Atherton has said that ALMS wants a race in the Northwest. Right now, Porland is their only choice after a failed attempt to buy Pacific Raceways.
Unfortunately, I think the ALMS wants a different promoter for the races. I think the City of Portland (or Neverland as I like to call it) is tied to Global Events Group for promotions because that is who they use for the Rose Festival.
I am sure an ALMS race could be fit in, but I don't think there is enough time to do it. Who knows, maybe next year?
The PIR Track was repaved this winter. It is very smooth now with new FIA style curbing around most of the track (no more super high and abrupt curbs).
Turns 6 and 7 were changed. Turn 6 is now closer to turn 5 by about 50 feet. Its radius and profile are about the same as before though.
Turn 7 which exits onto the back straight is a much tighter corner than it was before. It used to be a 150 ft radius and is now a 60 ft radius corner the same as turns 1 and 2 are (the "Festival Curves").
This means that there is now another legitimate passing zone going into turn 7. It also means that speeds down the back straight will be slower because exit speeds out of turn 7 will be slower by a good 15-20mph. I think that it also means this track will favor horsepower over corner speed even more than it did before.
Turn 10, the turn off of the back straight, will have a new curb that is flatter than before, but also contains the "sawtooth" ridges. From what I have heard, you cannot use that curb anymore when going through turn 10. This means that speeds through that corner will be slower. I think that this makes turn 10 a better passing zone than it used to be. It will still be tight though. in a way this is unfortunate as turn 10 was a very fun, high-speed corner before. Hopping that curb at over 70mph in my car was an absolute blast. I could have gotten another 10mph over it too if I had the skill and the guts.
Turns 11 and 12 are basically unchanged. Most of the rest of the track was made wider, significantly in some places, but not turns 11-12. There is not much run-off there so I think they were trying to keep speeds down.
They also had plans to incorporate a "bus stop" type chicane before turn 10. Fortunately, that plan was abandoned.
Unfortunately, no improvements were made to the facilities that I know of. This is a real bummer. Pro racing needs better facilities before Portland will be a track that they like to come to. It is also not so great for the fans. There are not enough bridges to the infield, there is precious little shade and there are no hookups for RV's. Some of this is planned to be changed in the future... we'll see.
The city has been diverting funds meant for improving the track for years. The track turns a profit for the city, but the city would rather use the money to subsidize its horribly expensive and economically infeasible mass transit systems and bike lanes around the city. Fortunately, the noise issues seem to have been put to bed for now.
I love PIR. I really hope we can get ALMS back. But there are some major hurdles that the ALMS, the city and the promoter are going to have to work on.
That was probably more than you wanted to read, wasn't it?
How about Portland? 
