GRAND OPENING Sept. 8th: Autobahn Feeds Downtown's Need For Speed
by Jenn Hopkins
Do you remember your first go-kart race? The exhilaration of speed and gravity as you wheeled your way around track and turns, determined to beat your friends and earn the title of 1st place. Have you never driven a go-kart? Go-karts aren’t just for kids anymore and with Autobahn Indoor Speedway having moved into Downtown Tucson, everyone can race for the fun of it.
Autobahn Indoor Speedway promises to break the mold and give you a truly unique racetrack experience. When 63,000 feet of warehouse space became available in the Downtown area, Autobahn jumped on the chance to set up in the entertainment corridor. Being so close to Hotel Congress, Get Air, Rocks and Ropes, and the University of Arizona it seems like a perfect fit.
“What sets us apart is that other places have a business built around entertainment with karting as an option. We provide a race track experience focused on karting,” said Joel Lipp, manager of the Autobahn Indoors Speedway. “Visitors will have an opportunity to watch our safety briefing, we have live in race scoring, so it will tell you where you are in the race in terms of position and speed. What’s cool about our karts is that they are Italian made, fully electric, and performance based.”
How is 0-50 miles per hour in half a second for performance? The autobahn motto is “No Speed Limit.” while the adult carts can reach 50 mph, the Jr. Karts (for kids 8-12) only get up to 35mph and all karts can be fully stopped remotely. Don’t worry, if you’re a fun sized adult that doesn’t make the 58” requirement there are booster seats and pedal extenders as options. At their most efficient 60-70 racers can make in through the track in an hour, of which there are two. Le Mans track is shaped for speed while the Monaco track will test your skills on winding turns.
Go-karting is for more than children’s birthday parties in case you were wondering. It’s a fun family environment where you can bring in outside food and drink if you don’t want to stick to the soda and snack offered at the concession stand. “We offer space for birthday parties, corporate outings, bachelor/bachelorette parties, and team building experiences. We had a group that rented the facility for three hours, had the place all to themselves and pretty much did whatever they wanted and had a good time,” said Lipp. The facility at capacity can hold up to 300 people, as far as the meeting space goes the conference room holds up to 150 people.
Interested yet? The Autobahn Indoor Speedway is preparing for its Grand Opening on September 8th. “It’s going to be an all day event complete with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 2:00pm. We will also have food trucks every weekend leading up to the grand opening, we are filling out the paperwork and hope to have the mayor out,” Lipp said happily.
All pricing and packages can be found on their website at http://www.autobahnspeed.com and select Tucson from the locations menu. You can also look up discounts, hours, and additional offers and events. Mark your calendars for September 8th and indulge your inner Mario Andretti or Danica Patrick. Whether you’re coming for nostalgias sake or for a first time adventure you are guaranteed to enjoy yourself. Autobahn Indoor Speedway is located at 300 S. Toole Avenue, and can be reached at (520) 369-5720.