06:00:52pm, Wednesday, May 01, 2024
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Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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1979Buckeye
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Well, it doesn't seem the China virus is letting up any time soon, and who knows where this election will ultimately end up. With that being said, we do have the gift of hindsight in looking ahead to the future. To many events were cancelled due to government over reach this year, most notable due to the cancellation of county fairs, however; towards the end of the season many independent events were held and drew large crowds. So how do we change direction with that information in mind?
I see this as prime opportunity for the sanctioning bodies to own their events and take complete control of the product. Pulling has heavily relied on the promoter set up to survive, if I had to guess you are probably going to see as much as 15-25% of events never come back. WPI has shown great success in promoting the Enderle, anyone who has had the pleasure of attending knows what a well run show this is. As a guy who lives in Ohio I can also tell you it is very well promoted. So I am proposing: 1. Sanctioning bodies become the promoter. Again the ground work for this has already been laid. 2. This gives you better control of the product, Track conditions, speed of the show, staging, etc. and the ability to put on a better show for the fan. Now this is not a knock on promoters, there are many very well run shows out there. Many promoters that put hours in year round to put on the absolute best show possible and we all know what those events are, we also know that there are those events that sign up for a pull every year, pull Billy Bob out of the bar 2 days before the event and ask him to be part of the track crew. Opposite ends of the spectrum. Are there problems with this, yes, paid staff being one of them. Renting facilities another, and with the China Virus running rampant there is that to consider as well. If the Cleveland Browns and Bengals can have 12,000 fans, seems pulling is a viable form of entertainment as well. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Posts: 1,162 |
How do you expect an association such as the NTPA to promote nearly 60 shows? If they are the ones promoting it then they are the ones that need to go out and get sponsorship money, organize food vendors, get track equipment, be there to setup for the event, track prep, etc. I don't think that is even close to a possibility for any association. Promoting one pull is daunting enough let alone 60+. Brent Yaron Hooked Up Pulling Productions hookeduppullingproductions@gmail.com |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Georgee
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Most folks dream without any connection to reality, wanting something is fine and good, however common sense and propabilities weigh heavily on the possiblities and outcome. Wish in one hand and *hit in the other and see which one is filled first. LOL |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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OK2NV
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Just my opinion but I feel that a lot of shows won't be returning again for a few years. In our area a lot of fairs were struggling and then after having to cancel this year it isn't looking good for 2021. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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why
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"a lot of fairs were struggling and then after having to cancel this year it isn't looking good for 2021"
Please help me understand why? What expenses did they incur in 2020 that have changed the situation so dramatically? If they had any money to have a fair for 2020, they should still have that same basic amount for 2021....... People keep saying this but i think it's a baseless comment born out of general fear. My guess is there will always be a certain number of events that are on the fringe every year regardless of the virus or whatever else is thrown out there. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Registered: 03/19/2018 Posts: 664 |
Not really. Even the smallest fairs still need the property to be mowed, general incidental up-keep, taxes and insurance to be paid and even a part time office-person's salary. If they don't rent out winter storage in the barns, then they earned exactly nothing to pay for those expenses. Most fairs are break-even deals or even take state money to get off the program that they do any given year. The fair that is consistently profitable and/or has a good war-chest saved is few and far between.
CP |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Registered: 03/30/2008 Posts: 191 |
I forget the exact numbers but our local fair grosses around $190k from it and only clears about $10k. That money is used on upkeep and expenses and a lot of it got spent before the virus hit. Of that $10k not much is left to put away once necessary things are done. I agree with ok2nv that some of these shows/fairs that were struggling have now had the habit of doing it broken and a lot of people probably enjoyed the time off and won't be wanting to get back into the fight of making it all happen for not much return. Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/10/2020 10:37AM by ParkerFly. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction, Brent Yaron
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1979Buckeye
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Well first and foremost I wouldn't expect it to be 60 shows, at least not at the GN level. It's all about taking control of your product. This also makes sponsorship easier. Let's say for instance NTPA wanted to go after Coca-cola, they just pulled out of NHRA. So different promoters already have contracts with different food vendors. For instance Urbana, Ohio has a contract with Pepsi, I believe Tomah has a contract with 7up. So in the current set up, NTPA has to be aware of what promoters have contracts with certain vendors. Makes it hard to go after Coke when those promoters already have contracts with drink vendors. That's just one example, but you can extrapolate that out to other brands. As far as staff goes, it would require a full time road staff. Again, think sponsorship, go to brand X and let them know at every NTPA event their equipment will be highly visible on the track for the duration of the event. Also not uncommon to other motorsports. Look, everyone on here is always talking about "next level" to truly got to a the next level you have to have total control of your product. Right now, there is control of some of the product, rules, classes etc. In an effort to keep events though alot of flexibility is given. Is it a change of direction, yes, is it different than the way it's been done for the past 52 years, yes, is it out of the realm of possibility. I don't believe it is. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Registered: 06/25/2008 Posts: 66 |
Excellent idea. Any sanctioning body is welcome to rent our fairgrounds and we can sit back and have them show us how it's done. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Moderator Registered: 01/11/2009 Posts: 1,579 |
If NASCAR or NHRA or any other sanctioning body isn't doing it, then it's probably not the best idea. I may sound like a broken record about following the lead of other sanctioning bodies but they have tried a number of things over the years, this idea and beyond. Observing the results of their actions is a better idea...and a lot less expensive.
Yes, the Enderle is an excellent event, and Wheatland follows that promoter/sanctioning body structure as well, with another layer as Lucas owns the facility. They are once-a-year events that work well but implementing that kind of program across a full season of competition would require another level of time, labor, and $$$ that the pulling community does not have to make it work. Bryan Lively - 
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Re: What is the average attendance at NTPA or PPL show.
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Moderator Registered: 03/25/2008 Posts: 1,446 |
What is the average attendance at a PPL CT event and what is the average attendance at a NTPA GN event? We throw around names like Coke, Chevy, or any other major corporation and the first thing they will ask is how many potential consumers will I have my product viewed by? Is it on TV and will the consumer see my advertisement and how fans does the sport draw? Dick Morgan www.PULLOFF.com Independent Pulling News |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Registered: 06/25/2008 Posts: 66 |
Sorry, I was being sarcastic.
One of our biggest problems right now is getting people to take tickets and park cars. We gave up for 2020 and hired a professional group to take tickets. You run out of local civics clubs and athletic/band parents and kids that are willing to do things like that. There are also plenty of details like where to borrow a water truck, a road grader, equipment to work up the track, a portable welder, ambulance service, sound system, porta potties, getting concessionaires, security, etc that are probably simplest left to the local folks. Just because they're not getting a paycheck from the NTPA or PPL, doesn't mean they won't do a good job. If the sanctioning bodies have suggestions on improvements I'm sure most promoters would willingly listen and work on improving their show for next year. |
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Re: Uncertain times, chance for change of direction
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Registered: 03/19/2018 Posts: 664 |
A lot of decent info in this area is shared from PRI. They offer some awesome seminars in particular at the show each year, but sadly, there won't be one next month... Still, the magazine and their emails offer good stories about this sort of thing from time to time.
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