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Internet Generates Tickets, Retail Sales for Elkhart Lake’s Road America
Website Serves Customers In All Time Zones
Elkhart Lake, Wisc., Nov. 11, 2004—Road America’s website was responsible
for more than a third of the race track’s 2004 ticket sales, according to
George Bruggenthies, president and general manager. Season Tickets,
which are $250 until Dec. 15, 2005 race weekend tickets, camping and golf cars
also may be ordered, providing one-click shopping for busy race fans at the
website, www.roadamerica.com.
New this year, Road America is offering a gift card for sale in any dollar
amount and Road America’s new book, Road America: Celebrating 50 Years of
Road Racing, a limited edition, coffee table book through the 4-Mile Merchant
section of the website. Nearly 70 percent of Americans have Internet access,
according to industry sources, and nearly half regularly shop online.
“We’re providing better customer service with the Internet and the
website,” said Bruggenthies.
“We’re empowering our customers, letting them shop and find the
information they want and need at their convenience.
“While the website continues to be a work-in-progress, in general it is
meeting the needs of many of our race fans,” Bruggenthies said, “and we
will keep tweaking it so it becomes even more fan friendly. We’re a small
business,” Bruggenthies continued, “and every customer and every
transaction is important to us.”
Road America’s preliminary schedule calls for seven major spectator
weekends:
April 22-24 – Championship Cup Series. One of the largest club motorcycle
races in the U.S.
May 13-15 – SVRA vintage racing. May 14, free Tailgate Party. Featuring the
Australia-U.S. Healey Challenge.
June 2-5 – Suzuki Super Bike Doubleheader. Top national motorcycle racing.
June 23-26. Kohler/SCCA Chicago Region June Sprints, Presented by the Chicago
Tribune. 50th running of
one of the largest and oldest National races in the U.S. Youth group pricing
and activities.
July 14-17 – Brian Redman International Challenge Presented by Jaguar.
Featuring Can-Am and F-1 races.
One of the largest vintage races in the U.S., plus concours for race and
sports cars.
Aug. 18-21 – Road America 500. Featuring the American Le Mans Series (ALMS).
Sept. 16-18 – Elkhart Lake Vintage Festival. Featuring Bugatti and Elva’s
50th Birthday Party.
Road America hosted its first race on Sept. 11, 1955, an SCCA National race,
in which Phil Hill, of
Santa Monica, Calif., driving a Ferrari Monza won, edged past Sherwood
Johnston, of Rye, N.Y., in a
Jaguar during the race-long duel for the honor of being first in the feature
race and in the racing annals for the four-mile course.
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