Circuit Park Zandvoort is a
motorsportMotorsport is the collection of sports which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles.Motorsport includes all forms of motor racing as well as non-racing motorized sports.-Motor racing:...
race trackA race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...
located in the dunes near the town of
ZandvoortZandvoort is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.Zandvoort is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach, bordered by coastal dunes...
, in the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
, near the
North SeaThe North Sea is a marginal, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is more than long and wide, with an area of around...
coast line.
Although there were plans for races at Zandvoort before
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the first street race was held on June 3, 1939. A real circuit was not built until after the war, built on communications roads built by the German army during its occupation in the Second World War. The circuit mainly designed by
John HugenholtzJohannes Bernhardus Theodorus "Hans" Hugenholtz, in English-speaking countries a.k.a. John Hugenholtz was a Dutch designer of race tracks and cars....
.
The circuit was inaugurated on August 7, 1948.
Circuit Park Zandvoort is a
motorsportMotorsport is the collection of sports which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles.Motorsport includes all forms of motor racing as well as non-racing motorized sports.-Motor racing:...
race trackA race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...
located in the dunes near the town of
ZandvoortZandvoort is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.Zandvoort is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach, bordered by coastal dunes...
, in the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
, near the
North SeaThe North Sea is a marginal, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is more than long and wide, with an area of around...
coast line.
History
Although there were plans for races at Zandvoort before
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the first street race was held on June 3, 1939. A real circuit was not built until after the war, built on communications roads built by the German army during its occupation in the Second World War. The circuit mainly designed by
John HugenholtzJohannes Bernhardus Theodorus "Hans" Hugenholtz, in English-speaking countries a.k.a. John Hugenholtz was a Dutch designer of race tracks and cars....
.
The circuit was inaugurated on August 7, 1948. Next year, in 1949 the circuit hosted the Zandvoort Grand Prix. The following year, the race was called the
Dutch Grand PrixThe Dutch Grand Prix was a Formula One automobile race held at Circuit Zandvoort, from 1952 to 1985.1985 was its final running, as the company that commercially ran the circuit went out of business, marking the end of Circuit Zandvoort...
, and it was included in the
Formula OneFormula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1, and currently officially referred to as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" in the name refers to a set of rules to which all participants...
World Championship in . It remained on the F1 calendar for 30 out of the next 34 years. In , the Dutch Grand Prix was held for the last time. The company that commercially ran the circuit (CENAV) went out of business, marking the end of Circuit Zandvoort. The track, owned by the municipality of Zandvoort, was not used for some time and part of the grounds and approximately half of the track was sold in 1987 to Vendorado, a Bungalow park developer at that time. A plan to save the remaining track was made by a group of people and companies. Circuit Park Zandvoort was born, and the track was remodeled to an interim Club Circuit of in the summer of 1989.
In 1995, CPZ got the "A Status" of the Dutch government and began building an international Grand Prix Circuit. This project was finished in 2001 when, after the track was redesigned to a long circuit and a new pits building was realized (by HPG, the development company of John Hugenholtz jr, son of the former director), a new grandstand was situated along the long straight. One of the major events that is held at the circuit, along with DTM and A1GP, is the
RTLOn Wikipedia, RTL may refer to Wikipedia:Right to leaveRTL may refer to:* RTL Group, Europe's largest TV, radio, and production company** RTL Television, a German commercial television station** RTL , a French radio station...
Masters of Formula 3The Masters of Formula 3 is a Formula 3 race held annually, usually at the Circuit Park Zandvoort in the Netherlands. Due to noise restrictions in the Zandvoort area, the 2007 and 2008 races were held in the Belgian circuit of Zolder...
, where
Formula ThreeFormula Three, also called Formula 3 or F3, is a class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers...
cars of several national racing series compete with each other (originally called Marlboro Masters, before tobacco advertising ban). A noise restriction order was responsible for this event moving to the Belgian Zolder circuit for 2007 and 2008. However, the race will return to its historical home in 2009.
The circuit gained popularity because of its fast, sweeping corners such as Scheivlak as well as the "Tarzanbocht" (Tarzan corner) hairpin at the end of the start/finish straight. Tarzanbocht is the most famous corner in the circuit which provides excellent overtaking opportunities. This corner is reportedly named after a local character who had earned the nickname of
TarzanTarzan is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by fictional great apes, who later returns to civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer...
and only wanted to give up his vegetable garden in the dunes if the track's designers named a nearby corner after him. On the other hand, many different stories about Tarzan Corner are known.
Circuit Park Zandvoort played host to the first race in the
2006/07 seasonThe 2006-07 A1 Grand Prix season was the second season for the A1 Grand Prix series.It began on 1 October, 2006, at Circuit Park Zandvoort, and the season ended at Brands Hatch on 29 April, 2007. A1 Team Germany won it with 128 points, 35 points lead ahead Team New Zealand.-Teams:24 teams, each...
of
A1 Grand PrixA1 Grand Prix is a 'single make' open-wheel auto racing series. It is unique in its field in that competitors represent their nation as opposed to themselves or a team, the usual format in most formula racing series. As such, it is often promoted as the "World Cup of Motorsport"...
from 29 September-1 October, 2006. On 21 August 2008, the official A1GP site reported that the
2008/09 seasonThe 2008–09 A1 Grand Prix season was the fourth season in its short history. It was announced that Ferrari will be supplying the engines. All cars and official merchandise are contractually obligated to portray the slogan "Powered by Ferrari"....
's first race has moved from the
Mugello CircuitMugello Circuit is a race track in the Mugello region of Italy near Florence. Its length is . It has 15 turns and a long straight.Grand Prix motorcycle racing host an annual event here . Also, the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters hold an annual event. The track is used for Formula One testing, mainly...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
to Zandvoort on the 4-5 October 2008 due to the delay in the building the new chassis for the new race cars. The
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
round moved to
TT Circuit AssenThe TT Circuit Assen is a motorsport race track built in 1955 and located in Assen, Netherlands. Host of the Dutch TT race, it is considered "The Cathedral" of motorcycling by the fans. It has a capacity of 100,000 spectators, including 60,000 seats...
in 2010.
Fatal accidents
In the history of the circuit, several fatal accidents have occurred.
| Name | Date | Description |
|---|
| Wim Gerlach |
June 10, 1957 |
The corner in which he died was named after him. First fatality on the circuit. |
| Piers Courage Piers Raymond Courage was a racing driver from England. He participated in 29 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 2 January 1967. He achieved 2 podiums, and scored a total of 20 championship points.Piers Courage was the eldest son and heir of the Courage brewing dynasty...
|
June 21, 1970 |
His car turned over and caught fire. He was pinned down by his De Tomaso car and had no chance to escape. |
| Roger Williamson Roger Williamson was a racing driver from England, who was killed during the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix.- Biography :...
|
July 29, 1973 |
He lost control of his car during the F1 Dutch Grand Prix The 1973 Dutch Grand Prix was a Formula One race held at Zandvoort on July 29, 1973. Zandvoort returned to the Formula 1 calendar following a year's absence for extensive safety upgrades to the race track including new asphalt, new barriers and a new race control tower...
and crashed into the barriers, spun upside-down and caught fire. David PurleyDavid Charles Purley GM was a British racing driver born in Bognor Regis, West Sussex. He participated in 11 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 3 June 1973. He scored no championship points.-Career:...
stopped his own race and tried, unsuccessfully, to save Williamson. The circuit was poorly prepared and not enough extinguishers were on hand. |
| Rob Slotemaker Rob "Sloot" Slotemaker was a racing driver from the Netherlands...
|
July 29, 1979 |
He broke his neck and died during a non-F1 event. |
Design
Its design has been modified and altered several times over time:
- 1948-1973: length
- 1973-1980: length
- 1980-1989: length
- 1989-1998: length
- 1999-present: length
The corners are named as follows (the numbers correspond to the image above, starting at the start/finish line):
- Tarzan corner (1)
- Gerlach corner (2)
- Hugenholtz corner (3)
- Hunzerug (4)
- Rob Slotemaker corner (5)
- Scheivlak (6)
- Masters corner (formerly Marlboro corner) (7)
- Renault corner (8)
- Vodafone (9)
- Audi S corner (10 + 11)
- Kumho corner (12)
- Arie Luyendyk (13)
The elevation difference is .
Use in simulations / games
In 1998, the older "classic" Zandvoort circuit layout from 1967 was modeled in detail and can be driven in the
Grand Prix LegendsGrand Prix Legends is a computer racing simulator developed by Papyrus Design Group and published in 1998 by Sierra Entertainment...
racing simulation for X86-based PCs. This was later converted to NASCAR 4, NASCAR 2002, 2003 and other simulations using a converter from website 'The Pits'. The current layout is used in the
SimBinSimBin Studios is a Swedish video game developer and publisher founded in 2003 that develops racing simulators for Windows and current-gen consoles. The company has its headquarters in Vara and the main development studio in Gothenburg...
games
RACE 07 - Official WTCC GameRace 07 is a racing simulator computer game from SimBin Studios. The game is the sequel to the 2006 title Race - The Official WTCC Game. Like the original Race, the title is officially licensed by the World Touring Car Championship...
,
TOCA Race Driver 3TOCA Race Driver 3 is the third title of TOCA racing video game series, developed and published by Codemasters. TOCA Race Driver 3 was released in Europe and North America on February 24 2006...
and
Race ProRace Pro is a sim racing video game developed by SimBin and published by Atari exclusively for Xbox 360. The game is described as having "ultra realistic car models" with cars ranging in power from to . The game uses the new Lizard game engine whereas the PC SimBin games used the Gmotor engine...
. The track was announced for inclusion in iRacing on 6 July 2009 and a release date of 'early 2010' has been given.
External links
Circuit Zandvoort homepage