Ultrace. Oh Ultrace

I took a flight from Helsinki-Vantaa to Warsawa the trip had started this time this was exceptional in a different way. I was going to Ultrace. This is an event I have been following for years through articles in Stancenation and Speedhunters. Now I was going to work there myself. The only person, I knew from the place I was going we had talked on the phone once and Instagram Dm´s otherwise I didn’t know anybody. I had the pressure to show who is Veikko Airas in the location I was going. I had also the pressure to be brave and go introduce myself to as many people as I can in a country that had a similar culture to Finland. What I mean by this is that if people can’t right away connect you to the situation meaning why are you here you might get a bit cold start. But since I’m from Finland I have gotten used to this so I know how to deal with it.
I arrived in Warsawa and figured with my dear friend and tech support Kamil from my team the train I had to take. I trusted him so much that I even argued with a local woman that this was the right train 😀 And it was! The train ride from Warsawa took 5 hours and it was quite rough but with a low budget, you have to deal with things like this. I arrived late in the night and the next day was my first work day. I took a tram to the Tarczynski arena. Man, it was cool. It was like a movie big arena waiting in peace for the upcoming weekend.

We prepared the arena surroundings for around 4 days altogether. This included setting up the sponsor areas, preparing the stage, putting up the signs, etc. Then the trucks arrived every time a truck arrived new set of Cars that you hadn’t seen before was driven down. And we are talking about customized Ferraris, ’60s restored race cars, and Porches with handmade body kits It was magical.

The event.

Ultrace was everything I was expecting and beyond. A bit under 60 000 visitors 1200 show-cars 200 drift-cars people from all around the world and a wonderful team to work with. I called Lucasz Dawcyk early this year could I come work for Ultrace as part of my thesis. He said yes. After 6 months of waiting, I arrived in Poland and one of the best weeks of my year started. In the earlier essay, I explained what Ultrace is about and now I can explain what makes them the greatest customized car event in Europe. Ultrace has 200k followers on Instagram and is a very admired brand. People want to buy their clothing and by this, I mean in the event, there´s a 100-meter line to their clothing shop. It’s a very respected brand. another indicator of this is that people are willing to travel all around the world to Poland to visit this particular event. There were people from South Korea, Brazil, and even Australia. This creates a unique experience you can’t copy.

The show had a broad diversity in the cars that were presented from all over Europe and one car from all the way from Japan. Every car presented was carefully chosen for the event.
So what is the Ultrace magic? The simple answer that many of you could guess. All year round work but! I would add one thing that is crucial in Ultrace. Strict branding. Choosing carefully the cars that you have in your event. Choosing the spot you are in the care of. The team that you have? Carefully picked. The clothes that they sell? Designed by a real designer and factory and the cloth is carefully picked. Everything is thought through to support the brand image. And right at the start, they started to do this. As the earlier statement, 7 people work around the year to make the event happen and keep the clothing store rolling. People have fallen in love with their brand and clothes there was a 100-meter line to their clothing shop.

Also, another thing that differentiates Ultrace from others is the effort they have put into the program of the event. DJ playing music they had also an actual event host and a competition where they had judges all around the world voting between their favorite in the end. All this kept the event interesting and made people want to spend hours in the event.

What makes Ultrace also interesting is the people in the event Ultrace has gathered all kinds of people from around the world. These are people that we have followed for years on Instagram and now we can see them in real life. Then when this becomes a tradition people can meet each other year after year. It’s a gathering for like-minded people as well.
Ultrace team keeps high attention to detail. Everything in the event is planned and made to look good. From the organization of the bathrooms to what factory they use to make their clothes this is why people are willing to pay more for their event and they have been able to capture worldwide attention.

What is there to take to my own event?

When I go to make my event I will definitely start working on it many months prior and put a lot of attention to making the overall look of the event planned and branded. So the marketing/logos and the look of the event itself look professional. Another thing is that I want to create interest in the event not only with the location and the cars but also with the people that come to the event. So far I haven’t met a person that I could pair up with the creation of the event but at some point, I would have to do it alone I can’t reach the goals I have.

Overall if you have something that you look up to go there or meet them. That way you can get to know the process behind things and improve your work. I for example met people I’ve been following for years and I understand now better than before that goes into the process to be successful. I’ve now seen what it takes to make the one of the best car events in the world. Now I have the information to start executing myself.

The picture is taken by Alen Hazeta a SpeedHunters photographer and on the right of the picture is standing Khyzyl Saleem one, if not the most respected renderer in car culture.