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Photography courtesy of Gateway Motorsports Park / Stephen Weiss
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Gateway owner Curtis Francois (left) is taking a winning approach.
A couple was walking from the parking lot to the gates at Gateway Motorsports Park when a man driving a golf cart pulled up and offered the pair a ride. On reaching their destination, the couple thanked the driver and asked him what he did at the track. “I’m the owner,” he replied.
Since taking over operations at GMP in September 2011 and then officially purchasing the 200-acre facility in May 2012, Curtis Francois has dumped the business model that had failed the track in Madison, Illinois, for most of its history and adopted a new one. His blueprint: Make Gateway a fan-centered, economically sustainable destination that will yield positive memories for drivers and fans alike. (He created the slogan “My track is back.”) Francois realized that he needed to mount more of a grassroots effort.
“I knew we needed to expand the market share in the track, not just for the big races but really so people were coming through the gates on a weekly and daily basis,” says Francois, 51, a real estate entrepreneur and a former racecar driver himself. In other words, more calendar days needed to be filled with the sounds of revving engines.
When he mapped out the 2016 season at GMP, Francois took a more-is-better approach. He planned more than 300 events—Porsche Club of America races and drag races, street car and kart competitions, the Skip Barber Driving School, and the always popular Richard Petty Driving Experience—making it the most ambitious and diverse schedule in the track’s history. GMP is also hosting 5K runs, concerts, beach parties, and corporate events in its new state-of-the-art meeting facility.
One of the local racing events is Midnight Madness, an 11-date series during which drivers may race their own cars (the same ones they drive to work and to the kids’ soccer games). It allows racers 16 years and older to scratch the itch to race in an environment that is safe and certified. Other local events include Sports Car Club of America races, ChampTruck and ChumpCar competitions, and motorcycle races.
Francois also left room in the schedule for some bigger national events, such as a NASCAR race in late June, the National Hot Rod Association Lucas Oil Series eliminations in August, and the NHRA Midwest Nationals in September. “I definitely have a vision to bring motor sports at the highest levels, both grassroots and nationally, to the track,” Francois says. “We want Gateway Motorsports Park to be a hub of major activity for all types of entertainment.”
The facility, which was first developed in 1967, has teetered and tottered over the years. It was shuttered in 2011 and headed for oblivion until Francois came to the rescue, but now it finally appears to be on terra firma. GMP reached its five-year financial goals in four years, meaning that 2016 could be the first profitable year in its history.
Gateway Motorsports Park is just a five-minute drive from downtown St. Louis. Its five different venues (see sidebar) satisfy a variety of racing appetites. And its owner just might give you a ride to the front gate.
“Right now, through hard work and the sheer will to succeed, we’re doing what no other track our size is doing,” Francois says. “The strategy is paying off and setting us up well for the future.”
GMP’s five venues
Speedway: This 1.25-mile oval course was built for NASCAR and IndyCar races.
Dragplex: The facility is rated one of the five fastest quarter-mile strips in the country.
Off-road dirt track: Comprising 14 acres, it can be modified for various race types.
Kartplex: This 11-turn road course is in the middle of the speedway.
Road course: Multiple winding turns challenge drivers on this 1.6-mile concrete surface.
