They only places I deal with are in the northeastern U.S.

We went to Watkins Glen International last year and they were very accomodating though. If you do a little research before you contact your potential venues, they will usually be more helpful than if you just cold-called them and had no idea what you were looking for. They figure if you already have some info on them, then you must be at least a little serious about what you want to do, instead of just being some wannabe calling and wasting their time.

I always start looking at possible venues at least two years out, that way I can get a rough idea of what their schedule normally looks like from year to year. If a place is open during the week, it's always easier to secure something at that time, then it is to lock it down on a weekend