LOS ANGELES, California - A six-year relationship between St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Monster Energy Supercross Series ushered in a new era at the Los Angeles Coliseum with the second appearance of the Proto Epic holographic unit.
St. Jude has used the holographic technology in the past for corporate events, but they identified an opportunity to engage with fans to help raise funds for the charity.
“We’re excited to bring this technology back and to test it with a different audience,” Anthony Rauseo, Senior Account Manager, Corporate Partnerships for ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital told NBC Sports. “This is our second test of this technology with the fundraising aspect.
“We can really leverage this Proto Epic technology for more events. ... It has been more of an engagement tool than for fundraising, so we are excited to test it with an audience like Supercross where we have a great affinity.”
The Proto Epic box debuted at East Rutherford, New Jersey, in Round 14 of the 2023 Supercross season, but that race had unique challenges. Each season seems to feature at least one sloppy race and with the exception of Justin Barcia, who survived the mud to win the event, few were happy to see the rain.
Measuring a little more than 7 feet tall with a screen of about 6 feet, the Proto Epic box allows fans to see their favorite rider’s plea for support to St. Jude in lifelike scale.
Weather kept St. Jude from learning all they could in New Jersey, but the hope is to engage the fans with messages from their favorite riders.
The Proto Epic holographic unit is the latest in the fundraising efforts between St. Jude and Supercross.
Their efforts to date have raised $1.2 million, and the proceeds continue to grow. Nearly a half million dollars was raised this year.
St. Jude has been best known for their T-shirt campaign, “This Shirt Saves Lives”, that has produced a few variations of the shirt. In 2023, the campaign was changed to “Love Moto | Stop Cancer” and this longstanding campaign showed a 20 percent increase over last year.
An auction, now in its third season, raised additional funds. This campaign has doubled since its inception.
“Our first auction was about $75,000 so for it to almost double in the past few years, it’s great that it has been this successful and that it has been embraced,” Rauseo said.
Donations are accepted via a QR Code for both seasonlong pledges, which are rewarded with the current version of the T-shirt campaign. Fans also can make a one-time donation at the Coliseum or online.
