Northbrook velodrome closing the gap fundraising effort

[John Vittallo]

"Close the Gap" funding drive announced Year-end effort under way to save the Northbrook Velodrome

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Northbrook, Ill., Dec. 1) - In cycling terms, "closing the gap" means digging deep and making that
extra effort to stay ahead. The Northbrook Cycle Committee is asking the community to respond the
same way to its "Close the Gap" year-end fundraising drive.

The NCC coordinates fundraising to save the Northbrook Park District Ed Rudolph Velodrome, one of
only 16 bicycle racing tracks in the United States. "Close the Gap" represents the latest in a
series of efforts aimed at raising more than $160,000 needed for resurfacing and other improvements.

"This is a critical juncture for the Save the Velodrome Fund," according to Peter Janunas, NCC
president. "Our initial momentum has brought us a long way toward our goal. We hope that supporters
get into the spirit of the holidays with further giving this month, taking advantage of two-for-one
'Angel' matching in the next 30 days."

In just four months, Save the Velodrome efforts have raised more than $117,000, thanks in large
part to the "Velodrome Angel." This anonymous contributor began with a $25,000 donation and then
announced a two-for-one matching program through December 31. "Every $100 contributed is really
$300 to the Fund through the end of the year," Janunas says. "Even small contributions will have a
big impact."

What's more, all contributions are tax-deductible, as the NCC is a
501(c)3 charitable organization. Donations may also be eligible for company match programs offered
by many employers. Supporters are encouraged to send checks to Northbrook Cycle Committee,
P.O. Box 1101, Northbrook, IL 60065-1101; contributors are asked to provide full contact
information and indicate "Save the Velodrome" on all checks.

The Velodrome is in danger of closing after the 2004 season unless improvements are made. The
Northbrook Park District, which owns the facility, has offered to fund half the project, charging
the local cycling community with raising the rest. Since August, efforts such as online auctions,
benefit races, a letter drive, and a lemonade stand have shown the community's commitment and raised
funds. "Close the Gap" builds on that foundation.

More information and a contribution form are available on the web at www.northbrookvelodrome.com.

*********************************
The Northbrook Cycle Committee (NCC) (http://www.northbrookvelodrome.com) is an organization of
riders, fans, and officials, that organizes and promotes Thursday Night Racing at the Northbrook
Park District Ed Rudolph Velodrome. Devoted to bike advocacy within Northbrook, Ill., the NCC helps
the Park District maintain the Velodrome and is a member of the Northbrook Historical Society
(http://www.northstarnet.org/nbkhome/nbhsoc) and the Northbrook Chamber of Commerce
(http://www.northbrookchamber.org).

Please feel free to pass this on to any other interested folks, or at the very least encourage them
to sign up for the NCC e-mail list at http://www.northbrookvelodrome.com.

 

[Racer X]

Why should we save your velodrome? Why don't you people figure out a way to make your oval
profitable, or at least cost-effective, rather than taking up countless space in what appears to be
a perpetual begging campaign.

Can't you get a company to sponsor your track like Trexlertown?

Happy holidays,

Racer X

John Vittallo wrote:

> "Close the Gap" funding drive announced Year-end effort under way to save the Northbrook Velodrome
>
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> (Northbrook, Ill., Dec. 1) - In cycling terms, "closing the gap" means digging deep and making
> that extra effort to stay ahead. The Northbrook Cycle Committee is asking the community to respond
> the same way to its "Close the Gap" year-end fundraising drive.
>
> The NCC coordinates fundraising to save the Northbrook Park District Ed Rudolph Velodrome, one of
> only 16 bicycle racing tracks in the United States. "Close the Gap" represents the latest in a
> series of efforts aimed at raising more than $160,000 needed for resurfacing and other
> improvements.
>
> "This is a critical juncture for the Save the Velodrome Fund," according to Peter Janunas, NCC
> president. "Our initial momentum has brought us a long way toward our goal. We hope that
> supporters get into the spirit of the holidays with further giving this month, taking advantage of
> two-for-one 'Angel' matching in the next 30 days."
>
> In just four months, Save the Velodrome efforts have raised more than $117,000, thanks in large
> part to the "Velodrome Angel." This anonymous contributor began with a $25,000 donation and then
> announced a two-for-one matching program through December 31. "Every $100 contributed is really
> $300 to the Fund through the end of the year," Janunas says. "Even small contributions will have a
> big impact."
>
> What's more, all contributions are tax-deductible, as the NCC is a
> 501(c)3 charitable organization. Donations may also be eligible for company match programs offered
> by many employers. Supporters are encouraged to send checks to Northbrook Cycle Committee,
> P.O. Box 1101, Northbrook, IL 60065-1101; contributors are asked to provide full contact
> information and indicate "Save the Velodrome" on all checks.
>
> The Velodrome is in danger of closing after the 2004 season unless improvements are made. The
> Northbrook Park District, which owns the facility, has offered to fund half the project, charging
> the local cycling community with raising the rest. Since August, efforts such as online auctions,
> benefit races, a letter drive, and a lemonade stand have shown the community's commitment and
> raised funds. "Close the Gap" builds on that foundation.
>
> More information and a contribution form are available on the web at www.northbrookvelodrome.com.
>
> *********************************
> The Northbrook Cycle Committee (NCC) (http://www.northbrookvelodrome.com) is an organization of
> riders, fans, and officials, that organizes and promotes Thursday Night Racing at the Northbrook
> Park District Ed Rudolph Velodrome. Devoted to bike advocacy within Northbrook, Ill., the NCC
> helps the Park District maintain the Velodrome and is a member of the Northbrook Historical
> Society (http://www.northstarnet.org/nbkhome/nbhsoc) and the Northbrook Chamber of Commerce
> (http://www.northbrookchamber.org).
>
> Please feel free to pass this on to any other interested folks, or at the very least encourage
> them to sign up for the NCC e-mail list at http://www.northbrookvelodrome.com.

 

[John Everett]

On Tue, 02 Dec 2003 17:02:20 GMT, RACER X <[email protected]> wrote:

>Why should we save your velodrome? Why don't you people figure out a way to make your oval
>profitable, or at least cost-effective, rather than taking up countless space in what appears to be
>a perpetual begging campaign.
>
>Can't you get a company to sponsor your track like Trexlertown?

This is wrong in so many ways; top-posting, taking up countless space with a complete attribution,
and being generally curmudgeonly.

jeverett3<AT>earthlink<DOT>net http://home.earthlink.net/~jeverett3

 

[Mike Murray]

"RACER X" <[email protected]> wrote: "Why should we save your velodrome? Why don't you people
figure out a way to make your oval profitable, or at least cost-effective, rather than taking up
countless space in what appears to be a perpetual begging campaign."

It is EXTREMELY difficult to make a velodrome even cover ongoing operating costs much less make it
profitable. In Northbrook's case they were covering their operating cost but were suddenly faced
with needing to pay a large surface repair cost. One would expect that the cost of a maintenance
item like this at a public park would be covered by the parks department from public funds but the
parks department does not want to do this. In fact, it appears that they might rather tear down the
facility and put in something else, like a swimming pool.

There are many reasons why it is hard to cover costs at a velodrome. The number of users is fairly
small. There is a fairly small number of people interested participating in track cycling. It is
estimated that the total number of track athletes in the US is less than 3,000. Even add in fitness
riders and kids classes and it still is a pretty small market. In addition, only a limited number of
people can be on the track at any given time. The amount they will pay to use the track is also
small. Collecting money from them requires on site staff which may cost more than the amount of
revenue it generates. There are also limited numbers of spectators for races and they will not pay
much to watch. Collecting money from them also requires staff with attendant costs. Everyone jumps
on the idea of finding sponsorship but if you put yourself in the place of the sponsor it is pretty
difficult to justify putting much money into sponsorship of a velodrome since it is unlikely that
you will see that money back in increased sales. Sponsorships are not easy to find. Often they come
from people that have a personal interest in the program, often from that small group of users.
There is a reason why there are only 20 velodromes in the US. If it was easy to make a profit with
one there would be lots more of them.

The people at Northbrook have done a pretty admirable job of attempting to cover a unexpected, high
dollar cost. In doing so they have come pretty close to saving a rare facility with a lot of history
in the cycling community. Bike racing will be better due to their efforts. What has Racer X done
lately to compare to that?

--
Mike Murray Alpenrose Velodrome manager