HITS Inc., and HITS founder/CEO Tom Struzzieri announced the sale of the HITS Desert Circuit in Thermal, California, and HITS Arizona in Tuscon. The sale includes the eight winter Desert Circuit shows and the two fall shows that make up the Sunshine Series in Thermal, and the six weeks held at the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson.

“Three ingredients made this the perfect recipe for a sale,” said Struzzieri. “One, it allows me to travel a bit less and spend more time with my fantastic family. Two, this allows HITS to concentrate fully in the winter on the very important HITS Ocala Circuit.” 

Struzzieri said that the sale will allow him to devote significant financial and staffing resources to the Ocala facility (Florida). The third reason for the sale, said Struzzieri, is his certainty that the shows in Thermal are in good hands. 

“This partner group, led by Steve Hankin, is committed to continuing to offer quality events in the desert in California,” said Struzzieri. “They have plans to continue to improve both the property and the event to ensure a great experience for all the existing and new customers.” 

Hankin and his wife, Lisa Hankin, moved to California from New York five years ago, and Steve said they’re excited about the possibilities of this new venture.

“It was an opportunity to take an important facility, an important set of shows, and continue to build on what Tom has done,” said Steve, of Los Angeles. “So it was our chance to help support the sport out here. We have lots of plans. The West Coast is unusual in that it doesn’t have a lot of private facilities that have been built up. They’re mostly public facilities, so over time we’ll invest in the facility in Thermal and try to make it more of a national destination. We’ll bring in a different team, which we’ll announce over the next week, to really change the nature of competition out here. There are so few chances on the West Coast to own a place and invest in the infrastructure, so that will be our primary focus.”