i think one of reasons why lot people ain't in stands

[ronabneysr]

over past ten years - sure economy has got bad , it hurts the racer it hurts the owners of the speedway . and it hurts the fans

but the biggest reason lot of people aren't filling up the stands is called that big ole big screen tv i know you can record the race and go to track also but they got so many races on tv ever night and all week end any kind of class you can think of -

so you can jack back in big boy recliner with cold drink and some pop corn and if phone rings - or you got to go to bath room hit pause you can watch four races at samw time with picture in picture and record the rest of them


then if you wonder well who won at local track all you got to do is get on computer and get blow by blow what happened at all tracks

now that is why lot of people ain't in stands -- and if you are a racer take that thousand dollars you save by not racing that night , also you ain;t tired and you aint got to fix the race car or buy and engine

yeah i' ain't fooling no body .. folks i'm a race aholic we will be back as quick as we can ---- but tv has hurt local tracks -- but they don't make a patch for racers like they do for smokers

[carolwicks]

not all of us...

i personally hate watching a race on tv. boring... not to mention the absence of the roar and the scent of racing fuel..the ambiance of the people.... it aint the same...i think that for some it is just too expensive....and the sponsors dont have enough money to be as generous...i do believe if the owners can hang tight and drivers keep their cars in good shape it will all come back...history repeats itself..
carol aka whatever else u guys call me...roflllllllll

[dave41]

fans

i think fan numbers will pick up now that the weather is cooling. a\c has spoilded us.

[Bigbuck]

i personally hate watching a race on tv. boring... not to mention the absence of the roar and the scent of racing fuel..the ambiance of the people.... it aint the same...i think that for some it is just too expensive....and the sponsors dont have enough money to be as generous...i do believe if the owners can hang tight and drivers keep their cars in good shape it will all come back...history repeats itself..
carol aka whatever else u guys call me...roflllllllll

All good reasons, but I agree Carol, its about the noise, smell visiting with racers. just a very few yrs ago wife had the most fun just walking around the pits, looking at the cars, chatting with the owners etc. We made several friends. And yes it woung up costing me a lot of money. Wound up helping several but as we lok back, just walking around, visiting here were the best days! I also agree, now that its cooling off AND winter guests are/will start showing up, the fan turn out will increase. I STILL would prefer going to local track with live racing then watching it on tv. While someone said you can watch tv and go on computer to see who won at the local track, it works the other way too. You can go to local track and check NASCAR .COM tto see who won on tv. So everyone is right, but to go out and watch 3-4 car fields, most will stay home. I have always said the summer is the worse time for racing in Florida. 1/ Theres only about 1/2 the people here in summer as winter. 2/ Normal summer you will be rained out at LEAST 1/3 of the time. 3/ Lots of times its just too darn hot.

[villageracefan]

Race in the Winter

The answer is very simple: Race October through April.. You avoid the rainy months, the weather is usually pleasant the state is full of Snow Birds, the racers up north of here have no place to race.

Race on Sunday afternoon, and you will fill the stands and pit areas. Give it a try track owners and car owners and drivers.

[Bigbuck]

The answer is very simple: Race October through April.. You avoid the rainy months, the weather is usually pleasant the state is full of Snow Birds, the racers up north of here have no place to race.

Race on Sunday afternoon, and you will fill the stands and pit areas. Give it a try track owners and car owners and drivers.

Guaranteed!!!

[Benny The Mule]

Ron,

Your right, people have lost interest. That is why 50 show up for a race and 5000 show up for flag pole, demo derby, boat races etc.

[John Berti]

I have said before that there is a need for a shorter racing season. Glad to see there is someone else who agrees.

Costs of racing are getting so prohibitive that race teams can no longer race on a nearly year round basis. A racing season that runs from October through April makes a lot of sense. Temperatures are cooler which should bring out more fans. The rainy season is avoided. The snowbirds will add to attendance figures. Car owners have more time to build new or revamp existing race cars. They also have time off to seek out sponsorship help.

As for racing on Sunday afternoon, I don't think that's a good idea as over a good portion of those months race tracks would be in direct conflict with NFL football on TV and football would win out. Friday and Saturday nights would be fine, or maybe even some other week night.

[John Berti]

Hey Benny! How about this for a thought. Race tracks offer a regular race program and close out the night with a demolition derby, flag pole race, trailer or boat race or just about anyone of those kooky Crash-A-Rama type events that bring in droves of fans. That offers the best of both worlds and could be a big boost to attendance.

[carolwicks]

do we really know?

i wonder how the owners would pay their bills for the months of no racing... its easy for us to say what they should do but they still have to make a living. PGS has a lease. whether they race or not they have to pay thousands a month to the airport and they still have to keep the place clean, mow and pay insurance etc....
its easy to sit in front of a PC and say what everyone else should do and sometimes i think our suggestions are very good ones, however it may not work for owners for one reason or another. i dont think its fair to accuse all of them of being greedy or uncaring. we think we have all the answers but we dont!.
i do think sundays would work if it rained on saturday. the drivers are already there and the crowds already have rain checks., i think others who had to work on saturday could make it and add to the crowd on sunday. saves the drivers in haulers a huge amount of money but should be announced before the race date so everyone knows the plan. that might avoid the booking over another tracks race also...
carolwicks aka oz

[egspeedway]

i personally hate watching a race on tv. boring... not to mention the absence of the roar and the scent of racing fuel..the ambiance of the people.... it aint the same...i think that for some it is just too expensive....and the sponsors dont have enough money to be as generous...i do believe if the owners can hang tight and drivers keep their cars in good shape it will all come back...history repeats itself..
carol aka whatever else u guys call me...roflllllllll

One thing for sure about TV races,it does not take three yellow flag laps to get 5 or 6 cars in proper order for the restart. [I]t is not the lenght of the program but rather the quality of the races. The northern promoters learned how to move the night along while the south sees yellow flags as hot dog sales.

[Sourass99]

Hi i have been a long time reader of this forum and this topic has finally made me want to post something. First off my name is Tom Stavola and I live in NYC and I currently own a vacation home near orlando and spend a few months a year in florida for vacation with my wife. We are a young married couple who are intensre racing fans. my family has a history of racing and I put my efforts towards motorcycles now instead of racing but every weekend we are at a racetrack either in florida or up north. Ok enough about me just wanted to introduce myself.
Ok first off the major problem with people in the stands is CAR COUNTS! It suxs to see 6 cars go around for 25 laps. Its like watching practice. I'm sorry it sucks. People don't want to see that. They want to see 15plus cars at least. Divisions have to be cut and/or combined. It suxs that dirivers and teams will lose money but something has to be done. Most fans don't know the difference between certain classes if the cars look alike. There has to be a difference in divisions. Another thing that helped car counts and attendence at some tracks up north is your headline division needs to be shown during the night. If the super latemodels are your headline division and they have less then 15 cars don't do heat races but instead have time-trials and then have a child pick the invert. This also allows drivers that may not start up front due to track points to start up front. Plus it gives the fans a chance to see more of the headline division. The kids are the future of racing get them more involved. I used to love going to the Wall Stadium and meeting all the drivers in the pits after the races and seeing last weeks winner in the stands with his car signing autographs and letting the ids sit in the car. Its not the races on the t.v. that are the problem its the car counts plain and simple. Yes a shorter schedule might help keep car counts up but tracks will make less money.

[Bigbuck]

i wonder how the owners would pay their bills for the months of no racing... its easy for us to say what they should do but they still have to make a living. PGS has a lease. whether they race or not they have to pay thousands a month to the airport and they still have to keep the place clean, mow and pay insurance etc....
its easy to sit in front of a PC and say what everyone else should do and sometimes i think our suggestions are very good ones, however it may not work for owners for one reason or another. i dont think its fair to accuse all of them of being greedy or uncaring. we think we have all the answers but we dont!.
i do think sundays would work if it rained on saturday. the drivers are already there and the crowds already have rain checks., i think others who had to work on saturday could make it and add to the crowd on sunday. saves the drivers in haulers a huge amount of money but should be announced before the race date so everyone knows the plan. that might avoid the booking over another tracks race also...
carolwicks aka oz

Carol, the others, and I basically am speaking of Orlando and NSS are saying they are losing money. If there would be more fans racing in the winter due to, weather, (heat and rainouts) and the general population,30%-40% more people in the winter, wouldn't it seam there would be better turn-outs in the winter? Aren't we all complaining about no fans in the summer. Take myself. one reason I don't go much anymore is we like to get up 4-5 A.M. and go out in the boat. Boating generally stinks in the winter. How many times did OSW get rained out this summer? I know of a span of 5-6 weeks it HAD to of rained out 3-4 times. And this is one of the driest summers on record, at least in the Daytona/Orlando area. How Much money did they take in towards overhead those weeks? If the store isn't making money on Mon, you close it!! Open when it pays. Just my opinion.

[Don Nerone]

all gone

Carol, the others, and I basically am speaking of Orlando and NSS are saying they are losing money. If there would be more fans racing in the winter due to, weather, (heat and rainouts) and the general population,30%-40% more people in the winter, wouldn't it seam there would be better turn-outs in the winter? Aren't we all complaining about no fans in the summer. Take myself. one reason I don't go much anymore is we like to get up 4-5 A.M. and go out in the boat. Boating generally stinks in the winter. How many times did OSW get rained out this summer? I know of a span of 5-6 weeks it HAD to of rained out 3-4 times. And this is one of the driest summers on record, at least in the Daytona/Orlando area. How Much money did they take in towards overhead those weeks? If the store isn't making money on Mon, you close it!! Open when it pays. Just my opinion.

Tuna oll the tracks in Florida and most in the country would close even when things were good. Most tracks ae hobbys for the track owners and thats why they come and go so often.(the Harts are the only ones that i can think of that have been there sence the 70s.
Most tracks dont make enough money to pay the taxes. having a race track is like having a real big race car.
tuna fish week
Don62

[Benny The Mule]

Hey Benny! How about this for a thought. Race tracks offer a regular race program and close out the night with a demolition derby, flag pole race, trailer or boat race or just about anyone of those kooky Crash-A-Rama type events that bring in droves of fans. That offers the best of both worlds and could be a big boost to attendance.

You may just be onto something there John, Add a little something to get the (other) type of fan there every Saturday night.