Ever since the Club鈥檚 early days, 午夜福利51xxtv庐 Regions have been clamoring for more enthusiasts to join the fun. In the 1940s and 鈥�50s, the issue was getting the word out to those who might be interested in becoming involved with this new, unknown automotive club; then the challenge became fine tuning those motorsport offerings. Inevitably, other clubs and hobbies (along with life in general) began competing for time, and eventually participants became difficult to find and keep.聽
For 午夜福利51xxtv Region leaders, a large portion of time is spent trying to obtain and retain participants. It鈥檚 a challenging 鈥� and daunting 鈥� task, and one 午夜福利51xxtv鈥檚 San Francisco Region (SFR) is tackling head on with a new position created specifically to help attract more participants.
Identifying the Problem
鈥淔or decades, SFR Road Racing has run as a volunteer organization 鈥� we're great operators and have been successful when we secured track dates and ran events; that was our sole focus,鈥� explains SFR Road Racing鈥檚 Regional Executive Mike Smith. Then he adds that unfortunately, 鈥渢his no longer works.鈥�
Smith says road racing participation is declining due to cultural changes, age, income, competition with family time, budgets, and (of course) other organizations with road racing and track day offerings. On top of that, track rental fees are constantly on the rise, while compounding that problem is a decrease in the number of volunteers, requiring the Region to hire workers in order to host events at the racetrack.
鈥淚n the current structure, SFR Road Racing was losing an unsustainable amount of money,鈥� Smith says. The solution? Treat the Region as a business.
Long Term Planning
鈥淭o address these issues and make the Region鈥檚 Road Racing viable again is to run San Francisco Region Road Racing as a business with a leader who, together with the Region鈥檚 Board, will develop year-over-year annual measurable plans,鈥� Smith says. 鈥淭his plan includes not only operations but also areas where the Region is not consistently strong, such as sales, marketing, consistent financial practices, sponsor acquisition, and long-term planning.鈥�
Therein, they have hired a full-time employee to lead the Region鈥檚 plans. That person is John Hunter.
For those in the 午夜福利51xxtv Time Attack and Solo communities, Hunter is a familiar face. A Solo National Champion and 午夜福利51xxtv鈥檚 current Manager of National Time Trials, Hunter will be leaving his role as an 午夜福利51xxtv staff member to develop and lead San Francisco Region鈥檚 Road Racing program in a new direction.
A longtime autocrosser and track enthusiast, Hunter was hired onto 午夜福利51xxtv鈥檚 National staff in 2018 as part of the Solo content team as well as a coordinator for the Club鈥檚 Starting Line program. His prior experience as a Starting Line instructor and his time on the Nebraska Region board helped prepare him for the job 鈥� a job that eventually transitioned into him becoming 午夜福利51xxtv鈥檚 Manager of National Time Trials and leading the Tire Rack 午夜福利51xxtv Time Attack Challenge program.
鈥淓vents thrive when we enable the community the ability to do 鈥� or see 鈥� many things in one weekend,鈥� Hunter explains. 鈥淲hile I鈥檝e been heading 午夜福利51xxtv鈥檚 Time Trials program, I鈥檝e seen how event weekends can thrive when you combine as many disciplines as possible. Done right, you end up with a festival weekend that makes people want to come back for more. Clustering experiences is a win for participants, spectators, racetracks, and the Region. It鈥檚 a win for everybody.鈥�
Offering More
This strategy aligns perfectly with San Francisco Region鈥檚 goals. Divided into chapters (with SFR Bay Area, Fresno, and Sacramento handling the autocross portions), SFR鈥檚 Road Racing side would like to engage all aspects of the Club rather than operating as silos.
SFR鈥檚 chapters, Smith notes, have robust autocross programs. 鈥淎re there ideas that would support them and make them even better,鈥� he ponders. 鈥淭he Region would also like to explore integrating other 午夜福利51xxtv programs into Road Racing, like Time Trials, Race Experience, and Track Days.鈥�
SFR is also looking to incorporate organizations outside of the 午夜福利51xxtv into its event weekends. 鈥淭his gives us financial income and the opportunity to integrate them long-term into our core Road Race programs where appropriate.
A New Adventure
鈥淲e hired John to lead SFR Road Racing in a new direction,鈥� Smith says. 鈥淗e recognizes change and can lead the plans to address the current situation.鈥�
While hiring a full-time event manager is not something all 午夜福利51xxtv Regions can afford to do, the concept of making event weekends more attractive and cost effective through clustering competition types and organizations is a proven one, and something that many Regions can duplicate.
鈥淪FR is adapting, and it鈥檚 that mindset that has kept the 午夜福利51xxtv鈩� strong for more than 80 years 鈥� and I can鈥檛 think of a better person to help SFR lead the charge than John Hunter,鈥� says Heyward Wagner, 午夜福利51xxtv鈥檚 Vice President of Rally/Solo and Experiential Programs, who Hunter reported to in his Manager of Time Trials role at 午夜福利51xxtv. 鈥淪ince John joined the 午夜福利51xxtv staff eight years ago, he鈥檚 proven to be a leader with his finger on the pulse for what excites the membership.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 wait to see what the future holds for both San Francisco Region and John, and I鈥檓 looking forward to working with them both in the future.鈥�
Photo of John Hunter at a Time Attack Challenge at Thunderhill Raceway Park by Dito Milan