Fixing Attendance

Skoalbandit33 said:
The number of Nascar winners are skewed for sure as between plate winners, fuel mileage winners and the cautions near the end of races that deny the likely winner things are not quite as they appear. It is the same thing with listing the number of cars finishing in the lead lap as with scheduled and unscheduled cautions, free passes and wave arounds IDK how 30 cars a race are not on the lead lap at the end.

If this post makes you mad please count to 10 and don't respond to it as it ain't worth it. Let it go!
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I actually like any sport where strategy is an element to the outcome. It shouldn't dominate; if every race was a gas mileage deal I would barf. But the ability to adapt to a track, improve the car and move up when successful is a big part of NASCAR history. Luck will always play a part, but you have to put yourself in position to take advantage.

This year has a lot of capable cars, but still featured dominant players nearly every week in Truex, KDB and Larson.
 
Larsonfan1995 said:
A few of the winners this year were due to strategy or luck. In dirt racing, because the races are short and don't require pitting or strategy, pure speed wins every race. That's why 3 or 4 guys dominate on dirt, and pit stop strategy is why Newman and Dillon have wins this year in cup.
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Pure luck is more like it sometimes. With no clutch or reverse in Sprint cars, many times a car will get hung up on a backmarker during a wreck and have to sit there while the survivors idle around the track until somebody gets over there to push them off.
 
StandOnIt said:
Pure luck is more like it sometimes. With no clutch or reverse in Sprint cars, many times a car will get hung up on a backmarker during a wreck and have to sit there while the survivors idle around the track until somebody gets over there to push them off.
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I go to 50 dirt races a year and that happens at maybe 2 of them. Majority of the time, speed wins.
 
Disclaimer: Internet doesn't influence whether I attend a race or not.

2 Sweet said:
I don't understand the desparation for WiFi. If you have a halfway decent data plan, what's the issue? It's 2017, there is 4G available almost everywhere.
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dpkimmel2001 said:
My experience at the race track, during the event, is basically zero data service. There are a lot of people fighting over bandwidth at those events. Temp cell towers are brought in and placed around the area to help with service but it's noticeable lacking. Posting this as a Verizon customer.
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Before this year, I've always been able to use Sprint cell data at TMS and other tracks (though I couldn't always upload pictures). This year at TMS, I couldn't use any Sprint cell data.

When Sprint was the series sponsor, the temporary cell towers they used to put up must've made a real difference.
 
I can understand wanting to take pictures. I don't get wanting to upload them while the race is still being run. Maybe at a caution, I guess, but not under green.

Maybe this ties into something I never understood about that football game at Bristol last year. Almost everyone agreed in advance the visibility would suck, but tens of thousands admitted going so they could 'say I was there'. I get the impression no one is interested any more in the event they paid money to attend, only interested in documenting their attendance. What actually happened, whether it was even seen, is irrelevant.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
I can understand wanting to take pictures. I don't get wanting to upload them while the race is still being run. Maybe at a caution, I guess, but not under green.

Maybe this ties into something I never understood about that football game at Bristol last year. Almost everyone agreed in advance the visibility would suck, but tens of thousands admitted going so they could 'say I was there'. I get the impression no one is interested any more in the event they paid money to attend, only interested in documenting their attendance. What actually happened, whether it was even seen, is irrelevant.
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I understand what you are saying as communicating with others or uploading pics at an event is not even on my radar and blasting out to others what I am doing is not a thought. However if good WiFi is important for race attenders it is something the tracks need to take care of ASAP.
 
sloggie said:
Our youngest of 3 is now 13 years old next month. She has ZERO tolerance for commercials.
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Really? A thirteen year old has 0 tolerance for something that interfere's with her agenda? Well mercy me. Surprise surprise. :D
 
WiFi at the track is far more useful than for just sending a pic or two to a friend. I used to subscribe to raceview. It was a great service as an add on to what you get to see on television. It would also be great to use at the track for the same reason. Real-time stats, lap times and the like are interesting to many fans, including me. Lack of bandwidth at the track render that option useless. It’s not a make or break for me to attend a race, but it’s a nice option to have.

As far as taking a pic of the at track experience goes..... While it may not be for some, it sure is a great way to share an experience that you can’t get as a television viewer. I’ve shared pics of my trips to the track, from the stands, infield, garage area and parking lot. Feedback is generally positive. What better advertisement can there be than being able to let others that are interested or possibly interested get theat track experience? All part of fixing attendance IMO.

You wanna fix attendance, buy a ticket and enjoy the hell out of a great NASCAR weekend.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
I understand what you are saying as communicating with others or uploading pics at an event is not even on my radar and blasting out to others what I am doing is not a thought. However if good WiFi is important for race attenders it is something the tracks need to take care of ASAP.
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Oh, agreed. I don't have to understand why others want it, I'm not a track operator. Its presence certainly doesn't interfere with how I watch a race.

dpkimmel2001 said:
WiFi at the track is far more useful than for just sending a pic or two to a friend. I used to subscribe to raceview. It was a great service as an add on to what you get to see on television. It would also be great to use at the track for the same reason. Real-time stats, lap times and the like are interesting to many fans, including me. Lack of bandwidth at the track render that option useless. It’s not a make or break for me to attend a race, but it’s a nice option to have.

As far as taking a pic of the at track experience goes..... While it may not be for some, it sure is a great way to share an experience that you can’t get as a television viewer. I’ve shared pics of my trips to the track, from the stands, infield, garage area and parking lot. Feedback is generally positive. What better advertisement can there be than being able to let others that are interested or possibly interested get theat track experience? All part of fixing attendance IMO.

You wanna fix attendance, buy a ticket and enjoy the hell out of a great NASCAR weekend.
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Thanks. Some of those hadn't occurred to me.
 
When you think about it people that don't attend races but watch them on the tube are the perfect people to weigh in on what would get them to attend. I think the younger people have made things clear in what they require in order to go to a race with friends and have a good experience.

People like me who have lost count of all the Nascar races they have attended are likely looking for one thing to get us back and that is good racing but that might not even do it as rules changes have permanently ruined things for some. A lot of people are not going to make the commitment to see a race live that has a high probability for being a shyte show as that is time wasted you'll never get back.
 
I don't think there's anything that can get me back to the track --- unfortunately.
Before my husband's illness, we'd given up going because the stair-climbing was just too hard on the knees.
After his death, my income was cut in half, so there is no way I can afford the expenses(hotel, race ticket, food, plane ticket).
And I still have 2 tracks on my bucket list --- but those look out of reach for me.
And believe me, if I could go "live", I would be there.
 
TexasRaceLady said:
I don't think there's anything that can get me back to the track --- unfortunately.
Before my husband's illness, we'd given up going because the stair-climbing was just too hard on the knees.
After his death, my income was cut in half, so there is no way I can afford the expenses(hotel, race ticket, food, plane ticket).
And I still have 2 tracks on my bucket list --- but those look out of reach for me.
And believe me, if I could go "live", I would be there.
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My father is still alive but not physically up to several hours at the track any more. For his last several races, we targeted seats that were on the same level as the concourse entrances or elevators, trying to minimize the amount of stair climbing.
 
Never been a crowd person. I went quite a bit to Texas when I had a bud that had season tickets and I went to Kansas a couple of times. I am part of the reason the networks bought into Nascar. I have been paying for upper tier cable for years solely because of Nascar even when I was on the road with my trucking business and didn't get to see too many. I do go to a couple of dirt tracks each year around here.
 
TexasRaceLady said:
I don't think there's anything that can get me back to the track --- unfortunately.
Before my husband's illness, we'd given up going because the stair-climbing was just too hard on the knees.
After his death, my income was cut in half, so there is no way I can afford the expenses(hotel, race ticket, food, plane ticket).
And I still have 2 tracks on my bucket list --- but those look out of reach for me.
And believe me, if I could go "live", I would be there.
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The biggest problem I have now is the heat as the older I get the less tolerance I have for it and walking in it makes a bad situation worse. Give me zero degrees any day over 70 and up with humidity.
 
Seeing this is the fix attendance thread I would say Martinsville could use a little bit of enhancing for the fans experience as they obviously did not sell 55K tickets.
 
Towmater said:
Apparently, a lot of people don't attend the races:


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IDK what the problem with attendance is at Martinsville as it is all but guaranteed to be a good race but evidently the vast majority of Nascar fans don't hold it near and dear like so many of us here do. The tracks could do everyone a favor by either removing seats that will never sell again or cover them up with a tarp as the optics are awful. If you get a newbie tuning in for a Nascar playoff race and see a track that is nowhere near capacity it sends off a bad message.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
The answer to the original thread question..... More races like Martinsville.

Thread closed.
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Yes I agree. Just watched the last 25 laps or so again, just amazing stuff going on all around the track. It’s a shame this series doesn’t race at The Rock and Wilkesboro, that’s what will fix attendance more tracks like those instead of a Roval. I wish Cup raced at Martinsville 4 times a year.
 
Snappy D said:
Yes I agree. Just watched the last 25 laps or so again, just amazing stuff going on all around the track. It’s a shame this series doesn’t race at The Rock and Wilkesboro, that’s what will fix attendance more tracks like those instead of a Roval. I wish Cup raced at Martinsville 4 times a year.
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Andy Hillenburg would agree. It sure would be nice to see them race there but even when given the chance at resurrection, fans stayed away from Rockingham. Those two facilities are a dead issue at this point. We ain't going back. Heck, the best of the short tracks was on display yesterday and many stayed away. More than likely the weather had a lot to do with that.
 
Snappy D said:
Yes I agree. Just watched the last 25 laps or so again, just amazing stuff going on all around the track. It’s a shame this series doesn’t race at The Rock and Wilkesboro, that’s what will fix attendance more tracks like those instead of a Roval. I wish Cup raced at Martinsville 4 times a year.
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On these boards we love our short tracks and cannot even fathom why every other Nascar fan isn't screaming for more of them. Unfortunately based on attendance and ratings they are not loved by the general populace as my guess is that Martinsville had around 40K spectators and between 2.5 and 3 million viewers from home yesterday. That is not bad at all but way under what some of the other races do in attendance and viewing from home.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Andy Hillenburg would agree. It sure would be nice to see them race there but even when given the chance at resurrection, fans stayed away from Rockingham. Those two facilities are a dead issue at this point. We ain't going back. Heck, the best of the short tracks was on display yesterday and many stayed away. More than likely the weather had a lot to do with that.
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I feel like many fans are staying away despite the type of track, it’s just not limited to short tracks on the schedule
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
On these boards we love our short tracks and cannot even fathom why every other Nascar fan isn't screaming for more of them. Unfortunately based on attendance and ratings they are not loved by the general populace as my guess is that Martinsville had around 40K spectators and between 2.5 and 3 million viewers from home yesterday. That is not bad at all but way under what some of the other races do in attendance and viewing from home.
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I just feel like attendance is down in everything, many people are opting to just watch events from home. Tracks over built themselves and the demand isn’t there, what if some of these places downsized, now I don’t know if that’s healthy for the sport itself but would it create a demand or sense of urgency to get people out to a Cup short track?
 
Snappy D said:
I just feel like attendance is down in everything, many people are opting to just watch events from home. Tracks over built themselves and the demand isn’t there, what if some of these places downsized, now I don’t know if that’s healthy for the sport itself but would it create a demand or sense of urgency to get people out to a Cup short track?
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It is possible that in 10 years or less 25K in attendance will be considered a good crowd for a Nascar race and IMO the tracks would be better looking the truth in the eye instead of having a bunch of empty seats that will never be used again. I remember reading a study and it showed that if newbies tuned into an event and there were big patches of unsold seats they flipped the channel because they figured something was wrong with it. IMO Nascar has a huge oversupply of product with 3 series and don't realize that it is better to have demand then a complete glut of product.
 
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Weather must have had a good bit to do with attendance as a number of seats in our section were shown as sold but empty . Forecast was wind warnings, rain showers, and cold.
 
formula racer said:
Weather must have had a good bit to do with attendance as a number of seats in our section were shown as sold but empty . Forecast was wind warnings, rain showers, and cold.
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They were talking about people not going to the race all day Friday on NASCAR radio. That leads me to believe that they knew it was going to be a lackluster gate and was going to look bad on TV.

Unfortunately, having to shoot the cars the way they do now, to limit the lack of crowd, makes it very hard to see how is the sponsor of the car.
 
Towmater said:
This is an opinion piece. It lays out why ESPN might walk away from the NFL. I'd be looking at this if I was NASCAR.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-espn-could-abandon-nfl-football-guest-column-1052792
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The most baffling thing for me with the current broadcast deal with Nascar is that there was no competition for the rights. ESPN couldn't run away fast enough and neither could TNT so the fact that FOX and NBC gave Nascar a blank check is absolutely amazing.

I think Nascar will always have a few events on over the air stations but as more time goes by the bulk of the races may end up on the Bo Diddley Network or the reconstituted Noggin channel.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
The most baffling thing for me with the current broadcast deal with Nascar is that there was no competition for the rights. ESPN couldn't run away fast enough and neither could TNT so the fact that FOX and NBC gave Nascar a blank check is absolutely amazing.

I think Nascar will always have a few events on over the air stations but as more time goes by the bulk of the races may end up on the Bo Diddley Network or the reconstituted Noggin channel.
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Checks Dish Network channel lineup for the Bo Diddley Network and the reconstituted Noggin channel. Looks like I'm all set. I pay for those two as well. Not surprised @ all.
 
formula racer said:
Weather must have had a good bit to do with attendance as a number of seats in our section were shown as sold but empty . Forecast was wind warnings, rain showers, and cold.
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I know Nascar fans can be fickle about weather but I am not buying it as an excuse that kept thousands of fans away yesterday that had purchased tix. The reports I saw looked very favorable for getting the race in as I was recording it so I wanted to make sure I didn't need to add a bunch of time in case of delays. There was driving rain in Philly and DC yesterday that occurred for the entire games and both games were sell outs and there were no empty seats.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Checks Dish Network channel lineup for the Bo Diddley Network and the reconstituted Noggin channel. Looks like I'm all set. I pay for those two as well. Not surprised @ all.
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Yep --- I'm paying DirecTV for them, also. I'll make sure to have them on my list of preferred channels. ROTFL
 
Towmater said:
They were talking about people not going to the race all day Friday on NASCAR radio. That leads me to believe that they knew it was going to be a lackluster gate and was going to look bad on TV.

Unfortunately, having to shoot the cars the way they do now, to limit the lack of crowd, makes it very hard to see how is the sponsor of the car.
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Talking about bad weather and fans not showing up is spin and impression management at its best.

dpkimmel2001 said:
Checks Dish Network channel lineup for the Bo Diddley Network and the reconstituted Noggin channel. Looks like I'm all set. I pay for those two as well. Not surprised @ all.
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IDK if I have either one of those channels as I trim my favorite channel list down to those I watch and the list isn't very long.
 
Towmater said:
This is an opinion piece. It lays out why ESPN might walk away from the NFL. I'd be looking at this if I was NASCAR.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-espn-could-abandon-nfl-football-guest-column-1052792
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Interesting piece, but to me it says more about ESPN's issues than the NFL's (or other sports by extension). ESPN has one game a week, and I assume the two ABC playoff games are on the same contract. That's about 6% of the NFL's 'inventory'. It's not like CBS or Fox is considering dropping pro football.

dpkimmel2001 said:
Checks Dish Network channel lineup for the Bo Diddley Network and the reconstituted Noggin channel. Looks like I'm all set. I pay for those two as well. Not surprised @ all.
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I watched the Bo Diddley Network back when they first started and played his music all the time. Now it's just reality programming and that kind of crap.
 
Towmater said:
This is an opinion piece. It lays out why ESPN might walk away from the NFL. I'd be looking at this if I was NASCAR.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-espn-could-abandon-nfl-football-guest-column-1052792
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Besides having a whole bunch of money to play with not having to pay the huge NFL and their declining numbers. Picking up F-1 or maybe hockey, college football, basketball or the big growth sport soccer this is happening more and more when athletes have a choice to do something different.

Of course, there would be another added bonus of walking away from NFL games, and that is not having to deal with the ramifications of a story like that of the 6'1" and 14-year-old quarterback who could throw a perfect spiral downfield to a receiver who didn’t have to lose a step. As he was going through progressions later in the game, his coach remarked he had never seen anything like this kid, and that he would have it all — a big D1 career, shoe deals and even, the coach predicted, a starring role in the NFL. Except that after the game, the quarterback’s parents shared the news that this was their son’s last football game. They had given him the choice of being a starting pitcher or playing basketball, saying a violent game littered with heavily documented brain injuries wasn’t on the list for their son’s future career opportunities.
 
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