Road America Fan Appreciation Day
By: John Vatne
8/8/06

Fan Appreciation Day at Road America was a day of mixed emotions. Everyone’s thoughts were on one man, Cristiano da Matta. Following his collision with a deer in turn six on Thursday, Shorty, as he is known in the Champ Car community remains in the Intensive Care Unit at Thada Clark Medical Center. His condition has stabilized and the prognosis for his for recovery is still unknown.

RuSPORT pulled Justin Wilson’s #9 Lola from the second day of the open test. Forsythe Championship Racing, also participated in only the first day of the two-day open test. It’s the second day of the open test that Road America opened free to the public as Fan Appreciation Day.

By 9:00 AM on Friday, the majority of the teams were moving cars to the pits for another day of testing.

Newman/Haas was undecided about sending their drivers out on Friday. A long time member of the team simply said, “If the drivers head is not in it, it’s not worth going out.” Following a brief meeting it was decided that Newman/Haas would test.

Walking through the paddock, fans gathered along the pit lane fence, watching teams prepair their cars. From parents giving kids their first taste of Road America, to those that could have been at the first Champ Car (then CART) race held at the historic four-mile circuit, every age was represented.

I had the opportunity to talk with were Rick Ringlein and Gerry Pflepsen from Lincoln Nebraska. These two race fans drove ten hours for the opportunity to attend Fan Appreciation Day. What I found in Rick and Gerry were the qualities shared by many Champ Car fans, well educated individuals with a passion for motorsports.

Was this their first trip to Road America, no. Along with attending races in the past, they have also participated during club weekends, experiencing the track from a driver’s perspective.

Due to other activities planed for the weekend, spectators were only allowed limited access by car between gate one, located by turn 14, to the Media Center on the front straightaway.  However, if you had comfortable shoes or a mountain bike, you could work your way around the track to any viewing location.

The format of most test sessions is simple. Teams go out and run a set number of laps, make adjustments or change parts on the car and run more laps.  For Fan Appreciation Day, Road America made a few additions.

The concession stand adjacent to the paddock was opened for both days of the test. While this is standard during a race weekend, test sessions are often a fend for your self affair.

One of the most popular events during a Champ Car race weekend is the mandatory driver autograph session. A half hour autograph session was scheduled from 12:00-12:30 PM. At 11:45 AM fans from around the circuit converged on the paddock. All the drivers attending the Friday portion of the test pulled out their Sharpies and signed until every fan got an autograph.

From track staff and concession workers, to the drivers and crewmen, fans received a warm welcome and real appreciation for their attendance. As someone who has attended events at Road America for over 17 years, this type of hospitality is not a one-time occurrence.

Fans who purchased a Super Ticked for the Champ Car race on September 22–24 were entered into a drawing for multiple prizes including VIP passes for the Champ Car weekend and hotel accommodations at the Blue Harbor resort during the Champ Car weekend.

With nine cars on the track, the Fan Appreciation Day gave everyone a taste of what the September Champ Car weekend has to offer. This year's OktoberFAST event includes the Mazda MX-5 Championship, Formula Ford 2000, Skip Barber National Championship, Atlantic Championship, in addition to Champ Car World Series.

If your taste also includes two wheels, the AMA Supermoto Championship will be running at the Briggs & Stratton Motoplex on the Friday and Saturday of OktoberFAST.

Currently, Road America is the only major sports facility in Wisconsin that has opened their gates free to the fans for an event of this caliber. Those in attendance had two words for Road America, thank you.

In the coming weeks, the Mecca of Speed will be posting new Champ Car desktops from the open test and interviews with A.J. Allmendinger and Nelson Philippe.