PVGP Unveils New Circuits for 2025

The Pittsburgh vintage Grand Prix has unveiled two new race circuits for the 2025 event, per a press release dated February 7, 2025.

The new circuits are a result of the closure of the Panther Hollow Bridge for repairs, which carried the racers toward Phipps Conservatory and the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh.

The first of the two new circuits, The Schenley Oval, will still feature the iconic Boulevard of the Allies straight - complete with the classic haybale chicane - but take drivers to the left, away from Phipps, and around the Schenley Oval on Overlook Drive.

In regards to spectators, Executive Director Dan DelBianco stated “There will be spectator areas for the Schenley Oval but we do not have details on the exact placement until we can get out there. If we can allow spectators to walk across the Panther Hollow Bridge we will make a spectator area available near the swimming pool.”

The second event will resemble more of a hill climb and feature a one-way track that starts just after the Panther hollow Bridge at Phipps and encompasses the entire back side of the original track, ending at the serpentine "Flamingo Corner." The drivers will run that track individually in heats. The Hill Climb will feature cars not typically permitted to race at Schenley park, such as "muscle cars, one-off historic race cars, and specialized Hillclimb vehicles," per the Press Release.

While the paddock for the Schenley Oval circuit will remain on Prospect Drive as in previous years, the Hill Climb cars will be staged in front of Phipps, "giving fans an up-close and personal look at these magnificent machines."

Dan DelBianco also clarified that the race cars for this event will “run in small groups and then return on the track in reverse direction at a slow pace.“

He also stated that the existing shuttles that run from the golf course clubhouse to the paddock area will remain unchanged.

Regardless, this should shape up to be quite an exciting twist to the PVGP. With the closure of the bridge for repairs, the regular track would have been impossible to run, so we will see whether either of these events stays in future years.