Southern Alberta's $35M racetrack looks at spring opening
3.5-kilometre track will have 16 turns, 38-metres of elevation change
Race car enthusiasts are revved up about the new $35-million racetrack under construction near Carstairs, Alta.
It's been almost a decade since southern Alberta had a motorsports racetrack, and the one being built at Rocky Mountain Motorsports shouldn't disappoint.
The track — which is located at the Carstairs overpass about 20 minutes north of Calgary — broke ground last September. It will be 3.5 kilometres and have 16 turns, including 38 metres of elevation change.
While it's still not ready for cars to cruise on, it has been fully paved and Dominic Young, the president and CEO of Rocky Mountain Motorsports, is happy to see it.
"We set out in 2012 to create a world-class motorsports facility for the province of Alberta. And now, here in 2021, we finally accomplished that," he said.
Membership for the track will cost $37,000, which the CEO says goes toward maintaining the grounds.
"We understand that our membership prices are not for everyone … but the fact of the matter is, those people that are able to buy memberships are actually providing the capital to build this," Young said.
WATCH | See what preparations are underway
"And if we reserve half the time for the membership, then there's still the other half for the public to use it through various means, like through car clubs."
He adds it will also be rented out to a performance driving school that will teach better driving skills for all levels of drivers.
So far, there are already 125 members, but Young says there's still room for those who are interested.
"We have had a few of our members out to do quality tests of the track. And I mean, they come off [and] just got grins from ear to ear, and they can't believe the quality of the track, and the quality of the features."
He says while the track's opening is running behind, the plan is to still have it fully up and running by the spring. It was originally slated to open this past summer.
But the construction won't stop there. Young says the group already has plans to develop a commercial zone west of the property, such as member car condos.
"Going forward, as we develop those other phases of our development, we expect that there could be hundreds of jobs created. So this is a real economic boost for this area of Alberta."
Young says the plan is to make the racetrack a real tourism destination for the province.