steve J06

Hi all,
I am looking at a career opportunity about 1 hour south of Elkhart Lake, WI and would like to converse by email with anyone who lives in the area or knows the area well. Please pm me with your email, or if you prefer I will provide mine initially. I'd like to know about the land, cost of living, the people, etc. Career wise it would be a good move but do RA and any other nearby tracks really add to the value of moving from San Diego? Thanks!

Bad Karma

Can't help on most of that but being in that area you aren't that far from Blackhawk Farms in South Beloit, just across the Illinois boarder, nice small local track.

Socko

1 hour south of RA is Milwaukee. Its a pretty big city, plenty of people on the boards are from there.

Iconic

One hour south of Elkhart Lake puts you in Milwaukee-ish. Not the most desirable city in Wis to reside, but plenty of nice suburbs nearby and many nice little communities to get out of the metro if you're willing to commute to work and back. I spent 4 years in San Diego in the military back in the 80's, and I'm sure alot has change since then, but IMO the only thing that stands out is the nice weather year round. But the biggest value of moving from San Diego is you'd be leaving kaliphornia!

Not sure if you are contemplating the move just to be close to Road America, but...the track is a blast to drive a Vette on, far funner than the holy grail Sebring IMO. RA is rented by someone most every weekend so you could drive it (HPDE) alot durring the spring/summer/fall. Plus NASCAR nationwide in June, and TUDOR in August.

Winters here suck statewide and the Vette sits garaged for at least 4 months of the year, at a minimum. Vehicle registration and insurance, and most likely everything is cheaper here than in kal. No annual vehicle/smog inspections here btw.

In the end I think it boils down to money, weather, and quality of life. I'll take Wis for $500 Alex.

steve J06

Correct, just north of MW would be it, so looking at 30-45 min commute would get out into the country a bit, it seems.

Yes, cost of living and quality is a big consideration. Originally from Mich so am familiar with the Midwest generally but Wis not so much. It would be nice to have acreage and afford more track time instead of the 1/5th acre for well north of 1/2 mil. and 2 track days a year!

rbl

NOT living in San Diego or California is a no-briner .... take the job even if it is only a management trainee position at McDonalds - get out of Calif!

Go to City Data and find the local forum for that area ... you will get good answers and a wealth of information.
http://www.city-data.com/forum/milwaukee/

Aardwolf

I had a hobby farm about 15 mins from Road America and 45 from Milwaukee. It was outside of Adell and at that time you needed 35 acres to build so the land wasn't changing much. We wanted to get out of the Milwaukee area and moved north by Appleton. Appleton would be an option but it's north rather than south. Around Adell prices for land and homes were much less expensive than closer to Milwaukee. When I was searching to buy there was a clear difference in price as I looked north.

Iconic

A half mil (assuming you've the equity) will buy you a dream home with acreage in that area of Wis. As for you only getting 2 track days a year, that isnt much we agree. There's a local club up here that rents RA every year, a fri, sat, sun event and this years price for all 3 days was $600. A typical HPDE with 4 class groups to pick from. That is just one organizing body example, with numerous more to join throughout the summer.

Socko

North Woods Shelby Club RA weekend is awesome, outside of being mostly mustangs. :P Highly recommended. Good point by's and lots of passing areas you can take advantage of with the power of a Corvette.

Iconic

I passed more mustangs in that one single weekend, than all of my entire driving life combined...

steve J06

Good info, Thank you!
Hobby farm or more is what I'm after. Wife would like to try organic farming or some such. As long as she is happy, then the track days are no problem. How about the lay of the land in that area? Looks more rolling over towards the "Kettle Moraine" state forest, but not easy to tell from the satellite imagery. Would like to have some hills instead of just flat, flat, flat.

I also checked and looks like Putnam Park and Grattan are both within a 1/2 day drive. Currently It's 4 hours, but usually much longer, for me to get to any track (well except chuckwalla which is really off limits for 6 months in the summer/fall) so that's my gauge of what's reasonably close. Are there any tracks over towards the twin cities area? Thanks.

Aardwolf

I can't think of places that are just flat here in WI for large areas. The state is more or less hilly. You could check for good jobs around Appleton. There are lots of hobby farms. We started with a pretty run down one and fixed it up, made some sweat equity and bought a newer home after we were done with the horses.

J Mills

There are a few other tracks in the area, Milwaukee mile and autobahn country club. Both are a blast to drive or race. Autobahn is huge, Milwaukee mile is unique in that you get to run 3/4 of a nascar style oval then cut into the infield.

There is an org MCSCC.org that organizes time trials, HPDEs and wheel to wheel racing that hits most tracks in WI and IL. I do time trials with then and it adds a whole new feel to being on track. I moved to Chicago from SD and miss the weather, but not aspects of the culture. There are trade offs to both, it sounds like you know what you're getting into midwest wise. The racing and driving scene here is great during the summer. There are HPDEs through north woods, MVP track time, Hooked on driving, 3 ***** and others. Time trials with Midwestern council and autocross with a ton of orgs. See you at the track if you make the move!

clubracer6

Why do you say that?

Kind of a dream to move out of Chicago to the San Diego area (Delmar or Carlsbad area). Also love San Juan Capistrano.

tytek

Don't forget about Autobahn, which is much closer to you than Putnam, in Joliet, IL.

Most people that run tracks in this area of Midwest favor Road America and Mid-Ohio, so being right by RA is probably a big plus for a track rat.

Lawdogg

Coming from Mich. you know that your car will be in storage 4 to 5 months per year. Roads are in terrible condition all over the midwest and likely to get worse. If you can afford San Diego, stay there. jmho.

steve J06

Beautiful areas for sure! But, Del Mar or Carlsbad? Expect to lay out 7 figs for an ordinary house in an ordinary subdivision. Ocean view - double that. Ocean front - If you have to ask, you can't afford.

Wanna buy a house in suburban north SD? 4 Bd, 2.5 Bth overlooking a canyon/open space park with sea breezes and neighbors 15 feet on either side - high 6 figs. I guess it just depends on what you want. I personally would prefer to have acreage and live in the country. Came here for the biotech boom and that's long gone. Well established in the biz but all work and no play is making for a dull life! I understand that nice weather is a deal maker for some folks, but for myself would rather have a Heated/Cooled shop and buy warm clothes as needed and still have money left to play on track. When you read about the "sunshine tax" - that is a real thing! I have friends who have huge shops, toys, sleds, ATVs, etc. etc. and are doing it on less than 6 figures while still raising a family in the midwest. That's the no-brainer part IMO.

yeah, was just there for a few weeks this summer. judging by the roads it was a very hard winter! But a summer of track days would be better than 1-2 days so I could handle the storage season as a trade off. Besides I like to ice fish and snowmachine.

Anybody connected in the API/ fine chemical biz in Wisconsin?

troyguitar

This is a serious consideration. It's like that across what seems like the whole midwest and northeast. I drive a lot throughout the region and will probably be moving South or converting the Z06 to a track-only car within 5 years and daily driving some soft cruiser (G8 GT maybe?) - the roads are that bad.

steve J06

different strokes for different folks....
Yes the roads are lousy. But wife and I were generally comfortable in C6 base vette w/Z springs & shocks on it. Except in Chi town, the roads were really lousy and always have been as I recall.

JEPopp

Chemical ? Related healthcare industry is Abbott Labs and Baxter Healthcare in the far northern Chicago burbs. You could live across the state line in WI, and commute the 30 mins to work. You're still <2hrs from Road America, 2hrs from Autobahn, 3.5 hrs from Gingerman (South Haven, MI), and 2 from Blackhawk farms.

Good Luck!