The View from Treasure Island » BARBER MOTORSPORTS NEWS

Chasing colors from Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast

Treasure — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 18:26:22 +0000

The state tourism website alabama.travel has a great interactive toolto help determine when fall color peaks in Alabama. www.alabama.travel/activities/tours-and-trails/fall-color-trail/

Based on its predictions – and you can look out the window yourself to confirm this – slight changes will be evident in North Alabama through next weekend. The Birmingham area to the north should be near its color peak on Oct. 22, and areas north of Cullman will peak around Oct. 29. North Alabama will be past its peak on Nov. 19.

The Alabama tourism department also suggests the following scenic drives/areas:

1. Oak Mountain State Park, Pelham: Peavine Overlook and Peavine Falls

2. Oneonta/Blount County: covered bridges, Palisades Park

3. Cullman/Cullman County: Ave Maria Grotto, covered bridge

4. Bankhead National Forest, Winston and Lawrence counties: Double Springs

5. Natchez Trace: Lauderdale and Colbert counties

6. Joe Wheeler State Park, Rogersville: Joe Wheeler Dam area

7. Monte Sano State Park, Huntsville: Warpath Ridge Trail and its overlooks

8. Scottsboro/Jackson County: Russell Cave National Monument, Alabama 79 across Skyline Mountain, Alabama 65 through Paint Rock River Valley

9. Guntersville State Park, Guntersville: Buck’s Pocket State Park

10. Gadsden/Etowah County: Noccalula Falls Park

11. DeSoto State Park and Lodge, DeSoto Falls, Little River Canyon, Fort Payne: Lookout Mountain Parkway, DeSoto Parkway and Old DeSoto Parkway. Alabama 176, part of Lookout Mountain Parkway, includes scenic overlooks of Little River Canyon.

12. Cheaha State Park, Lineville: Bald Rock and Pulpit Rock trails, Talladega Scenic Drive, Skyline Drive and Skyway Motorway.

www.alabama.travel/activities/tours-and-trails/circle-of-colors/
For the complete article please see http://blog.al.com/living-times/2011/10/travel_feature_enjoy_the_color.html.

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Vulcan Park hosts exhibit of Alabama Folk Art

Treasure — Mon, 23 May 2011 23:36:03 +0000

In celebration of the Year of Alabama Music, Vulcan Park and Museum presents The Music Lives On: Folk Song Traditions Told by Alabama Artists, an exhibition of works depicting the region’s great musical traditions created by the state’s most celebrated folk artists. Those represented in this colorful exhibition include such acclaimed artists as Lonnie Holley, Joe Minter, Charlie Lucas, and Thornton Dial. Through the creations of these great artists, visitors to Vulcan Park and Museum will encounter a parallel artistic universe – the world of blues, jazz, bluegrass, country, and other popular forms of music that define Birmingham, the state, and the region. The exhibit will be on display through Aug. 26.

For more information please see www.visitvulcan.com.

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Alabama Music concert series debuts in Birmingham

Treasure — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:10:33 +0000

A major Alabama concert series called “ABALABIP!” and organized by The Oxford American magazine will debut on Saturday, Feb. 5, at the historic Alabama Theatre in Birmingham. The kickoff event begins at 7:30 p.m. and will feature Alabama soul icons Ralph “Soul” Jackson and Mary Gresham, along with the original cast of The Sex Clark Five, a brainy, melodic Huntsville new-wave act, a solo performance from free-jazz sax-man (and cult favorite) Arthur Doyle, and The Secret Sisters, on the heels of the success of their T Bone Burnett-produced debut, Silver Threads and Golden Needles. Concert tickets will also guarantee free entry to an after-party at Bottletree that will feature Huntsville hip-hop duo G-Side. “The Feb. 5 concert will bring to life the idea that to fully appreciate the astounding musical heritage of Alabama a lot of genres must be played with,” said Marc Smirnoff, editor of The Oxford American.

This event is the first of four Oxford American events taking place in Alabama throughout 2011 to celebrate Alabama music and The Oxford American‘s 12th annual Southern Music Issue, which focuses on the musical heritage of Alabama. The concerts are in conjunction with The Year of Alabama Music, an initiative by the Alabama Tourism Department to highlight the state’s rich musical heritage. Details about upcoming ABALABIP! concerts in other Alabama cities will be announced soon. The Oxford American concert series is called “ABALABIP!,” after a 1950 song by Eddie Cole – brother of Nat King Cole, and born in Montgomery – that is featured in the magazine and its accompanying CD. Most of the performers at the Feb. 5 concert were also part of the magazine and CD. Smirnoff said that he also likes how the Feb. 5 concert will serve as a celebration for Ralph “Soul” Jackson’s forthcoming full-length CD debut (by hip Rabbit Factory Records of Chicago). “It’s amazing,” Smirnoff said. “Though Ralph ‘Soul’ Jackson has been releasing choice soul singles since the 1960s, it won’t be until Feb. of 2011 that he releases his first full album, not just singles.”

This event is presented by The Oxford American, Alabama Tourism Department, Florence Lauderdale Tourism, Lucy Buffett’s LuLu’s at Homeport Marina, MINI, and Arkansas Delta Byways. For information on tickets please see www.oxfordamerican.org.

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Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park

Treasure — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 18:24:31 +0000

Birmingham, Ala. – Barber Motorsports Park and ZOOM Motorsports announced today that tickets are

now on sale for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Legacy Credit Union to be held April 8

?10, 2011, at the Barber Motorsports Park. Tickets are available at www.barbermotorsports.com

Last year’s inaugural Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama brought over 75,000 fans from all over the world to watch the stars of the IZOD IndyCar Series compete on the twists and turns of the 2.38 mile road course at Barber Motorsports Park. The 3 the Stars, defending champion.

In addition to Castroneves, this year’s event will again feature the most dominant names in the IndyCar Series, including 2008 Series Champion and Indy 500 Winner Scott Dixon, 2007 and 2009 Series Champion and 2 Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Danica Patrick.

Spectators can select from a variety of tickets ranging in price from $15 to $425 and are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance, as prices will increase the week of the race. Among the many ticket options this year, are 3 Club, a trackside hospitality area with a sports bar atmosphere located between turns 14 and 15. In addition to tickets, spectators can also purchase tent camping, motorhome camping and onsite parking. Limited quantities of these options as well as tickets are available.

Lodging only 20 minutes away can be made at Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com ,can be made online.

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Glenn Leonard & The Temptations Experience

Treasure — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 22:35:41 +0000

Make a real experience and come stay at Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com and come see Glenn Leonard & The Temptations at Pell City; Jan 29. Perhaps the most consistent Motown act from the very beginning. What is remarkable about the Temptations has been their ability to completely change personnel over their 40-year history without affecting the quality of their music or performances. Glenn Leonard had a long illustrious career as the first tenor and lead singer of the Temptations from 1975-1984. Joining Leonard will be Kareem Ali, Pete Marshall, Anthony McRae and Freddy Black in an evening that will be long remembered.

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Talladega Superspeedway president goes to Barber Motorsports Park

Treasure — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 02:45:45 +0000

Former Talladega Superspeedway President Rick Humphrey is returning to Alabama with a new racing assignment.

Humphrey has been named vice president of Zoom Motorsports and will be in charge of running races at Barber Motorsports Park, said Zoom President Gene Hallman.

But Humphrey was among about 40 ISC employees laid off since August in cutbacks at the company that owns 12 tracks that NASCAR races on. Daytona International Speedway President Robin Braig was among those let go.

“I was fortunate enough to get a heads up that my department was one of the ones that would be looked at to possibly be eliminated,” Humphrey said.

Humphrey replaces Jeff Ewing, who will move to the Bruno Event Team’s golf division. Zoom Motorsports is a division of the Bruno Event Team.

At Barber, Humphrey will oversee a much different track from the high-banked 2.66-mile oval at Talladega that hosts two NASCAR Sprint Cup races each year.

Barber is a 2.38-mile road course that hosts the NASCAR-owned Grand Am Series, the IZOD IndyCar Series and the AMA Pro Superbike Series.

“During my time at ISC I have gained some knowledge of Grand Am and the IRL,” Humphrey said.

He was also involved in ISC’s negotiations with the IndyCar Series about whether the open-wheel series would continue to race on ISC tracks. IndyCar ended up dropping all four of ISC’s tracks — Homestead, Chicago, Kansas and Watkins Glen — from its 2011 schedule because of disappointment with ISC’s marketing of IndyCar races.

Despite the ISC-IndyCar split, Barber has always had a close relationship with Talladega. Talladega, for instance, has loaned its trams to Barber to shuttle fans around the track.

For the spring races, which are only a week apart, the tracks are planning to offer special package deals to see both the April 10 IndyCar race at Barber and the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Talladega on April 17, plus spend the week in between playing golf.

Still, Humphrey said, he doesn’t regret leaving Talladega for Daytona.

“You never look back,” he said of his decision to take the ISC job and leave Talladega. “Nobody knew what would happen when we moved down here.”

Fortunately, he said, he had not yet bought a house in Daytona Beach, so moving back to Alabama will be easier, even though “we’ve been unsettled for eight months.”

But he does admit he’ll miss the NASCAR culture.

“It’s been a part of my life since ’92 or ’93,” he said. “So yes.”

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Barber Motorsports to hold Vintage Event

Treasure — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 12:24:21 +0000

The sixth annual Barber Vintage Festival will be held this weekend, October 8 – 10 at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL. The nation’s fastest growing celebration of vintage bikes will offer on- and off-track racing, as well as many other activities dedicated to the history and preservation of motorcycles.

The Barber Vintage Festival’s racing centerpiece will highlight several classes of the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association (AHRMA) competing throughout the weekend, including Road Racing, Trials, Cross-Country and Motocross. Each of these divisions will be featured in its own unique venue at the Barber Motorsports Park.

In addition to the racing aspect, spectators will have plenty of off-track activities to enjoy, including:

• World Famous Barber Swap Meet

• VJMC Pancake Breakfast (Saturday only)

• AMCA and VJMC Motorcycle Show

• Motorcycle Classics Magazine Bike Show

• Vintage Motorcycle Auction

• The Great American Wall of Death Thrill Show

• Southern Vintage Fire Apparatus Association Show

• Aeroshell Aerobatic Team Air Show

• Motorcycle Parade Laps

• Technical Seminars

A complete listing of weekend events can be found at www.barbervintagefestival.org/event-schedule.php. Please note that some activities and attractions may require the purchase of an additional ticket.

Advance tickets start as low as $15, and ticket prices will increase at the gate. Tickets, parade laps, camping reservations, and more for the sixth annual Barber Vintage Festival can be purchased at www.barbermotorsports.com or by calling 800-240-2300. Children 12 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.

Also returning this year is “Motorcycles by Moonlight”, a fundraiser dinner benefiting the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, which will be held on Friday, October 8. This year’s honored guest will be Sir John Surtees, the only man to win a world championship on both two and four wheels. Cocktails will begin at 6:00 p.m. with dinner and a live auction at 7:00 p.m. An evening with John Surtees and host Alain de Cadenet will begin at 8:00 p.m. Tickets to “Motorcycle by Moonlight” may be purchased by calling 205-699-7275.

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Thousands expected for bike races at Barber near Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast

Treasure — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 12:40:37 +0000

College football won’t be the only sport with a huge following this weekend.

Motorcycle enthusiasts will get their fix when Barber Motorsports Park hosts a series of races for the AMA Pro Superbike Championship.

Forty-thousand fans are expected to attend and bring a large economic impact to the area.

It’s a season-ending event. So there’s a lot more interest in these races.

Locals and tourists are expected to generate more than $12 million into the local economy. Tickets have been sold in more than 30 states for this event. Most of the out of town fans will arrive Friday. “I love watching it. The sound of it is exciting. The people…. everyone here with a common thing …we all enjoy makes it fun,” said Chad Jatko.

The manager of Hampton Inn in Leeds, Patrick Brankin, said, “We had a really slow summer being a brand new hotel in a kind of struggling economy. It’s a huge weekend. We are going to sell-out actually two of the next three weekends just because of events at Barber.”

Qualifying is Friday and races are Saturday and Sunday.

Two series champions could be crowned this weekend and that’s what the fans want to see.

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Honda signs on as sponsor of the Grand Prix of Alabama

Treasure — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 19:06:16 +0000

From the article “American Honda signs on as Grand Prix of Alabama sponsor” by Ben Piper in the Birmingham Business Journal:

The Grand Prix of Alabama will be sponsored by American Honda from 2011 through 2013 organizers said. The Indy Car event, which will be held on April 8-10, 2011, will enter its second year at the Barber Motorsports Park located outside of Birmingham in Leeds. Bruno Event Team CEO Gene Hallman said the Honda Grand Prix of Alabama- originally slated to run through 2012- has also been extended through 2013. Hallman said the 2011 Grand Prix will be held one week before a NASCAR event at Talladega Superspeedway on April 17, to create a “speed week.” Terms of the three-year deal with Honda were not disclosed. The Grand Prix of Alabama was presented by Legacy Credit Union in 2010 – a race that drew 84,000 spectators. Hallman said going with Honda – a known national brand that operates a plant in Lincoln – also provides momentum for the event. “It will be a tremendous boost to the event and will also allow the state of Alabama to more widely tout the success that Honda has seen with its manufacturing facility,” he said. “The brand certainly brings some prestige to the event and when you combine that with what they will be doing at the dealerships, the benefits are tremendous.”

Hallman said having a national sponsor back the event should encourage local businesses to get more involved with the Grand Prix of Alabama. Legacy Credit Union is also still a sponsor. “What it shows to the local corporate community is that one of the fellow corporate citizens is stepping up and supporting an event in our backyard,” he said. “I think that will create some momentum for local companies to jump on board as well.” Darin White, sports business and marketing professor at Samford University, said consumers could transfer positive experiences with Honda to the Grand Prix event – one positive for the sponsorship signing. “Having a major national sponsor for a local sporting event clearly communicates value and the importance of the event beyond just the local market,” he said. “From a marketing perception standpoint, a sponsor like Honda will help that event develop certain positive attributes in the minds of potential spectators.” White said the three-year length of the sponsorship is fairly standard. He said it also opens the door for more national sponsors to bid for the event in the future if the event goes off well. Promoting races at Barber Motor Sports Park and Talladega Superspeedway should push attendance at both events, White said. “It should help both events, because there will be some spectators who will stay the entire week, which is a boost to the economy,” he said. “It seems like a win-win for Talladega and Barber. Those are two very different target markets, however, so there is some cross over in the target audiences.”

For the complete article please see http://birmingham.bizjournals.com/birmingham/stories/2010/09/06/daily23.html

Birmingham Airport receives $14.3 million grant
From the article “BHM receives $14.3M grant for terminal project” by Aneesa McMillan in the Birmingham Business Journal:

The Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport was awarded a $14.3 million grant to be used in the ongoing Terminal Modernization Project. The grant was issued by the Department of Homeland Security through the Transportation Security Administration. According to a release issued by the airport, the funds will be used to install a new baggage handling system. The total cost of the system was more than $15 million, however the TSA agreed to cover 95 percent of the costs through the grant. “This funding amount speaks to the confidence that the TSA has displayed in support of this project,” said BHM president and CEO Al Denson. “We sincerely thank the TSA official and our congressional delegation.” This is the second grant awarded to the facility this week after it was announced Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration awarded BHM an additional grant that totaled more than $1.8 million for the airport’s airfield maintenance and development.

For the complete article please see http://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/stories/2010/09/13/daily40.html?ana=e_du_pub

Shelby County movie producers filming their first feature
From the article “Erwin Brothers keep first feature film local by Katie Hurst in the Shelby County Reporter:

Shelby County’s local movie-making brothers are hard at work on the production of their first feature film, “October Baby.” Jon and Andy Erwin, of Erwin Brothers Motion Pictures out of Calera, have been filming around the county this month. Scenes have been shot in Helena, the Birmingham airport, St. Paul’s cathedral in downtown Birmingham and Mobile. The film’s co-producer, Dan Atchison of Helena, said the crew has been doubling up on scene locations. Alabaster’s Barron Fan Technologies acted as the set for both a scene at a mechanic’s shop and a scene that takes place in a junkyard. “It keeps us from driving all over town,” he said. “It saves time, it saves money. It’s all smoke and mirrors.” It’s no accident that the brothers chose to film in their home state, Atchison said. Keeping the film local was intentional. “We wanted to shoot our first feature film here,” he said. “Alabama is a beautiful state. We hope to attract more films here. It’s good for the economy, it’s really good for our state.”

Thanks to the Alabama film incentives that were approved in July, the company will receive a 25 percent rebate on production expenses over $500,000. It gives the film a 25 percent larger budget and it keeps jobs and money in the state, Atchison said. Much of the crew and cast are also from Alabama, including the film’s lead actress, Rachel Hendrix. Other familiar cast names include Chris Sligh, Nashville-based American Idol contestant and John Schneider from the TV show, “Smallville” and the original “Dukes of Hazzard.” The movie follows the story of a college-aged girl who finds out she’s adopted and searches out her birth mother. It’s a coming-of-age story about recovering from a painful past and finding forgiveness, Atchison said.“We hope it will cause people to think about the relationships in their lives,” he said. “But it will entertain first and foremost. The Birmingham area is the perfect place for filming because of the diversity between big city, country and old small towns, Atchison said. “Birmingham really plays any town U.S.A., you can make it anywhere,” he said. “It’s a great place to shoot.” The film will be in post-production for at least three months before touring at festivals, Atchison said. The goal is for a big distributor to pick it up and put the film in theaters spring of 2012. If they meet that goal, the company would like to premiere the film like they produced it – locally, Atchison said.

For the complete article please see http://www.shelbycountyreporter.com/2010/09/13/erwin-brothers-keep-first-feature-film-local/

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AmHon Team Tests At Barber

Treasure — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 02:25:57 +0000

The American Honda Moto2 team has just wrapped up two successful days of testing their Honda Moriwaki MD600 at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL, in preparation for the team’s debut at the Red Bull Indianapolis GP, August 27 to 29. The team, including rider Roger Lee Hayden, team manager Kevin Schwantz and the Erion Racing crew lead by Kevin Erion, came together to further develop the Honda 600-powered race machine and they made good progress despite the extremely taxing weather conditions.

It didn’t take long for Hayden to get comfortable and lay down good lap times in testing. “The conditions were really, really hot and very humid but Roger’s work ethic shined through and we achieved a lot,” said Schwantz. “Roger’s not afraid of hard work and that’s part of the reason we chose him to be on this team. He doesn’t shy away from hard work and that showed through as he strung together fast laps in miserably hot and humid conditions. Roger was very fast on the track and even though he had fairly used tires on the bike at the end of the day Thursday, he still managed to put down lap times as fast as he’s ever been on this track.”

“Our test at Barber started out a little slow in the hot temperatures but by the end we’d made some really good progress,” said Hayden. “It’s great to be able to get data from the bike while riding on a real racetrack. It gives the team a good base to work with. Working with Kevin Schwantz is great. It’s great having someone of his stature watching over and advising me, someone who knows exactly what I’m doing as a rider. Sometimes what you think you’re doing is very different compared to what you actually are doing on the track and Kevin sees that. Being critiqued by a world champion like Kevin means I get amazing riding advice, one rider to another. I think this experience is going to make me a better rider not just for this particular project but for my entire career.”

Erion is likewise pleased with how quickly the team has jelled together and with the wealth of 600cc motorcycle knowledge that’s embedded in the team. “Our team has so much 600cc experience and this bike is fundamentally a 600cc Honda motorcycle. There are a few little things about the bike that are different but they’re all in a positive manner. Moriwaki did a great job building the chassis; it’s easy to work on. Our job now is mainly to get Roger comfortable on it so he can go fast and the Moriwaki platform seems to be working well. I have the utmost confidence in Roger and the crew. They are all working well together and striving for the common goal of achieving great results. The test went well as we didn’t have any issues or problems per se; we just kept moving forward every time Roger took to the track. We definitely leave Barber with a lot of confidence in Roger. Our next test will be at Indy a week prior to the race and we will have two days on the track. We actually have a disadvantage compared to the other teams in the series because they’ve been racing in the series all year and know their set-ups. But with the experience our team has gained here and with two days on the Indy track before the race, we think that experience should level the playing field up quite a lot.”

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