Barber Motorsports Park facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Barber Motorsports Park

Full circuit (2003–present)
Location	Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Time zone	UTC−06:00 (UTC−05:00 DST)
Coordinates	33°31′57″N 86°37′08″W / 33.53250°N 86.61889°W / 33.53250; -86.61889
FIA Grade	2
Owner	Barber Motorsports
Operator	ZOOM Motorsports
Broke ground	2002
Opened	2003
Architect	Alan Wilson
Major events	Current: IndyCar Series Indy Grand Prix of Alabama (2010–2019, 2021–present) MotoAmerica Championship of Alabama (2015–present) GT World Challenge America (2014–2016, 2024–present) Trans-Am Series (2025) FR Americas (2019–2020, 2025) Former: Atlantic Championship (2021–2022) IMSA Prototype Challenge (2017–2018) Rolex Sports Car Series Porsche 250 (2003–2013) AMA Superbike Championship Championship of Alabama (2003–2014)
Full circuit (2003–present)
Surface	Asphalt
Length	2.38 mi (3.83 km)
Turns	17
Race lap record	1:06.8182 ( Patricio O'Ward, Dallara DW12, 2021, IndyCar)

Barber Motorsports Park is a huge racing place in Birmingham, Alabama. It's about 880 acres big! A man named George W. Barber built it. This park also has the amazing Barber Vintage Motorsport Museum, which is like a giant garage for old and cool vehicles.

Since 2010, the park has hosted the IndyCar Series' Grand Prix of Alabama race. Every October since 2005, the Annual Barber Vintage Festival takes place here. It's a big celebration for old cars and motorcycles. The park is also where the Porsche Track Experience happens, where people can learn to drive fast cars.

The Race Track

An aerial view of the Barber Motorsports Park race track.

The main race track at Barber Motorsports Park is a busy place! It has hosted many exciting races. These include the IndyCar Series, Grand-Am races, and events for vintage (old) racing cars. Motorcycle races like those from MotoAmerica and the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association (AHRMA) also happen here.

The track is known for being very beautiful, with lots of green plants and cool landscaping. Some people even call it "The Augusta National of Motorsports" because it's so well-kept.

The IndyCar Series teams used the track for testing their cars in 2007 and 2009.

Barber Proving Ground

The Barber Proving Ground is a special area that opened in 2014. It's about 14 acres big and is used for testing vehicles. It has a track and a wet/dry skid pad, which is a flat area where drivers can practice controlling their vehicles on slippery surfaces.

This area is used for many things. People learn defensive driving skills here, which means how to react safely in tricky situations. It's also used for safety lessons, showing off new products, and testing different vehicles.

There's a two-story building nearby that's about 9,800 square feet. It's used for meetings, lunches, and seminars. There are also two large garages, totaling 16,800 square feet, that support programs like the Porsche Track Experience.

Off-Road Adventures

Barber Motorsports Park isn't just for paved tracks; it also has areas for off-road vehicles!

Vintage Motocross Course

There's a 0.7-mile vintage motocross course. Motocross is a type of off-road motorcycle racing. The first big event on this course was during the 11th Annual Barber Vintage Festival. Off-road vehicle makers also use it to show off their new models.

Vehicle Off-Road Course

This course has about seven miles of trails spread over 50 acres. It can be set up in different ways and used in multiple directions. The trails have various types of ground, from easy to very challenging, with hills and dips. Natural features like water crossings, rocks, and bridges are part of the fun.

Obstacle Course

The obstacle course is a natural trail with nine unique challenges for off-road vehicles and ATVs. Some of the cool features include:

• A railroad crossing.
• A concrete path with potholes.
• A 45-degree sloped trail.
• A 15-degree concrete slope with rollers.
• A switchback (a sharp turn).
• A 150-foot "rock crawl" section.
• An articulation area (where vehicles twist and turn).
• A water crossing where the water level can be changed.
• 20 feet of concrete stairs that are 10 feet wide.

There's even an observation deck where people can watch the vehicles tackle the course below!

Park Activities

You can take garden club park tours at Barber Motorsports Park all year round. You ride in an open-air tram with a tour guide. The tour starts in front of the Barber Museum. You'll see the park's special plant collections, including rare Hightower Willow Oaks.

Cool Sculptures

The area inside the race track has many large and interesting sculptures. You can see huge steel spiders and dragonflies made by an artist named Bill Secunda. There are also sculptures of lions and a figure pushing a boulder, like the Greek myth of Sisyphus.

The Turns 5 & 6 part of the track is even called "Charlotte's Web" because there's a giant spider sculpture nearby. This spot is also a great place for racers to try and pass each other.

Around the park, you'll find five large steel gates made by Branko Medenica. They have designs inspired by motorsports and wildlife. Near a pond, there's a cool sculpture by Edward Lee Hendricks that moves with the wind. Another one of his artworks is at the nearby Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport. In front of the Barber Museum, there are three big stainless steel sculptures by Theodore Gall called The Chase. These sculptures took over a year to make and weigh almost five tons!

Barber Vintage Motorsport Museum

The logo for the Barber Vintage Motorsport Museum.

The Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum building.

George Barber loved old motorcycles and noticed there wasn't a museum that showed the history of motorcycles from all over the world. He wanted to save motorcycle history in the United States and show examples of bikes that people had only seen in books before.

The Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum started in 1988 as George Barber's own collection. In 1994, he made it a non-profit organization, meaning it's for public benefit, not just for making money. It first opened to the public in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1995.

In 1997, the Barber Museum sent 21 motorcycles to the famous Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York for a special exhibit called The Art of the Motorcycle. This exhibit also traveled to Chicago and the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. After this success, George Barber decided to create a unique place with both a museum and a race track. He even talked to world champion racers John Surtees and Dan Gurney for advice. In 2003, the Barber Museum moved to its permanent home at Barber Motorsports Park.

The museum has more than 1,600 vintage and modern motorcycles and racing cars. It's known as the largest motorcycle museum in the world! It also has the biggest collection of Lotus race cars. You can see bikes from 1904 all the way to today. More than 900 motorcycles are on display, coming from 16 different countries and representing over 140 different brands.

A unique display of motorcycles stacked high inside the museum.

Exciting Events

Barber Motorsports Park hosts many different racing events throughout the year.

Current Events

• February: 24 Hours of Lemons (a fun endurance race for cheap cars)
• April: MotoAmerica MotoAmerica Superbikes at Barber (motorcycle racing)
• May: IndyCar Series Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, Indy NXT, USF Juniors, Global MX-5 Cup, Radical Cup North America (various car races)
• July: National Auto Sport Association (more car racing)
• September: GT World Challenge America, GT America Series, GT4 America Series, TC America Series, Toyota Gazoo Racing Cup North America (sports car racing)
• October: Trans-Am Series Barber SpeedTour, Formula Regional Americas Championship, Formula 4 United States Championship, Ligier JS F4 Series, Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (more car and vintage racing)

Past Events

Many other races have taken place at Barber Motorsports Park over the years, including:

• AMA Pro Daytona Sportbike Championship (2009–2014)
• AMA Superbike Championship (2003–2014)
• Atlantic Championship Series (2021–2022)
• Rolex Sports Car Series Porsche 250 (2003–2013)
• And many more series for different types of race cars and motorcycles.

Lap Records

Race tracks keep records of the fastest laps ever driven during a race. As of May 2025, here are some of the fastest official race lap records at Barber Motorsports Park:

See also

In Spanish: Barber Motorsports Park para niños