Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (May 21, 2008)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday. May 21,2008 - FIVE Former racing driver named director of track events G earing up for its grand opening in the sum mer o f 2009, the manage ment o f Pacific Northwest Motorsports Park ( PN W M P ) has named Mike Silcox, a former racecar driver and member of the promotion al team that brought the American Lemans Series to Portland, as the motorsports country club’s director o f track events. “ Mike is a terrific addition to Pacific N orth w est M otorsports P ark ,” said Bill Gardner, the man aging p artn er o f P acific Northwest Motorsports Park and former NASCAR Cup Championship team owner. “He is uniquely qualified for th is p o sitio n having been involved in just about every aspect of motor sports, from his first-hand experi ence behind the wheel o f a race car to overseeing track time and w orking behind the scenes to establish and market events. I’m confident that he’ll develop an excep tional calendar of events and programs fro the track.” As director o f track events, Silcox is responsible for scheduling track time, developing a curriculum for the PNWMP corporate driving school program and creating special events. He is already w orking w ith the sanctioning bodies for certain NASCAR divisions, Sports Car, Open W heel, SCCA and motorcycle rac ing to schedule events at the track and visits from nationally acclaimed driv ing schools such as the Skip B arber and The R ichard Petty Experience. “ It’s very exciting to have the opportunity to build a program for Pacific Northwest Motorsports Park from the ground level,” said Silcox. “I enjoy racing o f all kinds, and the program will reflect that diversity. I’m planning a varied menu o f events and driving opportu nities that will be appealing to a broad audience o f race fans.” Over the course o f the next few months, Sil cox will conduct a series o f private briefing events for motorsports enthusiasts and car clubs in Portland, Seattle, WA, Boise, ID, and Sacramento, CA to unveil the design for the six-plus mile, m ulti-configuration road course and assess track time needs. During his career as a driver (1983-2002), Sil cox drove SCCA Formula Ford/Club Ford cars, Barber Dodge series; IMSA Super cars for CROYCO Racing; Kohler Racing Mustang in the SCCA Trans-Am series, TKO Southwest/Northwest N A SC A R Tour D ivision and the A m erican V iper Racing Vipers in the ALMS series. He is a 1982 gradu ate o f B ondurant Racing School, and was an instruc tor at the prestigious Skip B arber Racing School in the late 1980’s. In addition, he participated with AMG, Porsche, Viper and Corvette track days and often assisted individual groups with their track d ay ’s activities. He developed the initial cur riculum and coordinated racecars, for the Johnny Rutherford Racing School Heppner in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area in Texas. In addition to play ing a vital role in bringing the ALMS race to Portland (1998-2000) as the Rose City Grand Pix; Silcox over saw the development o f the “ Summer W hites” charity event. He owns and man ages TKO Motorsports, and was the team manager o f the ULHRA Impact Hydros Team for six years. In the early 1990s, Silcox was the marketing director for the Dallas Grand Prix Associa tion responsible for sponsor ships and group ticket sales, and coordinating special race events. Other events he has worked to promote include Z u p an ’s H istoric Races, the AMG Ride and Drive at Road America and the B rew er’s Fest in Port land. Silcox has also worked in sales capacities for na tionally known firms includ ing Time-Warner Telecom, GTE Southwest and Merrill Lynch. Pacific N orthw est Motorsports Parks is sched uled to open in the summer o f 2009. The six-plus road course at the heart o f the country club, made up o f three in dividual courses ap p ro x im a tin g tw o -p lu s miles each, will facilitate all types o f racing, including formula cars, sports racers, production racers, vintage cars, stock cars, street cars and m otorcycles. Two o f the courses and the facili ties will be available to rent for corporate team-building activities, and to car clubs or individuals. Already under con struction, Pacific Northwest M o to rsp o rts Park is the first phase o f the Master- Planned Motorsports desti nation complex to be built in Boardman over the next 10 years. When completed, it will also include a one mile kart track, % mile drag strip, a 5/8 mile asphalt oval, a tw o-plus mile off-road course, a 3/8 mile clay oval and ultimately a 1.25 mile high-banked oval, super speedway designed to po tentially accommodate pre mier oval-racing sanctioned events, with an 80,000+ seat grandstand, luxury and ga rage suites, a fan fest infield area and club seating, it will truly be a regional racing destination for the whole Pacific Northwest with ma jor national events that will set it apart from most race sites. The 5,000-plus acre M aster-Planned Entertain ment complex includes de velopment o f the Columbia riverfront property adjacent to the site with a marina/re- tail complex, RV village and campground, g o lf course, a car museum, w ater and am usem ent parks, hotels, motels, and retail centers and restaurants. For more informa tion about Pacific Northwest M otorsports Park, corpo rate events and track time reservations or to request an invitation to one o f the upcoming private briefing events, contact Mike Silcox, director of track events at 541-481-7000 or email msil- cox@pnwmotorsportspark. com. South Fork Players to perform play Parks and Beautification Commission presents certificates T h e S o u th F o rk Players theater group will present the comedy Bridal Terrorism this M em orial Day weekend at the Com m unity Hall in Dayville. This one-act play will be performed on May 23 and 24 at 7 p.m. and May 25 at 5 p.m. Come and see what happens when a hopeful yet desperate bride-to-be takes m atrim ony into her own hands, with the help o f the Bridal Terrorism Party, and her immediate family. The perform ances are free and a fundraiser for the D ayville School, student field trips, will be conducted. T h e p lay is p e r form ed by a rra n g em en t w ith the Sam uel French Company. Peterson's P i j j Jew elers/ 676-9200 “Coins for Cancer” drive class winners announced Mary Ann Elguezabal, Ruth Maben and Roberta Lutcher served lunch to Mrs. Allen's ( l'1 place) and Mrs. Matteson's classes ( 2U|1 place). Photos by Autumn Morgan A “Coins for Cancer” drive was held at Heppner Elementary School last week. Dr. Betsy Anderson spoke to students in different classes about healthy habits leading to a “cancer free” life. The winning class was announced on Thursday, May 15 after the money is counted. Mrs. Allen's class won the contest by raising $1,104.84 for the American Cancer Society. They have a “Match Program” this month and Neutrogena w ill be matching the donation. Some o f the money will also be given to the Relay for Life. Mrs. Matteson’s class, which came in second place, joined Mrs. Allen’s class for a Mexican lunch on Monday, May 19. “This lunch is great, but it w asn’t really necessary as it felt good to help out,” said Blake Greenup. Ruth Maben spear-headed the “Coins for Can cer” drive and would like to continue this tradition every spring. George Nalrns, Juanita Martin, Murl “Stubby” Rogers representing Willow Creek Terrace Assisted Living in Heppner are presented a Certificate of Recog nition by Chuck Bailey (far right), President of the City of Heppner’s Parks and Beautification Commission. The WCTAL and Jerry Baker (not pictured), lawn maintainence man, were commended for their “achievement of creating an at tractive outdoor environment” and “dedication and hard work done to maintain such pleasant grounds for your residents, staff, visitors, our community and the public.” Stanfeu's SteaKpouse Gourm et Specials ~ $29 May ¿3 fit. per person 24 Soup or Salad, Freshly Baked Bread 8c Cream ery Butter, Grilled Kobe Beef Top Sirloin Steak, Signature Sweet Potato Fries, and Fresh Vegetables May 3Q S l J 1 SEAFOOD EXTRAVAGANZA Soup or Salad, Freshly Baked Bread 8c Creamery Butter, ig Crab legs, Coconut Curry Prawns, lêmpura Batter lish, Signature I rent: h Fries, and Fresh Vegetables listi Tic I < h I C <1 id« 11 202 South Main Street, Condon, Oregon (541) 384-4624 toll free: (Hoo) 201-6706 w w w .H otclC ondon.com l.im ited S p e cials A vailable. M a k e Y o u r R e se rvatio n E arly. $ 2 0 i>«> per person (plu s gratuity) S o rr y , No Su bstitution s. Visit our website for more specials and upcoming events. Jo Ann Burleson, President and representative of the Heppner Garden Club, re ceives a Certificate of Recognition from Les Paustian. Mayor of the City of Hep pner. The city’s Parks and Beautification Commission recognized the Garden Club for it’s “year round dedication, contributions and hard work to create and promote an attractive environment in our community." Some of the club’s many projects are flowers at the mini park by the Post Office, Heritage Plaza and the city park; all flower entries at the Morrow County Fair; projects and poster con tests with the grade school; and a local high school scholarship.
