Portland Town Meeting

[nrc]

So is anyone here going to the Portland Town Meeting? We need someone to deliver the "keep Road America and Mid Ohio" message loud and clear!

[datachicane]

I'll be there, and those are on the top of my list of topics.

[Lizzerd]

I won't be there, but put in a word for me to KEEP RA AND M-O ON THE SCHEDULE!

Please pardon me for yelling. I get carried away sometines...

[oddlycalm]

Natural road courses indeed, Portland included. After the Rose Festival Event Commiitee announced last week that it would not have any money to promote this year's race after taking a $500K bath on last year's event, my guess is that all the natural terrain road courses should be a serious topic for discussion, as all seem to be in trouble at the moment. Certainly Laguna can't survive unless attendence is boosted. I would absolutely hate losing any one of them. This may turn out to be the big issue of the season.

I'll be there, racermike has said he was going and dreamracer the same. Other forum regulars will be there as well I suspect, as there was notice in with the ticket renewal acknowledgement mailing.

I have to say that I'm stunned to see former event chairman Bill Hildick on the agenda. Hildick blathered forth the "Vision II: TG Takes Over Roadracing" during an interview with the local fishwrap last June. To hear him tell it CART was dead and buried already. Coincidentally he was under contract as a 'consultant' to the Nissan Pro series, a 'minor point' that failed to appear in the article quoting him. Now a year later he's at the CART Town Meeting? :mad:

I'll listen before I make any decision, but my feeling at this point is that a kick in the groin for Hildick would be just about right. My question is why anyone should beleive he's not still a schill for the Earl. As he was the one that brought the race to town, and was chairman for many years, local politcal and business people are inclined to listen to him, and to have him hose CART down is simply not going to be allowed to pass unexplained if I have anything to do with it. Did I mention I was still pissed off about this a year later...? End of rant.

[Napoleon]

Originally posted by oddlycalm
I'll listen before I make any decision, but my feeling at this point is that a kick in the groin for Hildick would be just about right. My question is why anyone should beleive he's not still a schill for the Earl. As he was the one that brought the race to town, and was chairman for many years, local politcal and business people are inclined to listen to him, and to have him hose CART down is simply not going to be allowed to pass unexplained if I have anything to do with it. Did I mention I was still pissed off about this a year later...? End of rant.

Buddy, have you thought about changing your handle to Oddlypissed. :D

Data, it would be interesting to see this Hildick fellow put on the hot seat.

[mnkywrch]

Originally posted by oddlycalm
Natural road courses indeed, Portland included. After the Rose Festival Event Commiitee announced last week that it would not have any money to promote this year's race after taking a $500K bath on last year's event, my guess is that all the natural terrain road courses should be a serious topic for discussion, as all seem to be in trouble at the moment. Certainly Laguna can't survive unless attendence is boosted. I would absolutely hate losing any one of them. This may turn out to be the big issue of the season.


How are they supposed to spend money on promotion when they have to keep up with CART's sanctioning fees?

What is Portland's sanctioning fee, I wonder?

[nrc]

Originally posted by mnkywrch
How are they supposed to spend money on promotion when they have to keep up with CART's sanctioning fees?

According to news reports they've made money until recently. A prudent company keeps a rainy day fund for such occaisions. According to some that money has been plowed back into other Rose Festival events.


What is Portland's sanctioning fee, I wonder?

A little guesstimation suggests that it was right around the typical number for CART U.S. road courses, 1.7 million.

[oddlycalm]

Originally posted by mnkywrch
How are they supposed to spend money on promotion when they have to keep up with CART's sanctioning fees?

A more apt question is how does the event committee attract a new event co-sponser (which is where the $550K deficit came from) when IRL shills like Hildick are telling any reporter that will listen that CART won't be around in another year, and that TG will become the emperor of all OW racing? The definition of a shill fits very precisely in this situation.

Hildick is the guy that brought CART to Portland, was event chairman for many years, and he has a very high profile in the business community. Wouldn't you agree that the fact that he didn't bother to reveal to anyone that at the time when he was saying these things he was cashing paychecks from TG seems to be a rather singular lapse? I would love to know about any conversations Hildick may have had with the folks at Freightliner (DaimlerChrysler) prior to them withdrawing as co-sponsors.

IMO, Hildick either delivers a co-sponsor to replace Freightliner, or he should have his reputation burned to the ground very publicly after the diservice he has done to the event, the city and CART. The fact that he is included in this Town Hall indicates to me that Pook likely has him at work on the former. In that case, and if he's already been sufficiently squeezed, then I suspect the lapse in judgement could be put behind us. The job, after all, is to find a co-sponsor early enough to allow promotion of the race, not to kick an old man in the nuts.

[oddlycalm]

Originally posted by Napoleon
Buddy, have you thought about changing your handle to Oddlypissed. :D

I dunno, it just doesn't roll off the tongue the same way. Guess I gotta go back to being calm. ;) Deep breath...

After reflecting on this a bit, my guess is that Pook squeezed Hildick real good, which he had more than enough leverage to do both legally and socially, and sent him forth to find an event co-sponsor in time to allow promotion of the event. I could be wrong, but Pook is nobody's fool, and long before now Hildick would have realized that he was up to his whatsoever in quicksand after the CART tent failed to fold as predicted. I'm sure it was all very calm and gentlemanly, but it may be exactly what happened.

[datachicane]

Originally posted by Napoleon
Data, it would be interesting to see this Hildick fellow put on the hot seat.

...and I'm just the guy to do it.
I've already made myself a crib sheet with some choice Hildick quotes to call him on.

I have to give the guy credit for having the cojones to show up at this gig. He's gotta have a pretty good idea how hostile this crowd's going to be towards him.