[David993S]

https://sportscar365.com/industry/cota- ... in-future/

[Cuda911]

I wonder if "indefinitely " means permanently?

[David993S]

I wonder if "indefinitely " means permanently?

Don't know. There's a lot of speculation going around about what it means. Even if indefinitely means just that, it's still not a good sign for the track. I've never been to COTA but I would hate to see the track close permanently. I'm reading that a lot of their revenue is back-loaded, which wouldn't help existing operating costs. Time will tell.

[Scott at Team Harco]

Many tracks operate on very thin margins. The cost of keeping COTA up, must be very high. It takes a lot of events to keep that cash flow coming in. The fact that that track is such a high profile venue means they can charge high fees. When the number of events drop off - so too do the funds to keep it afloat.

It's a sad state. But it is reality. I hope they can come back, but I wouldn't be surprised if things don't rebound.

We are dealing with a lot of this locally. Our biggest track (Michigan International Speedway) is having similar problems. It will be interesting to see if they can climb back. Our other, little, tracks are suffering too. Waterford Hills comes to mind. Few events were held last year. Fortunately, the costs to keep it going are not huge.

Regarding COTA - I'm curious how much the F1 race puts in their coffers? Then again - it may be a net loss. The F1 circus, when run by Bernie Eccelstone, put many tracks out of business due to their requirements and fees. Not sure how this is playing out these days.

[Erik N]

Back in New Mexico there was a guy who owned and lived on a track in the middle of the desert. He was a MC racer IIRC.
I used to give him $50 bucks and he would let me use the place for the day. Burnt thru many a set of tires there...
It was called Arroyo Seco Raceway. Not sure if it still exists.

[fpena944]

Only experience I have with that track is flying over it when leaving Austin.

From their air it looked like a really nice and well-thought setup. I was looking forward to one day coming in to see an F1 race.

Hope they can bounce back!

[Gator_86_951]

COTA has been through a lot, including ground settling issues. They will probably need a business reorganization, but I suspect they will make it, especially with F1 on the calendar.