New Member, New Store Opening, New Tracks, New Everything!

[Crazyglen]

I have been researching putting together a store for a little bit now. This past week I talked to and thank, Karol Tunkel of Tennessee, Floyd of Eagle Distributing and Chris Dadds (track builder in Indiana and general guru and invaluable info and help he extended to me) with giving me the info I was lacking. I was highly recommended to get onto this site by Chris Dadds as well.

Oregon. Opening new store with 4 tracks. 135-155' Ogilvie or King. 70' replica 1/4 Drag way. Tri-Oval Daytona style. And a road course layout that will be (hopefully) one of the most unique and special tracks in the country??

The road course, maybe I should have my head examined (?), but my vision I am hell-bent on, is to have it replicate a certain city grand prix type of layout. I am planning on hiring an architectural modeler in the business of producing commercial 3D models of buildings and items, etc., to replicate the city I am thinking about with dozens of world famous and highly recognizable buildings and structures, etc. I am pretty sure this will be a unique piece and hopefully become an asset to the business?

I am new to the biz and liquidating my own business at the moment. I have settled on Eastern Oregon which is almost a bedroom suburb of the Boise, Id area. The city I will be in is right on I-84 and right on the border of OR/ID. I spent the past 30 years self employed owning various business within the Heavy Wrecker-Towing/Restaurants in NYC and Haz Mat Spill clean-up business, etc. I am purchasing one business in the town that was started about 15 years ago that is a Buy-Sell-Trade almost anything and everything type of place. I also am purchasing an old movie theater building which will be gutted and redone for my hobby shop. I want to do a line of Slots, RC's, Die cast, Models, etc.

Planning on heavy into the kids and teens birthday parties and group events with food and party rooms, etc. Also heavy with the family involvement end of this. Hats, T-Shirts, race related imprinted items and generic stuff. Hot Dogs, Pizza, Snacks, Cotton Candy, Popcorn, etc. I have no idea of the sanctioned or clubs around the area of Eastern Oregon, although I seen a post on here with OWH talking about Oregon has a very active club racing scene, but I do believe that is almost all on the extreme west side of the state except for something halfway in-between around the Bend, Oregon area? I might be wrong though.

I grew up as a kid in Hollywood, Florida. Does anyone remember the local commercial slot car raceway store on Hollywood Blvd, just west of City Hall circle? I believe they also had H.O. scale race sets, AFX-Monogram-Revell, etc. That also brings me to a huge question I have. Are hobby shops around the country selling H.O. sets for the kids and families to get them interested in this stuff, or is that strictly left to Wal Mart and Kmart today? Is this something I should add or something I should steer clear of?

Well any contacts would be great! Ideas? Warnings? Free advise worth lots of $$$? If the H.O. stuff, particularly the boxed raceway sets of all types, is a positive fit here, anyone with info on the wholesalers would be great. Thanks!

[oldweirdherald]

Great news!

Always good to hear plans for another slot car raceway in the works!

Oregon has an active club racing scene, with several clubs somewhat overlapping.

I have a thread somewhere here listing all the Oregon & Washington raceways & clubs...
I'll have to dig it up later if I can do a search & find it.
I'm from Seattle, but spent some time in Portland racing with the Oregon clubs for a while...
I'm living in the Philippines now... no slot car tracks here afaik... yet.

I raced with the Oregon 1/24 club racers for a few years and they are a great bunch to race with!
Most of the Oregon club racers have been involved in slot car racing for decades, and I'm sure they could share
a lot of knowledge of the hobby as well as the Oregon slot car racing scene.

There is a club track in a barn in Bend Oregon called Tom's World, owned by Tom Street.
You should definitely try to get in touch with Tom, and check out his track sometime!

I'll see if I can find the info and post it here later.

Best wishes on your new ventures in Oregon, and hopefully a new raceway!
Keep us posted!

- Paul K @ OWH

[oldweirdherald]

I stumbled across that thread - it's from 2011 - so some of it I'm sure is out of date.

Portland/ vancouver area tracks

http://www.slotcartalk.com/slotcarta...761#post267761

Here's the info on Tom's World...
check the thread for list of several other tracks & raceways with links for info.

OSCAR
http://oregonmodelracing.com/ OSCAR (old site)
http://www.oscrsite.com/
http://www.oscrsite.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=3 (OSCAR forums)

OSCAR races on several tracks throughout Oregon:

Tom's World Raceway
OSCAR 4 lane routed 1/24 club track
2548 NE 2nd St.
Bend, OR 97701
Tom Street
541-382-0089
streetsofbend@aol.com
http://www.oscrsite.com/tomsworld.htm

[Crazyglen]

Thanks! I tried to get ahold of Tom Street, I can't. I also called his shop and his employee was extremely rude and cold and questioned me as to why I wanted to talk to him, so enough of wasted time.

But I think the true thing here what I am trying to bring around, is the kids and the family involvement. I will be more than a racetrack with racing cars and supplies. There will be competitions of every level with some great prizes. There will also be coloring paint by numbers, science projects, etc. We will also do something with RC's and as well, events, shows, competitions, etc. I am not scared to give away a $300 H.O. race set that cost me maybe $175.00 (?) or something for a competition of RC guys. I am not scared to put together an all day activity for kids and teens of all ages, skill levels, and abilities on the race track and/or the RC's, modeling, science projects for the geeks, etc. and reward them and have fun! It is all advertising and all to get the word out. Think of Chucky Cheese compared to Mom and Pops Pizza shop in the old strip shopping center on the back street. Think of the old pinball arcade as compared to an FEC?? Think of Wal Mart compared to the hardware store. Not for super specialty items but the general staple of things. I am not a big Wal Mart myself, but I do go to Wal Mart and grab a Subway, hit the ATM, do some shopping and maybe even get the oil change (I don't own my own shop any longer , LOL), it is there, convenient and rather than go to 6 different places on a Saturday AM, boom.

Although I will not be a Hobby Lobby or have a complete toyu section, I am planning something that will attract and be more than a 30 min stop for a 'once in a while' type of thing and I am not going to strictly cater to the over 55 crowd with hi tech and go fast everything. It has to be a mix, a fine regulated mix.

I will have some really nice party rooms with a few great younger college kids that can MC and direct and lead a party with the after party activities of the racing and/or RC stuff. From starting the party off, to singing, to having the kids perform and truly create a celebration whether it is a birthday party, a graduation party, a family reunion, a scouting outing, a business motivator, etc. Also our food will not (I repeat) not be gas station style hot dogs and pizza. We will also have photo equipment, frames, photo holders, etc., to capture special moments and photos for the groups, etc.

My model will be to bring them in the store, entertain them and have a great selection of products from a complete line of RC, to slots, to trains and rockets. Also, science projects, games related to transportation, all kinds of books and manuals as well. Stuff not readily available in Wal Mart, Kmart, Target, etc.

I know there is a problem with the 'go fast' racers taking over the classes, the tracks, the atmosphere, etc. I will somehow have a different model of classes, events, track times, etc. Hell, I have run heavy wreckers and did all kinds of simple to complicated hazardous material spill clean up, mostly at trucking and train accidents, I think I can coordinate, direct and develop something here for some type of origination in this kind of store????? Maybe I am wrong, but I don't think so.

[fastvince]

Good luck on your new journey ! If I ever get out to the west coast, i'll surely stop by !

[2cool]

It's 5 years later, I wonder if your dream ever panned out. I plan on traveling the states and visiting various tacks throughout the US, hope to meet you.

Ed