The Race Track Business Conference (RTBC) has released additional details for its 2019 gathering in Indianapolis, Indiana, during the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show’s Race Industry Week.

Covering the topic of Marketing Agencies will be The Specialized Marketing Group, Inc. (TSMGI) President Jordan Bressler, Experiential Events Group Vice President of Business Development Ruthie Culbertson, Speedway Motorsports Senior Vice President Jessica Fickenscher, and MotoAmerica Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Richard Varner.

Topics include multi-faceted businesses' representation, negotiation, and marketing. Speakers will also discuss selecting an agency to manage and activate events, in-house versus outsourcing, and how to deal with conflicts of interest.

Covering the Track Operations category will be WWT Raceway General Manager Chris Blair, Iowa Speedway President David Hyatt, Total Venue Concepts President Kurt Johnson, and Lake Erie Speedway Operations Manager AJ Moore. Keeping venues ready on a budget, how to level competition, monetizing property with non-traditional events will be discussed.

As previously announced, the keynote speaker for 2019 will be the accomplished driver Lyn St. James, who has been recognized by Sports Illustrated as one the "Top 100 Women Athletes of the Century.” St. James was the first woman to be awarded the Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year in 1992 and has also started in the Indy 500 seven times over nine years.

The cost to attend RTBC-2019, which includes lunch, is $250.

For more information, visit racetrackbusinessconference.com or contact Tim Frost at twfrost@speedwaysonline.com or 847/853-0294.

Thermo-Tec, the heat shield and sound insulating product provider based in Greenwich, Ohio, has announced the addition of a new marketing coordinator, Randy Pugh.

Pugh will handle all of Thermo-Tec’s marketing, graphics, and photography. He most recently served as the Creative Director at JEGS and has 25 years of graphics experience and 35 years of photography experience. His photography experience includes national automotive magazines, as well as several JEGS catalog covers and catalog product photos. Pugh got his start in the industry in 2005 as a graphic designer.

“I grew up racing motocross at some nationally known tracks and also smaller local tracks around Ohio, always tearing into the engine to fix or rebuild it,” Pugh said. “Now, I’m excited to be able to use my skills and knowledge for Thermo-Tec and to increase brand awareness in the market.”

“We are excited to welcome Randy to the Thermo-Tec team,” Thermo-Tec CEO Chrissy Gilmore said. “His experience in the automotive industry and talent as a photographer and designer will help us continue to grow and reach new markets.”

For more information, visit thermotec.com.

As the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow (HROT) completed the qualifying rounds earlier this year, officials have announced 41 teams of high school students will move on to the Dual National Championship set for the SEMA Show in the Las Vegas Convention Center (November 1-8) and the PRI Trade Show in the Indiana Convention Center (December 12-14).

A total of 27 teams will compete next week at the SEMA Show, with the four winning teams advancing to the “Elite Eight” showdown at the PRI Show. There, an additional 14 teams will also compete for the remaining four slots.

The SEMA rounds begin Tuesday, November 5, at 8 a.m., and ends on Thursday, November 7, at 3:15 p.m. with an award ceremony for the top four teams, who will advance to the PRI Show.

To qualify for the Dual National Championship, a team must finish disassembling and reassembling a small-block Chevrolet engine in less than 33 minutes (including penalties). Winning teams receive scholarship opportunities to various technical schools, including Ohio Technical College, School of Automotive Machinists & Technology and Universal Technical Institute.

Volunteers and sponsors are currently being accepted for the HROT 2020 competition year. For more information on how to help, contact Rodney Bingham at 815/722-5460. To register a school for HROT competition, visit here.

For more information, visit hotroddersoftomorrow.com.

Holley has announced the return of its popular factory training courses for 2020, which will feature an updated curriculum with the latest Holley EFI system updates. There are several classes over the course of 2020, beginning on January 14-15.

The two-day courses—which cater to dealers, racers, and related Holley EFI system users—are presented at the National Corvette Museum near Holley's company headquarters in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Holley offers three different tiers that must be taken in succession, and with each tier requiring a two-day course. Those that complete all three tiers will receive a certification from Holley stating its expertise with its fuel injection software.

For more information on course details and to view the 2020 schedule, visit the Holley webpage here. For more information on Holley, visit holley.com.

The Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli will add a new production-based class for the 2020 season. Slotted between the Trans Am and TA2 powered by AEM classes, the new Xtreme GT (XGT) class will be focused on 2016 and earlier FIA GT3 machines that are no longer eligible to race in other professional series.

Based on feedback from the paddock and continued development from the Trans Am technical staff, the new Xtreme GT class will integrate the GT3-based entries along with cars from other series and track day groups with equivalent performance potential into the new class.

“There are believed to be more than 100 GT3 race cars in North America that are no longer eligible to run in the professional series that they originally competed in,” Trans Am Company President John Clagett said. “These cars have a lot of good life remaining in them, but there are not really any good places for those cars to race competitively. The Trans Am Series intends to deliver a professionally-run series for drivers to compete in these cars and fully exhibit their potential.”

The new Xtreme GT class entries will use advanced aerodynamic parts as homologated into the original FIA GT3 specification, boasting a higher level of downforce than is utilized in the SuperGT and GT class machines in Trans Am competition.

All XGT cars will be outfitted with the proven Pirelli P Zero tires.

The Trans Am Series launches its 54th season at Sebring on February 28-March 1.

For more information, visit gotransam.com.

Photo courtesy of The Trans Am Series

Ticon Industries—the supplier and manufacturer of titanium tubing, titanium mandrel bends, flanges and components for titanium fabrication—is now available through Turn 14 Distribution.

Ticon Industries, which caters to racing enthusiasts and fabricators, celebrated its five-year anniversary in 2019. Its sheet and tubing products are manufactured from "the highest quality, commercially pure grade 1 titanium(CP1)," according to the company. Ticon, which is based in Austin, Texas, offers and supports over 300 individual part numbers.

Turn 14 Distribution is a performance warehouse distributor with facilities located in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, Arlington, Texas, and Reno, Nevada.

For more information, visit turn14.com or ticonindustries.com.

Allegany County officials are accepting proposals from prospective promoters for The Greater Cumberland Raceway dirt track located in Cumberland, Maryland, at the Allegany County Fairgrounds.

The Board of Commissioners voted during a meeting to issue a request for prospective promoters, according to the Cumberland Times-News. This is a standard procedure, as the county puts out a promoter bid once every three years.

“As we have done in other instances where a contract ends, we put an RFP [Request for Proposal] out for interested parties,” County Administrator Brandon Butler said to the Cumberland Times-News. “I understand there may be other people out there that might be interested [in] jumping into this promoter role and you have to treat them all fairly.”

The current promoter Todd Brode, whose contract ends at the end of the month, has offered his services for an additional three years.

“We had a great season this year, which includes our Queen City races, 305 sprint cars, and the ultimate series,” Brode said to the Cumberland Times-News. “For 2020 and beyond, we are looking to have some really big races, including the USAC [United States Auto Club] Sprint Car Series, which ran at the track back in [the] 1960s.

“I see a lot of great things happening at the track that will benefit both us and Allegany County.”

The track, which originally opened as a horse racing facility in 1924, converted to a stock car venue in 1967. USAC sprint car racing was later added to the schedule, with iconic drivers such as Mario Andretti visiting the track.

For more information, visit thegreatercumberlandraceway.com.

Photo courtesy of The Greater Cumberland Raceway

Attendees of the 2019 Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show will have access to aisles of booths teeming with the latest in motorsports products and technology on December 12-14. And some exhibitors have already begun promoting their PRI Show Specials—including discounts, deals, and free products—that will be included on orders placed during the downtown Indianapolis event.  

Racechick, the provider of drivers suits, gloves, shoes, as well as fan apparel in Yellow Hall Booth #7501, has announced attendees will receive a free pair of women’s racing gloves with the order of a fire-resistant suit and racing shoes for women at PRI 2019.

Additional Show Specials, which will be updated up until the PRI Show, include:

●  Dragonfire Tools LLC, Booth #7511 — Order a new Dragonfire workbench or roll around cabinet and get a free six-piece heavy-duty caster set, free anti-slip drawer liners, and free shipping in the continental US.

●  Northern Radiator, Booth #4739 — Provide constructive company feedback to be entered to win free swag, including a cooler backpack, a waterproof Bluetooth speaker, and a 24-hour sport hot/cold bottle.

●  Oasis Scientific, Booth #5039 — Receive 20% off the order of select inspection cameras.

●  Quaker Chemical, Booth #5654 — Receive $100 flat rate shipping anywhere in the US on all honing oil orders placed at the Show.

For the complete list of 2019 PRI Show Specials, visit here. Exhibitors may add their PRI Show Specials online at any time through the exhibitor dashboard.

Attendees of this year’s Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show, set for December 12–14 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, will have more opportunities than ever to pick up valuable tips and takeaways during an expanded seminar schedule covering a wide range of topics.

Among the bolstered lineup is the Sanctioning Body Roundtable set for Thursday, December 12, from 10:30 - 11:30 a.m. in Room 231.

A roundtable discussion with representatives of various race sanctioning bodies—including David Brenn (IMCA), Jeremy Croiset (NASA), Charle Krall (ARCA), Rollie Miller (NMCA/NMRA), and Alan Reinhart (NHRA)—will discuss a range of topics at the forefront of motorsports today. Topics may include controlling costs, technical specs, rules enforcement, and more.

An additional Sanctions & Tracks seminar, Gearing Up To Restore Bonneville, is also set for PRI 2019, where expert panelists will discuss the efforts underway to restore the Bonneville Salt Flats. The 10-year restoration program is being jointly pursued by the State of Utah, the US Bureau of Land Management, Intrepid Potash, Inc. and the Save the Salt Coalition.

The 2019 PRI Trade Show will feature over 1,100 companies exhibiting in more than 3,300 booths and showcasing the latest products, services, machinery, simulation, and testing technologies, and trailers for the racing industry in a single location.

For the complete PRI Education lineup, visit here. To register for PRI 2019, visit prishow.com/register.

MOMO and Weld Racing will present the 2019 Motorsports Sponsorship Summit, set to be held Tuesday, November 5, in Las Vegas.

Participants will learn the ins and outs of motorsports sponsorship, how to present effective proposals along with valuing race team assets, and will meet executives from major companies looking to sponsor racers and race teams for 2020 and beyond. Participants will also learn what drives companies to sponsor, what to offer in their next pitch, and how to outline return on investment.

Alex Striler, the author of “Motorsports Marketing and Sponsorships,” will serve as the headline speaker of the event. Striler is an industry veteran who has worked in the world of motorsports for decades, putting together sponsorships with some of the racing world’s most recognizable brands.

Additional speakers include MOMO & Weld Chairman Henrique Cisneros and SLIME Marketing Director Joe Bowman.

Admission to the event will be free to racers, and $99 to media and the general public. MOMO will also award multiple raffle prizes at the event, including a MOMO seat, MOMO steering wheel, and a grand prize of a MOMO Corsa Evo race suit.

The 2019 Motorsports Sponsorship Summit begins 5:30 p.m. at SPEEDVEGAS, 14200 South Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89054. For more information or to register, visit motorsportssponsorshipsummit.com.