By Kelsie Hahn

Tribune-Herald staff writer

Like footprints in the sand, the Glen Rose dinosaur tracks and the Waco mammoth bones have run parallel journeys through modern history.

Separated by millions of years in their creation and decades in their discovery, both have gone from surprising find to national sensation to community cause, and the Waco Mammoth Site’s unveiling as a full-fledged park is only a step away, projected for late 2009.

Both cities, however, say these sites are only a piece of the attractions that make for successful tourism and marketing — a crowning piece, perhaps, but only a piece.

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Kathy Lenz of Dinosaur Valley State Park describes the tracks of an Acrocanthosaurus

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The tracks that would eventually become the basis for Dinosaur Valley State Park were discovered in 1909, though they weren’t widely publicized until 1938. The land had already been purchased by the state, developed into a park and opened to the public six years before Wacoans Paul Barron and Eddie Bufkin would find an ancient mammoth bone protruding from a washed-out creek bed in 1978.

For Glen Rose, today’s tourism began not with the tracks, but with infrastructure construction on Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Plant in the mid-1970s, said Billy Huckaby, executive director of the Glen Rose Convention and Visitors Bureau. Tax revenue from the power plant gave Somervell County the resources to build the Somervell County Expo Center, Texas Amphitheater and Squaw Valley Golf Course, which in turn drew tourists — and their money.

It was 20 years before Glen Rose began to use Dinosaur Valley State Park and its connection with the city heavily in its marketing, Huckaby said.

“They didn’t have the resources. Tourism has changed — back then, state parks weren’t a big deal,” he said.

Glen Rose’s Tourist and Convention Bureau budget, funded by hotel and motel taxes, has more than doubled from $163,000 to $340,000 in the seven years Huckaby has been there.

The biggest challenge for Glen Rose, with a population of less than 3,000, is maintaining the small-town atmosphere that local officials say has helped make the town a popular destination.

“I can’t think of another town in Texas anywhere near our size that has more to offer,” he said. “It doesn’t get any better than this. Our job is not to screw it up.”

While Glen Rose is branded as “The Dinosaur Capital of Texas,” the tracks aren’t the only reason the town has experienced a tourism boom over the past five years, Huckaby said.

Dinosaur Valley State Park draws up to 300,000 visitors a year, but Fossil Rim Wildlife Center’s drive-through safaris, “The Promise” outdoor theater production’s re-telling of the life of Christ and the town’s idyllic setting for camping, biking and kayaking are also big draws for travelers from Central Texas and the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Dinosaur Valley State Park Dinosaur tracks: * Left by pleurocoelus and acrocanthosaurus * 115 million years old * Discovered in 1909 * Publicized in 1938 * Land purchased by Texas in 1968 * Designated a National Natural Landmark in 1968 * Open to public as state park in 1972	Waco Mammoth Site Mammoth bones: * Left by Columbian mammoths * 68,000 years old * Discovered in 1978 * Land donated to Waco in 1996 * National Parks and Wildlife Service designation pending * Projected to open late 2009

The key, Huckaby said, is that the attractions work together to bring visitors to Glen Rose and keep them there overnight. A recent economic impact study found tourism contributes $17.2 million in direct spending, Huckaby said.

Dinosaur Valley attendance soars because of school trips and repeat visits, said Billy Baker, park manager, and he said Waco’s Mammoth Site might expect similar traffic.

However, unlike Glen Rose, Waco’s own prehistoric park won’t be the driving force behind a new identity or visitation boom, city officials say, because Waco already has built its reputation as a tourist destination.

The Texas Ranger Museum, the Dr Pepper Museum, the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, Baylor University and the Cameron Park Zoo all represent unique attractions that appeal to specific audiences, said Liz Taylor, director of the Waco Convention and Visitors Bureau. The mammoth site will be a supplement, rather than a star.

“It may not overshadow anything that we already have,” she said. “I think it will lend another facet to this great diamond we already have.”

If Waco was a smaller town, the mammoth site would have a larger impact, City Manager Larry Groth said, though the city expects a healthy 50,000-70,000 visitors to the site annually.

For Glen Rose, the city’s dinosaur branding has drawn other attractions in the same vein, such as the Creation Evidence Museum and Dinosaur World, an educational park featuring life-size dinosaur sculptures. Dinosaur World opened in March and is near the entrance of Dinosaur Valley State Park, though the two are not associated.

Glen Rose’s reputation and well-documented success with attendance at the state park swayed Dinosaur World to build its Texas location there, said marketing director Nicole Randall. While the Florida and Kentucky Dinosaur Worlds are built on major highways, Glen Rose’s Dinosaur World is on a small park road, though the attraction is succeeding, Randall said. She said the variety of attractions in the area made Dinosaur World want to build a location there.

“Maybe if we were the only attraction there, it would have been different,” she said. “It not only had the dinosaur factor for it, but it had a great tourism feel, and people there really understand tourism.”

Mammoths, as another prehistoric animal, could create a similar draw to businesses and attractions that would play off the theme, Randall said.

“People want to see things, they want experiences. If you put it out there, they’ll find it,” she said. “The best is when everyone works together. People are more likely to travel if there’s more to see. . . . Why do it all yourself when you can build a network, a partnership to help everybody’s business?”

Some local, non-saurian businesses still take advantage of Glen Rose’s dinosaur reputation in signs, marketing — even their names, such as the Dino Rider Cafe. Other locals, however, aren’t wrapped up in dino-mania, said Kelly Hoodenpyle, executive director of the Glen Rose Chamber of Commerce.

“Some people who have been here a long time are tired of it, and the dinosaur lends itself to children and tourism. They’re looking for a different logo,” she said. “Some people want to get away from it and see a more professional logo on things.”

The city is also getting more attention for its outdoor activities, and Hoodenpyle sees this as an area where the city can grow.

“Glen Rose is just a lot smaller than the other towns, and we’d like to see it grow but keep that small-town atmosphere,” she said. “I don’t know if the dinosaurs will do that. . . . Between the small businesses here and the dinosaurs, that’s what Glen Rose is. It’s kind of a pull between the future and moving on and keeping that tradition of the dinosaur.”

Waco could see a surge in mammoth-themed marketing or businesses once the site opens, slated for late 2009 or early 2010, but it’s not likely to become the city’s identity, said Jim Vaughan, president of the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce.

“We’ve got the Texas Rangers, we’ve got the Sports Hall of Fame, we’ve got Baylor Bears, we’ve got a lot of other things,” he said. “I doubt (the mammoth site) would be the over-arching symbol for the city, but it certainly could be used by some in marketing.”

The mammoth site will be an exciting attraction for Waco, Huckaby said, but he doubts mammoths can generate the same passion as their reptilian predecessors.

“Kids, as soon as they’re big enough to walk and talk, they’re talking about dinosaurs,” he said. “I’d rather have dinosaurs.”

Waco’s Taylor, however, said she thinks the interest will carry over, especially as recent feature films such as Ice Age and 10,000 BC have highlighted the mammoth family. Having prehistoric attractions just over an hour down the road from each other can only be of benefit to both, she said.

“Children make that connection, probably quicker and faster than we might think,” she said. “I see some real cross-selling potential in that.”

Kathy Lenz, park interpreter at Dinosaur Valley State Park, said the mystery of ancient, extinct giants brings the crowds to the tracks, and some of that excitement could carry over to the mammoth site — she can guarantee at least one visitor when the bones go on display.

“I can’t wait till you open up,” she said. “I can’t wait to see it.”

khahn@wacotrib.com

757-5735