During VCU's Fall Break for the 2009-2010 school year, the Center for Sport Leadership took a trip to Charlotte, North Carolina. The CSL students and staff left Richmond on the morning of Thursday, October 15, stayed in downtown Charlotte one night, and returned in the evening on Friday. This two-day trip gave the students the opportunity to tour and learn about five sports facilities in the Charlotte area. They also had the privilege of hearing from and networking with sports industry professionals and VCU Center for Sport Leadership alumni.
The first stop Thursday morning was at Lowe's Motor Speedway, where the members of the staff were preparing for the NASCAR event that very weekend. Students got to see the race track and hear from Vice President of Business Development, Mike Burch, about the issues and process of running an event at a NASCAR facility. In the afternoon, the group went to the U.S. National Whitewater Center and heard from Jeff Shelton, who gave the students a crash course on the maintenance and financial issues involved in a state-of-the-art outdoor facility and business. After the talk, several CSL students and staff elected to participate and engage in the white water rafting course the center offers. Jason Martin, a student on the trip, enjoyed rafting through the course saying, "It was great because we actually got to experience the facility and all it has to offer instead of just touring and talking about it."
On Friday, the group went to hear from the two professional franchises in Charlotte, the Carolina Panthers and Charlotte Bobcats. The first place visited was Bank of America Stadium, the home of the Panthers. Henry Thomas, Director of Broadcasting and New Media, took everyone around the stadium, letting the group enjoy the concourses, suite and press boxes, and even the field. During the presentation, newly hired President, Danny Morrison, stopped by to meet the students and staff and answer any questions that were posed. After leaving the football facility, the bus took the members of the CSL across the city to Time Warner Cable Arena to see where the Charlotte Bobcats play and run their organization. VCU alumni Trista Langdon gave the students an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the four-year old arena. Students received an abundance of information about event and game management as well as the operations involved in running this unique sports facility.
In the afternoon on Friday, the bus drove just north of Charlotte to tour the Raceworld USA Complex, which is the headquarters for operations of Michael Waltrip Racing. Students got shown around by CSL graduate Jarian Kerekes. During the tour, the group of students and staff were walking among the employees working on the actual stock cars that compete in the motorsport competitions. The completion of the tour was a video in the HD Theatre on the process leading up to a race in which Waltrip Racing competes. After the movie, the students were visited by eight graduates of the VCU Center for Sport Leadership, all of whom work in or around Charlotte. The panel of alumni fielded questions, gave career advice, and stuck around to speak individually to the students.
The annual trip to Charlotte proved to be a very valuable experience for all the students involved. Mark Halewood was particularly impressed by the variety of facilities that were seen by stating, "Being able to see all the different facilities gave us great insight into the diversity within the sports industry." The students will now use the knowledge and insight gained on this trip to help shape their future plans and finish out the Sport Leadership Master's program.
By: Ryan Neises, CSL Class of 2010
