Cleveland Still Alive

[MDS]

Despite dire predictions of Cleveland's demise apprently it is something IRL officials are still considering.

ptalk

[!!WALDO!!]

Old news:

http://www.motorsportforums.com/foru...76&postcount=4

Problem is the City of Cleveland may close Burke Lakefront Airport. Then what?

[Spiderman]

Let's hope they don't close it, because it's one of the best racetracks on earth!

[!!WALDO!!]

Let's hope they don't close it, because it's one of the best racetracks on earth!

But 362 days is a little used airport that at one time was Cleveland's major airport. Now the real estate is worth loads more than money generated.

[MDS]

Old news:

http://www.motorsportforums.com/foru...76&postcount=4

Problem is the City of Cleveland may close Burke Lakefront Airport. Then what?

Well, it may happen, it may not happen. It won't happen if a contract is signed to race in 2009. I get that you have an agenda against anything that at one point was Champ Car related, but the event could draw good crowds and TV ratings again and many fans, myself included, think Cleveland shoud be given a shot.

What I've learned from watching governments and public interactions with airports is there is always a hew and cry to shut down general avation airports for "Development," and it normally doesn't happen quickly, if at all. If the race is a success I think both the airport and the race will be around for a while because Cleveland is kinda clingy for attention.

If it comes back I'll make the trip from Atlanta to Cleveland to see it, visit with family and go to Cedar Point.

[dataman1]

From the Rumor page at AutoRacing1 dated 6/13/08:

Bobby Rahal, a native of Medina, came to the aid of Cleveland when he attended a meeting between Cleveland officials and the Indy Racing League. Rahal, who won 3 Indy League Championships, told IRL officials that he was a big fan of the track and that it would be a shame for the event to be discontinued.

[!!WALDO!!]

Well, it may happen, it may not happen. It won't happen if a contract is signed to race in 2009. I get that you have an agenda against anything that at one point was Champ Car related, but the event could draw good crowds and TV ratings again and many fans, myself included, think Cleveland shoud be given a shot.

Been to more CART races than you, so no agenda. The IRL said they will not do both Cleveland and Mid-Ohio. I take them at their word.

What I've learned from watching governments and public interactions with airports is there is always a hew and cry to shut down general avation airports for "Development," and it normally doesn't happen quickly, if at all. If the race is a success I think both the airport and the race will be around for a while because Cleveland is kinda clingy for attention.

Been in government, look at Meigs, open one day closed the next. Took the City of Chicago to court and lost. Property just to valuable.

If it comes back I'll make the trip from Atlanta to Cleveland to see it, visit with family and go to Cedar Point.

Hold you breath please.

[MDS]

If the IRL will not do Mid-Ohio and Cleveland, and plan on sticking to that, what makes you think Mid-Ohio would be the one to get the nod?

If League officials are talking with Cleveland, and by the way the only person I've heard claiming inside information saying its dead is you, it might mean that Mid Ohio is the course in trouble, and not Cleveland.

Mid-Ohio will never be anything more than a company picnic for Honda, but Cleveland, historically got good ratings and good crowds back in the CART days. All Cleveland needs to be viable is 28 cars and a title sponsor... the Honda Grand Prix of Cleveland sounds like a good idea to me.

This is just pure speculation, but Mid-Ohio is sitting on the weekend Michigan wants. Drop Mid-Ohio and move or drop Nasville, put Cleveland back on its traditional July 4 weekend and Michigan returns to the schedule. It certainally seems plausable to me

Anyway, back to facts. Burke is one of the busyist airports in Ohio. It's on pace to see 90,000 take offs and landings this year. The sizable fleet of single engine plans and a number of corporate jets would have to go somewhere, and that would over-burden the other airport in town. The Mayor has said Burke is not being redeveloped and will remain an airport. The only people I have heard crying for Burke to be shut down is the anti-airport "Rich toys for Big Boys" welath envy crowd and opportuntistic land developers. So your "it may close" is misleading and unfounded in fact and the Cleveland political climate, but in the short time don't let facts get in the way of your agenda.

BTW: In order for you to have attended more CART races than me you would have had to attend every race from 1999 to 2002 and then some. I worked for a team, I was at the track every weekend and that doesn't even count the four or five races a year I went every year from age 12 to 21 as a fan.

[indyracefan]

...with Belle Isle and Mid-Ohio already on the schedule along with Chicagoland and Kentucky in addition to the probablility of Toronto getting a date Cleveland is probably a long shot at best. The series is concerned with Midwest over-saturation and don't seem eager to have more than 20-22 races in a season, all this works against Cleveland.

[cartpix]

...with Belle Isle and Mid-Ohio already on the schedule along with Chicagoland and Kentucky in addition to the probablility of Toronto getting a date Cleveland is probably a long shot at best. The series is concerned with Midwest over-saturation and don't seem eager to have more than 20-22 races in a season, all this works against Cleveland.

The race fan in me says, if I lived in the mid west I'd be happy to be "oversaturated" with races. Living on the west coast, I would love to be oversaturated. We used to be & I got spoiled.

Jeff