GingerMan Raceway
GingerMan Raceway at a glance
- Location
- South Haven, Michigan
- Type
- road course
- Length
- 2.14 mi (3.44 km)
- Turns
- 11
- Direction
- clockwise
- Surface
- asphalt
- Opened
- 1996
- Owner
- Dan Schnitta / GingerMan Raceway, Ltd
- Address
- 61414 Phoenix Rd
- Phone
- +1 269-253-4445
- Website
- gingermanraceway.com
Track map and layout
GingerMan sits on a former apple orchard in southwest Michigan, and the 2.14-mile, 11-turn layout still follows the gentle rolls of that farmland. The track was built with 36-foot-wide paving and generous, clean runoff throughout, a deliberate choice by owner Dan Schnitta to keep the circuit forgiving for club racers and driving students rather than punishing every mistake with a wall. A 2009-2010 project extended the back section into a new Turn 10A, adding roughly 1,700 feet of pavement and giving the lap a genuine elevation change it previously lacked. The layout can be run in several configurations, including a shorter loop and a reversed, counterclockwise direction, which gives event organizers flexibility for different classes and driver-training formats on the same weekend.
Configurations
| Layout | Length | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Full course (11-turn) | 2.14 mi | Standard clockwise configuration used for most club racing and HPDE |
| Short course | 1.88 mi | Shorter loop bypassing the Turn 10A extension |
Events and race weekends
GingerMan does not run professional national series; it is a club-racing and driver-training track through and through, with a full calendar of SCCA and NASA Great Lakes Region race weekends, time trials and HPDE days, plus the annual Gridlife festival, which has been held there since 2014 and mixes wheel-to-wheel racing, drifting and a music/car-culture festival atmosphere. Sportbike Track Time and other motorcycle organizations run regular street-bike and sportbike track days on the circuit as well.
| Event | Series | When | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| GRIDLIFE Midwest Festival | Gridlife | June | Festival weekend combining road racing, drifting and music, held annually since 2014 |
| NASA Great Lakes club race weekends | NASA | Spring-Fall | Recurring HPDE and club-racing weekends |
| SCCA club race and time trial weekends | SCCA | Spring-Fall |
Getting there and parking
GingerMan is east of South Haven in southwest Michigan, close to Interstate 196 and within roughly a 2-hour drive of both Chicago and Detroit, which makes it a popular weekend track for drivers from both metro areas.
- Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport (AZO) · about 40 min drive
Hotels and camping near GingerMan Raceway
The 330-acre property has extensive on-site camping and RV space, which is the default option for club racers and track-day drivers during event weekends; visitors who prefer a hotel typically base in South Haven or nearby Kalamazoo.
Where to look
South Haven, Michigan, a lakeside town about 10 minutes from the track, and Kalamazoo for a wider range of hotels.
Camping
On-site tent and vehicle camping is available across the grounds during events, with a fill station and dump station on-site.
RV
Reserved electric RV camping spots are available on-site; specific hookup amperage is not published.
Track days, driving experiences and lap records
GingerMan is one of the busiest club circuits in the Great Lakes region. NASA's Great Lakes Region and SCCA both hold multiple weekends of HPDE, time trial and wheel-to-wheel racing there each season, and Sportbike Track Time runs dedicated motorcycle track days. On-site camping makes multi-day weekends practical for out-of-town participants.
Who runs days here
- NASA Great Lakes Regioncar
- SCCAcar
- Sportbike Track Timemotorcycle
Lap records
| Category | Time | Driver | Car | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formula 1000 | 1:24.949 | Tyler Thielmann | Formula 1000 | 2015 |
Spectator guide
GingerMan is built for participants more than spectators, with no permanent grandstands; the Gridlife festival weekend is the exception, drawing crowds who watch from open viewing areas and the paddock alongside vendor and camping villages.
Best places to watch
Open hillside areas near the Turn 10A extension offer views across several corners of the back section.
Weather
- Jun-Aug: warm summer conditions typical of Michigan's lakeshore, often milder than inland due to Lake Michigan
- Oct: cool and increasingly wet as the season winds down
History of GingerMan Raceway
From a bar to a racetrack
GingerMan Raceway takes its name indirectly from a Chicago tavern. SCCA racer and bar owner Dan Schnitta had named his establishment "The Ginger Man" after J.P. Donleavy's controversial 1955 novel, and the bar's revenue eventually helped fund a long-held ambition to build his own road course. Schnitta found an old apple orchard east of South Haven, Michigan, and broke ground there in 1995, opening the track for its first full racing season in 1996.
Designed for club racing
Unlike many purpose-built circuits chasing professional series, GingerMan was designed from the outset around amateur and club racing, with architect Alan Wilson favoring wide, 36-foot paving and clean, generous runoff areas to limit costly car damage during driver training. That safety-first approach earned the track a Safe Track Award from Victory Lane Magazine and helped it become a go-to venue for SCCA and, later, NASA's Great Lakes Region. In 2009-2010 the track was extended with a new Turn 10A and roughly 1,700 additional feet of back-straight pavement, adding meaningful elevation change to a layout that had originally been quite flat.
A regional club-racing hub
GingerMan has never chased a national professional series, and that has become part of its identity: it remains almost entirely a grassroots and driver-training facility. Since 2014 it has also hosted Gridlife, an annual festival weekend that blends wheel-to-wheel club racing, drifting and music into one of the more distinctive events on the Midwest calendar. With 330 acres of camping space, a fill and dump station, and a full slate of SCCA, NASA and motorcycle track-day dates each season, GingerMan has grown into one of the busiest and most accessible club circuits serving both the Chicago and Detroit metro areas.
Frequently asked questions
How long is GingerMan Raceway?+
The main configuration is 2.14 miles (3.44 km) with 11 turns, run clockwise; a shorter 1.88-mile layout is also used.
Where is GingerMan Raceway located?+
At 61414 Phoenix Rd, east of South Haven in southwest Michigan, roughly two hours from both Chicago and Detroit.
Can you camp at GingerMan Raceway?+
Yes, the 330-acre property has extensive on-site tent and RV camping, including reserved electric sites, a fill station and a dump station.
Who runs track days at GingerMan?+
NASA's Great Lakes Region and SCCA hold regular HPDE, time trial and club-racing weekends, and Sportbike Track Time runs motorcycle track days.
What is Gridlife at GingerMan?+
Gridlife is an annual festival weekend, held at the track since 2014, that combines wheel-to-wheel club racing and drifting with a music and car-culture festival.
Why is it called GingerMan Raceway?+
Owner Dan Schnitta named it after his Chicago bar, The Ginger Man, itself named for J.P. Donleavy's 1955 novel, whose revenue helped fund the track's construction.
Other tracks nearby
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- Michigan International Speedway · 100 mi · oval
- The Milwaukee Mile · 104 mi · road course & oval
- Chicagoland Speedway · 118 mi · oval
- Road America · 134 mi · road course
- Blackhawk Farms Raceway · 152 mi · road course
Facts checked against 4 sources including the official circuit website. Last reviewed 2026-09-09.