Special Hy-Vee IndyCar Weekend at Iowa Speedway with Hy-Vee Senior Vice President of Communications Tina Potthoff

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Speakers: Bruce Martin & Tina Potthoff

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Roger Penske:

This is Roger Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy, sponsored by Penske Truck Rental.

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcasts. I'm your host Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT IndyCar series. Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans an insider's view of the exciting world of the NTT IndyCar series in a fast-paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport.

I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as nbcsports.com, si.com, ESPN Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Autoweek and Speed Sport. So, let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy.

Welcome to this week's edition of Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. All of us at Pit Pass Indy hope you had a very Merry Christmas and are enjoying this holiday season. We also want to wish everyone a very Happy New Year as we move into 2024 with next week's show.

Our friends at Hy-Vee are back on today's Pit Pass Indy. On December 18th, Hy-Vee announced the first two entertainers that will be part of the 2024 Hy-Vee IndyCar Race weekend at Iowa Speedway July 12th through the 14th, 2024.

Luke Combs and Post Malone are the first two announce concerts that will be part of a four-concert lineup for 2024. Two huge names in the entertainment industry.

This will be the third year Hy-Vee and IndyCar have partnered at Iowa Speedway to turn the 7/8-mile short oval into a mid-summer entertainment destination. The race weekend includes two IndyCar races, which this year will be a Saturday night race and a Sunday afternoon race. Four big name musical acts that perform before and after each race.

The first two years of this concept have drawn near capacity crowds to Iowa Speedway and have helped introduce many fans to the excitement of IndyCar.

Combs will perform on the Hy-Vee stage on Saturday, July 13th, before the first IndyCar series race of the unique double header Weekend. Combs is one of the biggest names in country music today, with multiple ACM and CMA awards, including being named CMA Entertainment of the Year in both 2021 and 2022.

His album, Getting Old, further establishes Combs as one of music's most authentic and powerful voices. He recently earned his record-breaking 16th consecutive number one single with his version of Tracy Chapman's Fast Car, which earned Combs his seventh Grammy Award nomination.

Post Malone will rock the stage on Sunday, July 14th, following the final IndyCar Race of the Weekend. The 2024 Hy-Vee IndyCar Race weekend will represent the first ever live performance in Central Iowa for Post Malone.

An eight-time diamond certified Grammy Award nominated phenomenon, Malone regularly rewrites history, blurs boundaries, and incites internet breaking conversation with every move.

His current self-titled album is yet another shift in sound and features all live instrumentation produced by Malone and his longtime collaborators, Louis Bell, and Andrew Watt.

In June, he received the songwriters Hall of Fame, Hal Davis Starlight Award. Both concerts will feature a 90-minute performance on the track side Hy-Vee stage in front of the main grandstands at Iowa Speedway.

The concerts are included with each Saturday, Sunday Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend ticket. Fans can also purchase a concert pit pass for access to the exclusive track side concert viewing area with passes expected to sell out quickly.

Additional entertainment acts for the 2024 Hy-Vee IndyCar Race weekend will be announced in the coming weeks for next summer's Festival of Speed and Entertainment at Iowa Speedway.

Hy-Vee's Senior Vice President of Communications, Tina Potthoff joins us on today's Pit Pass Indy for further details on the big news. And hence, there are some surprises to come soon in this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy.

Our friends from Hy-Vee are back on Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental. Today we're joined by Senior Vice President of Communications for Hy-Vee, Tina Potthoff. Tina, Hy-Vee made some really big news earlier in the week, which would've been last week right before Christmas, on December 18th when you announced the first two entertainment acts that will be part of the 2024 Hy-Vee IndyCar Race weekend at Iowa Speedway.

You've got two pretty big names there if you could talk about how exciting this news is.

Tina Potthoff:

Yeah, yeah. Thanks so much, Bruce, for having me on. Luke Combs and Post Malone are the two acts that we announced just a few days ago, and the excitement has already been building based on that announcement and people just having an increased interest in the race strictly based on the musical entertainment alone.

Now we know that it's not just about the entertainment, but it is also about the great racing that we're going to have there, and we're really looking forward to it.

Bruce Martin:

You've got two more acts that you're going to name in 2024 that will round out your lineup.

Tina Potthoff:

That is correct. We'll have two additional acts that we'll be announcing hopefully in early 2024, but for these two, we wanted to get them out there as soon as possible. We know people might be looking for holiday gift giving ideas, and so we figured that this would be a good chance to get that information out.

And also, it's a good time to just start thinking about what people are going to be doing in the summer. We know families get together over the holidays, start to plan out their year, and we hope this will be a good time to announce that.

Bruce Martin:

This will be the third year of the Hy-Vee IndyCar race weekend at Iowa Speedway, where you've been able to combine big name entertainment acts with a IndyCar double header. This year it's going to be a little different. The first race of the double header is going to be a night race. And how much excitement has that generated?

Tina Potthoff:

Oh my gosh, that generates a lot of excitement. That's been something we've been working on for the past three years. So, to be able to have that under the lights and just again, it's July, it's in Iowa. We know we're going to have cooler temperatures at night.

We also know that there's a lot of excitement when those lights go on, so that will have great interest on that, as well as increased involvement from a number of people and community leaders who really want to see that happen.

Bruce Martin:

And because the Saturday night race will be a night race, I'm sure that you want the Saturday night post-race concert to be a real showstopper, complete with a lot of things you weren't able to do with two daytime concerts, which is maybe a light show, and things of that nature. So, how much will that increase the entertainment aspect of the weekend?

Tina Potthoff:

Right, right. And so, we've got Luke Combs, he's going to be performing on Saturday, July 13th, and then we'll have Post Malone that will be performing on Sunday, July 14th. And they're both going to be presenting 90-minute performances on the track side, Hy-Vee stage.

So, when you go to this event, you really get an up close and personal look at these acts. You really feel like you're in an environment where you literally reach out and touch them, because they seem like they're so close, especially if you've got one of those pit passes where you can go down there and be on a track side and really close with the artist.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as the racing action itself, the NTT IndyCar series has proven that they put on a great show on the short oval at Iowa Speedway. And how successful and how much have you seen this event build since Hy-Vee first became involved with the announcement way back in 2021?

Tina Potthoff:

Right. Well, certainly we knew we were going to have to see involvement increase as the years continued. This will be our third year and the attendance continues to grow. Last year we had our weekend surpass the total of approximately 85,000 fans over those three days.

We're hoping for even more to come in 2024, and there'll be a festival-like atmosphere like we've had in the past. We don't just pride ourself on great racing and great musical talent, but also something that becomes a family activity that you can bring your kids out to. You can do things throughout the entire day.

There's also a side stage that we’ll announce more additional musical acts and talent on. So, it really is a festival-like atmosphere.

Bruce Martin:

One change though, this year you're going to have a little bit of competition a month earlier when the NASCAR Cup series holds its first ever NASCAR Cup series race at Iowa Speedway.

NASCAR owns the facility, Penske Entertainment leases the facility along with IndyCar to run the IndyCar race. Does that create a situation where people have to make a choice in Iowa of how to spend their money?

Or do you believe that the Hy-Vee IndyCar race weekend at Iowa Speedway is really a destination event that draws most of its fans from not only Central Iowa, but from other states?

Tina Potthoff:

Really the ultimate goal has been to revitalize that racetrack and have the Iowa Speedway be a destination for multiple race fans whether they be NASCAR or IndyCar. And so, we feel like we've accomplished that goal.

I mean, it took the IndyCar race to actually grab the attention of some people from NASCAR to say, “Hey, this is a good place to go.”

And so, we're happy to have them back. There are probably going to be some synergies between the two races. I mean, we put up a lot of infrastructure at our race, so we're certainly going to have to work with NASCAR on that because we usually, when we're building out our race, it's a couple weeks in advance.

And in this case, you've got another race that's a couple weeks in advance, so we'll be working with them kind of hand in hand as we start to put the final touches on the Hy-Vee IndyCar race weekend.

Bruce Martin:

But as far as Hy-Vee's involvement, you have, last year you had 104 partners that are involved with Hy-Vee supermarkets that were actively involved in partnering with the race. How much enthusiasm have you experienced from all the partners, the suppliers, the vendors that get excited now that IndyCar is coming to Iowa?

Tina Potthoff:

It really does continue to grow. And each year we have more and more people reach out and say, what can I do to help? And also, is this coming back? When's it coming back? Who are you going to have there?

And I think the great part about IndyCar is that it's such an event where you can get up close and personal with the drivers and see things that you wouldn't normally see in a lot of other racing areas that take place across the country.

So, we're pretty proud of that. And we have more surprises to come in 2024 that we'll be announcing, but we expect it to be just as good, if not better than what we had last year.

Bruce Martin:

So, the recap, your first two entertainers of the concerts, obviously Luke Combs is a huge name in country music with multiple American Country Music and CMA awards, CMA entertainer of the Year in both 2021 and 2022. Really big name in the country music genre. If you could talk about how big and what a draw he will be for fans of his music and country music and racing to make a come out there and see him perform at Iowa Speedway.

Tina Potthoff:

Well, just with the announcement between Luke Combs and also Post Malone tickets were selling pretty quickly on Ticketmaster, I would say over the past week. So, we were a little surprised because normally when you have a concert announcement, you have a couple days to prepare and then you know when tickets are going to go on sale.

In this particular case, the announcement came out, then tickets run on sale right after — or well, tickets had been on sale, I should say. And so, to be able to see that excitement continue to build, not only with race fans, but also with music fans that are going to be coming to this event, that's what we're trying to do is really build up an even bigger larger audience base for racing. We want people to be able to come out and experience it.

So, granted, the music fans also support IndyCar once they get a taste of IndyCar, and it's been like that for the past three years.

Bruce Martin:

While Luke Combs appeals to the country music audience, Post Malone is more of a … he hits a lot of different genres. But if anything, one of the things that Hy-Vee always wanted to do was think out of the box. So, the thought process and bringing a huge entertainment name like Post Malone to Iowa Speedway, which is going to be the first time he's ever performed in Central Iowa.

Tina Potthoff:

Right.

Bruce Martin:

How out of the box is that?

Tina Potthoff:

It's pretty out of the box, I'll tell you that much. I got a lot of text messages. I mean, people were very excited about Luke Combs, but I got a lot of people say, “What? Post Malone's going to be here?”

So, yeah, the first ever life performance in central Iowa for Post Malone he has a lot of accolades behind his name. He is very eclectic, I think, with his music. And he kind of … I mean, I love him. My kids love him. And so, he kind of goes across many generations of individuals I think that are music lovers. So, his show will certainly be interesting.

Bruce Martin:

But isn't one of the points of IndyCar marketing and Hy-Vee's marketing is that you're trying to bring in new people, not necessarily performed to the hardcore audience. Supermarket chains, they're in business to sell groceries. If you just strictly put out your shop or your sale ad as they used to do back in the day, say, what kind of meat is on sale, that's fine.

But Hy-Vee has shown that to be competitive, you need to get involved in other things and other ways to help promote your brand. So, how important is this whole concept?

Tina Potthoff:

It really is very important. I mean, we've always been looking for something over the summertime to really rally behind. You've got back to school time, you've got the holidays to rally behind, but during the summer and also kind of leading from late spring through the summer, what can we rally behind and really put our effort and focus in?

And we've been able to do that with the drivers, with the race, with our race, and even other races that are on the circuit. So, that's been pretty important to us because we can rally around this cause and also talk and promote racing to a level that we never thought possible.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy, after this short break.

Josef Newgarden:

Hey everybody, this is Josef Newgarden, winner of the 107th Indianapolis 500, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

Bruce Martin:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. Here's the rest of my exclusive interview with Hy-Vee, Senior Vice President of Communications, Tina Potthoff for Pit Pass Indy.

Do you have any data on how many people attend the race to see the entertainment and how many come to see the race and the crossover of people that came there to see the entertainment that said, “Wow, this racing was pretty cool, I want to see more of it.”

Tina Potthoff:

No, I don't have any numbers on that, although that would be very interesting to survey people. I do know that it draws a lot of an outside crowd into the state, which is another thing that as you talk to the governor and other economic leaders here in Iowa that we've really put a focus on is how do you draw people from outside to be able to experience Iowa too and come to a really neat event that takes place in our state.

So, I think between what you've got going on with NASCAR now, and now you've got IndyCar that's going to be at this Iowa Speedway. The goal would be that we've got kind of a bullet on Des Moines area and in also Newton to be able to provide some really, really good entertainment, not only in racing, but festival like atmospheres too.

Bruce Martin:

And from just talking to some of the other business leaders around Des Moines and Central Iowa, how much has IndyCar become part of the regular conversation? It may not have been the case back in 2021.

Tina Potthoff:

Yes, I would say everywhere I go people always want to know more about the race. Now the big question is when are you going to be announcing those other two acts? And the other question is, okay, where can I go buy tickets?

So, that becomes pretty prominent in a lot of the conversations that I have. We've always done big things here at Hy-Vee, and we've always dreamed big. And to be able to have this be a part of our third year of having an IndyCar race right here in Iowa, be a part of it, be working hand in hand with the IndyCar team is quite the dream being fulfilled.

A lot of that has to do with our chairman of the board Randy Edeker's vision for where this is going to go. And we're just looking forward to what the future holds.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as what the future holds. And I know that Randy Edeker and Hy-Vee are really excited about the prospects that IndyCar has in the future, and their Hy-Vee stores are moving into some of IndyCar's current markets. And how much do you see that connection really working for both brands?

Tina Potthoff:

Very connected. And actually, I think you're going to see some additional announcements that may surprise some people kind of coming out in a good way. Coming out this spring we're looking forward to having some additional involvement with the Nashville race as well.

We were sponsors of that. Our logo was shown on the Nashville race. And so, we had a couple other races, Indy 500 that we were part of too. And so, when this comes out, and then you also hear that your race is kind of second when it comes to most viewed races on NBC, that's a feather in our cap. And I think you're going to continue to see us work closer with those individuals, especially in 2024.

Bruce Martin:

And do you also believe that Iowa Speedway really showcases what true IndyCar racing really is by the fact that it's a short oval, but you still get to see the high speeds in the racing, in the jockeying for position?

Street races are great. They're great festivals, they're great entertainment. Road course racing is a very pure form of racing, but a lot of times the spectators can't see the entire race course. But at Iowa Speedway, pretty much every seat can see the entire course.

Tina Potthoff:

Right. And that's what makes it so great. And I think that's what makes the energy and the energy level so much fun is when you come, it's pretty compact. So, you're able to not only sit in your seat, watch the race, but also go out, get a variety of food options, if you will, and then also have your kids play on bounce houses.

So, it's called the fastest short track on the planet for a reason. And I think it stands true to that. It's a very fast paced race. You can see everything, and it goes by pretty fast. Whether or not you realize you're sitting there for a couple hours or not. I don't think most people who have attended a race before realize just how action packed it is. So, we're happy to bring in that new crowd too.

Bruce Martin:

And how about the partnership with working with Penske Entertainment, Bud Denker, Merrill Cain, Michael Montri, his group of people, and Fischgrund, what's it like working with them? Because it really seems like you're such a great mesh.

Tina Potthoff:

Yeah, yeah. And they're topnotch. I mean, I'll be honest, when we had the chance to first work with them, you of course have growing pains kind of that first year to figure out how you kind of get into a rhythm with one another.

But being able to enter into your third year the partnership's been awesome. They have a lot of similarities to Hy-Vee, we've talked about that for a while. We're pretty detail oriented here they are as well, with putting on their races. And so, it's worked out as a great partnership.

Bruce Martin:

Now you mentioned that you're going to announce two more entertainment acts in early 2024. When should we be anticipating those?

Tina Potthoff:

As soon as the ink is dry, Bruce. So, I got to make sure those contracts are completely settled and then we'll be able to announce those soon as that ink is dry. So, we're pretty darn close, but I still have a couple other things that we need to work through and then we'll be able to announce them right away.

Bruce Martin:

And also in late December, Hy-Vee's also involved with a lot of other sports promotions. You're involved with the Minnesota Vikings, the Kansas City Chiefs?

Tina Potthoff:

Yes.

Bruce Martin:

They're both fighting for the NFL playoffs. You're also have a NIL, Caitlin Clark, the superstar college basketball player at the University of Iowa, she's a big topic of conversation this year. So, how exciting is it to be in your position and see, it seems like everywhere you look, you see a Hy-Vee logo at a sports event.

Tina Potthoff:

Well, especially when your teams are doing well, that's what makes it most exciting. The Kansas City Chiefs have just been a phenomenon to watch over the past couple years. But the best part is now that we've got Caitlin Clark, it makes it even more exciting, just the excitement she's brought to women's basketball, especially at the collegiate level.

So, to have some of these big players and to have signed some of these players before they've kind of reached the pinnacle of their career has been super exciting to be a part of.

The other thing is, we also get asked an awful lot now about Travis Kelce and his relationship with Taylor Swift. If we're going to have Taylor Swift now at the race. So, I'm going to dispel those rumors and say, no.

But it is definitely something that I get a lot of questions about, because they want to know your connection between this other sport and the connections they have with their relationships. But yeah, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes, what we've got going on with the Vikings and also Caitlin Clark, it's super exciting.

Bruce Martin:

Well, if you were able to lure Taylor Swift to Iowa Speedway, that would probably be — the tickets would definitely spike for that one.

Tina Potthoff:

Right, exactly. Yes, yes. So, I don't know if we want to … if there's a whole bunch of screaming teenagers in the crowd. I think we want to make sure people want to watch the race too. So, we feel like we've got a good combination though for the entertainment.

Bruce Martin:

Going back to the fact that you combine entertainment with racing, maybe sometimes you get two different crowds, but do you think now people know what to expect and have settled into really seeing what this event's all about?

Tina Potthoff:

Yeah. I think that's the most important thing sometimes that you have to battle too. I mean, you do have situations where other races might be coming in and ticket prices might be slightly different and people say, oh gosh, what does yours include?

And so, we've been really adamant about trying to explain, it includes the concerts. Once you get in the gate I mean, you get access to everything and there's multiple things that you can actually participate in. It is a GM packed event days’ worth of activities.

So, it's not like you just come in and get to see a race. And there's multiple strategic initiatives behind that. I mean, the other one is we want to encourage racing, we want to support racing, but we also want to attract more people to become race fans. And the best way to be able to do that is to provide a family-like atmosphere. So, multiple people, multiple ages can come in and enjoy this.

Bruce Martin:

And one of Hy-Vee's hallmarks is the fact that it seems like you do everything in a first-class way, this included. And how important is that to the company, especially with a logo where there's a helpful smile on every aisle?

Tina Potthoff:

Yeah, well, we really want to take that to the racetrack too, which has really been an initiative of ours going forward for the past three years. Most of the people that you're going to see working that race are going to be Hy-Vee employees.

And what we're trying to do is take that customer service that you normally see in a store and put it on a racetrack. And so, we wear the red proud, the helpful smile and the Hy-Vee red proud when we're out there. And just this past year we were able to serve Hy-Vee food, which was a big win for us. And we'll be doing that again this year.

Bruce Martin:

Well, there's always something big going on at Hy-Vee, and there's always something big going on with our guest that was here on Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental.

Tina Potthoff, Senior Vice President of Communications for Hy-Vee, good luck in 2024. Congratulations on the first two acts that you've announced for the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race weekend at Iowa Speedway. And thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy.

Tina Potthoff:

Thanks so much, Bruce. Appreciate it.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Scott McLaughlin:

Hi, I am Scott McLaughlin, driver of the number three Team Penske Chevy, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental.

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Bruce Martin:

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental. We want to thank our guest, Hy-Vee Senior Vice President of Communications, Tina Potthoff for joining us on today's podcast.

Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help make Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental, your path to Victory Lane in IndyCar. And because of our guest and listeners, Pit Pass Indy is proud to be the winner of the best podcast by the National Motorsports Press Association.

For more IndyCar coverage follow me at Twitter at BruceMartin_500. Enjoy the holidays, everybody.

This has been a production of Evergreen Podcasts. A special thanks to our production team. Executive producers are Brigid Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcasts.com.

Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.