A monster truck gets vertical on the Traxxas Monster Truck Tour. (Courtesy Traxxas Monster Truck Tour)
ESPN X Games
545 Middle St.
Bristol, CT 06010
(860) 766-2000
www.xgames.com
Founded: 1995
Number of shows: Two domestic flagship events each year
Number of employees: 50
Annual attendance: Every event varies slightly because of the number of sports and disciplines featured, but on average roughly 100,000 spectators over the course of the event
Units touring: 2
Ticket prices: Each event varies slightly because of the number of sports and disciplines featured; all sports and disciplines at X Games Aspen are free and open to the public.
Key personnel: Scott Guglielmino, SVP, programming and X Games; Tim Reed, VP, X Games
Notes: The X Games produced four major events globally, in Aspen, Norway, Minneapolis and Sydney.
Bonnier Corp.
838 N. Delaware St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
www.bonniercorp.com
EnduroCross
(407) 334-9971
www.endurocross.com
Founded: 2004
Number of shows: 7
Number of employees: 11
Annual attendance: 50,000
Units touring: 1
Ticket price: $16-$36
Key personnel: Lance Bryson, director of special events; Andrea Ofiesh, manager of special events
Notes: EnduroCross’ tour schedule this year includes stops in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada and Washington.
Family Events
(317) 236-6515
www.familyevents.com
Founded: 1976
Units touring: 1
Notes: The Family Events division of Bonnier Corp. is a full-service promotion and marketing firm specializing in producing family entertainment and motorsports events. The division has served more than 50 markets nationally, with 15 scheduled events a year. Family Event’s dirt shows include the Lucas Oil 4-Wheel Jamboree Nationals Series and the Sand Sports Super Show.
Feld Entertainment
800 Feld Way
Palmetto, FL 34221
(703) 448-4000
Founded: 1967
Number of shows: 5,000+
Number of employees: 3,000
Annual attendance: Millions of families
Motor Sports Units Touring: Nine Monster Jam tours and two Motocross tours = Monster Jam, Monster Energy Supercross, Supercross Futures, Monster Energy Cup
Ticket price: Monster Jam $20-$100+; Monster Jam World Finals $80-$150+; Supercross $20-$100+; Monster Energy Cup $30-$100+
Key personnel: Kenneth Feld, CEO; Juliette Feld, COO; Nicole Feld, EVP; Alana Feld, EVP; Jeff Meyer, SVP of event marketing and sales; Mark Duryea, VP of booking
Howell Rodeo Co.
(541) 914-3988
www.howellrodeo.com
Founded: More than 40 years in business
Number of shows: Howell Rodeo Co. produces three rodeo events: one in the fall, one in winter, and one in spring. It also partners in three other annual events and spends the summer touring the Northwest as part of an amateur rodeo association. Its animals sometimes make appearances on TV for the PBR.
Number of employees: 0 (subcontractors and volunteer only)
Attendance: 1,000-3,500, depending on the venue.
Annual ticket sales: NA
Ticket price: $12 in advance, $15 at the door
Key personnel: Dustin Howell, promotions/manager; Chelsea Howell, promotions
MX Sports
MX Sports
Pro Racing
Racer
Productions
122 Vista Del Rio Drive
Morgantown, WV 26508
(304) 284-0101
mxsports.com
promotocross.com
gnccracing.com
Founded: 1973
Number of shows: 100 plus
Number of employees: 50 plus
Annual attendance: More than 750,000
Units touring: Six: Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing; AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series, an AMA National Championship; Rocky Mountain ATV/MC AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship presented by Lucas Oil; ATV Motocross National Championship presented by CST Tires, an AMA National Championship; Women’s Motocross Championship; and Ricky Carmichael Daytona Amateur Supercross.
Ticket price: $20-$400.
Key personnel: Rita Coombs, founder; Carrie Russell, CEO; Davey Coombs, president; Tim Cotter, VP; Roy Janson, director of competition; Nick Koester, marketing director; Derek Garcia, marketing coordinator
Notes: The GNCC Racing Series is expanding the Micro 50cc-65cc youth classes (ages 4-9 years old) to race at all 13 rounds. GNCC is introducing an eMTB National Championship for the new pedal-assist mountain bike market.
Nitro Circus
1000 Calle Amanecer
San Clemente, CA 92673
(949) 429-8300
www.nitrocircus.com
Founded: 2003 (Nitro Circus DVD series debuts), 2010 (Nitro Circus live tour launches)
Number of shows: For 2018, 25 North American shows, with 50 performances worldwide.
Number of employees: More than 70
Key personnel: Travis Pastrana, founder; Andy Edwards, co-founder, president; Brett Clarke, chief commercial officer; Kurt Nicoll, VP of global touring; Dave Mateus, global director of special events; Jolene Pellant, SVP, global head of marketing; Trip Taylor, SVP of media; Mike Cowan, chief digital officer; Cassie Dombrowski, VP of global licensing and consumer products; Greg Terlizzi, VP, global head of publicity.
Ticket price: Varies by territory.
Notes: Nitro Circus, which includes a range of action sports, has arena tour stops in 2018 visiting 12 states and Australia, England, Scotland, Sweden, France and Canada. The organization staged “Evel Live” this year, a tribute to Evel Knievel. Shown live in the U.S. on History, the event had 3.5 million people tune in and an estimated 25,000 attended at Caesars Palace and outside Bally’s Las Vegas. This year, the Nitro World Games grew into five separate events, leading to the formation of Nitro Rallycross, a new division growing the brand into motorsports. Nitro Circus also announced a partnership with BASE Entertainment and Caesars Entertainment to launch a permanent Las Vegas show next year.
Traxxas Monster Truck Tour
P.O. Box 503070
Central Point, OR 97503
(480) 773-6822
www.monstertrucktour.com
Founded: 2007
Number of shows: 150
Number of employees: 35
Annual attendance: 1.8 million
Units touring: 5
Annual ticket sales: $18 million
Ticket price: $5-$12 for children; average adult, $20-$23
Key personnel: Danny Torgerson, CEO; Tony Maderazzo, COO; Dean Torgerson, VP of marketing
Notes: Traxxas expanded its touring region to China in 2018.
Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association
101 Pro Rodeo Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 80919
(719) 593-8840
prorodeo.com
Founded: 1936
Number of employees: 100 (varies seasonally)
Units touring: PRCA sanctions hundreds of local events throughout the United States and Canada
Notes: The PRCA is the largest and oldest rodeo-sanctioning body in the world. The organization sanctions or co-sanctions about 600 multiple event rodeos in North America. The PRCA’s membership includes nearly 5,000 cowboys.
Professional Bull Riders Inc.
101 West Riverwalk
Pueblo, CO 81003
(719) 242-2800
www.pbr.com
Founded: 1992
Number of shows: 27 events in the 25th PBR: Unleash the Beast in 2018, 33 Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour Events, 51 Touring Pro Division events and 79 international events
Number of employees: 135
Annual attendance: 3 million plus
Units touring: 3: 25th PBR: Unleash the Beast, which is the top-tier, televised event; the Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour, and the Touring Pro Division
Ticket price: 25th PBR: Unleash the Beast, $10-$251 in cities including Chicago, Anaheim, Dallas, Kansas City, Nashville, and Sacramento. New York season launch Major up to $551, and Las Vegas for PBR World Finals up to $251. Elite Seats priced up to $1,000.
Key personnel: Sean Gleason, CEO; Rodd Granger, COO; Ellen Newberg, SVP, live event marketing
Notes: PBR grew 11 percent in attendance from 2015 to 2017 and its fan base increased 15 percent from 2011 to 2017, according to Luker on Trends/ESPN Sports Poll. In 2018, the sport’s top two tours set more than 20 local attendance records, including when the Iron Cowboy at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, drew more than 46,000 fans, making it the largest single-day event in PBR’s 25 years.