You re in Fast Company

Transcription

1 You re in Fast Company With Cannonball Racing

2 SCOTTY CANNON Once you've seen Scotty Cannon, you will never forget him. It's the Mohawk haircut, of course, that first gets your attention. He certainly stands out in the crowd of other drivers. Although the Lyman, South Carolina native has a soft-spoken Southern drawl, he has been known to "get up on the tires" as they say in drag racing. He understands that his look lends credence to the edgy "bad boy" image and he knows about marketing a product and an image. Scotty began racing his street cars on the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) circuit. He was one of the early innovators in the Pro Modified class and became a pro driver when the class became a professional category at IHRA in Scotty dominated the class, winning six Pro Modified season championships (1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996 and 1998). He was named to the prestigious Car Craft Magazine All-Star Drag Racing Team as the Pro Modified Driver of the Year an amazing seven consecutive times ( ). He remains the winningest Pro Mod driver in IHRA history with 27 national event wins. In 1999 Scotty moved to driving a 6,000 horsepower nitromethane-burning Funny Car on the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) circuit, driving for the Don Schumacher stable with backing from Oakley. In his first year of Funny Car competition he was named the NHRA Rookie of the Year. After limited success in the Funny Car, Scotty returned to Pro Modified competition in SCOTT CANNON JR. Scott Jr. grew up riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles with his dad and his drag racing career began in the Pro Stock Bike class. He first drove his father's supercharged '53 Studebaker Pro Modified in professional competition at Dragstock in October 2004, the inaugural event of the American Drag Racing League (ADRL). The 25-year-old rose to the occasion, getting the final round victory on a holeshot (quicker reaction time) against his opponent. The Cannonball Racing car was tuned by Scotty, who also no doubt gave Scott a few driving pointers. Coming Soon:

3 The DRAG RACING MARKET In 2004 over $3,000,000 was awarded racers in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. Each of the 23 national events had total cash purses of over a half million dollars. More than 90 companies added contingency postings of over $1,000,000. Racing sponsors invested tens of millions of dollars in individual race teams. All of these companies must be getting a good return on their investment. How does drag racing help them reach their target market? REACH and FREQUENCY Drag racing sponsors receive exposure at many different times through different means. At the race itself, the car appears on the track and in the pits in front of a live audience averaging 60,000 throughout each 3-day national event. Television and print media coverage of the event increases the audience to over 400 million. Frequency of television playdates and the lead time necessary for print media (especially national magazines) extends visibility for each national event to several months after the live event. The race cars serve as billboards when flying the logos of various sponsoring companies and their truck and trailer tow vehicles present continuing sponsor identification at race tracks and even while traveling on the highways across the country. Drag racing is a unique form of auto racing, in that the fans are able to get up close and personal with their heroes. Each ticket is a pit pass so that all fans can watch the teams work between rounds of competition. They can get an autograph, look at the engine, and even talk to the racers and crew members. Where allowed, T-shirt sales play a significant role in merchandising the race teams and sponsors as well. Team sponsors can have direct contact with the fans in the pits, allowing great marketing opportunities. In addition, the racecar and driver can be available for static displays at your facility to generate interest by your customers. You can reward large clients or your staff with tickets to the races and a chance to hang out with the race team in the pits. A hospitality suite at the racetrack is a cost-effective way to generate goodwill and many tracks are amenable to special promotions, discount group tickets, and track signage.

4 SPONSOR SATISFACTION With brand awareness as the number one benefit companies gain through sports sponsorships, getting the biggest bang for the buck is the criteria for gauging success. In the latest survey of sponsors of 16 various sports leagues (auto racing, baseball, basketball, football, golf, hockey, and soccer) conducted by Street & Smith s SportsBusiness Journal, NHRA drag racing had strong marks across the board, with the most satisfaction registered in broad areas of the property s perception, such as athlete reputations and the sport s future. NHRA drag racing received the highest ranking of the 16 leagues/sanctioning bodies for Offer good value for the money, tied with minor league baseball, and ahead of NASCAR, IRL, and CART. It was ranked third in their focus on strong ROI (Return On Investment). OFFER GOOD VALUE FOR THE MONEY NHRA: 80 Minor League Baseball: 80 American Football League: 58 NASCAR: 51 Minor League Hockey: 50 PGA Tour: 41 LPGA: 41 National Football League: 39 Major League Baseball: 35 NCAA: 35 Major League Soccer: 32 NHL: 31 IRL: 28 NBA: 25 WNBA: 21 CART: 13 When asked about their satisfaction at the team/event level, executives at corporations with current or recent ties to major U.S. sports properties ranked NASCAR first and NHRA second, followed by the PGA Tour and the LPGA.

5 NHRA Official Sponsors: POWERade Budweiser Coca-Cola Craftsman Tools Featherlite Trailers Fram/Autolite GMC Trucks Ameriquest Mortgage Pontiac Sealed Power Engine Parts Summit Racing Equipment Suzuki Motorcycles VP Racing Fuel IHRA Official Sponsors: Hooters Restaurants Amalie Motor Oil Classic Trailers DTN Weather Stations First Class Travel Agency Karl Chevrolet KaSea Scooters Kubota Tractors MBNA Credit Card Medtronic Physio-Control Meyer Snow Plows Naturally Fresh Water Pit-Pro Custom Carts Power Tech Generators Racing Radios Summit Mail Order Sunoco Race Fuels Sweepster Power Broom Torco Racing Fuels Werner Enterprises White Lightning Absorbent Event and Race Car Sponsors (partial list): AAA of Southern California ACDelco Advance Auto Parts AMS Staff Leasing Bilstein Budweiser CARQUEST Auto Parts Castrol Oil Checker Schucks Kragen Ford Fram GM Goodwrench Holley Jeg's Mail Order K&N Filters Levi, Ray & Shoup Lucas Oil Mac Tools Matco Tools Miller Lite Mohegan Sun Resort & Casino Mopar Oakley Products O'Reilly Auto Parts Pontiac Radiac Abrasives Rugged Liner Sears Craftsman Tools Skoal Snap-on Tools U.S. Army

6 DEMOGRAPHICS Drag racing delivers an upscale audience with above-average discretionary income. Companies that establish a foothold in drag racing can influence the buying habits of the much sought-after year old males, who stay with the sport throughout their entire lives. A significant 80% of the fans say they are favorably influenced by companies that are drag racing sponsors. AGE 43% 33% 12% 12% GENDER 72% 28% Male Female EDUCATION 34% 24% 15% 15% 12% HS Grad Some College Some HS Post Grad Student / % 31% 21% 9% 7% INCOME $0 - $29K $30K - $49K $50K - $74K $75K - $99K $100K+

7 DEMOGRAPHICS Drag racing enthusiasts are active in sports and other outdoor activities, including camping, swimming, hunting, motorcycle riding, and snowmobiling. They are do-it-yourselfers, interested mostly in automobiles and home fix-ups. In keeping with their active lifestyle, they travel often (52% travel 100 miles or more one way to attend a national event). REGION 37% 25% 23% 15% South West North Central Northeast They eat fast food more often than the average American. They also smoke more than average. 88% claim beer to be their preferred alcoholic beverage, with 84% drinking soft drinks. Vehicles are important to this group. 80% own domestic automobiles (26% own 2 or more), while 24% own an import. 53% own a truck, 22% own a camper, van or motorhome. 26% have motorcycles. Camera usage is extraordinarily high at 90%. They buy in excess of five rolls of film a month. Music is very important to the drag racing spectator. They are significantly more likely to attend a concert (30% compared to an average 19%). More than the average own a stereo and video recorder. Most have cable television in their homes, with MTV watched over twice as much as the national average. 73% consider themselves moderate to heavy radio listeners. They are most likely to listen to progressive rock, adult contemporary, country, and country rock formats. MEDIA COVERAGE ON THE TUBE Qualifying rounds and the final rounds of NHRA national events are carried by ESPN2 with each show repeating at least once. In addition, the half-hour show "NHRA2Day" which airs on Sundays offers interviews with racers and in-depth coverage of events and news. The IHRA national events are televised on SPEED Channel, with at least one repeat playdate, reaching 66 million households. The ADRL races and reality show are televised on The Men's Channel, reaching 16 million households. IN PRINT The sanctioning bodies each have their own magazine Adrenaline (ADRL), Drag Review Magazine (IHRA) and National Dragster (NHRA). Monthly print magazines covering drag racing include Car Craft, Drag News, Drag Racer, Drag Racing Action, Hot Rod, and Popular Hot Rodding. There are many specialty magazines that cover individual car makes, for example Chevy High Performance, Corvette Fever, Mopar Action, and Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords. They account for a combined circulation of over 5 million. There are several national and regional racing newspapers, most notably National Speed Sport News. ON THE WEB Internet coverage comes from the sanctioning bodies at nhra.com and ihra.com as well as online magazines such as DragRacingOnline.com and CompetitionPlus.com. There are several websites devoted to specific classes as well, such as amspromods.com and outlawpromods.com. DRAG RACING VIEWED ON TELEVISION 32% 30% 17% 14% 7% Five hours + per week Four hours per week One hour or less per week Two hours per week Three hours per week

8 NATIONAL EVENT VENUES Edmonton, Alberta Seattle, WA Brainerd, Minn. Milan, MI Martin, MI Grand Bend, Ontario Cayuga, Ontario Epping, NH Sonoma, Calif. Las Vegas Pomona, Calif. Phoenix, AZ Denver, Colo. Drag racing is a sport that has grown at a phenomenal rate throughout its 50-year history, with a 53 percent growth in attendance during the 1990s. The number of national events has Kennedale Houston Topeka, Kan. St. Louis Belle Rose, LA NHRA Hattiesburg, MS IHRA Atlanta Valdosta, GA Jackson, SC ADRL increased over the years with NHRA scheduling 23 events for 2005 (12 events for the Pro Mods) and IHRA holding 12 events. National events cover all major population regions of the United States. In the U.S. metro market population rankings, eight of the top 10, and 40 of the top 50 markets are impacted at least once by an event. IHRA has three events in Canada as well. Dallas San Antonio Chicago Indianapolis Memphis, Tenn. Bristol, Tenn. Norwalk, OH Columbus, OH Rockingham Englishtown Reading, Pa. Budds Creek, MD Richmond Gainesville, Fla.

9 On The Men's Channel Beginning Tuesday, April 5, and continuing for an unprecedented 39 consecutive weeks, The Men's Channel will present Adrenaline: The Series, a half-hour television program mixing on-track action from the American Drag Racing League's six-event Outlaw Pro Mod season with a reality television-style behind-the-scenes look into the off-track lives of ADRL drivers. Adrenaline will be televised Tuesdays at 10:30 p.m. Eastern/7:30 p.m. Pacific. The program will be produced by MS2 Productions in St. Louis, Missouri. MS2 is an award-winning team of television and video production specialists creating high impact sports, motorsports and lifestyle programming. MS2 has previously produced motorsports programs for networks such as Fox and Spike TV. The Men's Channel, launched in 2001, features programming geared exclusively toward men and their interests, including all things that move, the latest toys and gear, outdoors, lifestyles, finance, and more. It is one of eight highly-targeted television channels designed to reach specific demographics and market, owned and operated by The Networks Group, a subsidiary of Turner Media Group. The Men's Channel is available in 16 million homes nationwide on channel 218 on the Dish Network and on many local cable systems FLOWMASTER ADRL EVENT SCHEDULE Feb May July 8-10 Aug Sept. 30-Oct. 2 Oct SpeedTech Winter Drags Presented by TLR ADRL DRAGPALOOZA Lend America Summer Drags Presented by TLR RACENSUR.com Sunshine Drags Presented by Burke Designs ADRL DRAGSTOCK 2 AMS Staff Leasing LoneStar Fall Drags Presented by Pinnacle Business Solutions Hattiesburg, Mississippi Valdosta, Georgia Belle Rose, Louisiana Valdosta, Georgia Jackson, South Carolina Kennedale, Texas

10 2005 NHRA POWERade Schedule Pro Modifed will compete at dark shaded events IHRA Hooters Schedule Pro Modified competes at all events

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