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In the News
Monticello Airport Transformed Into Auto Racetrack
Sullivan County Democrat
December 21, 2007
MONTICELLO - The old Monticello
Airport is being transformed
into something unique to
more than just Sullivan County.
"There isn't anything like this
out there," proudly asserts Jason
Bannerman, Sales and Marketing
Director for the Monticello Motor
Club.
He's right - a casual Internet
search reveals a bevy of tracks
across the country open to the
public and all sorts of wheeled
machines, but nary a one as
exclusive as what the Monticello
Motor Club (MMC) is planning.
Years back, there was talk of
bringing a NASCAR course to Sullivan
County, but that never got
past the dream phase.
MMC, on the other hand, is
already well into the construction
phase, as anyone who's driven
down Cantrell Road well knows.
The former Monticello Airport's
175 acres are even now turning
into a 4.1-mile curving, hilly track
(the main runway will become
one of the longest straightaways
on the East Coast) that will open
next summer.
Acres of forest have been
cleared and the natural undulations
of the landscape reordered
(by local contractors) in preparation
for a course that will be
demanding and challenging to
those who have a passion for
high-speed thrills.
They'll also have to have the
means. Through its extensive
website, www.monticellomotorclub.
com, MMC is billing itself as
a high-end, exclusive, invitation only
club where members will
have to pay $100,000 to be granted
access and at least $7,500 every
year thereafter.
What they'll get for that payout,
however, will be far more than a 4-
mile track off Route 42.
The latest in exotic sports cars
will be joined by their vintage
forebears inside a full-service
garage at the track, available for
qualified members to drive.
Instructors will offer the training
necessary to be qualified to
drive these powerful, valuable
vehicles, supplemented by in-car
video and telemetrics.
Considering it's just 90 miles
from Manhattan, the club's members
will likely drive to this luxury
playground, but a helipad will be
available for those seeking a
quicker route.
Whether by air or ground, however,
the first thing most visitors
will see will not be the track,
designed by Motorsports Hall of
Famer Brian Redman and racetrack
architect Bruce Hawkins to
feature 12 adjustable configurations.
It will be the five-story, 30,000-
square-foot glass-enclosed clubhouse,
sitting in the middle of the
course.
Inside the curving structure will
be offices, lounges, exercise
machines, luxury rooms for
overnight stays, a spa, a restaurant,
a pro shop and a "tower
room" offering a nearly 360-
degree view of the property.
"We're building an exclusive
luxury brand," explains Bannerman
from inside MMC's well appointed
offices in the Southern
Tier Title building on Broadway in
Monticello.
Guests of members will be
allowed, but except for special
events, the entire property will
only be open to those who work
and play there.
Future plans include off-road
and go-kart tracks that may have
a wider audience, but even in the
expansion dreams, there is exclusivity:
"auto-miniums" where the
well-heeled can live trackside, a
five-star hotel, a vehicle customization
facility and even
secure storage. (More than 700
acres are owned in total, much of
them across Cantrell Road from
the club site.)
For now, the goal of new owner
Bill McMichael (he just bought it
from original developer Michael
Kaplan) and crew is to get the
facility running and attract up to
500 members from around the
world.
It's a short amount of time to
ensure not only buildings and
grounds are in place but also luxury
items like concierge and valet
services, a web-based reservation
system, and helmets and uniforms.
They have an experienced team
already working on that.
McMichael is the 40-something
owner of several healthcare businesses
and an enthusiastic lover
of cars. Indeed, he was one of the
first to sign up for membership in
Kaplan's Drive and Race Club, the
precursor to the Monticello Motor
Club. When Kaplan sought to sell
earlier this year, McMichael
bought the land and business
from him.
Bannerman, 36, spent 10 years
with an industry-leading racing
and driving school and still owns
a marketing firm geared to that
world. He's proficient in driving
and training on the fastest cars
built by every major automobile
manufacturer in the world.
Chief Operating Officer Ari
Strauss, 38, "is also a car guy," as
Bannerman puts it, who's built
and managed many a business.
"We're all passionate automotive
enthusiasts . . . [who] want to
make sure each and every level of
customer interaction is done to
convey excellence," says Bannerman. "We want future members'
first impression to be of a high end,
premium, first-class environment.
"This will be the Four Seasons of
racing."
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