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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012 Vail Lacrosse Shootout RecapEvent Recap: Vail Lacrosse Shootout Commission on Special Events October 3, 2012 Photo by Jack Affleck Vail Lacrosse Shootout: June 30 – July 8, 2012 James Soran, Event Producer Office: 303.779.2708 Mobile: 303.877.7077 jsoran@montgomerylittle.com 2 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 Vail Brand Compatibility “Premier International Mountain Resort Community” 3 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 Standard of excellence met by: •Our tournament is considered to be the premier summer lacrosse tournament. We’ve been able to successfully maintain our status as the premier lacrosse event even as the number and variety of locations of lacrosse tournaments available to teams has increased with the growth of the sport. •Over the forty year history of the Vail Lacrosse Shootout we’ve consistently maintained our reputation and standing in the lacrosse community as “the” tournament to attend. Lacrosse players refer to the Shootout simply as “Vail” and that reference is universally known to mean the Vail Lacrosse Shootout. Many don’t consider their lacrosse careers to be complete until they’ve played at the Shootout. •We feel that our reputation as a first class lacrosse event attracting national and international competitors compliments and further enhances Vail resort’s well known reputation as being one of the finest resort and ski communities in the world. Event Strengths & Weaknesses 4 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •The longevity of our event and its status in the lacrosse community as one of the most desired events to attend continues to be the greatest strength of our event. We receive feedback from tournament participants each year that ours is one of the most well run tournaments they attend and they look forward to returning to the Shootout from year to year. 80% of the teams that participated in the 2011 tournament returned in 2012. •Another strength of the event is the longevity of our tournament staff. Most of our staff having been helping organize and run the tournament for many years, enabling our event to run smoothly with an experienced and dedicated staff that volunteer their time. •Despite a continued weak economy, we were able to increase the number of teams in our Supermasters and Grandmasters divisions this year. Spectator attendance was increased this year partly due to our not charging admission to the event. •This year several local Vail businesses reached out to us, wanting to become involved with our event through advertising in our tournament program or offering discounts to tournament participants. There are a number of local Vail businesses that have sponsored our event through advertising with us for many years and continue to do so. Each year we receive positive feedback from Vail businesses expressing appreciation for the summer business our event brings to the Vail Valley. Exceeded Expectations Event Strengths & Weaknesses 5 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Successfully marketing our event to sponsors has been especially difficult with the current economic situation. We just fulfilled a 2 year sponsorship contract with a local company, Harrow Sports. We continue to seek out sponsors and we have had a couple of major sporting goods companies express an interest in becoming involved with our event in the future. •Having more parking available at no charge to players would be a big improvement to our event. We receive many complaints from players about the inconvenience of having to pay for parking. Although the free parking structures are available, we receive feedback that they are not convenient when players are traveling with their families and transporting lacrosse gear, personal items and small children. They would like the convenience of having their vehicle nearby and don’t feel that its fair to pay $10 a day for that convenience. We understand that parking is at a premium in Vail, especially near the 4th of July, and we appreciate the Town of Vail reimbursing us for the cost of the parking spots we purchased for the use of our staff near Ford Field. For our participants, it would be a great improvement and benefit to us to have the paid parking requirement at Ford Field and the Athletic Field waived during our event. •In 2013 we plan to increase the number of teams in our Men’s and Women’s Elite Divisions and our High School Boys Divisions by actively soliciting new teams. If there is enough interest, we would like to start a “Zenmasters Division” for players age 60 and over. •Eventually we would like to get more of our high school events taking place in Vail and will do that if more field space becomes available. In 2012 we again played the semi-finals and finals for the High School Boys Division as well as the Women’s championship game at Ford Field. The proposed improvements to Ford Park will hopefully enable us to schedule more games being played there as opposed to other locations in the Vail Valley in 2014. Measures that could be taken for event improvement Event Strengths & Weaknesses 6 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 For repeat event, comparison to past years: •This year the tournament celebrated its 40th anniversary. Over that 40 years the tournament has evolved from an informal get together of a few teams to one of the largest and most well known lacrosse tournaments in the country with teams traveling to Vail from all over the United States and a few from Canada to participate. •Although the total number of teams in 2012 was slightly less than the number of teams in 2011 – 99 teams in 2012 as compared to 107 in 2011, we feel that 99 teams is still a strong showing in a weak economy. In our High School and Elite Divisions, a few teams were unable to participate in 2012 for reasons related directly to the current economy. However, we were able to increase the number of teams in our Supermasters Division from 12 to 13 and the number of teams in our Grandmasters Division from 8 to 10 in 2012. In addition to the 99 teams in our 7 men’s and women’s divisions we had approximately 150 competitors in our Chumash event for youth. •This year we made a greater effort to keep our tournament website always up to date with posting of scores and a write up of the highlights from each days events as well as photos of the action. Videotaping of games by The Rush video service was again offered and teams were able to purchase a video of their game through The Rush’s online site. A new addition in 2012 was live streaming of some games by iHigh.com, enabling family and friends to see the action in real time. Event Budget 7 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Total event budget: $214,085.39 •CSE funds: $10,000 •Profit and loss: See attached Profit and Loss Statement. Net income of $98.75 •Funding utilization: CSE funding is used to cover printing expenses of the tournament program; to fund the amount donated to The Colin Cassidy Memorial Fund; to pay costs associated with the tournament website; and to pay for promotion and marketing expenses. •In-kind sponsorship: We have a trade out arrangement with several of our tournament program advertisers/sponsors. We offer them advertising in our tournament program and promotion of their business to the teams attending the tournament in exchange for their services. Those businesses offering us in-kind sponsorship in 2012 were: West Vail Liquor Mart, Timberline Tours, JP’s Old Forge Pizza, Safeway, Agava, Tap Room, Smiling Moose, Happy Valley Grill, Lacrosse Graphics, Vail Racquet Club, The Rush, Wendy’s, Alpine Party Rental, Subway/Qdoba and Inlaxwetrust.com. The value of the in-kind sponsorships we received this year was $5,700. •Cash sponsorship: In 2012 we received sponsorship funds of $13,100. Our sponsors included Harrow Sports, US Lacrosse, Coors, Brine, Wendy’s and 3X. We received $10,600 in revenue from tournament program advertising. Estimated Results* Attendance Numbers 8 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 * Based on survey results. •Estimated attendance: •If non-ticketed, method you used to estimate attendees: We arrive at an estimate of the number of event attendees by compiling the total number of players, “others” (family, friends & chaperones) accompanying a team and coaches as reported to us in our post tournament survey. We add the number of officials and tournament staff, giving us a total number of event attendees. In 2012 our estimate of event attendees was 4,897. We estimate our spectator attendance over the course of the 9 day event to be approximately 18,720. This figure includes our estimate of “others” traveling to Vail with a team (in 2012 approximately 2,350 “others”) and some tournament participants that are spectators during other portions of the tournament. In part, we base our estimate of spectator attendance on our observations of crowd attendance at the fields during the various divisions of the tournament. •% of people in Vail specifically for event: Of our total event attendees, (approx. 4,897), 100% are in Vail specifically for our event. Of our estimated spectator attendance of 18,720, we estimate that approximately 85% are in Vail specifically for our event. •% of people attended previous years: 80% of last year’s teams returned to participate in the 2012 tournament. Of the total attendees in 2012 (4,897), approximately 3,918 would have also attended our event in 2011. Our estimate of spectator attendance in 2011 was 13,500. Our estimate of spectator attendance in 2012 is 18,720. We attribute the increase to the fact that we didn’t charge admission at any of our venues this year. Estimated Results* Demographic Profile 9 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Attendees came from (local, regional, out of state, international): Locally and regionally, attendees come from Colorado’s front range including metro Denver and Colorado Springs as well as from the Western Slope (Grand Junction). Nationally, we strive to have each geographic region of the United States represented at the tournament. This year our event included teams from Northern and Southern California, Maryland, New York, Texas, many Mid-Western states including Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, Illinois, and many Eastern states including Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland. Internationally, several teams included Canadian players on their roster and one high school boys team from Winnipeg has attended the Shootout for many years. •We have already been contacted by the Australian National Team and the Ugandan National Team, who are interested in attending the Vail Lacrosse Shootout as part of their preparation for the World Games to be held in Denver in 2014. •Average age and income bracket of attendees: Our event includes age divisions ranging from 4th to 8th grade girls and boys in our Chumash event; high school players from approx. 16 to 19 years old in our Under 19 Boys and Girls High School Divisions; men 30 and over in our Men’s Masters Division; men 40 and over in our Men’s Supermasters Division; men 50 and over in our Men’s Grandmasters event; men and women currently playing in college as well as college graduates playing club or professional lacrosse in our Men’s and Women’s Elite Divisions. We also have an exhibition game for lacrosse players that are 60 and over. We may expand this age group to a four team division in 2013. Although our post event survey did not include inquiry about income bracket, a survey conducted by US Lacrosse and published in 2004 reported that 75% of all lacrosse fans/players had an annual household income of $50,000 or more. * Based on survey results. Estimated Results* Event Attendee Estimated Spending 10 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Lodging: •88% of our survey respondents stayed in Vail, E. Vail and Lionshead •An average of $1,579 per day per team was spent on lodging. Total lodging per day for 99 teams would then be $156,321 on average. •An average of 30 room nights per team, per day. Total room nights for 99 teams – 2,970. Many of these accommodations were multi-bedroom condominiums or homes. •Lodging call to action: We would like to increase the number of fields available to us in Vail in order to be able to accommodate more games taking place in Vail as opposed to farther down the Valley, especially for our boys and girls high school divisions. This would increase the number of teams and “others” staying in the Vail area as well as shopping and eating in Vail. •Dining: An average of $4,074 per team was spent on food (restaurant meals, grocery store and fast food). Total food costs for 99 teams would then be $403,326 on average. This doesn’t include bar or liquor store purchases. •Shopping: Per our survey results, the average amount teams spent on retail purchases was $1,786 per team. Total retail purchases for 99 teams would then be $176,814. However, many teams note that they are unsure about the retail purchases made by players and their families. •Other Activities: On average, about 80% of teams responding to our survey report that they participate in other activities while in Vail with the average amount spent of $1,622 per team. The average amount spent on other activities would then be $160,578 for all 99 teams. * Based on survey results Estimated Return on Investment (ROI)* 11 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Additional Town of Vail spending event generated: We are able to extrapolate based on the amounts reported to us on team surveys to get an estimated total amount of what is spent by all teams for lodging, food, bar and liquor store purchases, activities and retail purchases. By using the amount spent per team in those areas and using that average amount for all 99 teams, we can estimate that during the event the following amount of revenue is brought into the Vail Valley: Lodging: $756,954 Food: $403,326 Retail: $176,814 Bar & Liquor store: $118,200 Other Activities: $160,578 Total Spending generated: $1,772,193 •Ratio of increased revenue to amount of funding received: Increased revenue to the Town of Vail - $1,772,193 – funding received $10,000. For every dollar received in funding, $177 was generated to the Town of Vail in increased revenue •Additional sales tax revenue generated by event accrued to Town of Vail:** Estimated lodging total -- $756,954 x 5% lodging tax = $38,612 in sales tax revenue. Estimated totals of food, bar & liquor purchases, retail purchases and activities -- $858,918 x 4% sales tax = $34,357. Total additional sales tax revenue - $72,969. * Based on survey results. ** Town of Vail sales tax = 4%. Lodging tax = 5% Visitor Intent to Return* 12 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Of those responding to our survey, 41% said players on their team had plans to return to Vail; 54% didn’t have knowledge of whether players would be returning and 5% said there were no plans to return. •The reasons most frequently given for returning to Vail were summer vacations, to ski and snowboard, and to return to the next year’s Vail Lacrosse Shootout. •We receive a lot of feedback from teams as to what a great location Vail is for the tournament and how much they enjoy coming to Vail each summer. Many have expressed to us that the trip to Vail to attend the Shootout has become a family tradition that all the members of the family look forward to. Judging by our survey results, teams take advantage of the many summer activities in Vail with many teams reporting that they’ve participated in biking, hiking, golf, rafting, fishing, horseback riding, gondola rides, the rodeo, zipline, ATV and jeep tours. * Based on survey results. Satisfaction Ratings: Topline Marketing Efforts 13 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •We continue to make improvements to the tournament website to utilize it as a marketing tool. This includes sponsors’ logos and links to sponsors’ websites. In 2012 we’ve continued our efforts to have up to date tournament information posted and we re-designed the look of the website not only to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the tournament but also to make it more attractive and easy to navigate. Visitors to the website increase each year with over 20,000 visitors in June and July this year. In 2011 we added social networking through Facebook and Twitter. The tournament’s presence on these social networking sites continues to grow with tournament updates and blogs posted there. •Our marketing coordinator continues efforts to market the Shootout to potential sponsors and to increase PR and media coverage, This year the semi-finals and finals were video-taped by The Rush video service and the tournament received exposure on their website. Also, live streaming of some games was provided by iHigh.com, again providing increased exposure. •This year was the completion of a 2 year sponsorship contract with Harrow Sports. We’ve received interest from other major sporting good retailers and hope to have a sponsorship contract with one of them for 2013 and beyond. •This year we worked with US Lacrosse to promote their Keeper of Lacrosse program. This program is to honor players that exemplify the virtues of respect, honor and integrity. A Keeper of Lacrosse award was presented to a player in each division of the Shootout. A copy of a write up in the September 2012 issue of Lacrosse Magazine featuring our involvement with the Keeper of Lacrosse award is attached. Lacrosse Magazine is read by 400,000 US Lacrosse members across the country. US Lacrosse plans to feature our involvement with their Keeper of Lacrosse program in their online magazine and their quarterly newsletter to US Lacrosse board members. Community Contribution 14 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Impact on Vail’s sense of community: •This year we did not charge an admission fee to any part of the event. This encouraged greater spectator attendance and gave those living in the Vail community a free event to attend, bringing the most competitive and exciting lacrosse as well as some well known lacrosse players to their community. •For the larger “Colorado” community, we collected donations for the victims of this summer’s wildfires. •For the “international” community our event was attended by Lacrosse The Nations, an organization that brings the game of lacrosse to children living in impoverished areas. They collect used equipment for the children and volunteers teach them the game of lacrosse as well as befriend and mentor them. We plan to continue our association with this philanthropic organization in the future. Sustainability Efforts Green Measures 15 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Recycling receptacles are available at the fields. They are placed in close proximity to the trash cans. •Our training staff provides drinking water to the teams at each field location to discourage the use of individual plastic water bottles by teams. •All communications from us to teams, vendors, advertisers, sponsors and media are electronic rather than using paper and mail service. •We now require online registration for teams, players and coaches, again eliminating paperwork. Player waivers, team rosters and team entry forms are submitted to us either by email or through the online registration system. Additional Information 16 Town of Vail | CSE | 12/15/11 •Our involvement with US Lacrosse’s “Keeper of Lacrosse” program received coverage in the September issue of Lacrosse Magazine. A copy is attached. •The online version of Lacrosse Magazine reported tournament schedules and results. A copy of their coverage on July 4 is attached. •The Shootout received daily local media coverage in the Vail Daily. A copy of coverage appearing in the Vail Daily on July 2nd and 3rd is attached. •Inside Lacrosse magazine featured a photo spread of the Vail Shootout in their September issue. A copy is attached. •The 2011 Participation Survey conducted by US Lacrosse is attached. Documents attached to presentation