Road America
Road America
— Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
Road America is a 4 mile road course located near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. The track is building a new complex inside of the carousel with a variety of facilities for motorcycle and other usage.
Historical Notes
Road America is one of the oldest road courses in the United States. Elkhart Lake was, much as was Watkins Glen, a summer resort area much favored by, among others, gentlemen sports-car drivers from around Chicago. Open-road races were held from 1950 through 1952 on the highways through and around Elkhart Lake, with many of the founding and early members of SCCA's Chicago Region taking part in these races. Following the disastrous crash by Pierre Levegh's Mercedes-Benz into the crowd at Le Mans in 1953, many states -- including Wisconsin -- passed legislation banning racing on public roads, and the Elkhart Lake road races were no more.Road America was built in 1955 as a replacement venue, by a corporation headed by Cliff Tufte and financed largely by Chicago Region members. The first race was held in September of 1955. Races drew large and enthusiastic crowds during the 1950s and 1960s, although there were only two or three events held each year, all organized by the Chicago Region of the SCCA. Confounding the pollsters and demographics experts, more than 90% of the attendees at these races came from within 50 miles of the track.
By the mid-1970s the track began to need additional sources of income, and began to hold more events there each year, and events held by other organizations. The Milwaukee and Chicago Regions of the SCCA began to hold Drivers' Schools, Regionals, and more Nationals and Professional series races, and the Midwestern Council also began to race there, and various marque clubs began to hold events there. Currently the AMA, CART, IMSA, and the SCCA hold spectator Professional series races at Road America every year, some of which are televised. With the advent of more Professional series racing, the competitor's and spectator's facilities have undergone continuous improvement, and Road America remains today one of the premier road racing tracks in the world.
For more information about Road America visit their website: RoadAmerica.com