Largest Racing and Driving School Partners with Premier Road Racing Facility
Skip Barber Racing School, Panoz Racing School, and Road Atlanta announced today the signing of a long-term agreement that will provide Skip Barber with a central presence at one of the nation’s most venerable road courses.
Under the agreement, Skip Barber will partner with and assume operational managementof the Panoz Racing School at Road Atlanta, and will become the exclusive provider of drivingand racing schools at Road Atlanta. Skip Barber will lease over 20,000 square feet of classroom,shop and equipment storage facilities at the track to conduct its business operations, and willbecome the single largest renter of track and support paddock days at Road Atlanta.
Panoz Racing School is currently owned and operated by the Panoz Motor Sport Group,LLC, owner of Road Atlanta. Beginning July 1, 2007, Skip Barber will execute previouslyscheduled Panoz Driving School and racing programs, utilizing Panoz GTRA cars but under theSkip Barber brand. Previously scheduled 2007 Panoz Racing Series events will use Panozvehicles and will follow existing Panoz Series competition rules and regulations. Customerreservations and deposits for all aforementioned Panoz Racing School programs will be honoredand managed by Skip Barber Racing School. In the future, programs will use Skip Barbervehicles and a combination of Skip Barber and Panoz Racing School staff and equipment.
Skip Barber rental of Road Atlanta track and paddock days will also commence July 1.The Company will rent approximately 100 days per year to be used for the operation of SkipBarber Racing and Driving Schools, amateur races, track days, and other programs includingOEM (Ride & Drive) events and corporate events. Under the agreement terms Skip Barber willbecome the exclusive provider of OEM events at Road Atlanta.
“Today marks a historic day for both the Panoz Racing School and Skip Barber. Theresources of both organizations – personnel, facilities and equipment – based at Road Atlantawill provide unprecedented opportunities for our customers, staff members and the surroundingcommunity,” said Geoff Lee, president of Panoz Racing School and Road Atlanta.
“Skip Barber Racing School is unquestionably the largest and most dynamic racing school and represents a very complimentary “fit” with the Panoz Racing School which is also highly regarded for its position within the industry. Today’s announcement enables both companies to benefit from each other’s core strengths, creating an unmatched offering of courses, equipment andprofessional expertise. I am confident that these broad offerings, coupled with the allure of RoadAtlanta and the outstanding accommodations that surround us, will soon make this thedestination of choice for corporate event planners, aspiring race car drivers and seasonedveterans alike.”
“We are extremely fortunate to be partnering with Road Atlanta and in particular, withthe Panoz Racing School,” said George Ayres, President of Skip Barber Racing School. “Thisagreement enables Skip Barber to serve a new, major metropolitan market and region of thecountry that is growing. People here are enthusiastic about motorsports. We believe our RacingSchool, Driving School and Race Series customers will be thrilled with the experience that theRoad Atlanta track and facilities offer.”
Ayres continued: “To have the Panoz Racing School staff and instructors as partners is ofparticular benefit to Skip Barber. They have been experts in the world of sportscar racing formany years and will bring a high level of professionalism to our programs, especially our newlylaunched sportscar racing program, the Mazda MX-5 Cup Racing School. Together, we are going to deliver a first-class customer experience.”
The Panoz Racing School is headquartered in Braselton, Georgia with racing and driving schoollocations at both Road Atlanta and Sebring Raceway in Florida. The school originally wasestablished in 1975 as the Road Atlanta Driving School, and after purchase by Panoz MotorSports Group, it was renamed the Panoz Racing School in 1998. Since then, the racing schoolhas been the only one of its kind to use a purpose-built GT Sports Car (the Panoz GTRA racingcar) for its school and a slightly more powerful version for its “arrive and drive” race series, the Panoz Racing Series.
Along with the racing school, PRS manages the Panoz Racing Seriesspotlighted at American le Mans Series crown jewel events -- the legendary Mobil 1 12 Hours ofSebring and the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta. Also included in the Panoz Racing Schoolcorporate umbrella is the Panoz Driving School which has co-branded numerous world-classdriving schools aimed at taking the brand experience and the driver’s road skills to the highest,most enjoyable levels. In fact, the organization has helped to create turnkey programs forMaserati, Porsche, Audi, Subaru and Saab. A separate Panoz Driving School curriculumincludes a unique teen driving school which teaches novice drivers skills to save their own livesand the lives of others on the road.
