Has NASCAR out priced its fan base

[Free_Salato_Blue]

Originally posted by Bill Derington:
You're right, the cars aren't stock anymore which is part of the problem. I don't think Earnhardt dying was the issue as much as he was the last of the old style put you in a wall type racer. The racers for the most part now are all vanilla, with Jimmy Johnson being just God awful.

People want to see someone racing for their supper, puts it all on the line. Then throw in the terrible tracks, and it all seems prefabricated now.

I not a NASCAR fan at all, I use to like it when I was kid with Bill Elliot and his Ford T-bird that looked much like the family car.
You said liking NASCAR and muscle cars go hand in hand. I don't see how NASCAR has anything to do with muscle cars.
I like watching the US GT and Trans-AM races with Vettes, Camaros, Mustangs and Vipers.

You're right the sport has become generic. From friends who like the the sport they seemed involved in the story lines also within the sport. Kinda like pro-wrestling on wheels. NASCAR needs a good bad boy heel.

 

[catsfanbgky]

Originally posted by BlueKel:

Originally posted by #1LJcat:

Punk drivers like Kyle Busch

There have been some lame reasons. The death of Dale Earnhardt? Please. Ratings and attendance were fine for years after him.

Toyota?

If that is actually a reason, the sport needs to die. Anyone that doesn't like it because of Toyota, couldn't be any more stupid. I'm going to say that the cameras, computers, and a ton of other technology used in auto racing wasn't American made. People with the anti-Toyota agenda are so lame. My goodness.

But really, "punk drivers"? That could not be any more false. Every sport needs villains. If NASCAR didn't have rivalries and hated drivers, then it would be far less entertaining. A huge segment LOVED Earnhardt Sr. But many hated him too - he was a punk in his own right. He had no problem knocking someone out of the way. He did it..."that's racing". Busch does it - " what a punk!"

He meant to say "Punk drivers like Kyle Bush, who also drives a Toyota." I agree with you, Kyle Bush is good for NASCAR, he is a villain and not political correct. Which is the exact reason he is my favorite driver. He is old NASCAR, and what it has mostly got away from.

 

[funKYcat75]

'Favorite driver'

Doesn't know how to spell his last name.

 

[Bill Derington]

I meant muscle cars from the 60's and early 70's. you can't make a sleeper car out today's muscle cars, but you could those.

 

[weused2luvhim2]

Originally posted by funKYcat75:
'Favorite driver'

Doesn't know how to spell his last name.

 

[Free_Salato_Blue]

Originally posted by Bill Derington:
I meant muscle cars from the 60's and early 70's. you can't make a sleeper car out today's muscle cars, but you could those.

I use hang around the local SCCA AutoX.
One best sleepers I've seen was a Fiero with a 383 stroker wedged into it.
Also a lady with a V8 Miata.

 

[Ryan Lemonds Diary]

I totally agree and the fact that Bristol is not the same as it use to be probably plays into it as well. I loved the bump and run racing of old but now it is hard to bump them and knock them up out of your way because everyone is running around the wall. The changing of the track surface has ruined the racing there for me not to mention that you can run 100 laps and a car with fresh tires doesn't really have any advantage on you.

I think they've out 'bored' themselves. I used to really enjoy NASCAR, but the years of altering rules to make all the cars exactly the same has left a product that is all too often just a game of follow the leader, with no real fireworks or excitement.

This post was edited on 4/19 4:59 PM by 3rex

 

[kyfan606]

I remember going to Bristol and rain delays with races ending at 3am. I quit watching basically when they moved Nascar out of the south.

 

[420grover]

I use hang around the local SCCA AutoX.
One best sleepers I've seen was a Fiero with a 383 stroker wedged into it.
Also a lady with a V8 Miata.

These days you can take a Chevrolet LS series engine, slap a Chinese turbo on it for cheap and make a a sleeper out of anything that weighs under 3500 lbs.

 

[fuzz77]

They took the redneck out of the sport, and now the novelty has worn off for the yuppies.

I think this is the most correct answer.
However, what would be interesting to know is to compare attendance today vs 20 yrs ago. A lot of tracks expanded their seating capacity in the late 90's and early 00's when NASCAR was the thing...a lot of non-traditional fans took interest. My guess is that interest has just reverted to the norm. While the fanbase was probably broadened by moving races out of the South the moves to standardize the cars surely took away from those who liked to follow the Fords, Chevys, Dodges, Pontiacs, etc...in no way is it still "stock car" racing.

 

[167Hike]

I still say for the most part the recession of 2008 took a lot of "play" money out of the average NASCAR fan's pocket that they have just never recovered from. NASCAR has taken the approach of waiting for the market to recover instead of dropping ticket prices to bring fans back. Most of these tracks have started to block out sections that they will not sell tickets for to limit the number of available seats trying to create demand.

I've gone up to Sparta Ky for the race a couple of times (even had season tickets for the first two years) and I got to hand it to NASCAR....the ticket may be expensive but that's all you will spend (except for alcohol). They do not charge you for parking and they let you pack in a small cooler of food & drinks (minus alcohol). But still I almost walked up to the gate last year but found it hard to put down $85.00 of my exact season ticket seat I had the years before. If that ticket would have been $50.00 or less I would have been there. May have gone as high as $60.00.....but all of this would have been based on the weather at the time.