What began as a three-day hardcore racing trade show 22 years ago, has turned into an entire week featuring informative seminars and conferences, as well as the opportunity to examine the latest advances in racing technology. And savvy racing businesspeople know they can't afford to miss one single day, so thousands arrived early to Orlando, prior to the start of the 22nd Annual Performance Racing Industry Trade Show, for five important pre-show events!
The inaugural Motor Sport Business Forum was attended by hundreds of racing executives, and was lauded as a valuable and successful first-time event. And Freddie Query’s two-day stock car suspension seminar packed them in!
PRI Trade Show week kicked off with the 20th Annual Advanced Engineering Technology Conference (AETC), Monday-Wednesday, December 7-9, at the Orange County Convention Center. This year's focus was "Advanced Ford Modular Performance." Roughly 200 professional race engine builders were in attendance.
Attendee Dave Gorman, from Colorado Springs, Colorado, said, “In here, the truth comes out--what to do and mostly what not to do so that racing engines survive. In this day and age, it's not hard to build 1000 horsepower, what is hard is trying to keep it together."
AETC organizer Scooter Brothers said, "It's a very passionate group here. We're focusing on the late model Ford engines, and the people who are into that particular segment of the market are very passionate about what they do.
"There's been some really good information and the people who are attending are the conference are really tickled with what they got."
The speakers and topics featured at this event included: Al Noe, Trick Flow Specialties, "Designing the Ultimate High Performance Modular 2V Cylinder Head"; Jim D'Amore, JDM Engineering, "Advanced Building and Tuning of Supercharged Modular Motors"; Devin Rickey, Power-Tec Engineering, "Advanced Supercharger Technology for the Modular Engine"; David Clinton, Darton International, "Advanced Cylinder Sleeve Technology and Building Big-Inch Modular Motors"; Kyle Carrothers, Roush Industries, "Developing the Modular Motor Roush Ford Super Stocker"; Jeff Lyjak and Rob Deneweth, Ford Racing, "An Insider's Look at Ford's Modular, from Inception Through Racing 2010 Cobra Jets"; John Maddox, Roush Yates Engines, "Developing 4V Modular Fords for Daytona Prototype Racing and Ultimate Performance"; Richard Holdener, automotive journalist, "Developing Compound Forced Induction for Ford Modular Motors"; Chris Johnson, SCT, "Advanced Performance Tuning of Modular Engines and Factory ECUs"; Joe Pando, MSD Ignition, "Advanced Theory and Application of Performance and Racing Ignition for Ford Modular"; Sean Andrew, Diamond Racing, "Understanding Advanced Piston Technology and Optimizing for Ford Modular Motors."
In addition, Brian Wolfe, Ford Director of North America Motorsports, participated in a panel discussion titled "A Vision of Ford Racing" at this year's AETC, and the Master of Ceremonies was Harold Bettes.
Already proven highly successful with events in Monaco and the Middle East, Motor Sport Business Forum held its inaugural North American event in Orlando on December 8 and 9, at the Orlando Hilton, adjacent to the Orange County Convention Center. Organized by IM2 Events, the Motor Sport Business Forum—North America provided a venue for hundreds of executives in racing companies, including sponsor corporations, to share their thoughts on the state of the motorsports business today.
“The Motor Sports Business Forum here in Orlando has been a great success,” said Zak Brown, of Just Marketing, the conference chairman. “I think being here along with PRI is fantastic. To be able to bring the industry leaders of the highest forms of professional racing to Orlando and tie that in to PRI is a great fit for everyone to learn more.”
Simon Berger, founder and CEO of IM2 Events, which owns and organizes the worldwide MSBF series, said on Tuesday, “We are very pleased with the initial number of delegates for our first North American Forum. The initial participation is very encouraging and is actually slightly more than the first edition of our flagship Monaco Forum which has now grown to over 700 delegates for this year's event, which begins tomorrow. Without question, we see the potential for similar growth with the North American edition in the coming years as well. We are off to a great start."
Keynote speakers were Lesa France Kennedy, vice chairperson and CEO of International Speedway Corp., and Bobby Rahal, an Indy 500 winner and co-owner of Rahal-Letterman Racing. Zak Brown, founder of Just Marketing International, served as conference chairman of the event.
An impressive list of motorsports executives were involved as panelists, including Scott Atherton, CEO of the American Le Mans Series; Joie Chitwood, vice president, business operations, International Speedway Corporation; Eddie Gossage, president of Texas Motor Speedway; Tom Compton, CEO of the National Hot Rod Association; Roger Edmondson, president, Grand-Am; Bud Denker, executive vice president, Marketing, Penske Racing, and many more.
Also prior to the PRI Trade Show on December 8-9, Late Model specialist Freddie Query presented a two-day stock car setup seminar, jam-packed full of Late Model chassis information. Roughly 65 race teams were represented in the attendance.
As a driver, Query has years of experience racing Late Models throughout the South. Now Query tests and develops many setup packages as a mentor to young drivers. With this combination of driver, mechanic, and teaching background, Query makes the ideal instructor for the stock car seminar, and those who attended remarked how they truly benefited from Query's knowledge and hands-on approach.
This two-day event, hosted by Advanced Racing Suspensions, based in Indianapolis, Indiana, covered front and rear suspension component selection and assembly, along with components ranging from ball joints to panhard bars--and everything in between--racing shock selection and tuning, coil binding, and the use of bump stops. The seminar also covered body mounting and modification tips; race tire and brake components; detailed chassis setup procedures; and race track chassis tuning.
The annual Industry Roundtable provides a forum where the racing industry can discuss the most pressing issues in motorsports today, and this 13th annual edition didn't disappoint! Roughly 450 racing entrepreneurs attended.
“It was fun and insightful. We covered some key topics in racing this years, such as the battle to secure sponsorhips today and how to win it, plus the controversy over whether spec cars and engines are helping racing or ruining the creativity gearheads love about the sport and the show itself,” said John Kilroy, editor of PRI magazine.
Colbie Bradley, a road racer from Atlanta, Georgia, who is sponsored by Free Minds SRL, said, “I learned a lot and it was also very exciting. I learned a lot about the integration of business and hearing more about the business side of racing. It takes a lot of business knowledge to be able to do this, and to be able to hear the insights from people like Bobby Rahal gets you really excited to know where the industry is going.”
The Roundtable was led by moderator and renowned NASCAR crew chief and TV race commentator Jeff Hammond, who took questions from the audience about what is really going on behind the scenes in motorsports, including in-depth discussions of sponsorship and spec engines and cars.
Panelists on the Industry Roundtable included: Bobby Rahal, co-owner Rahal Letterman Racing; Dave Despain, host of TV racing show "Wind Tunnel"; Robert Davis, senior vice president, product development and quality, Mazda North American Operations; Gale Banks, founder of Gale Banks Engineering; Tom Knox, vice president, business development, IMG; Charlie Harmon, president of the NMRA and NMCA; and Scooter Brothers, director of R&D and part-owner of Competition Cams, and part-organizer of the AETC.
The Industry Roundtable was created by legendary race engine builder Smokey Yunick, who wanted to provide a forum where racing industry members could gather to voice their concerns and work together to start forming solutions to improve our sport as a whole.
Later in the evening on Wednesday, PRI showed its appreciation to exhibitors in the 22nd Annual PRI Trade Show, by hosting an Exhibitor Reception. Over 1,000 members of the racing industry joined in the fun.
This lively event featured music, complimentary ice-cold beer, and hot hors d'oeuvres, as well as a special appearance from the world famous Bud girls. After a busy day of setting up their booths, exhibitors were able to relax amidst friends, and get prepared for the three busiest days in the racing industry ahead at the PRI Trade Show!
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