Kansas Speedway

Kansas Speedway
Location Kansas City, Kansas, United States
Time zone UTC−6 / −5 (DST)
Coordinates 39°6′56.84″N 94°49′51.82″W / 39.1157889°N 94.8310611°W / 39.1157889; -94.8310611Coordinates: 39°6′56.84″N 94°49′51.82″W / 39.1157889°N 94.8310611°W / 39.1157889; -94.8310611
Capacity 74,000[1]
Owner International Speedway Corporation
Operator International Speedway Corporation
Broke ground 1999 (1999)
Opened 2001 (2001)
Architect HNTB
Major events
Tri-oval
Surface Asphalt
Length 1.500 mi (2.414 km)
Turns 4
Banking Turns: 17-20°
Frontstretch: 9-11°
Backstretch: 5°
Lap record 24.761 seconds (Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, 2003, IRL IndyCar Series)
Road course
Surface Asphalt
Length 2.37 mi (3.81 km)
Turns 6
Lap record 1:09.745 (Scott Pruett, Chip Ganassi Racing, 2013, Daytona Prototype)
Kansas Speedway

Kansas Speedway is a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) tri-oval race track in Kansas City, Kansas. It was built in 2001 and it currently hosts two annual NASCAR race weekends. The Verizon IndyCar Series also held races at the venue until 2011. The speedway is owned and operated by the International Speedway Corporation.

History

International Speedway Corporation began exploring the idea of building a racing facility in the midwest in 1996. Attention was turned towards the Kansas City area in 1997. Officials considered both the Missouri and Kansas side of the city but eventually settled with the Kansas side because of better funding. Architecture firm HNTB, which also designed Chicagoland Speedway, was selected to design the facility, and firm Turner Construction was selected to provide construction management.[2] Construction began on the 1,200 acres (490 ha), 1.5 miles (2.4 km) speedway in May 1999, and in July, preferred tickets went on sale. The demand at the ticket sales prompted ISC officials to expand the planned 32 by an additional 36, expanding capacity from 75,000 to 82,000. Speedway officials were hopeful to have the track completed sometime in 2000, and possibly host a race, but construction was delayed by weather and further complicated by lawsuits from nearby land owners.[3] In May 2000, both IndyCar and NASCAR announced events to be held at the speedway for the 2001 season. Track paving began in September 2000, and construction of the speedway was completed in early 2001.[4]

The building of the speedway has had a significant impact on the nearby area, even before construction was finished. New commercial developments sprung up around the speedway, including a movie theater complex, an outdoor retail mall, and hotels.[5] A 2008 survey by The Washington Economics Group revealed that Kansas Speedway brings $243 million to the state of Kansas each year. It also provides over 5000 jobs, with 4000 jobs coming directly from track operations.[6] Additional seats have been added since initial construction. In 2003, 1,600 seats were added, and in 2005, 1,500 seats plus a 7,000 square feet (650 m2) concession and restroom building were added. Both expansions were headed by the track's original contractors, HNTB and Tuner Construction.[2]

In 2011 Kansas Speedway and Richard Petty Driving Experience announced an exclusive agreement where visitors have the opportunity to experience the speedway from a unique point-of-view behind the wheel of a race car.[7]

The front stretch and infield of Kansas Speedway

The speedway constructed the $380-million Penn National Gaming Hollywood Hotel and Casino at the track. The hotel/casino overlooks turn two and opened to the public on February 12, 2012. The state-of-the-art casino features a 100,000 square feet (9,300 m2) gaming floor capacity for 2,300 slot machines, 61 table games and 25 poker tables. It also features 28,000 square feet (2,600 m2) of other amenities including restaurants, clubs and nightlife attractions. The addition of the casino is estimated to bring nearly 440,000 tourists per year and create over 1,000 full-time positions; elevating the state to a first-class, year-round tourist destination. On February 17, 2010, the president of Kansas Speedway announced that Penn National Gaming will sponsor the fall Sprint Cup race for the next ten years in the Hollywood Casino 400.[8]

Lights were installed from mid-2010 to early 2011, this comes along with the addition of a second NASCAR weekend beginning with the 2011 season. All the NASCAR races at the track are scheduled to be run during the day, with the lights being available in case of a rain delay.[9] The first night race at the track was an ARCA race on October 7, 2011.[10] On October 11, 2013, it was announced that Darlington Speedway's lone NASCAR event and Kansas's spring race will swap dates for 2014, with Kansas becoming a night race. The fall race at the track will remain a day event.[11]

In July 2011, the speedway announced they will reconfigure the speedway following the 2012 STP 400. Some of the changes will be adding a road course in the infield, repaving the oval, and adding variable banking.[12] On August 28–29 the track's reconfiguration of the oval took the checkered flag as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series held a Goodyear Tire test for the upcoming October 21 Hollywood Casino 400. As a result of the project, the banking in the turns was increased from a uniform 15 degrees to a progressively 17–20 degrees, the grass on the inside of the backstretch was paved over for safety reasons, and due to the drought in Kansas, new grass on the front stretch was rolled using sod trucks. In 2013, the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series announced they would come to the track for the 2013 season.

Track length of paved oval

The track length is disputed by the two major series that run at Kansas Speedway. The NASCAR timing and scoring use a length of 1.50 miles (2.41 km).[13] The IRL timing and scoring used a track length of 1.52 miles (2.45 km).[14]

Races

Current races

Former races


Track records

RecordDateDriverTimeSpeed/Avg. Speed
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Qualifying October 3, 2014 Kevin Harvick 27.304197.773 mph (318.285 km/h)
Race April 22, 2012 Denny Hamlin 2:54:02144.122 mph (231.942 km/h)
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Qualifying October 16, 2015 Matt Kenseth 29.204184.906 mph (297.577 km/h)
Race September 29, 2001 Jeff Green 2:19:24 129.125 mph (207.807 km/h)
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Qualifying May 8, 2015 Erik Jones 30.101179.396 mph (288.710 km/h)
Race July 7, 2001 Ricky Hendrick 2:00:09 125.094 mph (201.319 km/h)
Verizon IndyCar Series
Qualifying July 6, 2002 Scott Dixon 24.761 218.085 mph (350.974 km/h)
Race April 29, 2007 Dan Wheldon 1:36:56 188.169 mph (302.829 km/h)
Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series (road course)
Qualifying August 16, 2013 Scott Pruett 1:09.883 122.089 mph (196.483 km/h)
Race August 17, 2013 Scott Pruett 1:09.745 122.331 mph (196.873 km/h)
Source:[15]

See also

Located about 1 mile west of the speedway is:

References

  1. ↑ "Kansas Speedway Track News, Records & Links". jayski.com. jayski.com. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Kansas City Projects". Turner Construction. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Kansas track facing construction delays". CNN/SI. July 3, 1999. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Track History". Kansas Speedway. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Speedway seen as powerful economic engine for KCK". cjonline.com. September 3, 2000. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  6. ↑ "Kansas Speedway Provides $243 Million Economic Impact to State of Kansas Annually". Paddock Talk. August 8, 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  7. ↑ http://www.drivepetty.com/race-tracks/kansas-speedway
  8. ↑ "Hollywood Casino Gets Green Light". April 30, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Second Sprint Cup race at Kansas Speedway is official". The Wichita Eagle. August 11, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  10. ↑ "ARCA to christen Kansas Speedway lights". Kansas City Star. November 24, 2010. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  11. ↑ "Kansas Speedway lands NASCAR Sprint Cup night race". 11 October 2013. Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Kansas set to undergo renovation project in 2012". 7 July 2011. NASCAR. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
  13. ↑ Kansas Speedway at NASCAR.com
  14. ↑ 2010 race result on champcarstats.com
  15. ↑ "Race Results at Kansas Speedway". racing-reference.info. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
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