PR at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Of course, I am going to let you in on some more secrets from my Beta Gamma Sigma conference this past week. During my stay, we were fortunate to hear from the president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The racetrack is known for holding the Indy 500, but it also hosts a golf course, museum, driver training, tours and much more.

Douglas Boles, the president, gave an inspirational speech on following your dreams and servant leadership. However, I was able to gain a bit of insight into a slight PR crisis he handled, because one person asked if he had any interesting stories with celebrities.

Boles, surprisingly, gave us insight into the events that unfolded when Donald Trump announced he wanted to run for president in 2011. At the time, IMS planned for Trump to drive the pace car for the Indy 500 because of his connection to the Apprentice and IZOD. He seemed like the perfect fit, until he started releasing to the public his radical ideas for presidency and his efforts to run for office.

Boles later heard rumors that Trump may use his time at the Indy 500 to formally announce to the media he was running for president. Obviously, this would not support the image for IMS, and takes away from the event. So, Boles decided he had to fire the Trump.

After a rough phone call, Boles said he was glad he made the decision. I would have to agree, you should never combine politics and racing…ever. I never thought the issue of PR would occur during a leadership conference, but it proves that every business professional, no matter the position, will deal with PR. In the case Trump ever decides to run for president again, I don’t think he will attempt to announce it at a racetrack.

With fellow BGS students at IMS

I actually kissed the bricks!

The IMS Museum