Barber INDYCAR Weekend Nearly Sold Out Already

[Defender]

...according to word just sent from Barber's folks.

That is a magnificent facility...and the museum is also amazing. We had a great time down there last year and are making plans again. Hope to see a bunch of you there.

-The Hiking is Great Exercise Disciple of INDYCAR

[BizzyV]

That would be great news. Track is great for track days but it just doesnt seem like the racing is great there.

[texacostar05]

Just ordered our tix...3 tickets (for all 3 days) plus parking... 83 bucks per person, that is a great deal.

[Frank Capua]

Great news and I'm looking forward to it... but how do you sell-out the woods??

[Defender]

They have a formula...a lot has to do with traffic, transportation and safety. That said....they have done a remarkable job with flow control and access with plenty of parking.

-The Got It Right Out of the Gate Disciple of INDYCAR

[open wheeler]

Great news and I'm looking forward to it... but how do you sell-out the woods??

Based on number of trees times two, divide by the number of cars, add number of bathrooms, divide by number of beer stands and food courts equals number of people. Pretty simple really.

[Hitokiri]

This is great news but I'm sorry for being a troll but the race last year was a snooze fest. *hides*

[Z28]

They have a formula...a lot has to do with traffic, transportation and safety. That said....they have done a remarkable job with flow control and access with plenty of parking.

-The Got It Right Out of the Gate Disciple of INDYCAR

With that being true, how long can the track stay on the schedule? Face it everyone has to admit that IndyCar needs more fans in the form of more attendance and more people to watch on TV for higher ratings. So when that begins to happen and more people become IndyCar fans how is Barber going to be able to deal with increased demand for tickets from a larger fan base when it comes to traffic, transportation and safety?

Compare to Iowa which had sold out crowds the first three years even adding temporary seating and now because of their NASCAR races having more demand is adding permanent seats. It might be more traffic congestion but they have the capacity to add those seats which you have to hope an increasingly popular IndyCar will have the demand for.

[Formula Indy]

I thought there was a discussion in the beginning about making some changes to help Indy cars? The good news is with the strong following, they may be able to justify further capital investment.

[open wheeler]

This is great news but I'm sorry for being a troll but the race last year was a snooze fest. *hides*

Based on the equipment we have now I would tend to agree but, I think the draw here is the event and it seems to be a good one. Now with the additon of new equipment in 2012 it could be a great event and I'm mostly a roundy rounder.

[9rows]

rick and bubba are the grand marshals

most probably don't know them, but they're kind of a big deal down there

it can only help

[cheeseczar]

They have a formula...a lot has to do with traffic, transportation and safety. That said....they have done a remarkable job with flow control and access with plenty of parking.

-The Got It Right Out of the Gate Disciple of INDYCAR

Sounds like they do it right.
Far and away my favorite RC last year...and you all know how I feel about RC's...

[raskav]

Racing at Barber is like playing Golf at Augusta National. So pretty.

[HAWKFAN5724]

This is great news but I'm sorry for being a troll but the race last year was a snooze fest. *hides*

IIRC Barber officials said after the race they were working on more passing opportunites and a wider track. Does anyone know if they followed through?

[Aeron]

I have to say I'm a more than little unhappy that they didn't do anything to the track. At a very minimum they should reduce the trees in the Turn 1 through 4 complex, the grove along the inside of the backstretch between eight and nine and then that forest that's between 11 and 15. I get they do a lot of club racing and non-spectator events, and those guys love driving through the trees, but if you want to host a first-class event you should have a first class venue. I so wish they'd cut down some trees.

Last year I talked with a couple of the amateur motorcycle guys who use the track on a regular basis. We all kind of agreed that if they cut out that kink going into turn seven and increased the angle at Turn 14 you'd probably see more passing. Guys were trying to pass in 14 last year but the way its angled it doesn't work. The only place to pass is the carousal turn. If they widened the front stretch and turn one you could see some passing there too. It's a beautiful course, but doesn't provide the best racing.

That said my Dad and I already have tickets and a camping package. If you want to say hello we'll be in the big white truck and fifth wheel. Also I'll probably be there for the test, so if I can I'll post some pictures for you.