(NEWS RELEASE)
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Statement from AMA Pro Racing on the Passing of Penny Nicolai |
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| Statement from AMA Pro Racing on the passing of Penny Nicolai:”AMA Pro Racing is deeply saddened by the loss of longtime motorsports journalist and public relations consultant Penny Nicolai. Over a prolific career that spanned decades, Nicolai covered nearly every facet of motorsports. She spent the last several years working as a communications consultant in the AMA Pro Road Racing and AMA Pro Flat Track paddocks. Her contributions to the sport will be dearly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends at this difficult time.”
The family has requested that any contributions to assist with funeral expenses be sent via PayPal to Tamara Nicolai (tamara@tamaranicolai.com). Business colleagues are invited to an open house at Penny’s longtime residence in Van Nuys, Calif. on Sunday, May 18 at 3:00 p.m. For additional information, please RSVP to Tamara Nicolai at the email address above. |
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AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.
For additional information contact:
AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com
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Rider Files 
I remember when I first did PR for AMA Pro Racing, we were at an AMA Superbike race at the Fairplex in Pomona, California. Penny was looking over my shoulder all weekend and telling me how to do this and how to do that and how I needed to make sure I got the results to the LA Times and who to send it to and so on. This went on most of the weekend and I kept politely assuring her that I had it all handled.
I might have gotten a little impatient with Penny, but I knew two things:
1. She was a longtime pro at media work, on her home turf and knew what she was talking about and everything she was telling me was stuff I really did need to do.
2. AMA Pro Racing had some seriously incompetent PR people immediately proceeded me, so she knew they didn’t have a good track record and she figured I was just probably the latest screw up AMA hire.
The fact was I knew my job and did it well and to Penny’s credit, after that first weekend when she saw the work I did and the coverage the race received, she treated the rookie (me) very nicely from then on out.
Penny was one of those behind the scenes people who did so much to raise the recognition of motorcycle racing. She did PR work in everything from Supercross, to flat track to road racing and she took her job seriously and always had a great relationship with the media.
If the track didn’t budget to feed the media, Penny would go out and buy a charcoal grill, and fix up a mean media lunch herself. She wanted the reporters and photographers to enjoy the experience of covering the races so they would come back the next time.
Even though she had a gruff exterior, deep down Penny really had a heart of gold. I discovered that last summer when she was doing PR for some West Coast AMA Grand Nationals, she called me to thank me for always running her news release and how much it meant to her. I was a little bit taken aback – was this really Penny on the phone? Ha, ha.
She was a great dame and will be missed.
Unfortunately Penny wasn’t in the greatest financial way in recent years so if you could, please take a moment, go to Pay Pal and make a donation to help with her funeral expenses.
Thanks much. – Larry
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