Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

      Probably old news, but...

     I received a flyer in my e-mail for the auction of Badlands Speedway in September 15th. The only reason I can think of for it to show up in my mailbox is that they sent out information about advertising/ sponsorship  opportunities flyers to darned near every company they could find an e-mail address for back when they were getting ready to open.

     I think it's common knowledge now that the minimum bid is set at $3,150,000. The flyer also has a box to markfor "pre-auction offer"  (buy it now?)

     So, over & under: I think the place will sell. I don't think it will sell for $10,000,000 or it would have already. What do you think the end auction price will be? 

     My guess is $3,150,000.01. What's your over & under guess?

     For locals to ponder: If you took $3,150,000 and bought and fixed up Hartford (SD/ I-90) Speedway, how nice could you make that place?

Not even in the same ball park Murphy.  You could make Hartford ok, but every advantage goes to Husets.  You'd have 1/2 the place Husets is for that price.  As much as people can say bad about Badlands, the place did get a much needed makeover, and it could be a really good racing facility if/when Husets opens back up.

I agree Jake.  Everything needs to be fixed at Hartford.  The racing never needed to be fixed at Husets.  I say it sells.  3.35 mil, with the 4% buyers premium tacked on..  

My guess is that it will sell within the next 30 days but not at the auction.   Price 2.5 million.  

I agree......100% Husets. I'm not so sure anybody said much of anything bad about "Badlands"....it was the ownership an management style (or lack of) that rankled those willing to speak out. And yes, I was one of those. I enjoyed Husets for many years. Two hours one way from our front door to the bleachers probably a dozen times a year for several years. We did also live in Sioux Falls for a five years in the early 2000's.

     Good points. The only 2 things I can see where Hartford has an advantage would be that it's out in the country away from development and it has open corners. On every other comparison between the two Hartford comes in 2nd. It will be interesting to see what becomes of Hartford Speedway when Husets reopens. (Yes- I said when, not if.)

     I'd tend to agree with you. But if it does, I don't think we'd ever know what the sale price was.

Doesn't sell, not by then IMO.

 Lawlessness and liberalism equals Hell.  NY City, 
Detroit, Seattle, Chicago, Minnepolis, etc. We saw it. 
Burning hundreds of buildings, a thousand assaults and 
dozens of murders. Getting worser and worser.

Remember going to races at Hartford in the late 70s..Good fast track that provided good action..Husets now is definately better because of all the improvements..Hope somone gets it and has a track for racing next year like they used to..Was great coming from Winnipeg to Sioux Falls for races..It was a perfect bullring and still probably is with the right owner..

This scenario is the closest to a rational business decision, so it would be my guess too.  Maybe even 2 mil.

But, who knows.  All you need is 2 people with WAY too much money.   (I will not be 1 of them by the way)

At 3.5 million you're at or above the Eldora selling.price.  With this big of an investment a new owner would need to pack that place for specials three or four times per season to make a dent in their mortgage on the place.

Fo that kind of money Eldora offered an awesome camping experience, the Kings Royal, Dream, World 100, Four Crown and what other events am I missing?  On the other hand the Brandon track has a similar price tag but no camping and it's been sitting idle so there will be a time where they'll have to draw racers back to the track, not just Sprints but support classes that have scattered to the four winds.

I'm not saying it won't work for a new owner but they'll have a big hill to climb.  Eldora was truly a turn key operation with huge uninterrupted established events and did not sit idle.  Price being equal it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see which one offered the greatest chance for a return of investment.. A Brandon purchase will require some loyalty to the track and area but 3.5 million is a lot to dish out for the love of the sport.  

Stan Meissner

Heard the Gulbrandson's (sp?) are interested? I also say it will sell for 3.1 million. I also say that the new owner should be considering many other ways to make money there besides racing. I dont care for Hairball and fair like concerts, but anything similar like that seems to be a good idea for selling a crap load of alcohol.  Bring in some mud runs and obstacle course type things that people seem to enjoy participating in. Bring back derby's and enduros. Bring back all support classes to start.  Race on Sunday nights! Dont dare try to race on Friday or Saturday.  Do some winter and snow type racing out there. Snowmobiles? (doesnt have to be on the track.)  I dont know...just trying to think of things you can do out there because if you try to make money off just racing the few months we have around here for that, then it will die again. IMO

At $3.1 million how long does it take for the place to pay for itself? Inside of fifteen years?

Doesn't give a f#%k Chuck has already turned down an offer for $3.5 million so what makes any of you think that he's going to take less then that?

I don't know.  Maybe someone familiar with commercial real estate can weigh in on that.  Personally if I had 3+ million and was looking to invest in a race track making the mortgage payments would be a big concern.  Weekly shows around the country are said to teeter on the edge of profitability and specials tend to reinforce the bottom line.  Without those kinds of specials running every year uninterrupted basically what they'll be buying is an overpriced facility with a weekly show that traditioinally featured one of the most expensive classes, 410 Sprints.  Looking around my neck of the woods most weekly shows run five or six classes topping out around $750 to $1000 to win with the A Mods.  The rest of the usual classes we see up here run the gamut from Hornets and Pure Stocks at maybe $75 or $100 to win up through Super Stocks and B Mods at around $300.

I'm not saying the facility isn't worth the money, it was nice in the past and looks awesome now.  Nevertheless, a nice facility isn't the only piece of this puzzel.  It's going to be imperitive that they find ways to squeeze more money out of their investment.  Whether that's concerts, monster trucks and the usual lineup of novelty shows all of those things will be essential to their success.  Short of a generous benefactor with a passion for Sprint Car racing and a personal connection to the Sioux Falls area other investors aren't going to have those same connections as past owners.  Anyone looking for a business investment will need to be aware the operating expenses and status of the potential entertainment product (available cars and drivers in the area).

Dirt track racing is unique among sports if one stops and thinks about it.  On the one hand you have pro and semi pro football, baseball and hockey where players are recruited and paid and fans pay to come see them.  On the other hand we have dirt track racing where competitors are working people that come from the fan pool and their friends and relatives make up a large part of the crowd on any given race night.  Competitors aren't recruited as in other sports, they fund their racing up the ranks and they "pay to play" in the form of entry fees and a pit pass on race day.  I doubt if Tom Brady for example has to dig $30 out of his wallet at the stadium gate on Sunday morning and pay to play.  Consequently, potential competitors are more affected by the economy and sponsorhip that enables them to compete in racing.  If I was kicking tires in Brandon I'd be thinking seriously about all those things.

Stan Meissner

To many variables including % downpayment. Low downpayment I don't see it happening in 15 years. 50% plus downpayment then maybe were talking at 15 years.

What would Eldora go for today? I would guess more than 3.5 million truthfully but IDK. I am not saying 3+ millions isn't a lot for a vacant track such as Husets, but starting new somewhere else to have what is currently at Husets would likely cost well over 3.5 million. This still doesn't make it a great deal since it would still be hard to make money but I don't know if comparing it to Eldora is completely fair either.

Just doing basic math, $3.1 million over 15 years would be monthly payments of $17,222.   This does not take into effect any type of interest rate.

I would estimate the suites, signage and billboards alone at $175,000 revenue annually. Thats over $2.6 million over 15 years.  It isn't just about ticket sales and concessions.