Speedway to Break Ground for New Motorsports Museum in Spring 2015

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The south entrance of New Hampshire Motor Speedway will begin to take on a new look once the snow melts. Speedway officials announced today plans to break ground there for the future home of the 20,000 square foot state-of-the-art North East Motor Sports Museum.

The museum will be built in two phases. The first 10,000 square feet will begin in the spring of 2015, while an additional 10,000 square feet will be added at a later date.

“I can’t think of a better way to kick off our 25th anniversary celebration at New Hampshire Motor Speedway than with a groundbreaking for the North East Motor Sports Museum,” said Jerry Gappens, vice president and general manager of the speedway. “I feel our facility is the anchor for multi-forms of motorsports and its history here in New England. I couldn’t envision the museum in any other location. I can’t wait for opening day and to share motorsports history with the race fans of New England.”

New Hampshire Motor Speedway will be celebrating a quarter century of racing in 2015. Tracing its roots back to the original 1/5-mile dirt oval at Bryar Motorsports Park, the more modernized 1.058-mile oval and 1.6-mile road course of today gives the affectionately known Magic Mile its own rich history of racing that makes it the perfect locale for such a project.

The speedway currently hosts everything from NASCAR’s three major touring series to regional series like the American-Canadian Tour, K&N Pro Series East, and Whelen Modified Tour to local racing series like the Granite State Legends Cars, Bandoleros, and Loudon Road Race Series (motorcycles). IndyCar and the Global RallyCross Championship have also held events at the speedway over the years, as well as various car clubs, racing schools, and driving experiences.

“The goal of the museum is top cover all aspects of motorsports from this area, not just NASCAR or drag racing but any and all racing that has taken place here in New England,” said Dick Berggren, president of the NEMSM. “Much of the racing history for the Northeast has been lost over time and we want to make sure that what we can find of the sport’s history is preserved for generations to come.”

The RHPG, the parent corporation for the NEMSM, is made up of local prominent motorsports personalities, including Berggren, Ricky Craven, Lew Boyd, Joe Freeman, Ken Smith, Russ Conway and Ric Mariscal to name a few.

The NEMSM will be used to house the history of motorsports from the Northeast area with a plethora of displays, vehicles and racing-related artifacts.

To learn more about the North East Motor Sports Museum or to donate, visit the museum website at www.nemsmuseum.com.

NHMS PR

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