVP Track Time www.MVPTrackTime.com (314) 249-3770 Feffman@MVPTrackTime.com

Hi All: You are all welcome to join us (www.MVPTrackTime.com) at Putnam Park near Indianapolis April 10-11, 2010 for our "4th Annual Tax Freedom Track Weekend". Hope to see you there. Feff

Just picked this off the Bluegrass Motorsports Park web site. Looks like it may actually happen. Feff www.MVPTrackTime.com _______________________________________________________________ Project Update: 11.11.09 On September 14, 2008, the crash of Lehman Brothers changed the financial markets in a way not foreseen in modern times. The financial, real estate and construction sectors were all hit hard. A start-up such as Bluegrass Motorsports Park has to run the gauntlet in all of these sectors to be able to open. Because after all, any way you cut it, constructing a motorsports park is a real estate based project. As such, this has presented unforeseen challenges to the owners to bring the first phase of this project to completion for the planned 2009 season. With this behind us, we now must look forward to 2010. We had a significant delay earlier in the year relating to the federal permitting as was discussed on our web site. Thankfully, this issue is behind us. The primary reason and the one affecting us today is that we have been slowed down by banking issues that arose in the current economic environment. The terms proposed by our original bank had changed many times that it continued to put the project and owners at risk. As a result, the project has been moved to a new bank to finalize the remaining funding to complete the track in basic operational form. Our loan has been approved and we are literally down to negotiating the final terms to bring about the loan closing. This will finish the paving, safety, and related matters to open the track for operations. We appreciate your support and patience and will be back with a further update after the loan closing and a date the construction will be back on site. The project is very much alive and moving forward despite the unforeseen hurdles we have had to jump. Thank you.

Good Day Columbus: Yes, I realize it's five months away, but MVP Track Time (www.MVPTrackTime.com) is hosting its 4th annual "Tax Freedom Track Weekend" at Putnam Park in Meridian, IN April 10-11, 2010. Weekend ($340) and single day ($235) entries are available. Expect six, 20-minute run sessions for each of the three run groups each day. We have qualified instructors available for the Novice run group drivers. Feel free to call me at (314) 249-3770 or e-mail Feffman@MVPTrackTime.com if you have quesitons. Happy Motoring and remember this event usually sells out early! Feff

I'm sure we've all seen our share of great bumper stickers, but this one sticks out in my mind. Not PC at all, the way I like it. On the back of an H1 Hummer: "Earth First - We'll Strip Mine The Rest Of The Planets Later" I was laughing so hard I almost drove off the road. Feff http://www.MVPTrackTime.com

HI All: The NOVICE run group for August 3rd at Autobahn Country Club is full. We have limited spaces in the Intermediate and Advanced run groups for 8/3 as well. Hope to see you there and Mid Ohio in October. Feff http://www.MVPTrackTime.com

Reed: If you have enough track experience on a road course, use a set of "R" rated tires like the Hoosier R6, Toyo R888 or Hankook (can't remember the name), but if you are fairly new to a road course, use your street tires as part of the learning process. If you need R compounds, contact Eric Frisby at Frisby Tire (http://www.FrisbyRaceTire.com). He'll give you the proper advice on tire choices. Feff http://www.MVPTrackTime.com

Our (http://www.MVPTrackTime.com) track event at Mid Ohio October 17-18 is the entire weekend, but you can register for one day as well. We base the run group on the track experience of the driver when we receive a registration. Feel free to ring me at (314) 249-3770 if you have any questions. Hope to see/meet all of you at the track. Feff

Coty: If registration history holds true, Mid Ohio will fill up about 6-8 weeks before the track weekend in October. Some run groups fill faster then others. We are 8 weeks from our August 3rd track day at Autobahn and are down to our last 10 spots in the Novice run group. Mr Auto: Have your friend contact Danny Puskar at CarboTech brakes (http://www.CTBrakes.com) if he needs new pads. They are the only pad I use after years of experimenting with several different brands. Feff http://www.MVPTrackTime.com

Good Morning CR: Our August 3rd Autobahn Country Club track day on the full 3.56 mile track near Chicago is already over ½ full. Mid-Ohio is filling faster then expected, considering it's in October. Visit us at http://www.MVPTrackTime.com for details and registration for all our track days. Happy Motoring and I hope to see some CR members at the track! Feff www.MVPTrackTime.com

Missouri makes it VERY easy to fix a speeding ticket with the use of an attorney. It's truly a revenue generator. Texas was a bear. Got one just south of Dallas several years back. Had to get hold of a local attorney to fix it and after nearly $400, I was on essentially probation for 12 months ( I think they called if "deference"). The single most expensive and PITA ticket I've ever dealt with. Feff

I don't know who said it, but it goes soemthing like "Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life!" Surely a bit of oversimplification. If it were only that easy. Feff

My wife drives and loves her 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Ltd. (Yes it has the Hemi - Pulls the race car) and we'd buy another in a New York minute. I'd really like to trade it for a newer one with the Mercedes V6 turbo diesel, but they don't make them in the dark blue color she likes. Feff

Buddy of mine has a GT-R and I've yet to find time for a ride with him. We have our first one attending our June 1st track day at Autobahn Country Club and I'm damn excited to see it on the track. Feff http://www.MVPTrackTime.com