Tracks work to generate more revenue - Festivals becoming trend at racetracks

dpkimmel2001

dpkimmel2001

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LAS VEGAS – As dawn broke over the desert last month, tens of thousands of people filed out of Las Vegas Motor Speedway. They walked across the track’s banking, climbed up the grandstands and shuffled past murals highlighting the track’s NASCAR race winners – Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton, to name a few.

But the vast majority of the 135,000 people at the track weren’t race fans; they were rave fans. For the sixth year, LVMS hosted Electric Daisy Carnival -- a three-night, dusk-to-dawn concert experience that rivals any music festival on Earth.

Being home to what’s essentially the Super Bowl of electronic dance music has worked well for LVMS, which is busy year-round with driving schools and local races but only has a couple major-league events on the calendar.

NASCAR tracks were built with racing in mind, but the way the speedway has embraced EDC and promoter Insomniac has sparked an industry-wide trend of creative uses for these speed palaces which sit relatively dormant for much of the year.

“(Racetracks) have got to figure out how they can generate more revenue,” Insomniac production director Alyxzander Bear told USA TODAY Sports. “You can only do so many driving schools and Friday Night Drags. That’s created an opportunity for people like us.”

To read the rest.....

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...sy-carnival-firefly-music-festivals/87667100/
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
CoiD1eYUkAAIyAZ.jpg:large


LAS VEGAS – As dawn broke over the desert last month, tens of thousands of people filed out of Las Vegas Motor Speedway. They walked across the track’s banking, climbed up the grandstands and shuffled past murals highlighting the track’s NASCAR race winners – Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton, to name a few.

But the vast majority of the 135,000 people at the track weren’t race fans; they were rave fans. For the sixth year, LVMS hosted Electric Daisy Carnival -- a three-night, dusk-to-dawn concert experience that rivals any music festival on Earth.

Being home to what’s essentially the Super Bowl of electronic dance music has worked well for LVMS, which is busy year-round with driving schools and local races but only has a couple major-league events on the calendar.

NASCAR tracks were built with racing in mind, but the way the speedway has embraced EDC and promoter Insomniac has sparked an industry-wide trend of creative uses for these speed palaces which sit relatively dormant for much of the year.

“(Racetracks) have got to figure out how they can generate more revenue,” Insomniac production director Alyxzander Bear told USA TODAY Sports. “You can only do so many driving schools and Friday Night Drags. That’s created an opportunity for people like us.”

To read the rest.....

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...sy-carnival-firefly-music-festivals/87667100/
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When I first clicked on the thread I thought it was a Pin Ball machine. :D
 
Still, he said, “I would be shocked if we had not converted some of these kids into race fans.”

“They might not have had any interest in coming to an event in the past,” he said. “But while they’re here, they feel the banking and see the speedway from a different angle. They might think to themselves, ‘Hey, can you imagine 40 stock cars going around here at 185 mph?’

“I’ll guarantee you there’s some percentage – I don’t know how large – that has come back because of the awareness they’ve gotten from attending EDC.”

That seems like a stretch to me, but maybe some sort of ticket tie-in deal could bring some of them back?
 
LewTheShoe said:
Still, he said, “I would be shocked if we had not converted some of these kids into race fans.”

“They might not have had any interest in coming to an event in the past,” he said. “But while they’re here, they feel the banking and see the speedway from a different angle. They might think to themselves, ‘Hey, can you imagine 40 stock cars going around here at 185 mph?’

“I’ll guarantee you there’s some percentage – I don’t know how large – that has come back because of the awareness they’ve gotten from attending EDC.”

That seems like a stretch to me, but maybe some sort of ticket tie-in deal could bring some of them back?
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Hell, give them a free ticket to the race. Most won't come but a good percentage of those that do will be impressed. Every non-race fan I've brought to a race has come away in awe.
 
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dpkimmel2001 said:
CoiD1eYUkAAIyAZ.jpg:large


LAS VEGAS – As dawn broke over the desert last month, tens of thousands of people filed out of Las Vegas Motor Speedway. They walked across the track’s banking, climbed up the grandstands and shuffled past murals highlighting the track’s NASCAR race winners – Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton, to name a few.

But the vast majority of the 135,000 people at the track weren’t race fans; they were rave fans. For the sixth year, LVMS hosted Electric Daisy Carnival -- a three-night, dusk-to-dawn concert experience that rivals any music festival on Earth.

Being home to what’s essentially the Super Bowl of electronic dance music has worked well for LVMS, which is busy year-round with driving schools and local races but only has a couple major-league events on the calendar.

NASCAR tracks were built with racing in mind, but the way the speedway has embraced EDC and promoter Insomniac has sparked an industry-wide trend of creative uses for these speed palaces which sit relatively dormant for much of the year.

“(Racetracks) have got to figure out how they can generate more revenue,” Insomniac production director Alyxzander Bear told USA TODAY Sports. “You can only do so many driving schools and Friday Night Drags. That’s created an opportunity for people like us.”

To read the rest.....

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...sy-carnival-firefly-music-festivals/87667100/
Click to expand...

A lot of football only stadiums do see a lot of action in a given year but it was different in the era when baseball and football teams shared the same digs. I think the only stadium that houses football and baseball is the coliseum in Oakland or whatever it is named this week. There are several NBA and NHL teams that share an arena and a lot of time they house concerts and other events.

It makes sense to me that a huckster like Bruton Smith would want to use his racing venues for everything from snipe hunting to football games. The same goes for the owners of other tracks.
 
Regardless, hosting events like this build awareness within the community of the track and NASCAR in general. That has to count for something.
 
This is becoming a trend at short tracks as well. More and more are hosting festivals, rock concerts and other things and cutting back on racing events.

Let's just face it, unless you're in dirt racing, this isn't a profitable business. Most short track fans only go to dirt tracks because "asphalt is for getting to the track" (I'm sick of hearing that -- both styles of racing are perfectly good but many dirt fans have a stick up their ass) and the big Cup superteams haven't driven up the costs of dirt racing like they have asphalt racing.
 
EDC is nuts. I have friends and family that go. Way too hot and way too long with way too many people to sit out there hallucinating.


How badass is that Arial view of LVMS though?
 
They do the same thing as Charlotte motor speedway with Carolina rebellion, stick about 250,000 metalheads in one area it is very very cool bands like slipknot lamb of God Pantera, and tons of other badasses. Bruton is diversifying his portfolio
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
This is becoming a trend at short tracks as well. More and more are hosting festivals, rock concerts and other things and cutting back on racing events.

Let's just face it, unless you're in dirt racing, this isn't a profitable business. Most short track fans only go to dirt tracks because "asphalt is for getting to the track" (I'm sick of hearing that -- both styles of racing are perfectly good but many dirt fans have a stick up their ass) and the big Cup superteams haven't driven up the costs of dirt racing like they have asphalt racing.
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you believe dirt racing is profitable? maybe you need to do a little research on closed tracks/promotor turnover, drivers/race teams in all classes getting out because of cost/lack of sponsorship. Local short tracks are being carried by back gate fees. a bit like rec league softball. the only people making money are parts/tire companies. the rest are in it for fun. and fewer and fewer think the cost is worth it.

dirt fans have a stick up their ass? you must be an asphalt fan.

big cup teams driving up the cost of asphalt racing? correct. and it certainly limits the opportunities for the local/small teams. but at least until the nascar sponsorship bubble explodes, the big teams(Walmart) will still find value while closing down the mom and pop main street stores.

sorry andy. you still have some work to do.
 
klemmabyna said:
you believe dirt racing is profitable? maybe you need to do a little research on closed tracks/promotor turnover, drivers/race teams in all classes getting out because of cost/lack of sponsorship. Local short tracks are being carried by back gate fees. a bit like rec league softball. the only people making money are parts/tire companies. the rest are in it for fun. and fewer and fewer think the cost is worth it.

dirt fans have a stick up their ass? you must be an asphalt fan.

big cup teams driving up the cost of asphalt racing? correct. and it certainly limits the opportunities for the local/small teams. but at least until the nascar sponsorship bubble explodes, the big teams(Walmart) will still find value while closing down the mom and pop main street stores.

sorry andy. you still have some work to do.
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If dirt tracks aren't profitable, they have problems. Unlike asphalt tracks, dirt tracks don't struggle with fan counts. If the ticket gate isn't profitable, they have deeper issues.

We're making money at my track because of fan attendance.
 
Does Dover or Pocono get revenue from the casino? Let's move state fair to Dover.
 
sky said:
They do the same thing as Charlotte motor speedway with Carolina rebellion, stick about 250,000 metalheads in one area it is very very cool bands like slipknot lamb of God Pantera, and tons of other badasses. Bruton is diversifying his portfolio
Click to expand...

CMS also does a couple of auto shows per year as well as Speedway Christmas with all the lights. The auto show has been around awhile but Speedway Christmas is relatively new and I believe Bristol is also doing that.
 
carolinabuff said:
CMS also does a couple of auto shows per year as well as Speedway Christmas with all the lights. The auto show has been around awhile but Speedway Christmas is relatively new and I believe Bristol is also doing that.
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Bristol's been running Christmas lights for at least a decade. And we all know about their upcoming football experiment.

Darlington has been hosting some minor event (charity runs, movie nights) but nothing on this scale.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
Bristol's been running Christmas lights for at least a decade. And we all know about their upcoming football experiment.

Darlington has been hosting some minor event (charity runs, movie nights) but nothing on this scale.
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Thanks, didn't realize that about Bristol. Maybe my memory is fading but I only recall CMS running it for the last 5 or 6 years.

This year's football game will likely be a huge success and I wouldn't be surprised if Burton tried to make it an annual thing. He could probably attract other regional fanbases like NCSU, Kentucky, Clemson, South Carolina, WV, etc.
 
There is no casino at Pocono, that's at Pocono Downs, a horse track owned by Mohegan Sun a fair distance away, near Wilkes-Barre. The car track is nowhere near the township that hosts the casino so unless there's some backdoor deal, the track sees no revenue from any casino.
 
Its sad most of our ideas are none NASCAR related. It really really is so sad how the agenda of American high schools walk on the sport.
 
4tires17gals said:
Its sad most of our ideas are none NASCAR related. It really really is so sad how the agenda of American high schools walk on the sport.
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I hope our high schools have better subjects to spend my tax dollars on besides professional sports. They already spend too much on high school sports.
 
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