Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 1, 1994 TAG: 9405040160
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: TDP2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ANDREA KUHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Packer is a noted entrepreneur, yet he has no typewriter, fax machine or answering service.
He is responsible for a multitude of projects around the country, yet he has no employees.
But it's a system that seems to work for Packer, known primarily as a premier college basketball analyst and in lesser proportion as founder of the premier cycling event in the United States, the Tour DuPont.
Now in its sixth year, the Tour DuPont is a 1,060-mile road race that runs Wednesday through May 15 from Wilmington, Del., to Winston-Salem, N.C., with a May 9 time trial in the Roanoke Valley and a May 10 stage finish in Blacksburg. Its 2.2 ranking by the international pro federation makes it the top-ranked non-European race in the world.
The idea for the event, an Americanized Tour de France, was born during the Pan American Games in 1987 on a napkin at a pancake house in Indianapolis.
"That's a true story," said Packer, a native of Bethlehem, Pa., who wanted to have the race confined to one state and call it the "Tour de Jersey."
"I'm not traditional. . . . I just put together ideas and then go find people that do those things. Then I have fun with the project," he said.
For the cycling concept, Packer sought Mike Plant, an associate director of U.S. Cycling, who was quick to nix the New Jersey notion.
"[Packer] had the original concept," Plant said. "And we worked together to develop what would be a more marketable event.
"Using napkins, we plotted out a budget and we, amazingly, were within $50,000 of what it actually took to put it on the first year."
Plant used the race as a cornerstone to build his sports marketing company, Richmond-based Medalist Sports Inc., then set out to sell the concept.
For population and marketing reasons, the organizers chose the East Coast - as opposed to cycling-crazy Colorado or California - as the site of their proposed event.
The idea interested Donald Trump and his Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino, and Trump became the title sponsor. The Tour de Trump, a $2 million project, was unveiled in 1989.
Packer said it was Trump's high profile that resulted in success for the event - at first.
"From our standpoint, in order to really bring in other sponsors, Donald was such a magnetic personality that he was almost too good to help us," Packer said. "He was great when we wanted to get started because he gave us credibility right away, but then with other sponsors, he dominated."
Medalist and Trump, who was going through difficult times economically, mutually decided to end their association in 1991. But when the book is written on U.S. cycling, Trump deserves a lot of credit, Plant said.
"We never would have had the same media interest, fan following or spectator curiosity without that personality," Plant said.
The parting with Trump sent Packer and Plant knocking on doors in search of a new title sponsor, which wasn't easy. The economy was in a recession and their idea wasn't exactly selling like hot cakes.
"There was a void period in there when Mike Plant and I were the sponsors," Packer said. "That's part of being a risk-taker. We were never out of sync with our major sponsors."
Eventually, Medalist joined forces with DuPont, an international chemical giant. The event has developed into a $6.5 million project and is recognized as the fastest growing race of its kind in the world.
"A lot has happened and we've had to overcome a lot of adversity," Plant said. "It's just in the last year or two that I feel we've really gotten over the hump."
More than 92 million people in 110 countries are expected to view the Tour DuPont this year on television. Thirty-three cities are already bidding for stops on the 1995 route, which could expand by three states.
The event will get another boost next year when the Tour of Spain moves to the fall, freeing the spring schedules of some top European teams.
"We'll probably have to turn some good teams away next year," Plant said.
It's just more evidence that the Tour DuPont has turned the corner in the eyes of the international cycling community. But is it what Packer and Plant envisioned in Indiana over omelets and orange juice?
"It's continued to grow in prestige - both national and international - and in just six short years is certainly recognized as an elite cycling event," Plant said. "I'm hopeful more communities will come to realize the potential of the Tour DuPont."
Said Packer: "It's recognized, and that's the thing I'm proudest of in terms of Mike's accomplishment - to be recognized as a world-class event.
"It's kind of like somebody in Europe saying they're going to put together a great baseball league and then in five years America is recognizing that as, hey, what a great league. That would be incomprehensible."
Packer said one of his original ideas for the race was to make it a free event that would create a festival atmosphere for family participation.
"I can't think of anything in the United States where quality athletes, or entertainers for that matter, gather and people don't have to pay a lot of money to go see it," he said.
Packer, who lives in Winston-Salem, N.C., plans to catch some stages of the upcoming Tour DuPont - purely as a spectator. He said his involvement with the event was restricted to working with major sponsors, analyzing potential venues and "putting out fires."
Packer, who was awarded an Emmy in March as best sports analyst, would not even reveal his picks for a "final four" of the Tour DuPont.
"I'm not even capable of making that prediction," he said.
by CNB