Join the club: Hampton Downs GT membership

30 March, 2017

 

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If you love track time as much as we do, then a GT Membership should be right up your alley? 

Just over a year ago, Hampton Downs Motorsport Park launched its GT Membership model — a membership designed to sit alongside other exclusive memberships found at the likes of the very best golf and yacht clubs. While such memberships are very common in the northern hemisphere, they have not been tried in this part of the world, Australia included, until now.
Where the motorsport membership model has been successful overseas, the facility has been purpose built, and built to a very high standard. That is also the case at the Hampton Downs and Highlands motorsport parks, which are both owned by Tony Quinn, and where the GT Membership has flourished.

In fact, the Hampton Downs GT members are raving about the club, so we decided it was time to catch up with the Hampton Downs team to find out more about how the membership works, and why it is growing in popularity.

Clearly, the biggest reason is the generous amount of track time included in the deal. GT members get 80 sessions per year, which averages out to more than one day a week — and it doesn’t matter whether you are an amateur or a professional. Think of it like being a member of a golf club. It doesn’t matter how good you are at golf, you still get the same benefits.
However, there are some significant differences that put GT Membership in a league above membership of most golf courses and yacht clubs; quite possibly, above them all. We say that because once you become a GT member, you own it. Yes, that’s right — you own the membership, and after three years you can sell it to the highest bidder if you want.

Given that membership will be closed when it reaches capacity, a positive capital gain from the sale is not out of the question! A small transfer fee is payable when the sale is made, and the only other condition is that Hampton Downs must vet the new member for suitability. You can also pass the membership on through the family. 

Then there is the brand-new members lounge, with the best view of the racetracks from a large balcony and several smaller ones. The lounge belongs to the members exclusively on track days. There are no cash registers in sight — you can help yourself to the fridges packed full of your favourite beverages, and a light lunch and snacks are complimentary.

Driver training is available to members at competitive rates, and sometimes you’ll get some free pointers from members whose names you may recognize — such as Shane van Gisbergen, Greg Murphy, and ‘Mad Mike’ Whiddett! There are three separate track configurations and, outside of major events, members have exclusive access to these. Members are also the only drivers to get a run on the new 4km International Circuit.

With Tony Quinn owning both Hampton Downs and Highlands Motorsport Park, he’s ensured that members of each get to enjoy both facilities, adding five full days on the track at the other venue to membership of each. To help members take up this opportunity, a deal has been done that gives them reduced vehicle transport costs between the two tracks — or, if you prefer, there’s always the option of a hire car, available at each venue. Pit garages are open for free use during any of the 80 sessions.

The more we spoke to the team at Hampton Downs, the more appealing the membership sounded; access to discounted accommodation in Queenstown was the next thing they mentioned, along with 15 guest passes per membership each year, allowing you to take passengers on the track. Of course, immediate family, spouses, and children are welcome to attend any members’ event/day at the track, and that includes access to the members lounge.
When you consider all the above, the $10,000 joining fee and an annual ‘green fee’ of $4500 (both excluding GST) represent excellent value, particularly when you break it down to the track time included: it works out at less than $57 a session — try getting track time anywhere else for that. The value has been well recognized already, with more than 135 members having joined at Hampton; that number is projected to double or even triple by the end of 2017. 

If you’re keen on finding out more, or signing up, give Hampton’s business development manager, Cherie Brown, a call on 027 536 7870, or email [email protected].

Lunch with… Jim Palmer

In the 1960s, Hamilton’s Jim Palmer won the prestigious ‘Gold Star’ four times and was the first resident New Zealander home in the New Zealand Grand Prix on five consecutive occasions. He shared the podium with Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Bruce McLaren, Graham Hill, Jim Clark, Denny Hulme, Jackie Stewart, and Chris Amon. The extent of his domination of the open-wheeler scene in New Zealand will probably never be matched or exceeded. Yet he’s always been modest about his achievements.

NZ Classic Car magazine, May/June 2025 issue 399, on sale now

Who would have thought it would become such a worldwide motorsport star when Ford introduced the humble Escort in 1967?
Its popularity, particularly in Mark 1 form, is now of iconic status. Our cover story for this issue is on a 1968 Ford Escort Mark 1, Alan Mann Racing Tribute. We talked with the owner of this very special Escort, finished in tribute also to the owner’s father.
“Most children love speed, and motorsport typically comes courtesy of a parent, and Elliott is no different. His engineer father, Mark, had a love for motorcycles and going fast; however, when children came along, he swapped two wheels for four, in the form of two Ford Escorts.
Little did Mark know it at the time, but the humble Escort was about to weave its way into the family fabric once and for all.
After emigrating from London to New Zealand, Elliott recalled one evening when he was 14 being invited to tag along by his father, helping a friend convert an Escort road car into a racing car. This was the pivotal moment when Elliott remembers the motorsport bug taking over. He knew he had to have his own one.”