Five security guards at Lowe's Motor Speedway were
fired Friday for "roughing up" a Charlotte Observer
photographer and "seizing" his cameras and film after last
week's accident in which three spectators were killed at the
VisionAire 500, according to Foon Rhee of the CHARLOTTE
OBSERVER. LMS President Humpy Wheeler said the track
employs "approximately" 200 part-time security staffers and
that they "will get trained in new policies" before NASCAR
races later this month "to prevent this from happening
again." Videotape shows about a half-dozen security guards
"surrounding" Observer photographer Todd Sumlin, pushing him
and grabbing cameras from around his neck. The cameras were
later returned, but a roll of film was "destroyed."
Wheeler: "It was an unfortunate situation for everyone
involved. While no one from speedway management directed or
instructed the action taken during the incident, we still
deeply regret it happened" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/8).
WILL SPONSORS RETURN? The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Bill
King examines Lowe's association with the tragedy through
its naming rights deal at the Charlotte speedway. Lowe's
execs said they had "not begun to assess the impact of the
association on their business." Lowe's Senior VP/Marketing
Gregory Bridgeford: "We really haven't focused on anything
but the personal aspects of this tragedy." But David Paro,
VP/ProServ's consulting division, said of the tragic
incident at Lowe's: "I hate to admit it, but it will hurt
the naming-rights situation in motorsports" (SPORTSBUSINESS
JOURNAL, 5/10 issue). VisionAire has not decided whether it
will remain as title sponsor of the IRL event, even if the
race returns to Charlotte. VisionAire Chair Jim Rice:
"Whether you keep the race or not, I don't know."
Communications Concepts and Sports Media Challenge President
Kathleen Hessert said that VisionAire and other sponsors
"were saved" by LMS management's decision to cancel the race
after the severity of the accident was determined. Hessert:
"If they had kept racing here, VisionAire would have been
bombarded" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 5/10 issue).
