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International Karting Industry Buyer's Guide |
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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: We have a very small lot and it looks as if we will need to “shoe-horn” to fit a go-kart track on the site. What options are available for storing karts overnight? – Patsy Rasmussen PETER OLESEN: We are aware of two methods commonly used for storage of go-karts. They are as follows: Separate Storage Building – This is usually a pole barn or garage-type building that also serves as a maintenance building for kart repair. The building is commonly connected to the pit area by means of a ramp or drive from a pit area that is outside the track area itself. These buildings may be equipped for washing the karts either inside the building or on a concrete pad outside. Canopy with roll-up doors – This type of structure is usually designed with roll-up doors on the sides as well as on the ends to permit greater visibility not only for track personnel, but for patrons as well. It is often used on small congested sites where it is difficult or even impossible to place a full maintenance and storage building. A small garage-type of maintenance building would still be required. The drawbacks to this type of building center around providing maintenance on the karts unless a separate building is provided for the purpose, and also increased grease and oil stains on the pit lanes due to karts standing overnight. We have designed a number of tracks with pit area storage and they function well when designed with sides that are open during the operating period. They have all had a small maintenance building for major repair work. We know of several facilities that chain their karts together under conventional pit canopies, with no side protection. This approach can lead to karts becoming filled with water during rainy periods, as it permits rain to be blown directly onto the karts, which equates to greater preparation time by requiring toweling off. Unless it was not possible to install roll-up doors and there wasn’t room for a separate storage building, we would not recommend this approach. This is not a viable solution for any sites in the snow-belt or areas with blowing dust or sand because of the potential for damage to the karts. QUESTION: In the past you have said that there is a greater potential to be successful developing a combined outdoor/indoor FEC (family entertainment center) that includes concession karts, than just an indoor go-kart facility. Why? – Jim Matthews PETER OLESEN: The major season for conventional outdoor concession go-karts, other than in sunbelt tourism areas, is found to be the period between Memorial Day (the end of May) and Labor Day (the first weekend in September). I attribute this to the following: a. The vast majority of schools from elementary through college, have their summer vacations during this period, Therefore, there is less competition from school activities, major sports championships, high school and college football, baseball, basketball, soccer, theater and other school-year events which take up time and disposable income. b. Weather conditions are more comfortable for outdoor operators over a large segment of the United States during the summer months. This results in people wanting to spend a good portion of their free time pursuing outdoor-type entertainment. It’s a lot harder to draw people into indoor karting facilities in the warm weather periods for obvious reasons. This comparison is only applicable to the karting, bumper boats, and miniature golf segments of larger facilities, as people still partake of restaurant, arcade, laser tag and related indoor activities at an appreciable level. Another major element in the relative success potential of the two venues is the relative markets that they address. a. Indoor karting is currently targeted toward the late teen and young adult market, which is a much narrower target market, and therefore take a much larger marketing effort to attract sufficient attendance. I feel that this reduces the number of markets that can support an indoor-only karting operation. Indoor facilities that have been properly located, designed and marketed can definitely be successful – it just takes more effort and commitment to assure success. b. Outdoor concession
go-karting can be far more effective in most markets when combined with
miniature golf and other support attractions such as bumper boats and sometimes
batting cages. Karting will draw people from longer distances than the
other attractions and therefore is a desirable companion attraction to
increase the total potential of the other attractions. The other attractions
have the potential of drawing people to the facility who would never think
of riding go-karts, but these people become riders by their close exposure
to karting. As a result, the combination generates larger audiences and
greater per capita spending.
E-mail your questions
to karting@msn.com
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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