Talladega Superspeedway yesterday announced a multiyear partnership with Good Sam Club to title sponsor the track's fall NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. The Oct. 23 race will be titled the Good Sam Club 500 (Talladega Superspeedway). In Birmingham, Doug Demmons noted Good Sam Club is "affiliated with Camping World, the company that sponsors NASCAR's Truck Series." Demmons wrote, "That seems like a good fit for Talladega, a track where camping is such an integral part of the race weekend." Last year's fall Cup race was sponsored by AMP Energy (AL.com, 9/13).
PACKING IT IN: In Green Bay, Charles Davis notes Campbell's "has retired the Click for Cans contest with plans to shift its hunger-relief efforts" after the Packers won the contest the past nine years. The online contest "had been held during NFL seasons and fans clicked weekly on their favorite teams, which gave the team points." The Packers last year "more than doubled the score of the other finalist," the Jaguars (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE, 9/14).
SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM: In Toronto, Randy Starkman reports Scott Clark and partner Danny Crossman are "producing a wireless impact sensor for [hockey] helmets called Shockbox that is designed to try to help coaches, trainers and parents determine whether a concussion might have occurred." The sensors "won't be for sale by Ottawa-based Impakt Protective Inc. to the general public until next season and are expected to sell for $100 to $160." They are slated to be tested by a "team in the Ontario Hockey League," and Crossman said that they are also "negotiating with a few NHL teams" (TORONTO STAR, 9/14).
EARNING A DEGREE: The Tough Mudder racing series has signed a marketing partnership with Unilever’s Degree Men to promote the new Everest antiperspirant stick at the series’ 14 races held across the country. The deal is a single-year partnership with a right of renewal, however the value was not available. The Tough Mudder races are mass-participant running events that include military-style obstacles. Degree will provide product samples at Tough Mudder events, and the Everest branding will be incorporated into obstacles on the race course, including a snow-themed challenge called the Outlast Everest. Degree will also use spokesman Bear Grylls, host of the Discovery Channle’s Man vs. Wild to promote the Tough Mudder events online (Fred Dreier, SportsBusiness Journal).
LOVE BUG: IMG Licensing announced that it has picked up some non-sports work, landing the licensing rights for the global Volkswagen Licensing Program for Merchandise Products (IMG).
