In the 16 months since NC-based Lowe's signed a $35M
deal for naming rights to the Charlotte Motor Speedway,
three fans have been killed at the track during an IRL race,
while more than 100 were injured when a pedestrian walkway
collapsed at the track last weekend, according to Leslie
Gross Klaff of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. The incidents at
Lowe's Motor Speedway (LMS) "mark the first time a sponsor's
name has been affiliated with such tragedy since companies
started buying the naming rights to sports facilities" in
the mid '80s. The Bonham Group Chair Dean Bonham: "What has
happened with the speedway and with Lowe's is unprecedented
in the naming rights industry. I don't think it's going to
make someone not sign these agreements, but it's going to
turn the degree of caution up a couple of notches." Lowe's
spokesperson Brian Peace said of the company's naming rights
deal, "This is not a time to be thinking about the
marketing-related items. ... There is a certain risk
associated with racing, and we're aware of this risk." He
added that the deal includes "appropriate safeguards" for
Lowe's, which he declined to reveal. Gross Klaff cited
experts saying the incidents are not likely to impact Lowe's
image, and Bonham added that NASCAR fans "are more
sophisticated than sports marketers give them credit for"
and "understand the importance of sponsors supporting the
sports they are passionate about." Meanwhile, shares of
Speedway Motorsports (SMI), which owns LMS, fell 5% to close
at $22.50 yesterday, while Lowe's rose $0.75 to close at
$48.87 1/2 (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/23). Analysts said that
SMI's "weakness reflected questions about the extent of the
company's costs to rebuild the bridge" (BRIDGE NEWS, 5/22).
LMS HANDLES INSPECTIONS: In Raleigh, Rawlins, Bonner &
Svrluga write that checking the pedestrian bridge "for signs
of deterioration was up to the speedway." LMS President
Humpy Wheeler said that the track "visually inspects
everything on the property twice a year," but he "has no
records documenting when the bridge was last inspected."
Wheeler: "We don't always document everything that we look
at. If there's a problem, we document it and do something
about it" (NEWS & OBSERVER, 5/23). Wheeler added that SMI
"believes it has adequate insurance to cover potential
lawsuits" stemming from the accident (BRIDGE NEWS, 5/23).
UPDATE: At "least" 47 people were still hospitalized
from the accident, "most with broken bones and back
injuries." Two people were in critical condition, including
one who suffered a "serious head injury." Doctors said that
"some victims could require more than a year of recovery and
rehabilitation" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/23).
