New Venue - Flatrock Motorsports Park

[misterpeanut]

I just saw this released this morning. Looks pretty cool! 30miles west of Knoxville, TN

A premier motorsports & entertainment destination in the heart of Cumberland county.

Premier motorsport and entertainment destination in the heart of Cumberland county.

experienceflatrock.com

Flatrock Motorsports Park | Westel TN

Flatrock Motorsports Park, Westel. 11,095 likes · 25 talking about this. America's newest motorsport destination, located in the heart of Tennessee. Member Track Opens Summer 2024

www.facebook.com

 

[EF1]

That project has been in the works for a couple of years now. It was originally sited for Oak Ridge on some former federal land, but due to opposition in the local community they started shopping for an alternate site. They found a larger site only 30 minutes from the original one with a welcoming local government. The developer is out of Knoxville and he has a couple of prominent local business people behind him. They have been moving dirt for several months now. If all goes well the first phase will be ready in the spring. I don't know what memberships will cost, but looking at the scope of the project they will probably be out of my reach. I will be waiting for NASA and other track day organizations to host open to the public events since it is only 25 minutes from my house.

 

[misterpeanut]

Aha! As always, there's a back story! Curious about the cost too. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Side note: I sent the track website link to a friend, and he sent one back about Tennessee Downs, another soon to be built track in Shelbyville. Both of these tracks would be great!

 

[Bill Pemberton]

Dang , looks like Tennessee could become a major track designation State!? Appreciate the post and exciting to think about how many fun places there will be to play in the coming years!

 

[EF1]

There are some great tracks within 3 1/2 hours of Knoxville, like Barber, Road Atlanta and NCM, but it will be great to have one within 30 minutes of the house.

 

[misterpeanut]

Looking good! https://racer.com/2023/10/26/tennessees-flatrock-releases-images-of-track-construction/

 

[Ludachris]

Looking good! https://racer.com/2023/10/26/tennessees-flatrock-releases-images-of-track-construction/

Was just going to post that article. Looks like a nice track! Has a European track feel to it, or maybe Brazil with the elevation change.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

There seem to be a bunch of new tracks being built , many with the Country Club Theme and I think someone has to ask how many more can be built and actually sustain a membership with the pricing and costs associated with these tracks. I , for one , hope to run on some of these courses , but it seems one has to question just how many super high end courses can be built and also be financially stable? One can only hope these Country Club for Cars means those of us regular folks will have more places to play ?

 

[EF1]

Bill, This one is close to me. It is loosely following the format of Atlanta Motorsports Park as the developer has a relationship with the developers of it. It has traction as a couple of the early investors are car enthusiasts who were instrumental in getting the Nashville Grand Prix. They want a place close to home to keep there Ferrari's and Porsches. Early indications are they have sold enough memberships, home, and garage sites to make it work. Luckily for those of us without deep pockets there will be opportunities to get on track through organizations like NASA, Chin, Just Track It, etc.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

That is exciting Eric and my general comment was more in questioning how many more of these Country Club tracks can successfully operate into the future, it was not so much a question of this one. I really hope this track continues and is quite successful as it bodes well for the automotive industry as a whole. Believe me , if I win the lottery , I think a nice home on a track like this to store my toys would be a dream situation. Now that we know you are keeping tabs on Flatrock, we appoint you as the official news reporter and we expect reports as things progress , ha.

Any chance they think they will be up and running in 2024 ------ the biggest hurdle on new tracks is getting them laid and cured sufficiently.

 

[EF1]

I’ve been watching this one for a couple of years now. It was originally sited in Oak Ridge on some old government land that was given to the city for an industrial park. The site fell through and they started shopping for a new location. They were trying to stay fairly close to Knoxville. Tilke designed it. They broke ground a little over a year ago and have been paving for a few months now. The first 3.5 miles are supposedly on schedule to be ready by summer 2024.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

I have a friend in Tennessee who told me about a track being built near him years back. He later told me they were looking for a new area as the original land for the site fell through. Glad this came up as I know this was the place he was telling me about. Looking at the track map and the area , it might have been a blessing in disguise, since it looks fantastic. I knew Tilke was designing the track , so some things went through as planned. Keep us posted Eric!

 

[Bill Pemberton]

By the way Eric , what is happening over near Shelbyville with the Tennessee Downs track? It seems things have been super quiet over there and I reached out to another friend in your area who simply said, " No idea what is happening down there currently?"

 

[EF1]

They are making progress. This was from a recent post. It looks like they have the first layer of pavement down for the first circuit.

 

[Tonymustang302]

They are closing drag strips left and right. Thank god theyre building road racing tracks