FREE Admission for Military in Uniform for Inaugural Race
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Salutes the Armed Forces
MONTEREY, Calif., January 29, 2014 – In honor of National Military Appreciation Month (May) Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will be offering FREE general admission to all active military and veterans in uniform who attend the Continental Tire Grand Prix, powered by Mazda on Saturday May 3, 2014.
“It is a fitting tribute to the men, women and families who serve our country,” says Gill Campbell, CEO and general manager of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. “And for many of our veterans, it will be a kind of homecoming as our race circuit has long been a fabric of Ford Ord history where many service men and women were stationed.”
The Continental Tire Grand Prix, powered by Mazda, features the Monterey debut of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, America’s all-new premier sports car racing Series. The Series was created by the merger of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car and American Le Mans organizations, both of which had a long history of competing at Mazda Raceway. The TUDOR Championship features two styles of cars, Prototype and GT (Grand Touring). Each style of car has two classes, Pro and Pro-Am, meaning there are four classes of racing on track together, each with their own battle for the lead.
Four other very competitive Series will also be competing May 2-4, the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Mazda MX-5 Cup, IMSA GT3 Challenge by Yokohama and making its first-ever appearance, the Lamborghini Super Trofeo.
The Monterey Peninsula’s love affair with world-class racing traces its beginnings to the inaugural running of the Pebble Beach Road Races in 1950. Those sports car events quickly outgrew the public roads of the Del Monte Forest yet the popularity of the races and the financial impact on the community had impressed the military authorities at Fort Ord and they wanted to pick up where Pebble Beach left off. In 1957 the Sports Car Racing Association of the Monterey Peninsula (SCRAMP), a group of local businessmen dedicated to keeping sports car racing alive on the Monterey Peninsula, began negotiations with the Army to build a race track on Fort Ord property. Major General W.M. Breckenridge cut the ribbon at the new facility for its first race November 9, 1957.
Troops can purchase tickets in advance for other race days and receive 30% military discount by calling the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca ticket office at 800-327-7322. Children 12 and under are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. Free parking is also available.
For more information visit MazdaRaceway.com or call 800-327-7322.