Inside tri just published an article about the future of the Oly Training Center in Florida. Man, I just dont understand the economics of sports and marketing. According to the artical a hospital built and staffs a state of the art facility. They charge the general public $100.00/month to use it. USAT originally got to use it free and got $165,000 in exchange for designating it the training facility. Who ever negotiated that deal for USAT you have my vote for whatever election you want.
Now the old deal is up and a new one is in the offing. USAT wants another chunk of cash and free memberships for USAT members (probably wants the head of the hospital to wash our cars while we use the facility:), So far the director of the facility seems willing totalk, but it doesn’t look like any cash is forthcoming. Frankly I would think that giving free use to USAT members would bankrupt the facility.
From the hospitals point of view I don’t see a very big value, from USAT I would take whatever we could get.
Another question is why hasn’t USAT used more of the $85,000 of in-kind services that they/we are entitled to this year? They should have had plans at the start of the year to take full advantage of that resource.
From what I can tell, the old deal sounded pretty sweet. I forget who it was, jsquared maybe, that was criticizing it, implied that we (USAT) put a lot ($) into the facility and ended up without anything. Now it sounds like we didn’t put anything in except our good name. I am really glad that we (USAT) didn’t spend millions building our own facility, just so that we could own the bricks and mortar. I do like the idea of being able to go to the facility and use it for free for being a annual member.
Yeah, the idea of using it for free would be sweet, but I don’t think it would fly. If they charge locals $100 / month to use it, then I picture a whole lot of locals ponying up for a USAT membership. They might be able to give out passes for 10 free visits or something like that though.
The Hospital people that run the facility are very difficult to deal with. Until you have lived here or visited the facility with a team, you wouldn’t understand. If only the center could some how get rid of Dot Richardson and her sidekick Cindy, the place would be much more pleasant to use.
Kevin - I have to disagree with you - Both Dot and Cindy are wonderful people and I enjoy working with both of them. They support everything we do with triathlon at the center. (The Lake Louisa Sprint Triathlon Series, Florida’s Great Escape Triathlon, medical support of the Great Floridian) Without their support we would not be able to produce these events.
We have a great staff and we work hard to make the NTC a place that everyone can reach their full potential and goals. We strive to provide services that exceed expectations for standands of quality. We place the interest and goals of our customers first. Team spirit, mutual respect and integrity are clearly evident in all interactions and we are committed to the current and future needs of our community and all those we serve.
You might want to read the quotes from Shelia and Joann in the Inside Triathlon article. You might also want to talk to Lisa Bentley and Nina Kraft while your in Kona this week. Both of these athletes spent some time with us last winter. Z
I can’t see a USAT member expecting to be let in “gratis”. That just seems unrealistic, in my mind. Perhaps a nominally small fee for one-time or very occasional users and something like a subsidized fee, much like a local YMCA might charge, for regular users.
Besides direct income from USAT members, which is probably income from a very-defined “catchment area”, other indirect income in the form of merchandise, clinics, expo booths etc. can be quantified to a certain extent, and negotiations can proceed from that basis.
Marketing staff from both entities (USAT and South Lake Healthcare System) can probably meet in camera and work out tie-ins and other details. It’s got to be a mutually-beneficial result for both, or what’s the point in doing it?