Another year, another Otter
Posted on 16. Apr, 2009 by Josh in Bike Racing, Bike industry
I’ll always have a soft spot for Sea Otter. Whatever it is that I do, I started doing it here. In 2003, working for Paul Skilbeck in the press office was my first paying non-retail gig in the bike industry. The next year I got my big break as the PR Director. I’ll always be grateful to Rick Sutton and Paul for entrusting me with that role.
But it was a different Otter back then. Those were the last of the heady years when there was still a respectable road stage race and before the bottom fell out of domestic mountain bike racing. Today, Sea Otter struggles to attract even local road racers and the pro mountain bike scene is in shambles.
And yet the “Celebration of Sport” soldiers on, even claiming increases for both exhibitor and athlete attendance from 2008. Despite the pros’ gripes about low prize money and everybody’s gripes about high entry fees, Sea Otter has a great business model – at least by cycling standards – with three stable revenue streams: athlete entry fees, exhibitor fees, and sponsorship. What continues to drive the first two is that Sea Otter remains a good, old-fashioned mountain bike festival with a fantastic cross-country course.
And of the sponsor 12 logos on my media credential, SRAM, Thule, Sierra Nevada, Fox Shox, Clif Bar, and Specialized have been sponsors here for as long as I can remember. Even if sponsorship is down (Specialized’s presence is smaller than usual), at least Sea Otter is still getting renewals. Many events for which sponsorship is the sole revenue stream would be happy to say that.
Whereas many promoters would be chasing the glitz of Tour of California-esque pro road racing, Frank Yohannan, who’s run the show on his own since Rick Sutton’s departure, has avoided that temptation. Sea Otter has chosen wisely to stick to the basics – same venue, same expo, same cross-country course. Despite its flaws, Sea Otter has almost 20 years under its belt and appears to be in no danger of extinction.
Good post, Josh. But I’m not sure sponsor badges = dollars invested. You might want to look at the square footage of expo space year-over-year instead, or the former big players now conspicuous in their absence.
But as the world’s biggest consumer show (yes, bigger than the Lago di Garda festival in Italy), Sea Otter is probably the healthiest specimen of the petri dish. Other events are in far more danger and are, in fact, dropping like flies despite solid attendance numbers.
[...] Otter: Part Two, Why Co-op is a Dirty Word By rickvosper My colleague Josh Kadis blogs that Sea Otter is alive and well this year, specifically that “Despite its flaws, Sea Otter has almost 20 years under its belt and [...]
Sponsor logos don’t equal dollars invested, but they’re correlated. Sea Otter sponsorship might be down but at least they’re getting renewals, which is more than many events can say.