seeking gymkhana venues - need prospects, advice welcome

Disclaimer: I ride motorcycles, so semi-OT. (But I do own a Miata which has been used for AX, TT, and HPDE. And I believe that AX is the best way to learn vehicle control at lower speeds.)


Background:

Motorcycle gymkhana can be fun to watch, and even more fun to do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sal4fZxfeX8

A SoCal organization (http://m-gymkhana.com/) is looking to grow motorcycle gymkhana in the US.

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Multipart inquiry:

(1) What are the current/former venues being used for AutoX? Off the top of my head:
• Mineral Wells (too loose for motorcycles)
• TMS bus lot
• Beford HS (canceled due to noise IIRC)
• Mesquite
• [...who am I missing?]

(2) What other venues (if any) have previously said no to cars but might be OK with motorcycles? (Related: any venues out there that are "just a bit too small" for cars?)

(3) What is the process (best practice) to approach a landowner and seek permission?

(4) Anything else you think I should know that I haven't explicitly asked about?

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I'm thinking TMS is the leading contender since they have decent surfaces and established protocols, but prices and availability are unknowns. It might also be much larger than needed.

You need to secure an insurance provider before you bother with any other details. I suspect it is going to be a major hurdle to overcome. Venues are the easiest thing to achieve. You will need enough participants to defray $2k+ of expenses per event, aside from startup costs.

Good point: liability is a huge consideration.

The org that is soliciting interest has already been operating in SoCal and has even landed a couple of sponsors, so I am assuming this is not their first rodeo.

Ozmdd is not concerned with your liability. Without it you can't get access to any sites.

You will need $5 million policy to rent TMS and some of the other sites. That's for cars; m/c might be higher since the risk is greater. I'd actually be surprised if TMS or any school site will rent for motorcycle stunts at all, but I'm sure some will.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Davidss

Ozmdd is not concerned with your liability. Without it you can't get access to any sites.

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That's sort of what I was (apparently poorly) inferring: no site/venue will take on the risk of liability, hence the expectation/requirement of a separate policy.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OZMDD

You will need $5 million policy to rent TMS and some of the other sites. That's for cars; m/c might be higher since the risk is greater. I'd actually be surprised if TMS or any school site will rent for motorcycle stunts at all, but I'm sure some will.

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Not a stunt show, but the fact that it's not doesn't invalidate your points.

Anyway, it seems like we're addressing (4), so I appreciate that. If these are anything like personal home/auto then they will probably need an underwriter for each state? If so, recommendations?

Would it be out of line for me to ask who is serving the insurance needs of SCCA/ER/BMWCCA?

K&K insures most or all of the clubs.

I'd try to enlist the support of a Texas motorcycle advocacy group with some hard data on how these events improve driver skill, are not "races", and have extremely good safety records. (Assuming those are all correct) You'll want a local non-profit club/organizing body that has the ability to secure the insurance, and put together an effective presentation to take before property owners/managers who have never heard of this, or assume it is stunts.

After all that, the biggest objection to overcome will likely be the behavior of attendees/spectators in and around the site. This is the thing that hurts the drift community so much. Much like C&C, the event can be tame and well-organized, but people will only remember the idiots doing burnouts and hitting the freeway wall.

The videos make it look pretty challenging and fun (for m/c people)