Bristol Motor Speedway is "looking to sell" the field turf used during the Virginia Tech-Tennessee Battle at Bristol and last week's Bucs at Bristol, which featured East Tennessee State-Western Carolina, according to Karthik Venkataraman of Bristol-based WCYB. ETSU is "one of the potential buyers." ETSU AD Richard Sander said, "It would be great for us, but also understand that you know have their own situation, considerations that they have to take into account." BMS Senior Dir of Purchasing & Technology Adam Rust: "We've got to weigh out all those options and we're excited about finding it a new home. It'll serve as a world class playing surface for someone." But Venkataraman noted selling the field "doesn't mean the speedway won't host football again." Rust: "By the time we land our next game there will be a new product out." Meanwhile, all four screens for the Colossus videoboard "are on the move." One screen is "on its way to Texas for the Austin City Limits Music Festival." The other three "are heading to" the Ryder Cup. Rust said, "The screens will be spread out creating almost 20 individual screens. Those will be used for scoreboards and for fan information." Venkataraman noted over the next two weeks, BMS "plans to clean up the field." AstroTurf, the company that made the field, "will come roll it up and the speedway will keep it in storage until they find a buyer" (WCYB.com, 9/19).
TIMING IS EVERYTHING: SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Michael Smith notes the Battle at Bristol "turned out to be the perfect platform for Pilot Flying J to launch its first national advertising campaign aligned with a rebranding initiative." ESPN Senior VP/Sports Management Rob Temple "likened Pilot’s initial national marketing endeavor to Chick-fil-A’s title sponsorship of the Peach Bowl 19 years ago, which helped vault the regional chicken sandwich joint into a national brand." Temple: "Pilot took the title and they didn’t just wait around for the game. They really wanted to know how to do business with us.” Smith notes the structure of Pilot’s deals "resembled the race title sponsorships that Bristol typically sells." The game sponsorship "sold for the low seven figures, not including Pilot’s media spend with ESPN." TV-visible signage "was all around the field, just like track signage gives sponsors visibility during a race." In one case, the signage "was too close to the field." A game referee "made sideline officials push back the field-level signage another five feet prior to kickoff." Pilot Flying J, which bought traditional advertising on ESPN leading up to the game, "will soon decide if its ad buy will be extended for the rest of the season" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 9/19 issue).
