Kirk Bohls: IndyCar racing is going Miles and Miles to gain traction
Oh, he often went to the Greatest Spectacle in Racing every May as a youngster, cutting high school classes and sneaking onto the Indy 500 grounds in the boot of a friend's car. And the first time he can remember being there without going undercover was as a
"I was born and raised in Indy but was never a race fan, frankly,"
Instead of becoming a gearhead, he immersed himself in tennis and became an accomplished player for the team at the small, all-male Division III Wabash College that finished third at nationals.
He's humble enough to say he "never got a job because of my backhand," but those roots served him well when he was tabbed as the CEO of the men's professional tennis tour, a job he held for 15 years, surviving even though he was out of the country for half of every year. Before that, he had run local political campaigns and had been the chief executive officer for the Pan Am Games, overseeing 38,000 volunteers and selling a million tickets to the event in Indy in 1987.
But he wasn't done with sports.
After he retired from the ATP in 2005, he returned home, hoping he'd never get on a plane again. But the mayor called and asked him to lead Indianapolis' committee to bid on the 2012
That's when he got a call from
Miles accepted, and he is now starting his seventh year as the president and CEO of
And is dedicated to making plenty more for a sport that appears to be gaining traction.
He's clearly on the right track as he has guided his sport into all manner of positive developments with everything from a new title sponsor to a new broadcast partner and the possibility of more international events abroad.
"It's a fabulously interesting sport," said the charismatic white-haired, 65-year-old executive. "It has tons of complexity with technology on the track that is available to us today, which is the key to unlocking its popularity."
So how popular is IndyCar racing? Gone are the days of instantly recognizable household names such as Foyt and Andretti and Unser, replaced by five-time series winner and defending champion -- quick, can you name him? --
Austin becomes part of an attractive, 17-event schedule that begins in
It remains your grandfather's auto racing in some ways, but the sport is branching out and appealing to millennials, which Miles said make up 25 percent of IndyCar's fan base. Females make up 45 percent of the fans at the track -- though there are far fewer in the television audience -- and the age of the average fan is 50. But it's starting to skew younger.
"They're getting it, and there's a reason for that," Miles said. "They don't necessarily have to care what's under the hood. It's an extreme sport. These drivers are daring and brave and skilled, and they drive crazy speeds wheel to wheel. We're beginning to grow our younger fan base."
One way to their hearts is increased graphics and better apps to enhance the viewing experience. To that end, they've laid cable under the Indy 500 track to pull all the data off 33 cars racing 200 laps and providing 80 million data points.
"If we can create graphics that shows the leaders' lines through every turn," Miles said, "viewers can see how this guy is beating that guy because he is a half-second faster because of his path around the track."
On other fronts, Miles remains progressive. IndyCar won't be shown on
"
In addition, IndyCar linked forces with new title sponsor
"They don't sell anything like Coke," Miles said, "but they thought this was a great opportunity to introduces themselves as a brand."
IndyCar has also signed on Speedway convenience stores, which have almost 4,000 stores nationwide with 2 million customers a day. Fuel up there, and you'll get hit with IndyCar ads at the pumps. IndyCar has added another sponsor in online annuities and life insurance agency Gainbridge to further its exposure.
As if that's not enough, IndyCar is flirting with expanding the schedule internationally and growing to perhaps 20 races a year. "
Regardless, the season will conclude in mid-September, before football heats up because "once football season starts, the average attendance has been down about 30 percent. That's just a fact of life."
Until then, Miles will continue to drive up interest in the sport. And he doesn't have to sneak into the Brickyard anymore.
___
(c)2019 Austin American-Statesman, Texas
Visit Austin American-Statesman, Texas at www.statesman.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
EDITORIAL: San Diego’s new scooter rules look good — but will they be enforced?
Global Specialty Insurance Market 2019: By Type and Application, Opportunities & Challenges, Demand Analysis and Industry Player Overview Till
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News