3/31/2017
RacinBoys
Meet the Staff: Lucas Oil Speedway Track Treasures Gift Shop Manager Melissa Doke
By Lyndal Scranton (Wheatland, MO) -- The fan experience of visiting Lucas Oil Speedway involves more than watching a night of racing. Many visitors also want to take home a souvenir and that's where Melissa Doke comes in.
Doke is the manager of Lucas Oil Speedway's Track Treasures Gift Shop. She wants to provide visitors the opportunity to take home a tangible piece of the Lucas Oil Speedway experience, whether it's a hat, shirt or shot glass.
"I'm not sure that we have a most-popular item. It's pretty steady across the board with a variety of items," Doke said of Track Treasures, where she's been in charge of ordering and organizing the inventory for the last six years.
"If it's cold, you're going to to sell more hoodies and blankets," Doke explained. "It all kind of depends on the crowd. We do real well with our hats. Our apparel is always updated from the year before with the track champions from the year before. We even have onesies coming in this year."
Some constant sellers include safety glasses and ear protection, no matter if it's car racing, drag boats or monster trucks.
"Some people are there every week and they still come in and buy something new every week," she said. "You try to make them happy as well as your two or three times a year customer."
Doke hails from a racing family. Her husband, Austin, also helps in the gift shop where the couple's children Preston (age 8), Lily (6 in June) and Jaxon (10 months) hang out on race nights. Austin's mother, Betty, managed before Melissa was promoted. Angie Doke, Melissa's sister-in-law, manages the Lucas Oil Speedway Diamond Bar.
Melissa Doke said the job is truly a labor of love because she considers herself a "people person."
"I like dealing with people," she said. "The different kinds of people that come in and the different crowds that come in for different races, it's neat to see. The boat races attract a different type of crowd than the car races. You get a wide variety of people and that's good."
Lucas Oil Speedway General Manager Dan Robinson said Melissa Doke and the Track Treasures Gift Shop crew are significant to the overall customer experience.
"Melissa loves her job and you can easily tell by her smile and positive attitude," Robinson said. "She's done a great job of keeping the Track Treasures Gift Shop up to date and provide our fans with a great variety of souvenir items to choose from, along with tremendous customer service from Melissa and her entire crew."
A Test and Tune session is set for this Saturday, from 2-6 p.m. at the speedway. The season-opening Big Adventure RV Weekly Racing Seriers program is set for April 8 ahead of the 4th annual Lucas Oil MLRA Spring Nationals Presented by RacingJunk.com set for April 14-15.
For complete Lucas Oil Speedway event information, archived stories, ticket info and the 2017 racing schedule, visit http://www.LucasOilSpeedway.com. Three-day passes for the 25th annual Show-Me 100 Presented by ProtecttheHarvest.com are now on sale. Only about 500 of the three-day passes remain. Call admission director Nichole McMillan at (417) 282-5984 or email Nichole@lucasoilspeedway.com for more information.
Lucas Oil Speedway is located at Highways 83 and 54 in Wheatland, Missouri. A campground with shower and bathroom facilities is also available. With it's entrance located just outside the pit gate this sprawling scenic camping facility will continue to enhance the racing experience at the Diamond of Dirt Tracks.
Click http://www.LucasOilSpeedway.com for more information and detailed directions to the speedway or call the Track Hotline at (417) 282-5984.
In addition, fans can get social with Lucas Oil Speedway by following @LucasSpeedway on Twitter, clicking "Like" at http://www.facebook.com/LucasOilSpeedway and on http://www.youtube.com/LucasOilSpeedway.
Submitted By: Kirk Elliott
