Updated 1/10/2002

San Francisco Area Autocross Sites

Stockton Fairgrounds

Relatively small, only somewhat bumpy asphalt lot.

Directions:

From I5 in Stockton,

Take Charter Way (Ca hwy 4) east to Airport Way
The fairgrounds is on the southeast corner
Turn south onto Airport Way
Enter at the first gate

An hour twenty minutes away from the south bay, more or less from the east bay.

From Highway 99, directions are the same, except you take Charter Way WEST.

Castle Airfield Park

Map

Huge, smooth, grippy concrete runway. Somewhat abrasive, hard on tires.

A WONDERFUL air museum, including all the most interesting planes from WWII through the SR-71 blackbird.

Directions:

Castle is in Atwater, a small pleasant town a few miles north of Merced.

From the North or Central Bay Area:

Take I-580 West;
At Tracy, continue on I-205 towards Stockton;
I-205 merges into I-5 North at its end -- take I-5 North;
Exit at California Hwy 120 -- East;
At The US-99 intersection, take US-99 South toward Merced;
Go to Atwater;
Exit at Buhach Rd. Turn left (North) on Buhach;
Buhach enters Castle after about a mile or so, across the railroad tracks;
There is probably no guard; go straight in and follow the cones on the road to the site. There are two or more possible sites for the autocross.

You can also take 99 north from Merced.

Roughly 2 - 2.5 hours from the south or east bay -- take 152 east or one of the other eastbound roads north of 152.

Jerry Mouton's Backroads route from the South Bay

South on 101
East on 152
North on CA 33 to Santa Nella (exit is BEFORE I-5)
East on Henry Miller Rd (See instructions for zig, below)
North at stop sign = CA 165
East on CA 140
East on Buhach Rd. (there is a sign)
Buhach Rd. becomes the Castle Entrance
Follow the cones to the event site

If you take 152E anyway, it's certainly the shortest way to Castle from the freeway. It's a series of straight, well-paved, lightly traveled,all-rural (no towns) roads on which it is possible to go as fast as is safe. It is also scenic, passing through wildlife areas andstate parks. (offset somewhat by the aroma of the cattle feed lots :-) Takes me about 2 1/2 hours from Palo Alto.

One hitch: Henry Miller Rd. has a trick in it.

From 152, take hwy 33 to Santa Nella; just as you get into Santa Nella, Henry Miller Rd. is a right turn -- goes over I5 and just goes straight. A few miles in, it takes a bend right at a RR track. You have to know to zig left immediately across the track and get back on Miller, which keeps going straight -- it just doesn't cross the tracks in a reasonable way.

If you miss it, the road that bent right (Ingomar Grade) goes back to 152 right before hwy ca 165, so you can turn left on 165 and you're back on track. You just wasted 10 minutes, that's all.

On Henry Miller, CA 165 is the first stop sign after the zig.

Lodging:

Applegate Inn ("The Train Motel")
The tracks are located just behind, and you can pretend to be at the
Mulsanne Straight about 2:30 AM. Not too bad, really. This is where the
"pool party" is usually held.
1501 Sycamore Ave.
Atwater 95301
Telephone: (209) 357 0202
$49.95 per night (quoted 5/27/99)

Alameda Naval Air Station

Dream site! Now we can only dream of getting it again.

Immense expanses of unoccupied concrete with the city of San Francisco and its foggy hills and bridges as a backdrop.

Directions:

Go to 880.

Get off in downtown Oakland
get to Webster Street which is one way to the west; go west on Webster
Webster turns into the Webster St tunnel as it crosses under 880
Go under the Estuary thru the tunnel
Emerge on Alameda
Go straight until the first major intersection
Turn Right on Atlantic Ave.
Atlantic passes in front of College of Alameda. Go North on Atlantic a couple of miles until it dead ends into Alameda NAS.
Go through this gate
go straight several blocks (really a continuation of Atlantic Ave.) The road will dead end
Go right 1 block and you will see the site on the right

Laguna Seca Paddock

Don't know too much about the surface except I recall it's asphalt, and it's three acres bigger than the last time we used it 15 years ago (J. Kelly)

Directions:

See the map on the Laguna web site

Here's John Kelly's description (11/8/99):

        Enter the premises from Highway 68 and wind your way up the VERY steep hill and around over the bridge and then to the paddock entrance. Parking will be at a premium. Some people, will have to pit by the Registration building. Up the hill--called the swale--from the registration building is the trailer parking area.
        We will be sharing the facility with the Green Flag organization which will be conducting "track days" on the 2.5-mile road course.
       Snax 5th Avenue will be there with their food coach, opening at 7:30 a.m. for breakfast and operating until about 2:30 p.m. (The McDonald's in the paddock will not be open. Our road racing brethern petitioned the track to have Snax 5th Ave. rather than McDonald's.)
        We must maintain a "roadway" through our area to enable the Green Flag people to have access to their paddock area. Naturally you can cross the "street." You just can't park on it.
        Laguna Seca is in a Monterey County park. The Park Rangers are in charge of the park. There is a gate at the entrance after you go up the hill. STOP. Tell the Ranger you are attending the sports car event in the Paddock. You shouldn't have to pay the day usage fee. If you get snotty with them you're on your own. Usually showing your SCCA membership card whistles you right through.
        The Sound limit is 90dbA at 50 feet. If you bounce the Laguna Seca sound meter, they have the right to cancel your run right then and you can't return.
        Unlike our previous event there, the course will be lined. But we will be using flour and need to blow it away at day's end. Boris the Spender has been directed to buy two (2) garden blowers so that job should be wrapped up rather quckly at the end of the day. (For anybody that has attended a San Diego Region event at Qualcomm Stadium, they also use flour and blow it away at day's end.)