Immediately following the inaugural IMIS in 2009, the four founders of the show, Chris Paulsen, owner of C&R Racing, Tom Weisenbach, executive director of the Indiana Motorsports Association (IMA), Jeff Stoops, president of Stoops Freightliner, and two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart, announced a lifetime contract with the City of Indianapolis and released the dates of the show through 2015 in order to help exhibitors and attendees plan long-term.

The dates of the 2011 IMIS were originally scheduled for Nov. 30-Dec. 2. After IMIS announced its 2011 dates, the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Show, which is conducted in Orlando, announced its 2011 would take place at the same time as IMIS.

“Obviously, we would’ve liked to have conducted the International Motorsports Industry Show on our original dates,” Paulsen said. “For whatever reason, PRI officials had to move their show to the same time as ours and that greatly affected the racing industry as they attempted to plan for the 2011 shows. It forced people into a very difficult decision.

“We went to some of our exhibitors and said, ‘Hey, what is best for your business?’ Many of them told us that they exhibited at both shows and the optimal thing would be for the shows to be on different dates. When we offered to move our dates back one week, the response was overwhelmingly positive and appreciated. While it’s not ideal for us to move our dates, our number one priority is to make sure our exhibitors can maximize their opportunity for business, and if that means moving our show, we’re more than happy to do it,” Paulsen said.

“IMIS was a big hit for Roush Yates this year,” said Doug Yates, CEO of Roush Yates Engines. “Everyone from the motorsports industry was there and it was amazing to see how much the show has grown in just two years. IMIS is an effective place to conduct real business for our company and I look forward to attending next year.

“Don Welsh and everyone at the Indiana Convention and Visitors Association (ICVA), as well as the local hotels, were extremely helpful throughout this process,” Weisenbach said. “Their support of IMIS and the racing industry as a whole is unbelievable. When we talked to them about a possible date change, they did everything they could to make it work. It wasn’t an easy task, as Indianapolis is a hotbed for conventions, but they understand how important the racing community and IMIS is to Indianapolis and how this change would help motorsports businesses throughout the world. I think that just reinforces how highly thought of the racing community is throughout Indianapolis and Indiana. Our city and state leaders are doing what’s best for racing companies, whether they’re located in Indiana or not.”

For more information about the International Motorsports Industry Show, visit www.imis-indy.com.