Watkins Glen International - Trans Am Weekend
- Chris Green
- 8 hours ago
- 4 min read
Photos by Chris Green, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 2.57
Watkins Glen International 2790 County Route 16 Watkins Glen, NY 14891
Year Opened: 1956
Capacity: 38,900
Summer Thunder in Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen International hosts numerous race series every year, from NASCAR to IMSA. While Trans Am used to feature as part of the annual Hilliard Vintage Grand Prix, Parella Motorsports Holdings made the choice this year to separate the events. This creates a new race weekend in July, with Trans Am as the feature series and Formula Race Promotions supporting.
Since they first began racing here in 1948, the speedway has attracted some of the greatest racers in all of motorsports, across a wide variety of manufacturers. The downside to this is a massive decrease in both fans and cars on track, with increased pricing.
Food & Beverage 2
Watkins Glen International doesn’t have a lot of food vendors, with the main paddock cafe located in the main paddock near the front stretch – fans looking to visit the outer parts of the track may have slimmer pickings than those watching from the finish line.
That said, the choices in the fan zone are simple, ranging from burgers ($13) and hot dogs ($5-$9) to chicken tenders ($15) and smaller snacks ($4 to $8), while drinks run $4 for coffee or hot cocoa, $5 for water, Powerade, and sodas, $11 for Seltzer, $9 to $11 for beer, and $7 for lemonade. The big downside here is that the paddock cafe stand is only open on the weekend – on Thursday it remains closed.
Atmosphere 3
Watkins Glen International is located in New York’s Finger Lakes region, making the facility a beautifully located racing venue – the area is full of beautiful trees, meaning fans can find some shade in the hot sun. In addition, the track is laid out to be one of the fastest road courses in North America. Large grandstands also line the front straight, Turn 1, the esses, and the final corner complex, offering many different viewpoints for fans to watch from.
Neighborhood 4
The track itself is about 5 minutes south of the town of Watkins Glen, nestled on the southern shores of Seneca Lake. The town is beautiful and quaint, featuring numerous local shops and restaurants, while north of town is New York wine country, with countless wineries all along the lake.
For those willing to drive, the town of Ithaca is just a half hour east, where you can find hotels, restaurants, and shopping in the same town that is home to Cornell University. To the south, Elmira and Corning are 30 minutes away – if you visit the latter you can see the Corning Museum of Glass or the National Soaring Museum.
In addition, sightseers routinely flock to Watkins Glen State Park for stunning hiking through a canyon of waterfalls, as well as Lakeside Park, to watch the stars rise over the waters of Seneca Lake.
Fans 1
The fans at Watkins Glen International are usually a cross-section of sportscar racing diehards. Unfortunately, they have completely abandoned the July Trans Am date in favor of the other numerous summer offerings at the track, such as IMSA and NASCAR. The massive decrease in car count also doesn’t help either. Adding in the high ticket prices for this event and you have the perfect storm of not many people coming to watch in person. The campgrounds are pretty sparse at the track all weekend, and very few fans, that weren’t friends of family of the drivers competing, were in attendance.
Access 3
The biggest downside in getting to Watkins Glen International is its relatively isolated location – the nearest major highway is I-86 to the south and west, at least a 30-minute drive away. Traffic thankfully doesn’t back up nearby, though, and the roadways are relatively clear all weekend.
Once at the track parking is plentiful all around, but navigating the track’s tunnels, bridges, and walkways can be daunting, as the facility is rather large. Track maps are placed throughout the venue, however, making getting from place to place a little easier.
Return on Investment 3
Tickets to Trans Am weekend rose sharply in 2024 and that trend continued for the 2025 edition, starting at $69 for a one-day weekend ticket to $91 for a weekend pass. This is considerably higher than SpeedTour weekend ticket prices at other racing venues. Parking is free however, so you can get away without having to pay too much more, and the cost of Trans Am weekend is still much lower than for the NASCAR and IMSA weekends at Watkins Glen.
Extras 2
Fans can wander the paddock area for free, giving you a great look at the teams working away at their machines, and Victory Lane is also open to all fans, unlike at larger race series, offering fans the ability to take part in the podium celebration. There was also a fan walk on the grid before the TA2 race on Saturday, for fans to see the cars and stars of Trans Am up close.
Final Thoughts
While Watkins Glen is a stellar facility, this weekend is a big miss from the series organizers. Removing the showcase series, Trans Am, from the annual Vintage Grand Prix in September was a mistake that showed in the lack of fan attendance over the weekend. Nonetheless, Trans Am and FRP put on a great show on track, with tomorrow’s stars showcasing their skills for all to see.
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