CRA: The New Race Series Coming to the West Coast in 2021
(Buttonwillow, CA) In Spring 2021, Buttonwillow Raceway Park in California will be opening an additional course, adding to their already impressive facility. A few months later, the new track will play host to a new motorcycle race series: California Roadrace Association.
“I’m super excited. 18 years ago, I talked to Les Phillips about starting a series at Buttonwillow but his answer was a hard ‘No.’ His track weekends were already all booked up and there was no room for a new series. When I heard he was breaking ground on a new circuit, I didn’t waste any time and asked again. This time, he said, ’Maybe.’ And ‘Maybe’ means ‘Yes.’ right? After that, things started coming together pretty quickly. Gigi and Daniel came onboard and together we are going to build something great. I can feel it. I’ve been involved in running New Racer Schools and building other clubs for well over 10 years. I am an entrepreneur at heart. I’m proud of what I’ve done with my TrackDaz program and I’m excited to put that energy to building a racer series,” said CRA Co-Founder Dustin Coyner.
The central location of Buttonwillow Raceway makes it convenient to racers in both Northern and Southern California as well as Oregon, Nevada, Washington, and Arizona. CRA will be running a Spring/Summer series in 2021 with 5 rounds. Racing will happen on both the new track as well as the existing track. The schedule will be finalized in the coming weeks.
“U.S. road racing is in a period of regrowth. At the top, MotoAmerica is working very hard to repopularize the sport, rebuild a fanbase and bring in sponsors. From the bottom, we need street riders to become track riders and track riders to become racers. This can’t be a passive process. For our sport to survive and thrive, racing organizations need to be actively helping it grow. CRA is going to do this,” said CRA Co-Founder Daniel Mole.
CRA is racer-focused and not looking to reinvent the wheel. The class structure will be simple and will match up with other clubs. This will allow competitors the ability to show up and race without the need for a decoder ring to understand where their machine fits. There will be Open, Middleweight, Twins and Ultra-Lightweight classes. A few interesting additions will be the GT races on Saturday and the American Iron class. The GT races will be longer format: 20 laps for the 1000s and 600s, and 16 laps for the Twins and 400s. American Iron will bring the baggers to Buttonwillow.
“I’ve been involved in the motorcycle and road racing community for 8 years and, aside from the initial MotoAmerica announcement, I can’t remember the last time racers on the West Coast were this excited. I am really encouraged by the responses we are getting. Every racer I talk to says the same thing: ‘Count me in! When does it start?’ Bridging the gap of converting track day riders into racers is what CRA is all about; cultivating the motorsport road race community. It’s an amazing feeling to know people are this excited,” said CRA Co-Founder Gigi Chow.
For more information, visit: www.race-cra.com
