ROAR Elections for President coming soon
10-06-2010, 06:16 PM
#136
Tech Master
Thread Starter
Steve and David - I would like to know what each of your plans are to promote RC Racing. Our bylaws are clear that we should be promoting our form of racing. How do we get the word out?
10-06-2010, 06:25 PM
#137
I already said I was wrong.
10-06-2010, 09:05 PM
#139
Meanwhile, the electric scene has (to paraphrase Bruce Springsteen) 57 classes and no one racing. The rules, class structure, equipment, etc seem to change on a weekly basis. And now just when the speedo wars were finally settling down and evening out, along comes fixed timing classes. If it wasn't for snow and my love of 1/12th, I would never run electric again. 
10-06-2010, 09:36 PM
#140
Yes definately whoever grabs a hold of the reins will have their hands full with electric onroad.... I think it just needs to get back to the basics... Stock and Mod... 1/12, TC, and maybe WGT.... Mod with a motor limit Stock with timing limit... No more foam, rubber only in TC.
Just make it simple to understand...
Manufacturers need to start thinking about making cars that are not $500 street price also.... That has gotten out of hand... You used to hear battery of the month and it became car of the month... Maybe limit the new cars to at least once a year already please manufacturers.... Its not only hard on the racers, its also hard on the hobby shops to try and keep up with inventory....
Electric Onroad got very hard from a lot of different angles, not just the rules.
Just make it simple to understand...
Manufacturers need to start thinking about making cars that are not $500 street price also.... That has gotten out of hand... You used to hear battery of the month and it became car of the month... Maybe limit the new cars to at least once a year already please manufacturers.... Its not only hard on the racers, its also hard on the hobby shops to try and keep up with inventory....
Electric Onroad got very hard from a lot of different angles, not just the rules.
10-07-2010, 12:28 AM
#141
Tech Master
Thread Starter
Look at what Traxxas is doing to support our hobby. They are doing a terrific job promoting RCing
10-07-2010, 05:40 AM
#142
Traxxas is doing a fantastic job promoting Traxxas, the promotion of the general hobby is mearly a lucky by-product.
10-07-2010, 05:47 AM
#143
Tech Master
Thread Starter
So, I will ask again, what are the candidates promotion plans?
10-07-2010, 12:04 PM
#144
Hey Rich!! Give me some time brother! LOL I have a lot of ideas. Of course they have to be within ROAR's budget and they need to be widely accepted by the membership, but I think there's a lot that can be done.
• Location of events – One thing that has always stuck with me is how I was introduced to the RC hobby. I was visiting my Grandparents in NYC, and my father took me to the New York Auto Show afterward at Madison Square Garden. This was some time in the middle 70's. On the second or third floor was a lot of noise from a PA and lots of people gathered around a fence. It was a 1/12-scale race before the days of rechargeable batteries. I must have sat there for four hours, FASCINATED by how fast and nimble these cars were. I'd seen and driven the toy RC cars, but these were light years faster and they were racing them! That one moment is what has led me to a 35 year hobby and a 25 year career in the business. The value of doing what we do in plain sight of others that have never seen it, is under-rated. It's paramount to the success of our hobby.
• Partner with popular full-scale events. This is what got me started in RC, and I don't think enough attention is paid to where the races are held. Typically our races are held in a remote location, hidden from the view of anyone that might otherwise be as fascinated as I was many years ago. This would mean going from a permanent and probably more suitable permanent facility to a temporary one. I recall attending the '91 IFMAR 1/8 Fuel On-Road Worlds in Austin, TX, and the track was basically in a parking lot. It wasn't at the center of town where it could be seen, but nobody had a problem with the location. If we could just get that in the middle of a busy area, filled with people that are pre-disposed to liking this type of thing, then I think we'd attract a lot more newcomers. for on-road races, perhaps we go to an auto show, or the Petite leMans, maybe Mid Ohio, Limerock Park, Holmstead or Indy. There are many locations where people would be blown away to see what these cars can do. For off-road, I've already talked to a friend of mine who's involved in the SuperCross series. I asked him if it would be possible to set-up a track using the same dirt as they use for the SuperCross track, just outside the pits for the motorcycle races. I think most SuperCross fans would like to see the buggies and truggies flying. We could even look into a short course race. In either case, we could arrange the schedule so the finals happen just before the start of the host event. That way, Incoming spectators would be able to see a battle of the best drivers in the country, and perhaps when the final is over, the racers could get admission to the host event. It would take a lot of work, willing minds, and able volunteers, but it could happen and I'm certain that it would do well to promote RC Racing.
• Member benefits – I'd like to invite manufacturers, distributors and dealers, to work with ROAR to create a system of incentives that I believe would help grow membership and it would be a win/win for everyone. I'd like to talk to some of the larger retail affiliates and see if we can work out an additional 5 to 10 percent discount for ROAR members. This would help members by saving them a little extra money, and the retailer would hopefully benefit from adding a few thousand customers, which would improve their bottom line and they'd be supporting ROAR at the same time. It has to make sense for the people offering to partner in this regard or it won't happen, so who knows what the outcome will be. The only thing I know is what the outcome will be if we never have the discussion. It's going to require some discussion, but I think this will have a positive effect on membership from within the RC community and it will create stronger bonds between ROAR, retailers and customers/racers.
• More visibility – I've already talked with Brandon at LiveRC and we're both of the mind that we want to work together and be sure that we broadcast as many National events on LiveRC as possible. Perhaps we could even work something out in the aforementioned paragraph where ROAR members get a membership upgrade, or something else of value, so we can encourage more people to participate in the events that aren't able to attend.
• Promotion through hobby shops – The video shot at the races for LiveRC could also be re-purposed and burned on to a DVD that we can send to hobby shops. There are many that have video monitors in the shops as part of their marketing, and I think footage from a variety of National competitions would be very compelling and exciting for their customers. We could brand it with ROAR and LiveRC, and run commercials promoting RC racing and the benefits of ROAR membership. We might even get some manufacturers to sponsor the DVDs as a way to offset the cost.
• Promote through product sales – we can negotiate with manufacturers to include promotional material that can be included in box with some of the more popular racing vehicles, or even with RTRs. This could introduce organized racing to people that might not have otherwise ever known about it, and point to some of the membership benefits that would result from their membership.
• Rich content on the ROAR Website – This is up my alley, having been part of the media for so many years. We can post articles and videos filled with useful information on the ROAR website. This would help to answer many of the typical questions a new racer may have before attending their first event, and perhaps some expert advice on the procedures of a typical race, so they'll come prepared and more confident. It can be intimidating for a new racer to visit the track, and the more knowledge they can gain via the website, the less stressful their first visit to the track. We can also include other content, such as how to tune an engine, gear a motor, charge a battery, etc., etc. Anything that will be helpful in their pursuit to join organized racing.
• Mentor program – I would like to see experienced racers or mechanics make themselves available at the track, so they can help a newcomer to become more comfortable with all the new challenges they will face as they learn the racing side of the hobby. It can be overwhelming to a first timer, and the guidance of a good-natured racer to show them the ropes and help them with any one of the various issues that may arise, would be of great value to encouraging new racers. Perhaps we can provide them free membership or admission to the nationals of their choice with verification from someone that's helped them become a member of the local racing scene. The devil is in the details, but I like the concept of experienced racers helping newcomers, rather than yelling at them to get out of the way.
• Create more entry-level, cost controlled classes – these are the lifeblood of RC racing. As racers, we tend to forget how intimidating it can be to visit a race track for the first time, only to realize that your car doesn't run ANYTHING like those things on the track. We tend to push rules to allow bigger, faster, better and more costly hardware in the pursuit of victory. I'm one of those people. But, I recognize that my personal desires aren't always the best idea for the wider market. It's not healthy for every new class to be attacked by racers that just want to go fast with a new style of vehicle. ROAR is full of go-fast classes that are almost unlimited in the amount of time, horsepower and money one can dump into their machine. We need to capture a few classes that got started as an inexpensive alternative, and KEEP THEM THERE. 2WD and 4WD short course could have been a perfect candidate for that in the off-road, but I feel we've allowed too much power, technology and expense to creep into those classes, and they went from a great entry-level class that's inexpensive and readily available, to just another racing class, almost overnight. 1/10 nitro and electric sedans were the same thing. Both came from humble beginnings as an alternative to costly and technical racing, but as soon as they caught the eye of some hardcore racers, they went from selling millions per year to selling in the very low thousands.
We ALL have to recognize the need to attract new people, and it starts with not wanting to dominate every class with the biggest wallets. I'm a big advocate for having classes that will allow newcomers to get their feet underneath them without a fully modified version of their car blowing past them at triple the speed.
Anyhow, I have a lot of ideas that I've refined over the years in the media, because we always had that thread in common – how to get more people involved. It has to start with all of us racers realizing that we need to encourage newcomers as much as possible, and reward those that help people to become involved. The more experienced people we have that are helping newcomers to achieve success, the more RC racing grows. It's one of the most unique a rewarding hobbies in the world. It's fun, you learn things in days by doing that take engineers years to conquer, and it gets you and your kids outside and out from behind this damn computer screen. I'm outa here! LOL
PS, I would certainly encourage anyone with a well-thought out plan to post it or send it to me. I'm very open-minded about how we can go about making RC even better and more popular. I've always said that it's the best kept secret in the world, and I'll be the last one to say that I've got all the ideas. There are a lot of smart and skilled people that could help in this pursuit. I'd rather talk about how we can get things done, rather than the obstacles.
• Location of events – One thing that has always stuck with me is how I was introduced to the RC hobby. I was visiting my Grandparents in NYC, and my father took me to the New York Auto Show afterward at Madison Square Garden. This was some time in the middle 70's. On the second or third floor was a lot of noise from a PA and lots of people gathered around a fence. It was a 1/12-scale race before the days of rechargeable batteries. I must have sat there for four hours, FASCINATED by how fast and nimble these cars were. I'd seen and driven the toy RC cars, but these were light years faster and they were racing them! That one moment is what has led me to a 35 year hobby and a 25 year career in the business. The value of doing what we do in plain sight of others that have never seen it, is under-rated. It's paramount to the success of our hobby.
• Partner with popular full-scale events. This is what got me started in RC, and I don't think enough attention is paid to where the races are held. Typically our races are held in a remote location, hidden from the view of anyone that might otherwise be as fascinated as I was many years ago. This would mean going from a permanent and probably more suitable permanent facility to a temporary one. I recall attending the '91 IFMAR 1/8 Fuel On-Road Worlds in Austin, TX, and the track was basically in a parking lot. It wasn't at the center of town where it could be seen, but nobody had a problem with the location. If we could just get that in the middle of a busy area, filled with people that are pre-disposed to liking this type of thing, then I think we'd attract a lot more newcomers. for on-road races, perhaps we go to an auto show, or the Petite leMans, maybe Mid Ohio, Limerock Park, Holmstead or Indy. There are many locations where people would be blown away to see what these cars can do. For off-road, I've already talked to a friend of mine who's involved in the SuperCross series. I asked him if it would be possible to set-up a track using the same dirt as they use for the SuperCross track, just outside the pits for the motorcycle races. I think most SuperCross fans would like to see the buggies and truggies flying. We could even look into a short course race. In either case, we could arrange the schedule so the finals happen just before the start of the host event. That way, Incoming spectators would be able to see a battle of the best drivers in the country, and perhaps when the final is over, the racers could get admission to the host event. It would take a lot of work, willing minds, and able volunteers, but it could happen and I'm certain that it would do well to promote RC Racing.
• Member benefits – I'd like to invite manufacturers, distributors and dealers, to work with ROAR to create a system of incentives that I believe would help grow membership and it would be a win/win for everyone. I'd like to talk to some of the larger retail affiliates and see if we can work out an additional 5 to 10 percent discount for ROAR members. This would help members by saving them a little extra money, and the retailer would hopefully benefit from adding a few thousand customers, which would improve their bottom line and they'd be supporting ROAR at the same time. It has to make sense for the people offering to partner in this regard or it won't happen, so who knows what the outcome will be. The only thing I know is what the outcome will be if we never have the discussion. It's going to require some discussion, but I think this will have a positive effect on membership from within the RC community and it will create stronger bonds between ROAR, retailers and customers/racers.
• More visibility – I've already talked with Brandon at LiveRC and we're both of the mind that we want to work together and be sure that we broadcast as many National events on LiveRC as possible. Perhaps we could even work something out in the aforementioned paragraph where ROAR members get a membership upgrade, or something else of value, so we can encourage more people to participate in the events that aren't able to attend.
• Promotion through hobby shops – The video shot at the races for LiveRC could also be re-purposed and burned on to a DVD that we can send to hobby shops. There are many that have video monitors in the shops as part of their marketing, and I think footage from a variety of National competitions would be very compelling and exciting for their customers. We could brand it with ROAR and LiveRC, and run commercials promoting RC racing and the benefits of ROAR membership. We might even get some manufacturers to sponsor the DVDs as a way to offset the cost.
• Promote through product sales – we can negotiate with manufacturers to include promotional material that can be included in box with some of the more popular racing vehicles, or even with RTRs. This could introduce organized racing to people that might not have otherwise ever known about it, and point to some of the membership benefits that would result from their membership.
• Rich content on the ROAR Website – This is up my alley, having been part of the media for so many years. We can post articles and videos filled with useful information on the ROAR website. This would help to answer many of the typical questions a new racer may have before attending their first event, and perhaps some expert advice on the procedures of a typical race, so they'll come prepared and more confident. It can be intimidating for a new racer to visit the track, and the more knowledge they can gain via the website, the less stressful their first visit to the track. We can also include other content, such as how to tune an engine, gear a motor, charge a battery, etc., etc. Anything that will be helpful in their pursuit to join organized racing.
• Mentor program – I would like to see experienced racers or mechanics make themselves available at the track, so they can help a newcomer to become more comfortable with all the new challenges they will face as they learn the racing side of the hobby. It can be overwhelming to a first timer, and the guidance of a good-natured racer to show them the ropes and help them with any one of the various issues that may arise, would be of great value to encouraging new racers. Perhaps we can provide them free membership or admission to the nationals of their choice with verification from someone that's helped them become a member of the local racing scene. The devil is in the details, but I like the concept of experienced racers helping newcomers, rather than yelling at them to get out of the way.
• Create more entry-level, cost controlled classes – these are the lifeblood of RC racing. As racers, we tend to forget how intimidating it can be to visit a race track for the first time, only to realize that your car doesn't run ANYTHING like those things on the track. We tend to push rules to allow bigger, faster, better and more costly hardware in the pursuit of victory. I'm one of those people. But, I recognize that my personal desires aren't always the best idea for the wider market. It's not healthy for every new class to be attacked by racers that just want to go fast with a new style of vehicle. ROAR is full of go-fast classes that are almost unlimited in the amount of time, horsepower and money one can dump into their machine. We need to capture a few classes that got started as an inexpensive alternative, and KEEP THEM THERE. 2WD and 4WD short course could have been a perfect candidate for that in the off-road, but I feel we've allowed too much power, technology and expense to creep into those classes, and they went from a great entry-level class that's inexpensive and readily available, to just another racing class, almost overnight. 1/10 nitro and electric sedans were the same thing. Both came from humble beginnings as an alternative to costly and technical racing, but as soon as they caught the eye of some hardcore racers, they went from selling millions per year to selling in the very low thousands.
We ALL have to recognize the need to attract new people, and it starts with not wanting to dominate every class with the biggest wallets. I'm a big advocate for having classes that will allow newcomers to get their feet underneath them without a fully modified version of their car blowing past them at triple the speed.
Anyhow, I have a lot of ideas that I've refined over the years in the media, because we always had that thread in common – how to get more people involved. It has to start with all of us racers realizing that we need to encourage newcomers as much as possible, and reward those that help people to become involved. The more experienced people we have that are helping newcomers to achieve success, the more RC racing grows. It's one of the most unique a rewarding hobbies in the world. It's fun, you learn things in days by doing that take engineers years to conquer, and it gets you and your kids outside and out from behind this damn computer screen. I'm outa here! LOL
PS, I would certainly encourage anyone with a well-thought out plan to post it or send it to me. I'm very open-minded about how we can go about making RC even better and more popular. I've always said that it's the best kept secret in the world, and I'll be the last one to say that I've got all the ideas. There are a lot of smart and skilled people that could help in this pursuit. I'd rather talk about how we can get things done, rather than the obstacles.
10-07-2010, 12:29 PM
#146
10-07-2010, 12:41 PM
#147
Nice Steve.....For the ppl who know me they are aware the at I've been saying a lot of what u just wrote for years...We,them, they, (the organizers) have to target these races. Get these races out front in targeted markets instead of in the "middle of nowhere". 99.9% of the greatest tracks in the country are in the "middle of nowhere" There are some organizers that are doing just that, but it's too little ....let's just not make it too late.....
10-07-2010, 07:56 PM
#148
You guy's are putting to much into it just elect MIKE SHING......WHO MIKE SHING
10-07-2010, 08:49 PM
#149
Tech Master
Thread Starter
