Erin native Dawn Burlew named first woman president of Watkins Glen International
Longtime Corning Inc. executive Dawn Burlew, a fixture as a fan at Watkins Glen International and native of nearby Erin, was announced Friday afternoon as the racetrack's first woman president.
Burlew, 59, takes over a position vacant on a full-time basis since Michael Printup retired in June. Printup unretired a weeks later to become president of Sportscar Vintage Racing Association. Her first day is Jan. 3.
Burlew said she hasn't missed a NASCAR weekend at the road course in 20 years and has attended other events there, including the Finger Lakes Wine Festival, IMSA's Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen and the U.S. Vintage Grand Prix.
"No one knows the region better or brings more devotion to our community around Watkins Glen International than Dawn,” said Chip Wile, senior vice president and chief track properties officer at NASCAR. “Her authentic connection to the business and governmental communities in New York state will allow her to grow The Glen through its next phase as one of the premier racing facilities in the country.”
Burlew said she is thrilled to be part of the NASCAR family and work with the team at Watkins Glen, a group repeatedly praised by Printup.
"One of the things I’d like to see is for us to continue to be a premier track as part of the NASCAR family and continue to be one of the premier features in the Northeast and Southern Tier and Finger Lakes area for entertainment and tourism," she said.
"They have delivered superior events for a number of years and I want to be able to continue to do that, and if anything just polish things that are happening there today and advance them. There’s always opportunities for new events and things like that, but I think we need to just continue to polish what we have."
More: Q&A: Michael Printup looks back at 14 years at Watkins Glen, discusses new job with SVRA
Right opportunity at right time
Growing up roughly a 20-minute drive from the track, Burlew wasn't thinking about someday taking over the top position at a road course that grew to prominence in the 1960s by hosting the U.S. Grand Prix and is now among the most popular stops for NASCAR's Cup Series. WGI was voted "Best NASCAR Track" by USA TODAY readers in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2020.
"Did you ever sit at the track and just be in awe? Absolutely. Because I think it’s just a spectacular facility for us to have in our area. But, no, I never did see myself in this position," she said. "But the opportunity came at a time when I was ready for a change and the stars just lined up for me."
Burlew will retire at the end of the month from Corning Inc., where her most recent position was director of government affairs and director of business development.
She is a 1982 graduate of Horseheads High School and attended Cazenovia College and Keuka College. Burlew has worked for Corning since she was a junior in college.
She lives in Erin with her husband, Rodney Schmidt. They have a 25-year-old daughter, Sydney.
Burlew has served as a member of the Watkins Glen-based International Motor Racing Research Center. In addition to her role as supervisor in the Town of Erin, she has been a board member for the Business Council of New York State, Chemung County Chamber of Commerce and Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council.
"One of the things I bring to the party is I have a long history and a lot of relationships built," Burlew said of her job at WGI. "My current job has allowed me to build relationships with state and local and regional organizations – the chambers, the IDAs and things like that.
"There’s a lot of collaboration that goes on between the community and the track and the surrounding communities. That might be unique to other arenas or sports facilities."
More: William Byron cruises at Watkins Glen for 5th Cup Series win of season
Burlew excited about new Cup date
Watkins Glen's Opening Weekend is set for April 6 and 7. Also on the 2024 schedule are the SCCA Majors Super Tour from May 31-June 2, Historic Sportscar Racing Classic from June 6-9, the Sahlen's Six Hours of The Glen from June 20-23, the Ferrari Challenge North America from July 10-14, Finger Lakes Wine Festival from July 26-28, Hilliard U.S. Vintage Grand Prix from Aug. 21-25, and NASCAR Go Bowling at the Glen weekend from Sept. 11-15.
"I think it’s exciting for us. It’s almost like a whole new event by, one, being part of the playoffs but two, moving to a whole month later," Burlew said.
"I think we may lose a few fans because of the timing for things, but I think we’re also going to gain fans that may not have been able to participate with us prior to because of the time of year. I see it as a positive. The first year there’s going to be a lot of learning that goes on, but I think it’s going to be a huge bonus for us. And September is a beautiful time around here."
Follow Andrew Legare on Twitter: @SGAndrewLegare. You can also reach him at alegare@gannett.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today
This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Watkins Glen International names Dawn Burlew new president
