Just the thought of Primal Quest, "the Super Bowl of Adventure Racing" potentially going away made me feel very uneasy. There are just too many people who are passionate about this great sport...we couldn't let it go away.
Last year, as the PQ Course Director, I was pleased to see just how far the sport of adventure racing evolved over the years. In the early days we had Gerard Fusil's Raid Gauloises. From it came Mark Burnett's Eco Challenge, Geoff Hunt's Southern Traverse our Odyssey Adventure Racing and so many other great races, but most significantly, Primal Quest emerged. Bill and Denise Watkins (Managing Partners of PQ) vastly improved every aspect of our sport through their unselfish generosity.
In March 2007, Denise Watkins discussed with me her thoughts on the future of Primal Quest. She told me she was unable to devote any more time or money to Primal Quest. For those who do not know Denise, she is probably the person who has sacrificed more time and money than any other individual in the sport's history. Year after year, she supported the race with hundreds of hours and millions of her own dollars. She now wants to spend more time with her family and pursuing other personal interests.
Denise told me one of two things would happen to PQ, it was either going to go away or she would hand over the reins to me and my team. I was very humbled, excited and worried all at the same time. I was humbled and honored by the fact that she chose me to run her prized possession. I was excited to be able to manage the world's greatest adventure race. This was always my dream. But I was also very worried. I want to ensure I can produce the same quality PQ as the previous events.
Dawn (my wife and Director of Operations of close to 100 other endurance events) and I spent many weeks trying to find a way to make PQ work. This was a very difficult task. The easy part was assembling our team. This just happens to be our 10th anniversary of producing adventure races, and through the years we have been blessed by having such a strong and devoted race management team. These hard-working friends have worked with us through thick and thin and made every event we have ever produced a success. So building the team was not a problem. Most of our team worked with us at last years PQ. The biggest obstacle was how we would be able to produce a PQ quality event without the cash infusion and help keep expedition-level adventure racing alive.
Our first step was to reduce outgoing expenses. Our staff agreed to work for substantially less than they earned last year and we found many other ways to cut costs without diluting the quality and safety of the event. On the income side, we also had to increase the registration fees in order to make producing the event feasible. The cost went up, but still stayed below the costs of any Eco Challenge or Raid Gauloises. I realized the reason the Raid and Eco cost so much was because the events actually cost that much to produce.
Primal Quest has always been called the richest race in AR and I never liked that description. It was true, and although it probably is still true, PQ is going to be better known for the quality of the race, the challenging courses, the experienced, friendly and helpful staff and volunteers. So now we have, in my opinion, the worldâ??s most experienced AR team chomping at the bit to produce the "world's most challenging human endurance competition".
We are inviting every adventure race company in the world to partner with us. This should not to be confused or mistaken with the AR World Champion series. The purpose of the Primal Quest partnership is to promote the sport of adventure racing around the world, and to work together at keeping our great sport alive and strong.
We are inviting all adventure races to partner with us and by doing so, we will promote their races through our Primal Platinum, Gold and Silver programs.
We instituted a program so that for the first time in the sport's history, any team can give back to their sponsors in terms of tangible exposure. Now an AR team competing in PQ can guarantee their sponsor exposure on the PQ web site, which has received well over a million hits a day leading up to and after the race. Team sponsor banners will be at the start and finish areas, and sponsor advertisements in the PQ race packages. Also, depending on the program, sponsors can set up booths and link to the PQ site. This direct marketing approach for the sponsor is much more cost effective than purchasing a magazine advertisement, as it will reach millions of consumers in their specific target market. This program is open to any and all sponsors.
This grass roots approach to sponsorship will help keep the sport alive, and will keep PQ from being dependent on only large sponsors. PQ can be self-sustained for the first time, but it will only happen if all involved in the sport reach out for sponsors. The sponsors will benefit, the athletes will benefit, and every sponsor will help sustain the longevity of Primal Quest and the sport of expedition-level adventure racing. It is my hope that many of the 2008 teams take advantage of these programs.
We are working with world-class athletes in designing challenging, creative and diverse courses. We are now looking at 3 US mountain states for 2008 and looking at international venues for 2009 and beyond.
Like last year, we expect to fill up early this year. Our plan is to limit the 2008 PQ to 75 teams. Once registration opens on July 1, 2007, teams will have 30 days to send in their entry forms and the down payment.
The goal of our race management team is to out do what we did last year. I predict like last year, that most competitors will walk away saying, "That was the most challenging event I have ever done, and it was the most beautiful course I have ever raced".
On behalf of our staff, I want to wish you much success in your training, race preparations and in all the racing you do leading up to Primal Quest 2008.
Don D. Mann
Primal Quest
CEO
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