California’s got a new country club: the Thermal Club. However, the Thermal Club is unlike any other country club you’ve ever been to in your life. It’s not focused on golf, food, or spas. The Thermal Club is about one thing, and one thing only – driving. It’s a new kind of country club for car lovers.
The Discovery Land Company (DLC), well known and very respected for its luxury golf communities, built the Thermal Club and ensured that it would be a place for individuals who love performance driving, restoring, collecting or racing cars and motorcycles, new or old. In short, DLC wants the Thermal Club to be “the world’s premier luxury motorsports club.”
The club offers three independent but intersecting courses. Each one is between 1.2 and 1.8 miles in length, culminating in a total of 4.5 miles of private land (or in this case I guess it’s pavement) and providing high speed straightaways, difficult curves, and even a Kart Track.
Along with the racing tracks, the Thermal Club also provides members with a spa, modern fitness center, supervised kid’s club, and restaurant. There is also a “village” by the tracks that has a Timing and Control Tower, which is an auto parts center for all types of cars (both modern and vintage) that also has a driving simulator room, trackside garage for fueling, washing and detailing services, secure vehicle storage, and a shop for restoration projects.
For those who do not have their own cars or need one to loan, the Thermal Club has a collection of Porsche Caymans that it lets individuals drive. The club also offers private or group driving lessons, open lapping sessions, and even provides members with the chance to race against other Thermal Club members or staff.
Membership into the Thermal Club is very pricey, however. Members are expected to pay a 30 year, $85,000 nonrefundable deposit and monthly dues of $600. The club also limits its membership to only 500 individuals.
Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Oakley
