By the time the smoke cleared on the night, we were once again amazed at what had been produced.  The drag racing thrill show was spectacular and the standing room only crowd at the drift arena saw one the best drifting event in six years of trying.

For the record, Formula Drift doesn't need the drag racing and thrill show.  We do it here because we are hoping to showcase our other products in hopes of bringing their crowd back to LVMS for events such as the Street Car Super Nationals, our Monster Truck show and NHRA Nationals. Just as energy drinks like to sample their products to our ticket buyers, we're sampling traditional motorsports shows to the energy drink-consuming crowd.

The guys at Formula Drift (Jim Liaw, Ryan Sage, Andy Luk and a few others) are onto something and they get the idea that you can't deliver the same product over and over. Just like the guys who are producing live shows like "Nitro Circus," the X-Games, Vans Warped Tour, you name it.  Their crowd is not just about drinking energy drinks like Red Bull, Monster, NOS and Rockstar…this crowd is about living that culture.  They wear baggy shorts, they like flat-billed hats, they don't just play video games…they live them, they know how to "tweet" and they know how to buy tickets. MOST IMPORTANTLY…THEY BUY TICKETS! 

Promoters have to stay on top of the trends and focus on what makes this crowd tick.  We're already working on the 2012 event with a focus on how to make the show more interactive for the fans.  More video screens, more music, more pyro, more thrills. 

In June Las Vegas Motor Speedway hosted the Electric Daisy Carnival. Over three incredible nights we had more than 240,000 guests joining us to watch hundreds of electronic music acts perform six stages.  It wasn't just a concert, it was a festival. 

The next step for us, in our efforts to stay one step ahead and keep people interested in motorsports, is to think outside the box and work the EDC concept into racing.  We have to give them the event they can't see at home on their 65" HD TV.  We have to produce events where people not only want to watch the show, they want to be a part of the show -- at least that's what my special events consultant keeps telling me. They want to smell the burning rubber, they want to touch the cars and they want to look at the pretty girls that are everywhere at these shows.

Recently I took my special event consultant to dinner and we discussed the event and what we should do for 2012.  My consultant has some pretty good ideas and they've paid off well.  His interests keep changing and he is constantly referring me to videos on YouTube and telling me about the newest and coolest thing that the under-25 crowd is buying.

My motorsports consultant is my 11-year-old son Austin.  When he was three years old and saw his first drift event the look on his face said it all and he wouldn't shut up until we had our own show three years later.  Now he's telling me to keep my eye on some other things that are "trending" and we'll see how those go. 

Everyone in racing, from the promoter to the driver, should take a step back and ask themselves "What do we need to do to get the ‘tweens and teens to buy tickets?" 

I have a very simple idea: just ask one and then take the time to listen.  My consultant currently has an exclusive arrangement with me (room, board, the occasional video game and race car parts). If the price is right he may be interested in doing some outside work…he's wanting to get started on building his own drift car.

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