A Good Formula for Austin's Future

When I was living in D.C., and more recently here in Austin, one of the things I helped some of my corporate and organizational clients with was understanding how they could leverage social media for the benefit of their goals and objectives. I'm not going to lie and pretend I supported every one of these objectives (a certain Texas-based phone company comes to mind), but I did my best to offer worthwhile insight and sound judgment about how they could engage bloggers, monitor social media, utilize Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Thankfully, I've left the agency world and reached a point in my career, albeit multi-pronged (Sneak Attack, Real Role Models, etc.), where I can select my clients in an effort to actually support the initiatives they are putting in place. In reading about the new Formula 1 race track planned for Austin and doing a little research to see who it's advocates and opponents were, and how they were using social media, I discovered this Facebook group "Concerned About Formula One (F1) Racing Coming to Austin."

If you ever wanted to see how not to develop a Facebook group and lead a serious opposition force, check out what this group's creators are doing. Rather than stating facts, they're just stating opposition. Rather than being a place to host a conversation and air out concerns, they're starting for a clear position of disapproval and disdain, therefore making themselves obsolete and unlikely to really become a major player in the conversation about F1 in Austin. Sure, they'll get some quotes in the newspaper or on the local news, but if you think 190 members in a Facebook group is going to stop a project the Comptroller and Governor have already earmarked $250 million in taxpayer funds for, you're kidding yourself.

Don't get me wrong, since taxpayer dollars are being used, they have every right as citizens of this country and residents of this state to complain. But it's obvious they didn't do their research on that issue because those $250 million, spread out over the decade the race takes place in Austin, is expected to come from the Texas Major Events Trust Fund, which uses sales tax and other revenue collected during major events to attract even bigger events to the state. It's sort of like an investment fund for the government and if you know business, you know Formula 1 could mean good business for Austin.

People think the Super Bowl is the granddaddy of all sporting events for a city, with its economic impact ranging from $300 to $600 million, but Formula 1 is expected to bring $2 billion-plus to the Austin area over the span of that decade, possibly double what Texas Longhorns football or South by Southwest will do in the same period.

Honestly, the only people I think that have a real leg to stand on are the people in the neighborhood near where the race track is said to be planned. I grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, not far from the Greenville-Pickens Speedway, and know that there are a lot of unwanted side effects of being near a race track, regardless of the economic benefits to local restaurants, bars and shops. It's loud as all hell. You get people driving drunk far too often. You lose control of the vibe of your city for a weekend and let's just say that weekend was never a highlight of diversity for the city.

One of the other worthwhile critiques of the F1 announcement has been its secrecy. This is valid, because it did catch a bunch of Austinites, myself included, by surprise. Thankfully, I'm one of the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of people in Texas that can see the value in this sporting event, both for entertainment purposes and for my business. But there's good secrecy and there's bad secrecy. LeBron James' decision to go to Miami may or may not have been a secret to everyone, but regardless it was done poorly. The thing about this F1 deal is that you couldn't have done it any differently.

I remember when a then-client of mine, Larry Scott, left his job as the head of the Women's Tennis Association to become the Commissioner of the Pac-10 Conference. For the sporting world, this was big, big news. This news had to be broken in a certain way and there was no way to casually announce something this big...it had to be done through the right media and at the perfect time. Big deals with big leaders are made or broken when the little things go right or wrong. That's part of the reason why my alma mater, Texas, finds itself in the ten-team Big 12 Conference and not in Larry's fold. So getting all up in arms (and starting a Facebook group) because you were caught off guard by an announcement of this magnitude doesn't seem appropriate to me or anyone who's operated around high-level decision makers when high-pressure decisions are made.

All this being said, I applaud Tavo Hellmund, who is leading this project, for bringing former San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Vikings owner Red McCombs to become the lead investor on this project and working with a friend of mine in Paul Carrozza, the founder of RunTex, to find even more ways for this project to benefit Austin.

If a city isn't attracting new people and businesses it begins to die. If Austin is going to continue living as the great city we love today and become an even greater city that we can love tomorrow, we'll need to stop allowing these people, however few of them there are, to say no to any change that doesn't look like pre-Dell, pre-ACL Festival, 1980s Austin. That means yes to more major events like Formula, public transportation like light rail and a continued emphasis on fostering diversity not just white, black and Hispanic, but young and old, native Texan/Austinite and newbie, tourists from all over and businesses of all sorts.  

Not everyone is capable of having vision, but those that lack it shouldn't get in the way of those who want to bring an event to Austin that builds on the creative successes of Austin's major events such as SXSW, ACL Festival, and Fantastic Fest in order to attract more unique and economically beneficial events to Austin. The result will hopefully be more diversity, more entrepreneurs, more great restaurants and more live music lovers to Austin. I know I will appreciate both Formula 1 racing and a good show at Continental or Stubb's, and I'm sure plenty others will too.

Comments

[Robert]

Hey Ted!
Why did you delete the youtube video you provided a link to?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYRI7YMyfsM

Was it because is was actually one of Stefan's videos?

Please do all of us a favor and come clean: you and Stefan are the same person.
It does not help your 'cause' when you lie so much....

Robert

[Robert]

Joah:

Please be aware that “Ted Wilson” is actually 'Concerned About Formula One (F1) Racing Coming to Austin’s' creator “Stefan Wray” fake FB profile.

Look at Ted’s FB profile:
He has not FB activity before Stefan created the group.
He has no other FB friends other than Stefan Wray
All he ever does is contribute to Stefan’s group.
He is a sock puppet.

I want to be clear that this is not meant to be a personal attack on a particular individual or a group of individuals but just to highlight what seems to be some deceitful and dishonest behavior from members of this group.

I am a F1 fan, I own two vintage sports cars, one of which is a full race car and I have competed (poorly) at the national level. I am also a member of several national and regional car clubs in addition to being the President of the local Triumph Club. I think you know where I stand when it comes to having a new race track built in Austin: I believe it’s a good thing.
However, as much as I like the concept I have some concerns. For example, I believe we should not be spending any public funds to cover the promoters sanctioning fees and I want this facility to be the “greenest” race track ever built.
When I read that a facebook group had been created to discuss such concerns I, like many others, joined the group and the discussions.
What happened next can only be described as weird. I noticed that some, but not all, of my postings would be deleted shortly after I had written them. Anything that could be seen as F1 positive and or in disagreement with Mr. Wray’s preconceived ideas was quickly deleted.
One of the more vocal members of the group is a “Ted Wilson”. Ted has no other FB activity other than posting to that particular group, no FB friends other than Mr. Wray, no personal information or personal photos. In short, none of the things people use FaceBook for.
A check of public information data shows no “Ted Wilson” living in Texas with the birth date listed on the FB profile. Ted seems to have a very similar writing style to Stephan and they seem to use the same language when making some particular points.
It is my belief that “Ted Wilson” is a fake profile that Mr. Wray uses to further his cause, enhance his appearance and inflate the façade that he has created. When I and others suggested that “Ted” was a fake profile and challenged the process of selectively censoring comments; I was blocked and banned from the group altogether.
Over the next couple of days, I received several FB messages from others who also were blocked from accessing the group. That week I attended two separate car club functions and found out that many other club members were in the same situation. Some had gone as far as to start an impromptu contest to see what kind or innocuous message (for example: “F1 is great”) would get you banned.
Everybody is entitled to an opinion and I have to give Mr. Wray credit for getting his message out in a very effective manner; however he does not have the right to mislead people with inaccurate information presented as “facts” or utilize “sock-puppetry” as a method of spreading his views.
Thee have been several posts made by "Ted Wilson" or "TedW" (very similar to the the above posts) on other websites that have an "anti F1 in Austin" slant and direct peole back to the FB group. Sevral, like the one above mention or provide links to anti F1 videos created by Stefan Wray but claimed as created by "Ted Wilson".., Very, very strange....

From someone who presents himself as an activist, a journalist and a documentary producer while attacking real reporters with whom he disagrees with , this is a particularly despicable behavior.
I would like somebody to ask Mr. Wray if he is indeed “Ted Wilson” and if not then we should ask the real Ted Wilson to stand up and be counted.
Robert

[Ted Wilson]

You know Red McCombs was a co-founder of clear channel radio. You could say he helped create the business model that destroyed the hip hop industry and musical creativity...By turning away from listener supported radio and moving to a focus group model. Now we are left with the shit known as popular music. Thanks McCombs.
As for weak opposition, David beat Goliath. Unless you're an atheist, you know it's all in God's hands.

All over the world hearts pound with the rhythm
Fear not of men because men must die
Mind over matter and soul before flesh
Angels for the pain keep a record in time
which is passin and runnin like a caravan freighter
The world is overrun with the wealthy and the wicked
But God is sufficient in disposin of affairs
Gunmen and stockholders try to merit your fear
But God is sufficient over plans they prepared
Mos Def in the flesh, where you at, right here
on this place called Earth, holdin down my square
Bout to represent in your whole atmosphere
That was for you - and Brooklyn too!
-Mos Def

[Joah]

You're throwing a bunch of stuff out there and hoping it sticks and I get it. That's what weak opposition does. Like Tea Partiers in Congress right now. I'm going to try responding by point:
1 - The Olympics didn't net Atlanta too much money in 1996 but would you deem that a failure as well? Should we never again bid on the Olympics? Success for the city is different than success for F1...if a race in Austin happens, I would consider that a success on international proportions. 50/50 odds is great odds for Austin if it means beating out New York and other major cities.
2 - Who cares what the F1 boss...this is about what Austinites and Texans are saying first and foremost, and most people are saying good things by the early looks/sounds of it.
3 - If you're so worried about public funds, you may want to check out Governor Perry's land deal. Or Texas not applying for millions of dollars in Race to the Top Funds.
4 - You can be upset about the use of taxpayer dollars now, but if those billionaires start using their money for private projects all over Austin then you're going to find something else to complain about. I'm of the opinion that those public funds will ensure accountability during the life of the race in Austin.
And I'm really looking forward to F1 coming to Austin.

[Ted Wilson]

Hey man, how's it going? Just wanted to let you know that the Facebook group opposing F1 doesn't have any illusions of grandeur, and certainly not going to stop the project. I was wondering what you think will make F1 succeed in Austin when it has failed in every American effort to date. The group is really just a clearing house of ideas. Even the FIA gives the project a 50/50 chance of succeeding. That's not very good odds, from an investment standpoint. As for the environmental issues, the officials at the City of Austin need to pick one:defending against global warming or supporting F1. The Austin Climate Protection Plan wants me to micromanage my carbon output, sell my car, and ride the bus. Meanwhile, they'll be yucking it up at F1, drinking, eating, and watching those pesky carbon emitters going round and round. A little hypocritical, don't you think? I say pick a side and stick to it.
Also, the comments from F1's boss about hating democracy and preferring dictatorship over democracy don't settle very well on my side of the tracks. The comments about Hitler and getting things done are also equally disturbing. That's kind of the MO they used in bringing F1 with no public input. As you said, it's really no one's business what Tavo and co. do, until they reach out for public funds. Then, it's everyone's business. If Formula 1 is such a great deal, why do billionaires need a dime from taxpayers? I made a couple videos on the subject, please check it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYRI7YMyfsM

Call me a lumberjack, or a midland warrior
Doin damage to the world worse than the hurricane gloria
I'm serious -- you can say i'm furious
You're sayin in your mind, "who is he?" because you're curious
A rare rap style, not heard by the usual...