CART, MISC: Ford Racing and Cotter Promotions Take Technology to the Street
17 September 1999
DETROIT -- Ford Racing and Cotter Promotions, leaders in the motor sports and mobile marketing industries, respectively, have launched the Ford Racing Technology Tour, an interactive attraction which shows how today's racing technology becomes tomorrow's passenger-vehicle standards.The 2,500-square-foot mobile exhibit, with interactive displays, allows guests to explore innovations developed by Ford Racing which evolve into its production cars -- making for more reliable and safer vehicles.
"We wanted to create a presence away from the race track and use racing to generate excitement at the dealer and regional levels," said Torrey Galida, global motorsports marketing manager. "There's been tremendous growth in racing's popularity and this is the perfect program to effectively reach people who aren't at the race track. We've invested several hundred thousand dollars in the technological displays alone, with the goal of educating people while they are having fun."
Visitors to the Ford Racing Technology Tour also can test their skills against NASCAR racing games and an interactive reaction-time challenge. They can have their picture taken with a 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Ford Taurus, John Force's NHRA Winston Drag Racing Mustang Funny Car, Michael Andretti's CART Ford Champ Car and Ford's new Focus European Rally car.
Fans also can register to win a Ford F-150 truck, the Official Truck of NASCAR, and purchase Ford Racing souvenirs at the display.
"The best judge of a product is its consumer. For Ford, that includes millions of race fans," said Mark Roberts, chief operating officer of Cotter Promotions, a mobile marketing agency which specializes in motor sports. "The Ford Tech Tour is designed to show how Ford Racing develops products and techniques that eventually translate into everyday Ford cars and trucks."
The Ford Racing Technology Tour is one of more than 25 mobile marketing and specialty displays Cotter Promotions manages for Fortune 500 companies. A division of Cotter Group, Cotter Promotions' interactive programs educate and entertain more than 600,000 people each year.
Transported by three multi-car haulers, which form the U-shaped exhibit perimeter, the tour is maintained by a four-person staff. The Ford Racing Technology Tour made its first stop at Chicago Motor Speedway during the CART Target Grand Prix. The remainder of the tour schedule is dedicated to California. However, a second tour is planned for outdoor events and Ford dealerships throughout the United States. Admission to the Ford Racing Technology Tour is free.
Opened in 1988 by two public relations professionals, Cotter Group has grown into a 70-plus person, full-service marketing communications agency, specializing in public relations, publicity, event management, mobile marketing, promotions, sponsorship coordination, athletic representation, creative services and publishing.
Editors Note: For hundreds of hot racing photos and racing art, be sure to visit The Racing ImageGalleries and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.