TODD HENRICHS / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Thursday, June 22, 2006 7:00 pm
It was three decades ago when George Anderson, then racing on the famed Hockenheim course in Germany, dreamed of one day pulling together his own track for racing high-performance automobiles.
Anderson’s dream is nearly a reality, as a July opening for Motorsports Park Hastings nears.
And while Hastings may seem worlds apart from Hockenheim, MPH promises to be a similar playground for the fast and affluent.
Recently, only days after Anderson first pitched the idea of building 1,500-square-foot loft-style garages in the track’s infield, a Californian provided plans for his own two-bedroom, two-bath pad with stainless-steel appliances in the kitchen and a deck overlooking some of the 2.3-mile track layout.
Each garage, with space to house two to four automobiles, could command more than $150,000.
“As crazy as it sounds, people buy them like a place on the golf course,” Anderson said.
For now, however, Anderson is focused on providing a track surface that racers will be enthused about.
The track, which features 14 turns, four miles of guard rail and 15,000 tires as safety barriers, is a $4 million project developed by Anderson with the backing of numerous investors, all racing enthusiasts with high-performance cars or motorcycles of their own.
Crews this week were busy preparing the track’s last half-mile of dirt, and it should take another couple of weeks to put down the asphalt. It’s unclear, however, how soon the track will be race-ready.
The track’s first event, coordinated by Rocky Mountain Vintage Racing, is scheduled for July 22-23.
The Motorcycle Roadracing Association follows on the schedule July 29-30 with bikes that can reach speeds of 150 mph.
Anderson won’t know for a few weeks whether both events will need to be rescheduled.
“New asphalt is very hard on tires, and we don’t want to damage the track,” he said. “The good news is all parties know and appreciate what’s going on and we’ll work together to do what we can.”
Once the track is ready to go, Anderson said he expects the facility to be used 32 weekends a year, with some events open to spectators.
In most cases, different groups will rent the facility, but memberships will also be available that will allow enthusiasts to bring their high-performance machines out on a weekday afternoon.
Anderson said you’ll see Porsches and Audis on the track at times, along with his own Cobra. Anderson said building a race-ready Sedan Mustang, for example, would cost $10,000 to $15,000.
While some Nebraskans are active in racing high-performance machines, MPH expects to draw big from Colorado. There, three race tracks have recently shut down to make way for other development.
“A typical racer will drive six to eight hours to race,” Anderson said.
MPH, a track similar to Mid-America Motorplex near Glenwood, Iowa, is located along U.S. 6 just east of Hastings.
Last fall, the site was home to a Sports Car Club of America-sanctioned national RallyCross event. In years past, Anderson has promoted other events, including a race through downtown Hastings in 2002 that was marred when a Trans Am veered into the crowd, injuring 13.
That accident, however, hasn’t stemmed any of the excitement regarding Anderson’s latest plan. In fact, the facility has so many anticipated benefits that officials have a hard time focusing on just one.
“I can’t fathom what all the opportunities are for our community with this,” said Dee Haussler, head of the Hastings Economic Development Corporation. “George incites enthusiasm in anybody and everybody in whatever he’s doing.”
Reach Todd Henrichs at 473-7439 or thenrichs@journalstar.com.