F1US Names President And Expands Upon Leadership Team

We just received this press release from F1US:

Sexton Named President of the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix (TM) and Center

Owners Tap Experience of Former Churchill Downs Executive

AUSTIN, Texas - February 21, 2011 - Steve Sexton, former President and CEO of Churchill Downs Entertainment and former President of Churchill Downs, has joined the Formula 1 United States management team as President. Sexton's appointment strengthens an executive team engaged in creating the country's finest international motorsports and entertainment center.

"Steve brings more than 25 years of major sports and entertainment management experience to our project. He understands our aspirations as an owners group and we have every confidence he will be a tremendous asset to our operation going forward," said Tavo Hellmund, founding partner and Chairman of the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix(TM).

Sexton assumed the role of President of Churchill Downs Entertainment in 2009 after serving as President of Churchill Downs racetrack. He was appointed Executive Vice President of Racing Operations for Churchill Downs Inc. in 2002 and delivered six consecutive years of growth for the venue, posting the second, third and fourth highest attendance records for the Kentucky Derby. Sexton is also a veteran of planning and construction of large-scale facilities. In 2004-2005, he led the team that completed a $121 million Churchill Downs grandstand construction, establishing 80 luxury suites and seven exclusive hospitality areas. In addition, he was a key member of the team that constructed and operated Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie, located in Grand Prairie, Texas, a $96 million project that opened in 1997.

"Bruce Knox provides strong leadership for the Formula 1 United States project and will continue in his executive role. Steve Sexton complements the team and will build upon their success," stated Red McCombs, founding partner of the Formula 1 United States project. "He is the right man for the job."

"We are creating a world-class business and entertainment destination," said Bobby Epstein, a founding partner in the Formula 1 project. "Steve's experience in managing premier events like the Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup positions us to deliver an experience that will become known around the world. I know all of us are excited to be working with him on this monumental project."

This is Sexton's fifth time leading a major sports entertainment destination. Along with his time at Churchill Downs, he served as President of Arlington Park where he led the first of two Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championship events for the publicly-traded Churchill Downs, Incorporated. Prior positions include Vice President and General Manager at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas; General Manager of Thistledown in Cleveland; and Assistant General Manager at Ladbroke's Golden Gate Fields in San Francisco.

"This project represents a unique opportunity for the City of Austin and the State of Texas to be the focal point for a world-wide audience," stated Sexton. "I am very pleased to join the talented team the owners have assembled and am excited to be a part of building a showcase that attracts diverse visitors from around the world and opens new education, innovation and research opportunities to benefit the global community."

Sexton began work with the Formula 1 United States team on Friday, February 18, 2011.

TEDxAustin: Tavo Hellmund Speaks in Austin

Image courtesy of TEDxAustinTavo Hellmund spoke this afternoon in Austin at a satellite event of TED, known as TEDxAustin.  TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design and is a series of global conferences designed to culminate idea-sharing. In his speech, Tavo highlighted several things, not only some interesting things about F1 in Austin, but also his mantra as a person.

He began in a very humble manner, acknowledging the other speakers invited to talk at the event, but Tavo quickly dove into explaining his perspective on the future of Austin and his desire to engage the community.  His vision for the new racing facilities will effect the lives of so many people and in order to succeed, the facility needs to be used year round, capitalizing on the technological and educational potential which Austin culminates.  We think that his message was well received and important to understanding the long term success of his goals.

He highlighted that, not only will this facility bring 300,000 people to the city, create jobs, and attract 500 million viewers in 180 countries around the world, but these are just the F1 weekend numbers and just a the tip of the iceberg of the potential he sees in the overall plan.

Some of the key points Tavo mentioned about the F1 facility itself:

Algae research, like what UT Biology Department conducts.There will be a large focus on the Educational component of the track.  Education has always been a big part of his life, and since the tragic loss of a very good friend of his, Tavo launched his Safe & Sober® campaign to target educational outreach in order to help spread the message of driving safety.

Lance Armstrong in UT's Human Performance Lab, Image Courtesy of UTResearch will be a huge part of this facility and Tavo higlighted two major component of this research: an engineering facility focused on alternative energy research (hopefully partnering with UT Biology Department's research in Algae), as well as research labs in human performance, probably also in close relationship with UT's Human Performance Lab.

Overall, the talk allowed Tavo to really set the stage for the future of not only Formula 1, but the long term success of the region to help ensure true sustainability through a year round calendar at this exciting new facility.

 Here are some of Tavo's unofficial quotes that Kerri tweeted during the speech:

"It's going to be an awesome track!"

     "We're going to have the closest thing to a traditional grand prix track, like the ones 30 years ago, here in Austin."

     "I'm hoping this project, which is getting all the attention, gives Austin more than the economic impact."

     "Recognize the power within you and realize how to develop and use it."

     "What drives you? Fear of failure."

"It's not about how fast a car can go, it's about how fast that PERSON in the car can go."

Tavo Hellmund speaking at TEDxAustin on February 22, 2011. Image copyright The Austin Grand Prix.

     "F1 is the most cutting edge of technology-the advancements in your car were developed in last 35 years from F1."

     "Everyone knows about the splurges of success over central TX" (...becase of relocation of huge companies to Austin).

"If you build it they will come...will that work?"

     "Kids today are more impressed with the delivery of the message, more by the method; than with the message itself."

      "We're going to design something to use the other 362 days of the year - including an educational component; we're working with university and elementary school systems..."

      "What happens after the [F1] weekend? Of course we're going to do other events outside one weekend."

It was exciting to see Tavo on stage with many other creative minds. It was also great to hear him interact with and update the Austin community on this large and exciting project. We hope this is the beginning of many more public discussions.

Update

on 2011-03-24 22:01 by Kerri Olsen

Here is the official TEDxAustin video of Tavo's presentation.

Introducing Your Crash Course in Formula 1 Racing: F101©

What is Formula 1?

How is it different from other racing?

How fast do the cars go?

Image courtesy of How Stuff Works. © 2007

These are the first three questions I get when I talk to people in my social and professional circles. For the veteran F1 fan these questions might stimulate an eye roll accompanied with a deep sigh ("Where, oh WHERE do I begin!?") but for the majority of Americans these are very real and valid questions.

Over the holidays Kevin and I began to work on a new educational feature of our website. It's called F101©.

Over the past nine months we've witnessed first hand the enthusiastic reaction of novice and veteran F1 fans to the announcement of Austin as the future home of the United States Grand Prix.  Some of you know quite well that we started this site because we were frustrated with the lack of dedicated and reliable news sources reporting on this monumental (to a few of us at least ;) news. Since then the number of online sources has grown radically, but we still pride ourselves in delivering valuable and innovative content.

It's no surprise that there is a whole new demographic that wants to learn about F1 racing. We're launching F101© as a creative alternative to the other educational sites (no offense, Wikipedia). Each week we'll answer 3-5 questions about F1 and also have an option for readers to submit their own inquiries.

Our goal is to continue to educate and network with our fans - we hope you'll participate!

Here it is: our F101© page

Thank you for your support :)

-kerri

Track Site Visit and Highlights of the Facilities

Today we want to introduce you to a few exciting things:

1.   Kevin and I shot our first on-location video at the future track site in Elroy, Texas. It took a few takes (HA!) but we’re really pleased with being able to share with you actual footage of us at the track site and an in-person perspective of what is currently in Elroy and what is to come. Though we do expect track construction will ramp up in the next few weeks, we wanted to give you a view of the site before things start to really change on the ground.

Track Site Visit January 30th, 2011 from The Austin Grand Prix on Vimeo.

2.   We’ve also spent a lot of time thinking about our interactions with you, our fans and readers, and how to deliver the most unique experience. Why do you want to keep coming back to TAGP website? Why do you follow us on Twitter and interact with us via our Facebook page? We launched this site on May 25, 2010 because we, ourselves, were having a hard time finding interesting and credible news. We were literally scouring the internet for any and all news surrounding the official FIA announcement of F1 coming to Austin. We didn’t want you to have to go through the same trouble so we launched this site as a hub for all info with the hopes of becoming the #1 fan site for F1 fans worldwide who want to learn more about Austin, and Austinites who want to learn more about Formula One racing. As more sites begin to populate the web, we’ve discovered a deeper niche that needs to be filled: sure you can Google “Austin” and read all about it on Wikipedia. But what does Austin look like when you step off the plane? What does the drive from Elroy, Texas to 6^th Street look like? With our combined love, respect and excitement about Austin, we’d like to re-introduce ourselves as your “Austin Ambassadors.” We’re committed to taking the two-dimensional approach of information delivery and amping it up to three-dimensional: engaging videos and interviews so you start to familiarize yourself with this great city as you prepare for your many trips to Austin starting in 2012!

3.  Choices Choices Choices! We’ve been listening to fan feedback and are expanding our merchandise line. We will soon offer a different style of t-shirt (a more traditional make with a heavier fabric), a different cut (women’s tees) and more COLORS! We’ll also be adding additional products in the coming months as we continue to market The Austin Grand Prix via our adopted slogan: COME AND RACE IT©!

Thank you for an amazing eight months. We are extremely excited about continuing to expand our reach as the #1 fan site for Formula One returning to the United States via Austin, Texas in 2012!

Here are some photos from our visit in November, 2010 as well:

 View of Track Site from the South West Corner

View of Downtown Austin from Highway 812

Austin Site Work Underway - Pre-Construction Begins

Tavo Hellmund with Ranger Construction Contractor (Courtesy of Jay Janner, staff photographer at the Austin American-Statesman)The video posted by the Austin American-Statesman last Thursday, December 30, 2010, claimed that groundbreaking on the site took place and construction is underway at the track.  While it’s enough to be excited about, we don’t recommend having a heart attack just yet.  Rumors and misunderstandings are floating all around the internet, some reaching as far as to say there was an official ceremony and who was in attendance, but these claims are overextended, lacking the facts.

One of the official stories, posted yesterday by Formula 1 International, included that the groundbreaking ceremony had taken place and that the construction is underway.  This is only partially correct; yes, technically they "broke ground," however there was not an official "groundbreaking ceremony" to celebrate this momentous occasion.  We will continue to keep our loyal fans and followers up to date on the latest news.  FYI, we have reliable hints that an official ceremony will happen "early this year."

We're pleased to explain with confidence that preliminary site work has begun, marking the first stage of construction.  This work is on track with Tavo Hellmunds' plans for an official construction start date before the end of 2010.  Though this preliminary work is small in scale to the overall project, it does signify the track is moving ahead as discussed.

Ranger Contractors performing drilling for soil stability tests (Courtesy of Jay Janner, staff photographer at the Austin American-Statesman)As seen in the Statesman article, Ranger Excavating, a subcontractor for lead contractor Austin Commercial, is currently performing soil sampling on the site for testing.  This is a survey to determine what equipment will be needed and what strategy will be employed to start excavation.  They seem to have a pretty serious resume as well, working on AMD's new campus in Austin and the UT Football Stadium's North End Zone renovation.

The other major operation right now is the relocation of the natural gas line that runs through the site.  If you recall, movement of the gas line was a concern in the permitting process and was a possible risk that needed to be mitigated.  On December 14, 2010, thanks to the overwhelming support of fans around the world, this approval was passed by the Travis County Commissioners.  Back in November, our loyal followers crashed the Austin City Council's streaming video server largely due to Kerri’s work to mobilize fans via twitter (whoops! :).  We are not aware of how far along this portion of the pipeline relocation work is, but we hope that this will move smoothly and formal excavation can begin right away!

Though nothing is actually being constructed, we recognize this is great milestone for F1US and supporters of the track.  Stay tuned as the news unfolds; we will continue to deliver reliable and consistent content to our readers and we look forward to your feedback.

Note: all images in this post are by Jay Janner, staff photographer at the Austin American-Statesman.  Check out his awesome photos at his website.

Descending Upon The Austin Grand Prix - Site Visit Part I

On Friday, November 13, I hopped on yet another friendly Southwest Air flight from Chicago to Austin, but first made a few stops in Kansas City and Dallas.  This time the stops were welcomed because they allowed me to change seats (while waiting on new passengers to board the plane) and grill my Pilot on how we would be flying into Austin.  I texted Kevin to find out exactly where the future F1US site was located geographically in relation to the airport.  He quickly responded and then I pulled the pilot aside for a rather abnormal question:

“So, I have a really technical question.  Say I wanted to look out the window on our descent into Austin and see a parcel of land located about a mile and a half southeast of the airport.  What side of the plane should I be sitting on?” <insert smile and charm>

The pilot thought for about 2.5 seconds and then responded, very matter-of-factly, yet somewhat puzzled, “On the right side.”

I thanked him and took my seat in 1F – the window seat on the right side of the plane.  When we were taking off from Dallas we passed over the oldDallas Cowboys football stadium – the one that has a retractable roof.  Legend has it that Jerry Jones (Dallas Cowboys team owner) wanted the roof to open so that "God could watch his team play."

Cowboy's Stadium in Dallas, by HKS ArchitectsThat’s how American football works in Texas – kids start playing at age 9 and don’t stop until college or later if they’re lucky. 

It’s interesting to note that HKS Architects designed the new Cowboys stadium and they’re the architects joining Herman Tilkke for design of the Austin track and site.

Here is a promo video of the new Cowboys stadium.  Although it is really poor quality, you can start to get a feel for HKS Architect's work.  How do you think they will incorporate their work with Hermann Tilke? 

(IMHO HKS has a better high quality flash video on their company website:  HKS Sports)

Though about 200 miles south of Dallas, the flight to Austin Downtown Austin from above Elroy, TXis a quick one, and about thirty five minutes later we were making our descent into Austin Bergstrom International Airport.  We swung out to the southeast and then made a sharp hairpin turn to enter the airport headed north.   My seat on the right side of the plane allowed me to look out the window, an east-facig view, and setup for the perfect shot of the site and future track location; a view no one has shared with fans until now.  I was so excited about the idea of getting a closer look that I started snapping pictures as we got closer to the airport and to my surprise, the flight path gave me a perfect view of the site.  It's safe to say that future passengers flying into Austin from the south will pass above the track and have a perfect view of this new Austin icon.  Pretty cool, eh?

The following diagram shows the flight path we took while approaching Austin and the direction of my camera for each of the track site images.  In total, four of the images I took give a perfect view of the site and should help you understand the terrain and location a bit better (more images in the Gallery).

 Diagram of Flight Path and Images, by Kevin Olsen

Image 01

Image 02

Image 03

Image 04