Riverside Motorsports Park Selects Merced County for Racing and Recreation Center Development

ATWATER, Calif.--Aug. 1, 20032, 2003--Riverside Motorsports Park, LLC (RMP) announces that it has secured 1200 acres adjacent to Castle Airport in California's Merced County, assembled an experienced management, engineering and construction team, and is well underway in the permit and entitlement process leading to the development of a world-class motorsports and family recreation center.

With plans to feature eight different racetracks in one landscaped, fully equipped, park-like setting, Riverside Motorsports Park intends to present a complete package of motorsports events to West Coast race fans and to support club-based and professional motorsports sanctioning organizations across the United States. With picnic grounds, family and themed restaurants and other amenities, such as RV facilities, it also promises to be a recreation destination for the more than 9 million Northern California residents who live within a 100-mile radius of the park's Merced County location.

"The Riverside Motorsports Park project could have the potential for meaningful job creation, offer opportunities for Castle Airport's continued development, and it might spearhead a boost in our overall county economy," said John Fowler, Director, Merced County Department of Business Economic Opportunities.

The president of the City of Atwater's Chamber of Commerce, Roy Torres, added, "We anticipate that Riverside Motorsports Park will bring tremendous value and recognition to our community. We're very excited about this project, and we've told Riverside Motorsports Park that they can count on the support of Atwater's business community. We've been looking for the right focal point to help Atwater grow, and with the automobile and motorcycle races, a summer concert series and the other family entertainment and recreational activities that Riverside Motorsports Park will provide, we see nothing but generous benefits for Atwater's local businesses, our residents, our youth and the business community throughout the entire region."

Greater Merced Chamber of Commerce President Don Bergman stated further, "Not only do we anticipate RMP's generating a significant number of direct jobs and needed community revenue, but we also recognize that the facility is likely to attract new motorsports and manufacturing businesses, as well as additional service and tourism businesses to support RMP's racing fans and guests. This is the biggest thing to hit the County since UC Merced. We're very excited!"

"There isn't a motorsports facility like this anywhere in the country," commented RMP Founder and CEO John Condren. "We've invested two and a half years of market research, design, engineering, and planning in this project, and we're gratified by the reception we're receiving from Merced County; from local city and district officials, residents and business owners; and, especially, from the local, national and international motorsports communities. With a diverse and growing motorsports base in California, and with the rich racing heritage of the Central Valley, the Merced County location for Riverside Motorsports Park is most appropriate."

The number one spectator sport in the world, motorsports has become the fastest growing sport in the United States -- second to NFL football in total spectator attendance, but exceeding the NFL in per-event attendance. RMP's plans call for its eight tracks to support virtually every type of world-class professional and amateur motorsports, including:

-- 3.0-mile road course for sports cars, endurance and open-wheel racing

-- 1/4-mile (5,000-foot total length) drag strip

-- Integrated 1/3- and 1/2-mile, banked paved oval tracks for stock cars and sprint cars

-- 3/8-mile dirt oval track for motorcycle, stock car, sprint and midget racing

-- 3/4-mile karting courses (sprint and shifter karts)

-- Motocross and BMX courses

-- And, Northern California's first world-class oval speedway (length: 7/8-mile) for major stock car and open-wheel racing series

The positive results of a preliminary environmental impact assessment, completed in 2002, led to RMP's purchase of the 1200-acre site directly adjacent to Merced County's Castle airport (the decommissioned Castle Air Force Base). RMP is currently undergoing a comprehensive Environmental Impact Report (EIR) to study and develop mitigation plans for environmental sensitivities, including traffic and noise. The company has retained a complement of the best traffic engineering, traffic management, acoustic energy (noise) and environmental consultants in the State, and it has developed an impressive management team of motorsports and business professionals. RMP's development schedule calls for the completion of the EIR and entitlement process so that groundbreaking can begin during the first half of 2004.

For California, a new racing facility has been a necessity for a long time, as older facilities have closed in the face of residential or commercial encroachment. Since 1970, California has realized the development of only one world-class racing facility (California Speedway in Fontana, Calif., which opened in 1997), and many motorsports organizations are competing for a limited number of available event dates.

Riverside Motorsports Park, LLC is a California company dedicated to the development of a world-class motorsports and regional family recreation center in Northern California.