| | | This weekend was the final round of the Ontario Provincial Arenacross Championships. For whatever reason, It did not go well. Ontario riders have not fallen in love with indoor riding, and I wish I could point out the reason. Good promoters, such as SPI that promotes the CMRC Nationals, Tite Racing Promotions who promotes Walton Trans Can, and Future West who promote the very successful BC Arenacross have all tried. They all put together good packages, and they all left shaking their heads, and feeling the financial sting that comes with poorly attended events. Enter Mark Perrin, a young enthusiast from Sarnia, Ontario. Mark spent winters working with series such as the AMA Monster Energy Supercross, the AMA Supermoto series, and this past summer, the Walton Trans Can Grand Nationals. I have known Mark for almost five years now, and in that time, he has been a friendly, hard-working, willing to make things work type of guy. I first encountered Mark when showed up at Gopher Dunes for banner duty on the CMRC National tour. He walked up to wild man Joe Borda (who hired Mark and is more than wild, he is freaking nuts) with his hand out. Joe turned and punched Mark in the stomach. We all stood stunned, and Joe smiled and welcomed him. With a little grin, Mark showed to the guys he could roll with punches, and became a part of the team. Mark decided this winter to toss his hat in the ring as a promoter. The forums talked of the need for a winter series, and with the rider base in Ontario, Perrin was going to test the waters of arenacross. Located in a huge building in the town of Wallaceburg, Ontario (1 hour southwest of London) the facility seemed great, and the mild temperatures of southern Ontario helped with the heating costs. This was important as a number of years ago BlueDog Promotion had attempted to run the London Ice House as a permanent race facility. The bitter cold weather spun the gas meter pin, and finally they called it quits. The Wallaceburg ownership team had the track in place for practice and saw the series as a good promotion. Mark recognized the opportunity, overhead was low, and events could survive on mid-hundreds in entries, which seemed achievable in a market with 1,500 CMRC members alone. But like previous attempts attendance was heartbreaking for Perrin and his team. “Honestly I thought what we had was what riders wanted. Everyone who came said it was great, but I just could not pull the numbers”, said the Perrin. Perrin has looked at what happened this season and seems to have a few reasons for the series failure. “I guess there are a lot of things. Late notice on the Series, hockey, early spring allowing guys to ride outdoors, and some people are just not into Arenacross like they are out west for example. I am still glad I tried” said Perrin. Few showed, few people had suggestions on how to make it work, and more than a few offer up unhelpful “I told you so” comments. With all that, Perrin pushed through to the final event this past weekend, and when things are going wrong, that is not easy to do. The writing was on the wall for this series very early on, but not once did Perrins` team not live up to their commitment to riders, sponsors, or creditors. Perrin promoted each event with a professional touch, some innovative approaches, and regardless of the turnout, a deep enthusiasm for the sport. There are lots of gutsy performances in our sport, and this was one of them. There is no word on whether the Wallaceburg AX will return next season. It is a risky venture, and one that even when everything is right, may not be enough to turn a profit. Perrin and his team tried, and for that he deserves thanks from the motocross community. | | |
This weekend was the final round of the Ontario Provincial Arenacross Championships. For whatever reason, It did not go well. Ontario riders have not fallen in love with indoor riding, and I wish I could point out the reason. Good promoters, such as SPI that promotes the CMRC Nationals, Tite Racing Promotions who promotes Walton Trans Can, and Future West who promote the very successful BC Arenacross have all tried. They all put together good packages, and they all left shaking their heads, and feeling the financial sting that comes with poorly attended events. Enter Mark Perrin, a young enthusiast from Sarnia, Ontario. Mark spent winters working with series such as the AMA Monster Energy Supercross, the AMA Supermoto series, and this past summer, the Walton Trans Can Grand Nationals. I have known Mark for almost five years now, and in that time, he has been a friendly, hard-working, willing to make things work type of guy. I first encountered Mark when showed up at Gopher Dunes for banner duty on the CMRC National tour. He walked up to wild man Joe Borda (who hired Mark and is more than wild, he is freaking nuts) with his hand out. Joe turned and punched Mark in the stomach. We all stood stunned, and Joe smiled and welcomed him. With a little grin, Mark showed to the guys he could roll with punches, and became a part of the team. Mark decided this winter to toss his hat in the ring as a promoter. The forums talked of the need for a winter series, and with the rider base in Ontario, Perrin was going to test the waters of arenacross. Located in a huge building in the town of Wallaceburg, Ontario (1 hour southwest of London) the facility seemed great, and the mild temperatures of southern Ontario helped with the heating costs. This was important as a number of years ago BlueDog Promotion had attempted to run the London Ice House as a permanent race facility. The bitter cold weather spun the gas meter pin, and finally they called it quits. The Wallaceburg ownership team had the track in place for practice and saw the series as a good promotion. Mark recognized the opportunity, overhead was low, and events could survive on mid-hundreds in entries, which seemed achievable in a market with 1,500 CMRC members alone. But like previous attempts attendance was heartbreaking for Perrin and his team. “Honestly I thought what we had was what riders wanted. Everyone who came said it was great, but I just could not pull the numbers”, said the Perrin. Perrin has looked at what happened this season and seems to have a few reasons for the series failure. “I guess there are a lot of things. Late notice on the Series, hockey, early spring allowing guys to ride outdoors, and some people are just not into Arenacross like they are out west for example. I am still glad I tried” said Perrin. Few showed, few people had suggestions on how to make it work, and more than a few offer up unhelpful “I told you so” comments. With all that, Perrin pushed through to the final event this past weekend, and when things are going wrong, that is not easy to do. The writing was on the wall for this series very early on, but not once did Perrins` team not live up to their commitment to riders, sponsors, or creditors. Perrin promoted each event with a professional touch, some innovative approaches, and regardless of the turnout, a deep enthusiasm for the sport. There are lots of gutsy performances in our sport, and this was one of them. There is no word on whether the Wallaceburg AX will return next season. It is a risky venture, and one that even when everything is right, may not be enough to turn a profit. Perrin and his team tried, and for that he deserves thanks from the motocross community.
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