Back when the US Grand Prix at Indianapolis was announced in the late '90s, I thought it was about the coolest thing in the world.
Not only was Formula 1 (this predates Schumacher's absolute domination) coming back to America, it was coming to the Midwest, and to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway-a move that, in my mind, helped cement the facility as a international benchmark. I would get to see the mythical drivers, the standing start, and hear the 16,000 rpm engines. Never mind the financial wisdom of the investments required and the hit to management's coffers-as a fan this was about as cool as it got.
The first race, in 2000, didn't disappoint. My attendance was facilitated by a complex logistical operation involving a business trip to Arizona, a car left at the Indy airport, two rented RVs, and some clearance-sale beer. Race weekend had a buzz that this was an exciting international event. Alas, it didn't last. I was able to attend the first three races, but other issues intervened and kept me from going. Attendance flagged in general and was undoubtedly hurt by the aforementioned absolute dominance of the Schumacher Ferrari and a 2005 fiasco of a race that saw only six cars run. By 2008, there was no more American Grand Prix stop, the event replaced on the road course by a Moto GP race.
No one could have been more surprised (or skeptical) than me when, in 2010, a 2012 F1 race was announced in Austin at (those oh-so-reliable words) a facility yet to be built. I hated to be such a naysayer (I was super bullish on the USGP at Indy, after all), but there are/were way too many questions here:
1. The track. Not built yet? Yeah, that's likely to go off. How many race tracks have been announced but never built? It's not a simple undertaking, to build a spectator road course from scratch, then expect people to come out.
2. The market. Austin may be "America's Hippest City", but do hipsters watch Formula 1 racing? Are there a lot of race fans in the area? Are there a lot of road race fans in the area? How friendly is the community to this idea? I would guess that there is enough entertainment and lodging in the area thanks to the college and the festivals, so it has that going for it.
3. The promoter. I'm not sure who thinks he can make money off of Formula 1, but this guy is apparently buddies with Bernie, so maybe he has some insight.
4. The X Factor. See: Austin Grand Prix to Face Questions... There is a lot that goes into putting a race on, not to mention building a track, and this just seems to scratch the surface. These kind of things take years to prepare (like 5 or 10, not 2) and it sounds like not all the homework has been done.
Again, I hate being a naysayer, but I'm extremely skeptical that a Formula 1 race will be held in Austin next year. I'm also extremely skeptical that the track will be completed. If it is, it won't stay open long. There's an aura about all things "F1" that makes people lose all sorts of common sense and throw every dollar they have at it-when it clearly isn't enough. The USGP has failed at numerous locations, including Best Spot In The World for it, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, at least three "US F1" teams have been announced and started in the past ten years, only to have gone nowhere. I applaud the ambition of a promoter who wants to try it, but I'll be shocked if the race goes off a year from now.
Racing Opinions and Commentary!
Showing posts with label Lawyers Guns Money. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lawyers Guns Money. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
Why Indycar Will Race In Japan
One good thing about blogging about the Izod Indycar series is that there never lacks for subject matter. I had started a “Final Indy Review” post, plus I still owe you some photos, but something else has been on my mind.
Apparently the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear disaster/breach of hell’s gates that struck Japan earlier this year damaged the racing surface of the oval track at Twin Ring Motegi-site of a September 17 Indycar race. Indycar announced last week that the race will be held, but moved to the road course located on the same site as the oval. This sounded to me like the nearest thing to an ideal solution possible at this point. I was surprised to discover that many do not share my opinion, with much of the vitriol focused on the replacement of one of the series’ oval races with another road course. The benefits of holding the race on the road course outweigh those of canceling the event or moving it to a stateside oval.
A race, particularly one held on another continent, is not a trivial undertaking. It is a business in and of itself that must on some level take care of facility scheduling, maintenance, staffing, promotion, marketing, organization, cleanup, race control, sanctioning, traffic flow, safety, and probably a thousand other items. This business protects itself and its investment with a contract negotiated and enforced by an army of lawyers. It will not allow itself to be easily cancelled or removed without significant penalty.
On the other side, Indycar also has an investment in the event. It expects a significant sanction fee from the promoter, has engaged in its own marketing, has a TV deal, and has worked out the logistics of moving two dozen race teams from middle America to the Far East and back.
Simply canceling the event would incur whatever penalties are specified in the contract. Considering the investment and work put into the event by the Motegi personnel, this is certainly significant. Add in Indycar’s marketing cost, the portion of the TV deal, logistics (I’m pretty sure that scheduling a pair of 747 cargo planes isn’t like a Hertz rental car that can be cancelled with a week’s notice) and the sanctioning fee, and cancellation becomes an extremely expensive propositon.
Instead, a solution has been found where the biggest change is which suspension and aero parts the teams pack with their cars. Oval track racing fans aren’t happy that they’ve lost a date on the schedule at their favorite type of track, but I have trouble seeing how the alternative (no race at all) is preferable.
It’s been suggested that, if the race were cancelled, a North American track could step up and take the date over. I am skeptical of this. Right now, there are just over three months before September 17. In order for a track to put such an event together, it would have to: Have the date free, have the track configured and equipped for an Indycar race, have resources to pay the sanctioning fee, have personnel ready to work, and promote and sell tickets. The last item sounds particularly tough. Many events on the schedule have trouble selling many tickets, even with 8 or 9 or more months of promotion. Do they expect to sell similar or greater numbers of tickets with less notice? Every schedule printed to date has “Motegi” in place for September 17. How does a promoter change that in people’s minds?
Now I’m not a fan of this event. I can’t believe that many people stay up late to watch a race from a series they’re barely aware of in the first place. It does nothing to improve or sell the product to the intended (read: American) audience. I understand that it is on the schedule as a favor to engine supplier Honda, who I believe owns the track. Indycar management appears to realize this, and the 2011 event is scheduled to be the last at the facility.
The fact remains that this event is on the 2011 schedule, and Indycar is legally and morally obligated to make every attempt to run it, even under mitigating circumstances. When a set of those circumstances arose, Indycar came up with a simple solution to what could have been an expensive, messy problem.
Apparently the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear disaster/breach of hell’s gates that struck Japan earlier this year damaged the racing surface of the oval track at Twin Ring Motegi-site of a September 17 Indycar race. Indycar announced last week that the race will be held, but moved to the road course located on the same site as the oval. This sounded to me like the nearest thing to an ideal solution possible at this point. I was surprised to discover that many do not share my opinion, with much of the vitriol focused on the replacement of one of the series’ oval races with another road course. The benefits of holding the race on the road course outweigh those of canceling the event or moving it to a stateside oval.
A race, particularly one held on another continent, is not a trivial undertaking. It is a business in and of itself that must on some level take care of facility scheduling, maintenance, staffing, promotion, marketing, organization, cleanup, race control, sanctioning, traffic flow, safety, and probably a thousand other items. This business protects itself and its investment with a contract negotiated and enforced by an army of lawyers. It will not allow itself to be easily cancelled or removed without significant penalty.
On the other side, Indycar also has an investment in the event. It expects a significant sanction fee from the promoter, has engaged in its own marketing, has a TV deal, and has worked out the logistics of moving two dozen race teams from middle America to the Far East and back.
Simply canceling the event would incur whatever penalties are specified in the contract. Considering the investment and work put into the event by the Motegi personnel, this is certainly significant. Add in Indycar’s marketing cost, the portion of the TV deal, logistics (I’m pretty sure that scheduling a pair of 747 cargo planes isn’t like a Hertz rental car that can be cancelled with a week’s notice) and the sanctioning fee, and cancellation becomes an extremely expensive propositon.
Instead, a solution has been found where the biggest change is which suspension and aero parts the teams pack with their cars. Oval track racing fans aren’t happy that they’ve lost a date on the schedule at their favorite type of track, but I have trouble seeing how the alternative (no race at all) is preferable.
It’s been suggested that, if the race were cancelled, a North American track could step up and take the date over. I am skeptical of this. Right now, there are just over three months before September 17. In order for a track to put such an event together, it would have to: Have the date free, have the track configured and equipped for an Indycar race, have resources to pay the sanctioning fee, have personnel ready to work, and promote and sell tickets. The last item sounds particularly tough. Many events on the schedule have trouble selling many tickets, even with 8 or 9 or more months of promotion. Do they expect to sell similar or greater numbers of tickets with less notice? Every schedule printed to date has “Motegi” in place for September 17. How does a promoter change that in people’s minds?
Now I’m not a fan of this event. I can’t believe that many people stay up late to watch a race from a series they’re barely aware of in the first place. It does nothing to improve or sell the product to the intended (read: American) audience. I understand that it is on the schedule as a favor to engine supplier Honda, who I believe owns the track. Indycar management appears to realize this, and the 2011 event is scheduled to be the last at the facility.
The fact remains that this event is on the 2011 schedule, and Indycar is legally and morally obligated to make every attempt to run it, even under mitigating circumstances. When a set of those circumstances arose, Indycar came up with a simple solution to what could have been an expensive, messy problem.
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