RaceWorld - Saudi Arabia

[tausif]

We have just opened a brand new kart track in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Its mainly a rental karting facility but a very highly specced one. We are looking at hosting some kart race events as well.

Will post some pictures later.

[tausif]

View of the track from main road and from inside the Welcome Center.

[tausif]

The Kart Track was just a teaser. I have got the owner of Race World interested in building a new Club Circuit.

They have land measuring 670m X 580m, located at:

Lat 24°54'5.43"N

Lon 46°55'9.83"E


Here's the brief for some suggestions from your side:

Should include 4 distinct tracks; a Club Circuit, a Kart Track, a MotoX track, and a Sand Drag Strip.
Adequate space for pits & paddock, driving school, clubhouse, & on-site parking facilities.


Please have a go at it.

[Luke Kinsella]

a quick sketch.

If you're intersted in the project I'll do a more accurate one

http://img264.imageshack.us/my.php?image=projzh9.png

[tausif]

Luke Kinsella: some good ideas there. Some additions to our brief:

Owner would like separate tracks to be able to operate independently.
Avoiding a bridge/tunnel would be preferred.
Sand drag strip is only a 100m affair with 200m for shutdown (so a total of about 350m is sufficient)
What length of Club Circuit is realistically possible?

More designers, how about a go at it?

[LuiggiSpeed]

I will ,give me some time.

[LuiggiSpeed]

Originally Posted by tausif

The Kart Track was just a teaser. I have got the owner of Race World interested in building a new Club Circuit.

They have land measuring 670m X 580m, located at:

Lat 24°54'5.43"N

Lon 46°55'9.83"E


Here's the brief for some suggestions from your side:

Should include 4 distinct tracks; a Club Circuit, a Kart Track, a MotoX track, and a Sand Drag Strip.
Adequate space for pits & paddock, driving school, clubhouse, & on-site parking facilities.


Please have a go at it.

Wow that's a lot of stuff inside 97 acres,but I'm the small club/tight budget specialist so I had a go.

My project has a nice club circuit adequate for street cars,GT, touring class and all kinds of motorcycles,circuit length I guesstimated at 2.5 Km with a main straight a tad short of 500 m and plenty of run-off in the mandatory places.It runs CCW.There's a surrounding avenue that connects the different tracks.

The club building it's quite unique, very modern design with a view of the best parts of the circuit and a whole balcony from where drag races can be watched while zipping refreshments (non-alcoholic,I don't want any heads rolling on Fridays) All parts of the track can be accessed by ambulance fairly easy.

Karting track has a main straight of 165 m with an aprox 1 Km circuit length,and the MX track it's full of whoops,table tops and double jumps,it's roughly supercross sized and appropiate for all skill levels. Staging area for both the MX and Karting track connects with parking 2.

Many details are not finished in the graphics,so I leave them to your imagination,but I'm sure you can pretty much visualize that such a facility is feasable in 97 acres, if you make eficient use of the space.

Mandatory top view:


The drag races can be watched from either the roof deck or from behind the glass windows,while enjoying air conditioned controlled climate.



The MX track is supercross sized,fits roughly a 100 m stadium



Some other views:






If you're interested, I can send you the SKTHup files,so you can read out the exact measurements,the project has been fitted to a 580 m x 670 m square and I presume no elevation changes in general.

Luiggi

[tausif]

Sorry I have been MIA for some weeks.

Our kart track was going through an explosive growth phase and demanded all possible attention.

LuiggiSpeed: can you try to switch the club circuit pits towards the sand drag / common paddock. Idea is to avoid a bridge / tunnel situation.

Do you think the facilities can operate independently?

Very nice effort, I will be reviewing more closely over the next few days.

[tausif]

Wow that's a lot of stuff inside 97 acres,but I'm the small club/tight budget specialist so I had a go.

My project has a nice club circuit adequate for street cars,GT, touring class and all kinds of motorcycles,circuit length I guesstimated at 2.5 Km with a main straight a tad short of 500 m and plenty of run-off in the mandatory places.It runs CCW.There's a surrounding avenue that connects the different tracks.

The club building it's quite unique, very modern design with a view of the best parts of the circuit and a whole balcony from where drag races can be watched while zipping refreshments (non-alcoholic,I don't want any heads rolling on Fridays) All parts of the track can be accessed by ambulance fairly easy.

Karting track has a main straight of 165 m with an aprox 1 Km circuit length,and the MX track it's full of whoops,table tops and double jumps,it's roughly supercross sized and appropiate for all skill levels. Staging area for both the MX and Karting track connects with parking 2.

Many details are not finished in the graphics,so I leave them to your imagination,but I'm sure you can pretty much visualize that such a facility is feasable in 97 acres, if you make eficient use of the space.

Do you have experience in getting FIA and CIK approvals for your track designs?

Can the kart track be split into a junior track and the main track (both should be able to run simultaneously).

What about a service road network around the club circuit?

[LuiggiSpeed]

LuiggiSpeed: can you try to switch the club circuit pits towards the sand drag / common paddock. Idea is to avoid a bridge / tunnel situation.

There's no real need of any big changes,just make the facilities building smaller and label the remaining area as "Club circuit pits".The building itself it's kind of huge, aprox 300 mt long, which is more like a mega-big warehouse.A smaller building would get the job done, IMHO.I also have a non-bridge non-tunnels policy when modeling.

Do you think the facilities can operate independently?

Absolutely, that was my goal when thinking it out.

Do you have experience in getting FIA and CIK approvals for your track designs?

First off, remember this is just a forum where amateur designers discuss around fantasy designs,some like myself,try to keep it real and use reality and cost efficient methods,therefore any *official* approval is educated guess at best.

However,at a local and Latin America level, I have submitted designs and modifications to existing tracks that have received the blessings from the officials of such entities.I have enough knowledge of racing and physics that I can make sensible designs and I have seen real tracks that look like they were designed by the janitor,as well.Any piece of track of any size and shape with sufficient inspiration may be used for racing,as they are all be racing the same track. Safety ,however, it's the most important parameter I would consider,followed by technical aspects such as a long straight,a balanced number of left turns vs. right turns, different types of challenges for pilots, etc.

However, I have to say that basically ANY track will receive approval from any organization if you have friends in the right places.I have raced in places you won't believe how dangerous yet they had "approvals" just because there are many interest flowing.That's a fact of life.

Can the kart track be split into a junior track and the main track (both should be able to run simultaneously).

Yes but I will have to redesign the karting track,so that it can be split and still have two good circuits.At this moment I don't see two good tracks happening but that can be easyly fix.

What about a service road network around the club circuit?

The outer "frame" of the top view represents the "Interconecting Ave." which is a road that *interconnects* all circuits and facilities.If you include "Parking 1" and "Parking 2" asphalt parts, there's ambulance and service network accesible to any part of the circuit.Again, in real life it should be no problem to label a small,12-feet wide lane for ambulance acces.

We can always "move" stuff around for as long as it's a drawing!!!

[tausif]

After discussions with the Race World owner, there is more exciting news. He has another piece of land where we are now thinking of switching the off-road bits to. The sand drag and the motox track can now go to another independent facility. This leaves more room for the club circuit and the kart track.

LuiggiSpeed: Any ideas on the lengths of club circuit and kart track? After removing the sand drag and motox tracks, how much longer can the two tracks be made. It is important to expand the kart track to have junior and senior tracks. I guess more space is also required for the kart paddock.

Please have a go. Others out there some more thoughts?

[tausif]

We have one of the commissioned designs for our new project in Saudi. The brief was given before the owner decided to move Sand Drag and the MotoX track out of this complex entirely.

Thus we have the area covered by these two track to be used for a possible expansion of the Club Circuit. Any suggestions?

[LuiggiSpeed]

Originally Posted by tausif

We have one of the commissioned designs for our new project in Saudi. The brief was given before the owner decided to move Sand Drag and the MotoX track out of this complex entirely.

Thus we have the area covered by these two track to be used for a possible expansion of the Club Circuit. Any suggestions?

Very professional drawing, your design looks very clean, but I'm afraid your circuit will be left somehow short, main straight is less than 300m, more of a big carting track, while my proposal would have a 469m long straigth and circuit is a good deal longer.

Glad to see you came back!

[MKTurismo]

LuiggiSpeed you seem very knowledgeable about this field/industry. Currently I hold a degree in occupational technology and I studied automotive technology. If I wanted to get into your field of track design what course programs would I need? Architecture? Industrial engineering?

Thanks, Mark

[LuiggiSpeed]

Originally Posted by MKTurismo

LuiggiSpeed you seem very knowledgeable about this field/industry. Currently I hold a degree in occupational technology and I studied automotive technology. If I wanted to get into your field of track design what course programs would I need? Architecture? Industrial engineering?

Thanks, Mark

Thanks Mark, I am only an amateur racer,with an engineering background and a love for physics.

I also have an agenda of getting a circuit built in my country,before I'm gone.

[MKTurismo]

Originally Posted by LuiggiSpeed

Thanks Mark, I am only an amateur racer,with an engineering background and a love for physics.

I also have an agenda of getting a circuit built in my country,before I'm gone.

That would be an awesome goal to achieve!
I just got out of school a month ago and I want to get into some of the regional racing events so I can get my experience but first I have to find a job in this rough economy. But after I get settled here my next big move is to study engineering at one of the local universities. Track design is very appealing to me because I've always been interested in architecture and road racing of course.
Thanks for sharing the info also!

[tausif]

Originally Posted by LuiggiSpeed

Very professional drawing, your design looks very clean, but I'm afraid your circuit will be left somehow short, main straight is less than 300m, more of a big carting track, while my proposal would have a 469m long straigth and circuit is a good deal longer.

Glad to see you came back!

The owner of Race World wants a slow track! The reason being that motorsport was actually banned in the Kingdom and the ban has only recently been removed. In the absence of any motorsport history, it would be wise to err on the side of caution. Thus the desire for a slow(er) course.

We are very keen to add an extension to the club circuit. In the meantime the final municipal approvals are now very close. We should be ready to build very soon. Although "soon" according to Saudi standards has a different measure to rest of the world.

[Quintin03]

Originally Posted by tausif

the final municipal approvals are now very close. We should be ready to build very soon. Although "soon" according to Saudi standards has a different measure to rest of the world.

Much faster than in the Netherlands thats certain. It took over a decade to tear down an illegal racetrack while it's taken atleast half that time including during the time when the track was still active to replace it, that's right illegal things being legalised in different locations. I'm talking about Circuit de Peel near Venray also known as Raceway Venray. A single race and an earlier exhibition have been held already but more trouble has come up and an earlier research for the new location is being done again but with a larger search radius. This means that from 2011 I'll be able to go to my local permanent track. For now I've got to do with a single national motorcycle race at Oss and karting at Berghem for racing nearby.

Still I've got nothing to complain as atleast I have racing which in Saudi-Arabia is almost non existent.

Also I'd like to know what circuits there were in the Kingdom before the ban if any of if this ban was made for accidents in other countries or even for nothing at all.

[tausif]

Originally Posted by Quintin03

Much faster than in the Netherlands thats certain. It took over a decade to tear down an illegal racetrack while it's taken atleast half that time including during the time when the track was still active to replace it, that's right illegal things being legalised in different locations. I'm talking about Circuit de Peel near Venray also known as Raceway Venray. A single race and an earlier exhibition have been held already but more trouble has come up and an earlier research for the new location is being done again but with a larger search radius. This means that from 2011 I'll be able to go to my local permanent track. For now I've got to do with a single national motorcycle race at Oss and karting at Berghem for racing nearby.

Still I've got nothing to complain as atleast I have racing which in Saudi-Arabia is almost non existent.

Also I'd like to know what circuits there were in the Kingdom before the ban if any of if this ban was made for accidents in other countries or even for nothing at all.

The ban was semi-official, cannot say much publicly but it was a mistaken religious opinion saying that motorsport is against the religion. Nobody questioned this opinion for many many years.

There was no circuit in Saudi before 2007. Some off-road events and some parking lot style events took place in the country on temporary venues.

[Quintin03]

Originally Posted by tausif

The ban was semi-official, cannot say much publicly but it was a mistaken religious opinion saying that motorsport is against the religion. Nobody questioned this opinion for many many years.

There was no circuit in Saudi before 2007. Some off-road events and some parking lot style events took place in the country on temporary venues.

Religios people saying what others should or shouldn't do while not even knowing it themselves, I'd say that's for nothing at all.

[LuiggiSpeed]

Originally Posted by tausif

The owner of Race World wants a slow track! The reason being that motorsport was actually banned in the Kingdom and the ban has only recently been removed. In the absence of any motorsport history, it would be wise to err on the side of caution. Thus the desire for a slow(er) course.

We are very keen to add an extension to the club circuit. In the meantime the final municipal approvals are now very close. We should be ready to build very soon. Although "soon" according to Saudi standards has a different measure to rest of the world.

oh I can totally understand that, good luck, let us know how things are going we love to see one of the tracks published here getting built!