2012 Championships location

[DerbyDad4Hire]

I want to hear from you as a whole. We have 2 options for the Championship race...

1st- Take it to a hot location like Las Vegas. The pros- fun trip with lots of things to do after the racing is done. Might get a bigger "walk in" crowd. The lure of a championship race in Vegas! The cons- EXPENSE! Less money to put towards prizes for the winners. Proxy racers racing on a newly setup track or tracks. Possible no live feed or poor live feed. No onsite workshop or time for tuning cars.

2nd- Keep it "In the basement"! The pros- Track is unchanged for proxy racers. No extra race cost so more can be applied towards prizes. Live feed is perfected. Onsite workshop and tuning. The cons- Less live attendance due to being "in house". No glitz of Vegas. Less room for potential crowd.

I want to do what the racers as a whole feel like would be best. I don't want to go all the way to Vegas and set the whole thing up for 10 people to show live. Please give me your thoughts so we can firm up the plans right away.

 

[Kinser Racing]

I like doing it in the basement. Wait... that didn't sound right! Basement, ya race in the basement. Vegas is a distraction./images/boards/smilies/biggrin.gif

 

[Quicktimederby]

With the new couches and chairs, it's like Cesar's palace down in the basement. I say keep it there.

 

[W racing]

Basement...

 

[Resophonic Racing]

IMHO working towards a "Championship Venue" would be a nice goal for the NPWDRL. For the sake of your sanity and establishing the new league I believe the current setup from the 2011 MOTM race was appropriate and functional. "The Basement" is like Graceland for pinewood derby enthusiast. Everyone likes to visit the King

!

 

[OPARENNEN]

LET'S LEAVE THIS THREAD OPEN FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS IN ORDER TO GET AN EXTENDED OPINION FROM MANY MEMBERS, BEFORE BRINGING IT TO A FINAL VOTE.
There are a number of things we should think about:
1. Several of the 2012 proxy qualifiers brought up the point that they were at a disadvantage because they were unable to tune their cars on the championship track. I think this is a valid point. Thus, the Las Vegas possibility would put all qualifiers on the same playing field.
2. A Las Vegas connection would provide a much greater possibility for sponsorship and prize money, including the national BSA organization, the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, as well as many Pinewood Derby suppliers.
3. There is also the possibility of getting one of the cable sports channels to do the camerawork. E. G. ESPN has a couple of oddball channels that cater to unusual sports.
4. Great advertising for the new league.
5. Ability to entice some very good competitors from other leagues who last year shunned the PDDR series.

I personally really enjoyed the last event that was held in John's basement, especially the new staging platform and the soft couches. Nevertheless, I think we should think about this deeply before making a final decision.

Just my two cents worth.

OPA

 

[SoGone]

I think Vegas was just a suggestion, How about in California close to Disney and the beach,, Downtown Utah in a swanky hotel rent a conference room. I think John was looking for something out of the ordinary. You Utah boys got it too easy just a short drive out the door to the national track.

John I say let only the proxy guys vote on this one..

 

[Cam-Car]

I vote for keeping it the basement.

 

[Bones]

HAWAII could pretty be cool too! LOL

 

[Bones]

HAWAII could pretty be cool too! LOL

And it would be no sweat to get the wives to want to go to the race

 

[DNA RACING]

having done alot of legwork on the Vegas trip, the biggest problem is a scheduling conflict. Vegas has several big national events that take up the first half of Dec. this of course has the effect of JACKING the prices WAY up. and i do mean ALOT!! from $40 a night in 2 places to $109 for the same 2 places! we really cant push our race back any farther as that is darn near Christmas. Another problem is all the places i talked to in Vegas wanted to know how many rooms we wanted to reserve and how many people we needed food for, i seemed imposable to just say "hey i need a room about 50' x 100'". some had event rooms for $800 a day some had rooms for $4000 a day. unless we could have a SOLID commitment from everyone who would attend it would be a logistical nightmare. and what happens if we get a room for 200-300 people and 20 show up? or worse yet, what if a 1000 show up? too many unknowns.
I support the Vegas race 100% and think its something to look at for another season. having said that, most of us came up the road in a garage or basement or storeroom. I have not been to John's digs yet, but i would guess its a cut or 2 better then i am used to. just my take on everything.
B

 

[Obsession Racing]

I was excited when John mentioned the race plans for Vegas during the MOTM race. Knowing how much time and effort is required to plan and stage such an event off-site like this, I now think that it's better to focus this year on strengthening the league and finding additional sponsors. With the new format, there will be plenty of work to do, and certainly some kinks to iron out along the way. Attention needs to be focused on making the year-round operations run smoothly first.

This past year was a real rollercoaster ride. I think that one full year of stability would go a long way, and help build participation. If we are at the middle of the year (June/July) and things are looking solid, then it would be the right time to start looking at a Vegas, or other venue for a 2013 race.

We'll get there....

O.R.

 

[agapeman77]

Indy baby,

 

[E.T.Racing]

I agree with Obsession strengthen the league and get more racers to compete, then work out an off site race venue. One other point to consider with an off site venue is if a situation came up where a racer would not be able to attend live where would you send the cars?

 

[Kinser Racing]

I was excited when John mentioned the race plans for Vegas during the MOTM race. Knowing how much time and effort is required to plan and stage such an event off-site like this, I now think that it's better to focus this year on strengthening the league and finding additional sponsors. With the new format, there will be plenty of work to do, and certainly some kinks to iron out along the way. Attention needs to be focused on making the year-round operations run smoothly first.

This past year was a real rollercoaster ride. I think that one full year of stability would go a long way, and help build participation. If we are at the middle of the year (June/July) and things are looking solid, then it would be the right time to start looking at a Vegas, or other venue for a 2013 race.

We'll get there....

O.R.

Good points all around. I agree!