HOW TO FILL THE STANDS WITH A SPORTSMAN RACE
Thu, 2010-05-20 13:50
Packing a race track for a national event takes an inordinate amount of skill. Doing the same with a Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series divisional event is next to impossible.
Credit Bill Bader Jr. and the staff of Summit Racing Equipment Raceway Park for making the improbable an absolute reality.
SREMP had a draw of over 45,000 spectators over the weekend for the NHRA Div. 3 event in Norwalk, Ohio. Saturday’s crowd for the event was so overwhelming race officials were forced to close the gates at 5 PM, with traffic still backed up for five miles on each road leading into the facility.
Credit Bill Bader Jr. and the staff of Summit Racing Equipment Raceway Park for making the improbable an absolute reality.
SREMP had a draw of over 45,000 spectators over the weekend for the NHRA Div. 3 event in Norwalk, Ohio. Saturday’s crowd for the event was so overwhelming race officials were forced to close the gates at 5 PM, with traffic still backed up for five miles on each road leading into the facility.
“It was an absolute zoo,” said Bader.
Those who are familiar with the Baders understand the promotions oriented family tends to make an average race so much more. Their keen planning dating back to last year built a solid foundation for the event to be so much more than an average mundane sportsman event.
“We took the approach in 2007, because of the May date, the event should replace our usual big show event we have every Memorial Day weekend,” Bader explained. “We felt like the market could only bear one big show in May. We abandoned our Jet Car Nationals/Funny Car Foxhunt event and Cavalcade of Stars.”
Bader was so serious about growing the event that he went out and bought the exclusive rights to Cavalcade of Stars name, a moniker inspired by the old Coca Cola Cavalcade of Funny Cars circuit.
“We wanted to make the event a show,” explained Bader. “We wanted to use the Top Alcohol divisions as our gate draw. If you take the time to look into the personalities, you will see there are some unique individuals in this style of racing and we have a few of them around here. They are a diverse group of racers. We basically made those cars our Top Fuel and Funny Car stars … our Tony Schumacher and John Force. We filled in around the racing with jets, wheel standers and fireworks.”
The Baders work the Cleveland market hot and heavy throughout the course of the year with a few non-national event shows and the May event has always proven a challenge because of weather. With a clear forecast for the first time since Palm Sunday, Bader expected a decent crowd and had even prepped for a 15,000 spectator weekend.
He got three times the crowd.
“Obviously we missed that mark,” Bader said.
Bader underestimated his team’s advance promotions leading into the event. He didn’t have a free ticket show, choosing instead to refer to the event as creative bundling. Even the tickets were a work of art.
“We did a couple of things,” Bader explained. “We printed a ticket similar in appearance to a Super Bowl version with two day stubs. We gave these tickets to our official marketing partners at SREMP, and rather than walking into, let’s say, an auto parts store and throwing down a bundle of tickets on the counter and letting them take them, we felt this was the best way. We also bundled with the national event, and to add value in a struggling economy, we gave three Cavalcade of Stars tickets with those who had purchased national event tickets. This was a $120 value.”
Instead of using the electronic media, Bader activated 15 different radio stations in the area. Instead of giving money for the spots, Bader provided tickets and merchandise.
“You can’t necessarily pull that off in Cleveland, but you can in the smaller surrounding areas. We nibbled on the edges of the major metro area.”
Bader ended up selling several thousand $20 tickets.
One of the most important success stories of the event which caught Bader’s attention was the abundance of younger attendees.
“I’m estimating from the crowd, six thousand of them were children,” Bader said proudly. “With this couple there were three and another four and so on. I’ve gotten emails from attendees who brought their nieces and nephews and grandparents who brought grandkids.”
Bader chooses to let the weekend serve as an object lesson to his fellow track owners. They have the same ability to pack the house, all it takes is planning and a show for the fans.
Educating the race fans on the intricacies of Lucas Oil sportsman drag racing doesn’t hurt either.
“I came across one lady who didn’t understand throttle stops, she called it a timer,” Bader said. “She wanted to know how they worked. She was obviously taking about the Super categories. There are some complexities in divisional events when you look at the different classes.
“It’s no secret that I am a big fan of the Top Sportsman cars. Then you have the Top Alcohol classes and even the high-winding and wheel-standing of the Super Stockers.
“You get into the Super categories and drag racing is hard to explain. The point I’m trying to make is if you take the time to dissect the different parts of a Lucas Oil Drag Race, there’s some really good stuff there. If the promoters would just take the time and approach it, they could have a great event.
“Here’s we are in May, I have no electronic media so I don’t have a large amount of exposure like I do at the end of June for the national event. To put 45,000 people in here, says a lot.”
The unexpected overwhelming success did have a downside for the SREMP group. The show was scheduled to finish up at 10 PM on Saturday. By 8:30 the highways surrounding the facility were backed up forcing thousands of race goers who had waited in the long lines of traffic to be turned away.
“I have some folks that I will need to resolve some things with who couldn’t get in because we had to close the gates,” admitted Bader. “We like to think we are creative promoters, but for the first time in history, we had to close our gates. I’ve gotten about 50 to 60 emails from customers who couldn’t get in and I promise, we will make it right with those people. We have our Bader Family guarantee and we will make it right to their satisfaction.”
In the end, Bader points out he and his team learned very valuable lessons over the course of the weekend, not the least of which, sportsman drag racing when coupled with a show element can be a draw.
“A Lucas Oil Drag Racing event, if you take the time and package it right is a pretty bitchin’ show,” Bader said. “I wish people would get that as opposed to treating it like a bracket race and going after the low hanging fruit. There’s an opportunity to make a big splash. If I didn’t have the national event, it would be my showcase event.”
Last weekend it was.
SREMP had a draw of over 45,000 spectators over the weekend for the NHRA Div. 3 event in Norwalk, Ohio. Saturday’s crowd for the event was so overwhelming race officials were forced to close the gates at 5 PM, with traffic still backed up for five miles on each road leading into the facility.
How the Bader Family Drew 45,000 Spectators To an NHRA LODRS Event
Packing a race track for a national event takes an inordinate amount of skill. Doing the same with a Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series divisional event is next to impossible.
Credit Bill Bader Jr. and the staff of Summit Racing Equipment Raceway Park for making the improbable an absolute reality.
Credit Bill Bader Jr. and the staff of Summit Racing Equipment Raceway Park for making the improbable an absolute reality.
SREMP had a draw of over 45,000 spectators over the weekend for the NHRA Div. 3 event in Norwalk, Ohio. Saturday’s crowd for the event was so overwhelming race officials were forced to close the gates at 5 PM, with traffic still backed up for five miles on each road leading into the facility.
“It was an absolute zoo,” said Bader.
Those who are familiar with the Baders understand the promotions oriented family tends to make an average race so much more. Their keen planning dating back to last year built a solid foundation for the event to be so much more than an average mundane sportsman event.
“We took the approach in 2007, because of the May date, the event should replace our usual big show event we have every Memorial Day weekend,” Bader explained. “We felt like the market could only bear one big show in May. We abandoned our Jet Car Nationals/Funny Car Foxhunt event and Cavalcade of Stars.”
Bader was so serious about growing the event that he went out and bought the exclusive rights to Cavalcade of Stars name, a moniker inspired by the old Coca Cola Cavalcade of Funny Cars circuit.
“We wanted to make the event a show,” explained Bader. “We wanted to use the Top Alcohol divisions as our gate draw. If you take the time to look into the personalities, you will see there are some unique individuals in this style of racing and we have a few of them around here. They are a diverse group of racers. We basically made those cars our Top Fuel and Funny Car stars … our Tony Schumacher and John Force. We filled in around the racing with jets, wheel standers and fireworks.”
The Baders work the Cleveland market hot and heavy throughout the course of the year with a few non-national event shows and the May event has always proven a challenge because of weather. With a clear forecast for the first time since Palm Sunday, Bader expected a decent crowd and had even prepped for a 15,000 spectator weekend.
He got three times the crowd.
“Obviously we missed that mark,” Bader said.
Bader underestimated his team’s advance promotions leading into the event. He didn’t have a free ticket show, choosing instead to refer to the event as creative bundling. Even the tickets were a work of art.
“We did a couple of things,” Bader explained. “We printed a ticket similar in appearance to a Super Bowl version with two day stubs. We gave these tickets to our official marketing partners at SREMP, and rather than walking into, let’s say, an auto parts store and throwing down a bundle of tickets on the counter and letting them take them, we felt this was the best way. We also bundled with the national event, and to add value in a struggling economy, we gave three Cavalcade of Stars tickets with those who had purchased national event tickets. This was a $120 value.”
Instead of using the electronic media, Bader activated 15 different radio stations in the area. Instead of giving money for the spots, Bader provided tickets and merchandise.
“You can’t necessarily pull that off in Cleveland, but you can in the smaller surrounding areas. We nibbled on the edges of the major metro area.”
Bader ended up selling several thousand $20 tickets.
One of the most important success stories of the event which caught Bader’s attention was the abundance of younger attendees.
“I’m estimating from the crowd, six thousand of them were children,” Bader said proudly. “With this couple there were three and another four and so on. I’ve gotten emails from attendees who brought their nieces and nephews and grandparents who brought grandkids.”
Bader chooses to let the weekend serve as an object lesson to his fellow track owners. They have the same ability to pack the house, all it takes is planning and a show for the fans.
For the first time in the history of their ownership, the Bader family had to close the gates with a completely full facility.
Educating the race fans on the intricacies of Lucas Oil sportsman drag racing doesn’t hurt either.
“I came across one lady who didn’t understand throttle stops, she called it a timer,” Bader said. “She wanted to know how they worked. She was obviously taking about the Super categories. There are some complexities in divisional events when you look at the different classes.
“It’s no secret that I am a big fan of the Top Sportsman cars. Then you have the Top Alcohol classes and even the high-winding and wheel-standing of the Super Stockers.
“You get into the Super categories and drag racing is hard to explain. The point I’m trying to make is if you take the time to dissect the different parts of a Lucas Oil Drag Race, there’s some really good stuff there. If the promoters would just take the time and approach it, they could have a great event.
“Here’s we are in May, I have no electronic media so I don’t have a large amount of exposure like I do at the end of June for the national event. To put 45,000 people in here, says a lot.”
The unexpected overwhelming success did have a downside for the SREMP group. The show was scheduled to finish up at 10 PM on Saturday. By 8:30 the highways surrounding the facility were backed up forcing thousands of race goers who had waited in the long lines of traffic to be turned away.
“I have some folks that I will need to resolve some things with who couldn’t get in because we had to close the gates,” admitted Bader. “We like to think we are creative promoters, but for the first time in history, we had to close our gates. I’ve gotten about 50 to 60 emails from customers who couldn’t get in and I promise, we will make it right with those people. We have our Bader Family guarantee and we will make it right to their satisfaction.”
In the end, Bader points out he and his team learned very valuable lessons over the course of the weekend, not the least of which, sportsman drag racing when coupled with a show element can be a draw.
“A Lucas Oil Drag Racing event, if you take the time and package it right is a pretty bitchin’ show,” Bader said. “I wish people would get that as opposed to treating it like a bracket race and going after the low hanging fruit. There’s an opportunity to make a big splash. If I didn’t have the national event, it would be my showcase event.”
Last weekend it was.
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