Norton National is known to not only roll with the punches but punch back! After coming out of quarantine alive (barely) Head Honcho, McCall Peck, decided to start a new series of Norton National: education. Which has officially blossomed into Norton National University and Team Pink is taking the time to learn, grow, and educate ourselves on topics in the event industry.
Ken Olson stopped by the office to talk about how to run a large scale event. He broke down scheduling, budgeting, hierarchy, and everything we didn’t know went into setting up an event, such as Monster Jam!
With seven years of experience under his belt, Ken dropped a wealth of knowledge on #TeamPink. From producing small Broadway tours, all the way up to grand stadium tours, Norton National wanted to focus on what we do best, setting up stadium and arena events. One of the biggest keys Ken shared with us was, “Everyone needs to be very clear of their roles and responsibilities in order for the show to run as smoothly as possible”.
Dirt
When the arena or stadium needs a larger conversion, the crew comes in on Monday to help oversee the load in. This is where #teamNortonNational comes in… Since 2018 Norton National has been providing temporary labor to set up stadiums for Monster Jams all over the country. Our nationwide labor and craftsmen team are some of the best in the biz.
What does Norton National actually do with the dirt team, you may ask? Let’s take a look. Laying down two to three layers of plywood onto the field, before you can start laying down any dirt, is the first step. This prevents the turf from getting damaged but requires a large amount of additional hours of work to ensure the turf is protected. Fun fact! Most of the touring “dirt” shows like Monster Jam or Supercross actually own the dirt that they are using. After the plywood is successfully laid down, there may be a layer of tarp secured, for that extra protection. Then comes the main event! Large dump trucks bring loads and loads of dirt into the stadium and arena and begin the dumping process. Enter our team again, to start spreading and layering out the dirt to make a successful track. We strongly encourage a mask and glasses for the process, along with a nice shower afterwards!
Here’s the Timeline
Ken discussed a general timeline of an event weekend. Wednesday afternoon the production team shows up on-site and everyone starts loading in all the goods. This is also when they set up the show office. The day usually wraps up around 5:00 PM and everyone goes to the hotel to chillax.
Thursday morning at 8:00 AM everyone arrives on site. Then the ever-so-important safety meeting happens. This is when the team discusses the differences in the stadium from the last time they were there. Then the day labor crew arrives by 9:00 AM, and they spend the rest of the day laying down plastic to protect the house seating and setting up the stadium.
Friday is all about practice. All the talent practices in the new stadium, the AV team does a run through and soundcheck, and the production team practices the run of the show from start to finish.
Saturday is SHOW DAY! Everyone is on-site by 8:00 AM where finishing touches are made for the pre-show tailgate party. After the party is over, security goes full sheepdog and herds, and everyone is out like little baby sheep. Then…SHOWTIME!
After a beautiful, perfectly run show, the crew begins loadout. But first, everyone eats. A well-fed crew = happy loadout. The operations team usually wraps up everything by 2:00-3:00 AM. The day isn’t over just yet, as the operations team heads straight to the airport to head home, but the dirt and field teams are just starting to come back, and undo everything they did for the load in. They have a few days to regroup and fly back out to put on another show, in another city!
We always knew the hard work and dedication of long hours to turn a stadium into a whole show, but Ken really opened our eyes to the details. We are so thankful for him and all of his insight!
If your next event requires any conversion, then it’s your lucky day! We can help your next stadium or arena (or any venue really) dreams become reality with our super awesome labor teams.
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