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| EKN Editorial: Rob Howden’s The Bottom Line - 23rd Annual PRI Show |
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It had been over eight months since I’d been in the Sunshine State for the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg last March, but I was happy to be back as this particular trip is always a productive excursion. The 23rd annual Performance Racing Industry (PRI) show once again brought the motorsports industry together in Orlando, Florida, filling up the Orange County Convention Center for the December 9-11 event. As I have for the last four years, I had the opportunity to fly into Orlando to check out the show and meet with our advertisers and readers, and while this one was a little more relaxed, it was still extremely productive. In contrast, the focus of the past trips was the PRI All-Star Karting Classic, at which I acted as the play-by-play announcer and broadcast color commentator for the popular kart race that took place every Thursday night. This time around, with no race, I was able to focus on working the show floor and discussing the sport and our business with vendors, racers and enthusiasts alike.
The karting contingent was considerably smaller this year due to the absence of the race, but those in attendance were able to focus fully on leveraging their show efforts. From dealer meetings to face-to-face product discussions, I think the show was productive for most, as a majority of the feedback was very good. Foot traffic was down slightly, but a carefully planned approach to the show resulted in excellent results for most. The great thing about PRI is that if a company can use the show to accomplish set goals, such as a chance to rally its dealers for example, the expectations are much more easily met than if success is put in the random hands of the public’s interest.
As always, MRP Motorsport fully leveraged their participation in the show, holding their Rotax dealer meeting on Friday afternoon. MRP’s Garry Lobaugh has entered into a new enterprise with Michel and Richard Boisclair from SRA Karting in Canada to exclusively manage the Rotax program in North America under the new MAXSpeed Group banner and they brought the existing RMax dealers up to speed on their plans and approach for the Rotax program. I attended their entire three-hour meeting and was impressed with the delivery of this new message, which is obviously a major evolution in the program here in North America. There was a consistent emphasis on the integrity of the program, and this bodes well for everyone involved in the Rotax community. The continuation of the Pan American Championship program was introduced, as were all the primary staff members that will be promoting and servicing the Rotax brand for the upcoming years.
 | MRP Motorsport used the PRI show to promote the split focus between the Rotax line and the Birel brand
(Photo: performanceracing.com) |
In their booth, MRP split the focus between the Rotax program and their Birel operation, which they understand will be crucial going forward. Lobaugh re-iterated several times that the Rotax program is chassis-neutral and that they want very much to promote this openness. The Rotax program must spread across all the manufacturing lines and I expect this will be consistent focus for them throughout the year.
MRP’s leading dealer – Motorama Kart Parts – was also on the show floor with a large booth, presenting both their karting line-up and a new ’11 RFR F2000 race car. Not only are they a huge Birel dealer, but MKP is also rep for the new Ralph Firman designed open wheel formula car. This addition to the booth helped fuel interest, as MKP’s Bill McLaughlin told EKN that Friday was a whirlwind of excitement and traffic. I believe that “off the hook” was used in the detailed description, and McLaughlin also confirmed that the interest in the formula car and the karts were equal and significant. MKP was very pleased with the results of their attendance, and it would be interesting to discuss if the possibility that being positioned in an area quite separate from the traditional karting section was a bonus. MKP was centrally located, nestling them in between several oval and road racing companies.
The GatorMoto operation may not be part of the national competitive scene, but they are certainly doing great things for the sport of karting. The Florida-based company enjoyed an extremely successful trip to the PRI show as they focused on the promotion and sales of their very affordable Road Rat XR race-ready clone kart package, which retails for just $1399. This package has become very popular in club level racing all across the country. The company enjoyed great interest from potential dealers, signing up several new shops while also taking a significant number of orders. This price point has been a popular one thanks to the recession and GatorMoto is providing karting with a unique product that continues to bring new people into the sport, while providing others with the necessary option to remain in the community as well.
 | Motorama Kart Parts was center stage of the PRI Trade Show floor with the Birel line and ’11 RFR F2000 race car
(Photo: performanceracing.com) |
The sport’s member-owned organizations were also represented, as both the IKF and the WKA had booths at the show.
Additional karting operations included TS Racing, Scribner Plastics, PCR and Sodikart. TS Racing is a long-time member of the karting industry and they are the importers of both the Vega tire line and the Veloce chassis, both of which were being presented in their booth. TS had a couple of karts on display, tagged with affordable pricing thanks to the engines that were featured on these chassis - the PRD Fireball and a Clone. As was the case with many of the karting displays, TS’s Raymond Seaman told EKN that they saw a good crowd and that the karts got “a lot of wows”, which is always great for the sport. Regardless of how much product any of the companies actually sell or how much dealer interest they can muster, the simple fact of the PRI show is that karting is on display in front of almost 40,000 pre-qualified racing fanatics. The bottom line is that in terms of sheer exposure for the sport, PRI is up there as one of the key opportunities to promote karting to the masses.
Scribner Plastics is a big supporter of the sport and had a large booth space that prominently featured karting, highlighting their track barrier system, the kart engine shipping containers and their American-made ‘Bodyline’ sprint kart bodywork.
The new PCR program was on display at the show for the first time, while Sodikart returned with their race and concession karting lines.
There were also many major safety equipment manufacturers and suppliers at the show, and all of them were promoting their karting lines. K1 Race Gear is emerging as a big supplier of karting gear and they have many suits on display. I also had a chance to stop by the Oakley booth to chat with a couple of karting veterans. Todd Hayes is the Director of Motorsports for Oakley and was a stud shifter driver in his day, winning tons of races as the factory pilot for Renspeed. Hayes is now in-charge of Oakley’s motorsports program and is very proud of their American-made karting line, which includes suits, gloves and racing shoes. Veteran karter and SuperNationals winner Jason Bowles was also on hand, as he is a full-timer with the operation and was happy to give me a tour through the full product line.
 | French karting manufacture Sodikart displayed their race and concession karting lines
(Photo: performanceracing.com) |
One of the key talking points that emerged during my contact with all of the karting exhibitors was the absence of the kart race that has been a focal point of the last four years. Thanks to the hard work of PRI promoter Steve Lewis and Stars of Karting head Paul Zalud, the production and evolution of the All-Star Karting Classic was a huge part of the draw of the show, and many people want it back. That said, in the past, most karting operations likely focused too much on the race and not enough on the show itself, which did not produce the results that the event organizers were actually looking for. Yes, the race is great for the sport, but everyone must remember that it was added to help build the show and drawing a strong contingent of karting exhibitors is what the PRI staff is truly attempting to accomplish. If they decide to make an attempt to bring the race back, it would be my hope that the karting companies that are involved will realize the need to properly leverage the show to make it all productive in the end. Personally, the kart race was a huge commitment for my staff and myself and actually took away from our own success at the show, but I certainly understand the positive injection it offered to the sport by presenting karting to such an influential group of motorsports enthusiasts.
This year’s trip to Orlando was an important and successful effort and I expect that next year will be even more important for our sport. The PRI show will be held on December 1-3 next year, and there will be a concerted effort by the show staff to develop the karting support for 2011. PRI is currently working on plans to add special seminars and programs aimed at the karting industry and discussions have already begun regarding how to bring the All-Star Karting Classic back into the fold. Stay tuned to EKN for any updates on the 24th edition of this important event.
Race safe,
Rob Howden
Editor-in-Chief / Publisher
eKartingNews.com |
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