By Eric Powell
allstate400atthebrickyard.com
Thursday, August 18, 2005
It would be difficult to argue that any one person in Indianapolis knows how to promote an entire city - let alone a single event - better than Bill McGowan.
During his 18-year tenure as president and CEO of the Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association (ICVA), McGowan and his staff worked tirelessly to draw tourists and convention business to central Indiana . In doing this, he helped change the image of his hometown from "India-no-place" to one of the most vibrant, hospitable and user-friendly cities in America. The momentum continues today under the watch of Bob Bedell, who took over as ICVA president and CEO after McGowan retired in 2002.
Few entities in Indianapolis have benefited from McGowan's leadership as much as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and for that reason, the Allstate Corporation on Aug. 6 named McGowan the recipient of the inaugural Allstate 400 Bricklayer Award.
McGowan was recognized at a reception hosted by Allstate, the Northbrook, Ill.-based, insurance company that became title sponsor of the Speedway 's NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race this year. Joie Chitwood, IMS president and chief operating officer, and actor and Allstate spokesperson Dennis Haysbert presented McGowan with a commemorative trophy.
The Allstate 400 Bricklayer Award recognizes persons who have contributed to the success of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and its events, or, as the Allstate marketing slogan states, kept the Speedway in "Good Hands."
"I was completely surprised," McGowan said, on receiving the award. "Being from Indianapolis , I grew up having gone to almost all the races since I was a kid.
"Naturally the Speedway is our most important (tourism) entity by far. The Speedway has been very good to the city, to the ICVA."
McGowan was named president and CEO of the ICVA in 1984, the same year the RCA Dome opened as a multi-purpose facility that has since played host to not only the Indianapolis Colts, but major conventions, music concerts and sporting events, such as three of the four NCAA Men's Final Four basketball tournaments to which the city has played host.
"Back in 1984, if for instance someone was driving south from Chicago, the only reason they might stop was to go to the Speedway museum," McGowan said. "Now of course we have many great venues, great teams like the Pacers, Fever, Colts and Indians. Naturally it was, and remains, easy to be proactive with the Speedway .
"I always say that the Speedway is the finest sports venue in the world. Who can compete?"
McGowan has more than just a professional connection to the Speedway . His parents, William Sr. and Martha, were friends of longtime Speedway owners Anton "Tony" and Mary F. Hulman, the grandparents of Speedway chief executive officer Tony George. McGowan said he knows four generations of the Hulman-George family.
The Speedway made national headlines in 1993 when it announced that a historic second annual event - the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race - would take place in August 1994. The event, now called the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, has grown to become one of the premier events on the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, one that rivals the Daytona 500 in terms of a "must win" for many drivers.
Following the successful startup of the Speedway's second event, George made headlines worldwide when he announced a third world-class sporting event would take place at the track beginning in 2000: the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis , part of the Formula One World Championship.
McGowan and the ICVA played a key role in forming a USGP hospitality committee, which helped the city roll out the red carpet to guests from other continents that had never been to Indianapolis . The attention to detail was thorough: each F1 team had its own local guest host, and for the fans from around the world, interpreters and currency exchange locations were plentiful, among many other perks.
"We had just had the Rotary club convention and did a wonderful job, but there was one complaint: no currency exchange," McGowan said. "Then Formula One was announced and I told ( Speedway officials) I didn't think we were ready internationally. That formed our (USGP) hospitality committee. We did the banners downtown, had hospitality at the airport; we just felt it was important to make the guests from everywhere realize this was an important event for the city of Indianapolis . It was important not only to welcome guests, but also make the citizens of Indianapolis realize how big it was."
McGowan earned the inaugural Bricklayer Award due in large part to his ability to make people feel welcome. But his resolve, along with that of other civic leaders, is what has helped Indianapolis develop a positive international reputation. In turn, the city's large base of attractions has grown stronger and more plentiful.
Despite all the success and diversification of Indianapolis tourism, McGowan credits the Speedway for remaining Indy's key seller in attracting individual tourists and large conventions year-round.
"There is the old cliché that we ( Indianapolis ) do not have mountains or sea shores," McGowan said. "But our city has a great reputation for people that like to help, and we have great venues like the Children's Museum and Conseco Fieldhouse. A lot of cities have wonderful museums and symphonies like ours, however. When you're competing against cities like Orlando or Phoenix for tourism and conventions, you have to be unique, and only one city has the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We're blessed with that."
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2006 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard tickets: The Indianapolis Motor Speedway ticket office is accepting ticket renewals and new ticket orders for the 2006 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, tentatively scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 6. Tickets can be purchased online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com or by calling the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700 or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area.
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