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International Karting Industry Buyer's Guide |
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| CONCESSION CORNER | |||||||||||||
| Peter
Olesen, our resident “expert”, again answers e-mail question from our readers
regarding concession karting. If you have questions about any aspect of
concession karting, please e-mail them to karting@msn.com and they will
be forwarded to Mr. Olesen. – Thank you.
QUESTION – Could you list some dos and don’ts for someone who wants to build a concession track? – Tom Ricketts, via e-mail PETER OLESEN – There are too many items that should be considered in setting up such a checklist to include them all in this column. A few of the more important ones are: Some of the most important “dos” is starting the concession kart track process are: 1. Recognize the importance of being committed to long working hours and to provide a quality entertainment product. 2. Make certain you target market is sufficient to support the facility over a protracted period. Unless you are in a large urban or dense suburban area, it would be advisable to have a demographic study done. 3. Select a good location, easy to see and find, with safe access from adjacent highways. 4. Have sufficient financing to build the facility and support a poor season. 5. Select an experienced and qualified design consultant that will represent your best interests. 6. Select a sound contractor, sound insurance agent and quality equipment. 7. Remember that your
customers are “guests” and treat them that way.
Some of the most important “don’ts” are as follows: 1. Don’t try to develop a facility beyond the scope of the market. 2. Don’t assume that because you’ve visited a few tracks and talked to their owners that you are an expert. 3. Don’t buy consulting services, insurance or equipment just because it is cheap or looks good. Check out consultants, insurance agents and manufacturers to find out their “track records” at a number of facilities to see how they perform. This applies to karts, kart controllers, lighting, etc. 4. Don’t select a contractor on price alone – check out his/her performance on other projects. The adage “pay now or pay later” should be in the back of your mind during the selection process. 5. Don’t select a contractor on the basis of years of experience and his/her knowledge of what you “need”. Today’s technology, standards of practice and industry guidelines may have passed by a contractor. Have a set of plans and specifications that set out the track geometrics and associated support systems such as barriers, drainage, lighting, queue lines, fencing, concrete finishing, sawing of joints, concrete specifications and related items. Make certain the contractor follows them and guarantees workmanship. 6. Don’t lose the respect
of your employees or guests.
QUESTION – I understand that you specify 12-inch backing plates at the joints of the barrier rails used with the automobile tires/steel barrier plate system. Why aren’t butt welds sufficient? – Pete Schroeder, via e-mail PETER OLESEN – The problem with relying on butt welds centers around the quality of the weld itself. There have been a number of instances in the industry where no backing plates have been used and the welded butt joints have failed. These failures may well be due to incomplete or poorly performed welds. We feel it is not worth taking a risk with patron or staff safety to depend on the butt weld alone. The backing plate provides added weld bead which greatly increases the weld strength through the joint. We are not aware of any joints backed by the 12-inch backing plates and properly welded ever failing in concession go-kart track use. In today’s ever-increasingly
litigious society, the use of backing plates would seem to be a very good
addition to any rail system. All of our plans call for the plates to be
used.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Peter
F. Olesen is president of Peter F. Olesen and Associates, a consulting
firm for the concession kart and family entertainment industry. His phone
number is 847-253-1515.
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Kart Marketing Group, Inc. Post Office Box 101 Wheaton, IL 60189 USA Telephone: 630-653-7368 Fax: 630-653-2637 Email: karting@msn.com |
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