FerrariChat.com announces Players Run as Title Sponsor

Welcome aboard!! Last year's run seemed like a lot of fun. Anybody get the DVD?

 

Markus, congratulations...!

The banner looks great... Can't wait to see videos and pictures from this year's run...

 

For anyone PLEASE look over the gallery


Looks like one hell of an event Marcus
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I wouldn't mind riding her across the country

Yep, picked it up from Foot Locker-- great DVD, the event looks AMAZING! Who's coming from Fchat?

 

I am willing to sell ad space on my E55 to cover the entry fee!!!!

 

Hi everyone,
I just got back from LA checking on our final party.
Within the next days I will give you more details about this years run. I will also explain in more detail what is included in the entry fee. If you have any questions, please post them here and I'm more than happy to answer them.
Please allow me some time to answer since we are all extremly busy here and I'm on the road (or in the air) quiet a bit...someone has to test the helicopters for this year's run ;O) You can also email me at [email protected] or call at 3035493248.

Markus

 

Well the whole thing is a big question mark... the site doesn't really give any details about what you get for that $12,000. All it really talks about is driving across the country with a collection of exotics. We can all do that for free. The question is: what all is scheduled along the way? I assume there's lots of cool events, activities, food, vino, and so on... but I am just guessing.

 

Brian, just for reference, last year they drove Formula 3000 (I believe) cars, got helicopter rides over the Grand Canyon, tracked their own cars, went on a yacht at the end, etc.

Plus all the parties and whatnot.

 

So, what can Players expect?
I hear this question all the time, especially since we do not explain in any of our brochures or website what you can and will expect. Why not lay it all out on the site? Well, initially we did not want to give out anything, making the run a true mystery for the participants until rally day. No one had any idea that they were driving in Indy cars the first day, flying in Helicopters the second day, driving carts the third day, be on racetracks, have high speed police escorts, drive on ovals, party on Yachts and experience offshore speedboats. It takes a lot of guts though to trust a new rally producer without knowing what to expect, to take off a whole week and ship a car to the other side of the country. Close to 50 teams had what it takes and they got rewarded with a truly amazing week. We initially wanted to call the Playersrun something like “ The drive of your life”. With so many teams from last year returning I’m glad we skipped this tag line. We will still try to keep the coolest special events a secret from you, but we will release some more info this year. In fact we will promote these years’ stops heavily, so expect crowds at arrivals.

I want to give you one example of a day ( I will not release all events of the day though ) . Denver to Aspen :
Players will wake up in the Brown Palace Hotel after a very special evening party and police escort. After breakfast they will be escorted out of the City of Denver and will make their way to the Rocky Mountain National Park. They will climb from milehigh all the way to 12000 feet, drive roller coaster passes, 180 degrees banked turns ( many of them ) on their way to Leadville. From Leadville they will then conquer Independence pass towards Aspen, an unbelievable route. We will have 3 checkpoints that day ( Winter Park, Vail and Leadville ). After arrival they will check in the Hotel Jerome and relax for a bit before dinner will be served in one of Aspens most amazing private mansions. The famous and private Caribou Club will then open its doors for all Players to rock the Rockies. The next day after breakfast everyone will get escorted straight to the hot air ballo…..alright, that’s enough. Keep in mind that I have left out the special events on that day!

We have spent all year bringing the Players together for this years run. This mix of extraordinary and very special “active car connoisseurs” is truly amazing! One of our major goals for every Playersrun is the social aspect. By participating and studying other rallies we noticed that they were all missing one very important thing: Time for new friendships. Some rallies were just pure endurance, others so competitive that participants almost developed hate at each other; at some rallies we experienced groups inside groups and so on…that’s why we have 7 days and many events for opportunities to get to know each other, eliminated serious competition and enforced costumes, so everyone is embarrassed at least once. The rally is not about speeding, it’s not about being first…it’s the journey that counts, not the destination.

So, what can you expect this year?
- A professional team.
- Maximum 75 cars ( we are very selective with cars this year ) coming from US, UK,Europe and Asia…so far
- A full week ( 7 days ), 6 nights of Playersrun with a third less daily driving than other rallies.
- The best hotels on the way, no $ 200 rooms in this rally.
- Overnight stops in Cleveland, Chicago, Kansas, Denver, Aspen, Las Vegas.
- Special events ( expect to be in the air and on water )
- Racetracks
- Race cars
- Police Escorts
- Parties
- Cheers from every car the group passes ( Exotic cars and their owners are being adored in general, but you have no idea how much they get adored at something like this…Players need to be prepared to be Rock stars for a week )
-
- And more…;o)

And so everyone can show off to their kiddies they get a DVD, Picture album, copies of TV tapings and tons of gear..We will have a large film crew on board this year as well as journalists. We have one helicopter full time with us ( as well as a Lear and maybe some more copters, not for filming purposes though, they are just to lazy to drive ). Btw, for you Europeans, next months we have write-ups in Veronica Magazine/Netherlands, Evo Magazine/UK and MMM Magazine Germany…at least that’s the ones I know off right now. As you can imagine it gets crazier every day the closer we get to the rally day…and I can’t wait to waive the start flag!

Please excuse my bad English, I just wrote the text and as many of you know English is not my first language…
Thank you,

Markus Lex

 

Your English is just fine... and the event sounds very intriguing... thanks for the added details. Let me ask a few more questions... I am trying to substantiate value... not give away the surprise...

So, I assume included in the $12,000 price tag is all six nights of expensive (>$200/night) hotel rooms? Plus three expensive meals a day? Is alcohol included?

That's plural. Is that 2? Or one each day? Or?

That's plural. Is that 2? Or one each day? Or?
A few laps at each? Or a couple 25-minute sessions?
Are these simply parade laps on the famous track?
Or is this serious track time (drivers divided into sessions based on skill)?

Either is cool... just want to set expectations properly? Is this an event for a track junkie?

Are these parade laps assuming average drivers?
Or serious track speed in the race cars?
Either is cool... just want to set expectations properly.

Are these high-speed escorts? Or just speed limit escorts?

Food and alcohol included in the $12,000 pricetag?

Cool. Anything else that you can list, without revealing any surprises, to help justify the pricetag?


And on the pricetag... is that per car or per person?
If a second person is staying in the same room and travelling in the same car, do they still cost the same price? Or are they included in the one price? Is that $12k or $24k or something in between?

Thanks for the info!

 

Brian,
I am told that the $12k is all-inclusive per car (given 1 driver + 1 passenger per car). Along with the 6 nights of 5-star accomodations w/food, driving at speeds at some world famous racetracks, police escorts, and other fun events... this is sure to be a memorable week! I don't think alcohol is included (as in most "driving" related events - alcohol and driving don't mix)...but Markus can probably verify this...

With all of the amenities that ARE included, it's really quite an experience for the money, IMO!

Byron

 

Brian, not a problem.
Let me say one thing before I answer your questions. To make an event like this happen, to get all these cars together, all the special events lined up and everything else included takes a whole year…and we still don’t have time enough ;O). We are still in the minus from last year and this year costs us $ 800,000 + (due to the nature of the event and the value we put in it). Btw, I don’t think there’s any event in the world which offers all this for this money.

Brian, there is more than just the hotels and food in value here. You can have a nice week in a hotel somewhere in Miami and rent a boat, yacht, helicopters, racecars and everything else by yourself and you may end up paying a third less.
Or you pay a third more and you spend a week driving with 70 other car fanatics and experience something so amazing that it is shown in TV around the world. Once one has done a drive like this they understand what I’m talking about….->
When every car you pass with your group cheers you on, when the folks from the towns close by the freeway come out to the freeway to see you drive by;when you enter cities with the police escorting you;when you police lets you know that you can go full throttle until the next county line;when you experience a different part of the country every day; when you can’t stop smiling every single mile you drive with the group;…when you’re back home and you can’t stop thinking about it; when you get together (on the track) with your new friends;.;.;. this is something you only experience in an event like this, and it takes an crazy amount of work to make this happen. You can also call it value ;O)

This is not a ‘testosterone track week event’ like some others, where participants spent a couple hours in a motel only to then drive again all day and race on tracks. I have done those events,too. They are fun but they are something different.
Let’s put it this way : Playersrun is a rally even women enjoy ( and we have quiet a few in it ).


To your questions :
- yes, hotels are included. Dinner and breakfast are included…lunch is not always included. Alcohol is not included, except the Champaign bottles…
- special events are at least one per day
- no, Brian, this is not a hardcore track event. Yes, we measure time on the track, but only consistency of lap times counts. You will be able to go as fast as you want though…and if you desire we even measure your time :O) and if you are really nice to us we even carry your race tires ;O)
- Both, for the other questions.
- Fee includes one car/2 people

Again, last year we had everything from racecars to carts to full speed tracks and ovals to high speed escorts to …same this year, only better ;O)I hope I explained the difference of value. At the end its up to the participant to judge if it was of value for him or her, everyone has different expectations and different value ideas. We have most of last years participants coming back as well as many new participants this year…and even Byron will have to wear a costume this year ;O)

I hope this helps, Brian. Thanks for asking these questions, I’m sure it quiet a few others had them too !

Markus

 

Thanks, Markus... very tempting... VERY tempting...

I figured the DVD of last year would be a good sell for this year... however, according to your site, only the German and UK versions are out... the rest can be pre-ordered. When will the US version come out? (I'm surprised it wasn't the first to come out... since it was a US event.)

 

Great write-ups Markus -- thanks for that. When are you closing out the participant list?

Also, let us know the best place to pick up the 2003 DVD from -- should we pick up the UK version?? Region-compatability issues?

 

Lol Brian, don’t get too excited :O)


The DVD is done, for quiet a while now. Unfortunately we had to re license music because we made the mistake not to license enough numbers for the distributor...I really hope to have it in my hands within the next 3-4 weeks. We will ship the orders from the website right away then; it will still take the distributors about 3 months to get them on the shelves. Well, this was the first time that I was involved in a commercial DVD Movie production and I learned my lesson ;O) Next years DVD will be out a lot quicker, now that we know the game ! UK, US and Europe will be out the same time. Btw, if you ever have problems with regions…there is some good software out to disable region restrictions.

Markus

Btw : DES, despite that he has not done the Playersrun ( yet ) sent us some content for the website, it was so awful that we put it straight on the homepage, thanks DES ! ;O)

 

I think most of us will need to get pretty damned excited if you want us to part with 12 grand!!!

I have to see if I can clear that week as well... that's the hardest part.

 

http://www.teckademics.com/destroy.html#

Here Brian order this! This will help you out. And you'll just laugh... a lot.
Also try downloading this teaser video...

http://www.racingflix.com/getvideo.asp?v=371&p=10
here's another
http://www.teckademicseast.com/media/Destroy2.wmv

OH MAY SWEET LORD! If I had the money I would sooooooo try to get into this event!!!! By the way if someone takes me with them I will... ummm... shoot I don't know. Do something for it. (Nothing too sick! you perve)

 

This video is not reflecting what Playersrun is about. This company mixed 'fast and furious' import car street racing and other stuff with footage of Playersrun.This is NOT the official Playersrun video.

Markus

 

Hi future Players. I'm in again, this was to much fun to avoid in 04.
I watched the differents video, the crazy parts are not what the Run was all about. The all is safe and no risk are taken to risk anything to the cars...or drivers. I sure got some fun miles in many cities.
This year, will be even better and I don't know all the extra events injected
during the Run. Can't wait especialy the part across our Rocky mountains roads.
Hope to see a bunch of new friends.
Player Roland F40LM

 

Markus- you mention race cars participating. Since much of the driving is on public highways i assume the cars all need to be street legal? Or is it possible to drive a non-street legal race car?

 

Yes, but you do have to admit that this is part of what happens and does make it that much more interesting. I’m sure breaking the law and other crazy stuff obviously isn't sanctioned but is that not part of the whole experience, to get away for a while and just have fun with people looking to do the same?

 

Hello,
You need to have a car with an insurance and a plate, a manufacter or dealer plate is OK too. Cars need to be street licensed one way or an other.
Player Roland
F40LM

 

As the proud owner of an 98 F355 F1 B who was fortunate enough to participate in last years' Players Run event, I can offer this advice:

Take advantage of a once in a lifetime opportunity if you can. The overall level of professionalism mixed with "special extras" was beyond my wildest dreams. Not only did we spend a full day with racing legend Bob Bondurant, we also got to drive Indy Cars at the Las Vegas Intl Raceway at night, party aboard a luxury yacht in South Beach, spent a VIP night at a private party sitting above the Cat's Meow on Bourbon Street and drove alongside some of the best cars in the world for over 2,500 truly unique miles. Hope to see you all in Manhatten on June 5th. You won't believe it.