2011 Green Grand Prix: Fri., April 15 (Watkins Glen, NY)
 

http://www.greengrandprix.com/images/ggpheader.gif

The announcement for the Watkins Glen Green Grand Prix event came out today and there are some interesting changes for 2011. Namely, the 70+ mile loop around Seneca Lake for the fuel mileage contest has changed in a big way. This just in from event chairman Bob Gillespie:

2011 Green Grand Prix
We are excited to announce that the 2011 Green Grand Prix will be held at the Watkins Glen International race complex. Our annual competitive events will take place entirely on the world famous Grand Prix short course. We expect to host 2 separate fuel economy events: one for present and past production vehicles and another for experimental vehicles. There will be many categories of competiton quite similar to last year’s. TBA.

We will also have an Electrathon race. Our video contest will be expanded. All this will take place on Friday, April 15, 2011. Details to follow.

Entries will be accepted through our Welcome To The Official Green Grand Prix Web Site website starting sometime in January.

Thank you for your past support of the Green Grand Prix and we hope to see you this Spring!

Wishing you a healthy and safe Holiday Season,

Bob Gillespie

Chairman; Green Grand Prix Committee IMRRC

Welcome To The Official Green Grand Prix Web Site

315-694-2812

Wow, that should be interesting!

I'm going :)

That sounds cool, I'm excited! I'm looking forward to seeing more details, I wonder how many laps -- and how fast?

Just saw it in my emails. A FE challenge on a closed course! Look out for record breaking numbers! And this is not an oval, pick your line and get your pulses right, this is going to be really fun.

I'm eager to learn about the distance/time details.

See you there!

Martin

Get ready for some 100MPG+ numbers.

Yeah, the short course (that apparently what will be used) is pretty flat, so the numbers could be high. Still, I love the "Boot" section of the long course with all it's vertical changes, I'd be doing some "quiet coasting" ;) on that part!

Count me in!

http://www.na-motorsports.com/Tracks.../glen/elev.gif

"The Boot" looks like fun, but really bad for the mpg. It's a slow corner at the bottom of a hill that people would be tempted to take fast.

Has anyone confirmed that the former "public roads" challenge will be on the course? I can see an electrathon competition there...

I'm sure the rally (T.S.D.) will continue as usual...

Anyway, exciting :)

Interesting elevation map, thanks Matt. To be clear though, the short course chops off the "Boot" section. The short course is what the Nextel Cup stock cars run on and looks like this:

http://www.google.com/url?source=img...YLHWMpI2tGFC6g

As you can see, there is a connector that can be used to eliminate the Boot.

Aerial view:

http://www.google.com/url?source=img...yDgAQI2KAGFy7w

Hello Darin,

No I haven't but it seems pretty clear to me from Bob's statement: "Our annual competitive events will take place entirely on the world famous Grand Prix short course." I agree that if the local "Glen Region" chapter of the SCCA is once again going to do a road rally in conjunction with the GGP event, that their course would still be on public roads.

Although it would likely be beyond the scope of what the GGP organizers have in mind, I just wanted to add that a closed course event like this would be a perfect venue to adapt some 1 gallon auxiliary fuel cells to the competitors cars. Yes, I know I'm dreaming......

Mike