A call to arms for NASCAR

dpkimmel2001

dpkimmel2001

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Interesting article that I thought some of you may like. Many of the same sentiments have been echoed here many times.....

Opinion: NASCAR Must Fix Racing To Return Action To The Track

Officials must figure out how to make sure NASCAR's string of uneventful races doesn't become a weekly occurrence.

May 30, 2012 - Close your eyes and take a listen. Can you hear it? It's the ever-growing murmur of disgruntled fans, media and even some drivers grumbling that something is amiss with NASCAR in its current state.

And with each passing week, the whispers are only getting louder.

It's the belief that NASCAR is regressing in terms of popularity and as a viable means of entertainment. That conviction is backed up by the lack of side-by-side racing as well as far fewer cautions than in years past. Maybe more telling: There hasn't been one race this season where we've seen a last-lap pass for the win.

But there is more to it than just what's stated above.

It's these factors, along with a general feeling that a sport whose premier series holds events on 38 out of 52 weeks in the year is oversaturated to the point where it's hard to distinguish one race from another.

While diehard fans may know that all NASCAR tracks aren't alike – even of the 1.5-mile variety – at the end of the day, they too have grown tired of seeing the same form of racing seemingly on a weekly basis.

All that is understandable when you look at the schedule and realize more than one-third of NASCAR races are held on tracks between 1.5 and 2 miles in length that are virtually indistinguishable from one another.

Playing into the frustration many fans are currently voicing about the mundane racing that has become prevalent on the intermediate tracks is the fact that none of the four races held this season on 1.5-mile ovals – Las Vegas, Texas, Kansas and Charlotte – has featured either a caution for a multi-car incident.

While fans may not be clamoring for wrecks, the lack of accidents is indicative of a lack of side-by-side racing.

"I think everyone is so used to these cars now," Denny Hamlin said after his second-place finish at Charlotte. "I think at the beginning, these cars were a tremendous handful to drive. Obviously we saw some wrecks because of it, especially on restarts.

"Bottom line, I think everyone is so concerned with points nowadays, you know if you wreck and you finish in the 30s, you're going to take 10 races to get that back," Hamlin added. "I think everyone's just a little bit more patient on restarts, as crazy as that sounds. It's just not as wild on restarts as it used to be a couple years ago. Everyone is minding their p's and q's, trying to get the best finish out of their day, knowing the one thing you can't overcome in a race is a crash."

However, more needs to be done than just NASCAR taking a stick of dynamite to the schedule to trim off some excess fat or changing the way points are distributed. The first item on the change agenda should be a come-to-Jesus meeting with Mike Helton, Robin Pemberton, John Darby and officials from Goodyear.

In this summit, the sanctioning body will explain to NASCAR's longstanding lone tire manufacturer that while they appreciate the incredible efforts Goodyear has made in the name of safety, no longer does the sanctioning body want the company to bring a tire to the track where there is little-to-no dropoff.

One of the biggest reasons there is not as much passing on the track outside of green-flag pit-stops is there is no longer any give in the tires. Because the tire compound Goodyear brings to the track on any given week is so hard, drivers are now allowed to drive as hard on lap one on a new set of tires as they are on lap 40, with no noticeable difference in lap times.

Drivers are no longer are forced to manage their tires or forced to handle a car that, on old tires, wants to jump sideways. While drivers being afforded the opportunity to drive flat-out during a long, green-flag run sounds good in theory, in actuality it's not. With no excessive wear in the tires, drivers tend to separate themselves from one another and passing becomes nonexistent.

Before, on the other hand, during a long stretch of green-flag racing, drivers who pushed too hard and burned up their rubber too soon were passed by drivers who knew how to best manage their tires. All this resulted in a lot of side-by-side racing featuring drivers often trying in vain to control a car that was already beyond the point of being in control.

Yes, there is such a thing as a too soft a tire – think Indianapolis in 2008 – and there is an increased likelihood that more blowouts will occur, but there is a happy medium between a tire compound that is too soft and what Goodyear uses now.

Let's find it.

After NASCAR sets Goodyear straight, officials then need to turn their attention the cars themselves and find a way to get rid of the dreaded "aero push."

Too often, because of the aerodynamics at play, fast cars become average when they get in a pack of cars. Being held up because of traffic is one thing, but not being able to pass because your car is unstable when behind another is not acceptable.

"... When your car is dependent on air and downforce and you lose that, it's harder to pass," Jamie McMurray said last week during a media teleconference. "It is what it is, and when you're running the speeds we are running, you want to be the car up front."

With 2013 bringing the onset of the next-generation car, the hope is this quandary will be addressed and terms like "dirty air" and "aero push" will longer be associated with NASCAR.

With television ratings flat and attendance stagnant, this is a call to arms for NASCAR. Be proactive and not reactive. Fix what isn't working, make the product better and, most of all, take action so that action can return to the track.
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From here.
 
Great article

I liked Stewart's idea, run half the field clockwise and the other half counterclockwise.
 
Drivers have figured out the Chase system. Run consistant to get into the Chase, then run as hard as you can for the last 10 races.

I've followed NASCAR since 1975. NASCAR has watered down its product. There are too many races once you throw in the All-Star race and the Shootout. Every round of practice and qualifying is on TV. Add to that every Nationwide race and truck race is televised, it's like there's no break from it. I love racing. But even I need a break from it every now and then.

Some of the races need to be shortened too. When I started watching, these races were endurance races. Engine reliability and the ability to keep from driving the tires off the car were at a premium back then. Going 500 miles was a real challenge. Now, engines rarely let go and tires are rock hard. Races now should be set up to where the drivers run as hard as they can the whole race because there isn't as much time to fart around trying different things for the last 100 miles.

The COT is no different than the previous car as in we still hear about aero push, clean air, etc. It was supposed to eliminate a lot of that, but it didn't. NASCAR needs to do more testing to solve this regardless of body type.
 
Interesting read. And you're right, DPK, many of these topics have been brought up on this forum.

While there are differing opinions as to which type of track is the most popular to NA$$CAR fans, one thing is consistent. That is the greater need for closer competition during races. (That is by no means an endorsement of destructor plate racing). While I like to see long green-flag periods during races I also like to see the drama of a double-file restart near the end of an event.

I think that Eddie Haskell's loss to Smoke in last year's CUP Championship was a real game-changer. Now there is NO question about the fact that EVERY DAMN POINT is critical, each and every week. Drivers are less likely to push the issue during a race, teams are less likely to experiment during a race and GoodYear wants to avoid being the main story line on any given week.

There is no easy answer. But I, for one, will continue to watch NA$$CAR on TV and I will continue to attend every race I can. And there is a side benefit to fewer folks attending races. Shorter lines at the Beer Stand and at the Men's Room!!
 
MoeJoe will be happy to hear someone talking about tires. He says part of the problem is that Brian France owns the Ad company that promotes Goodyear, and he won't allow too many blown tires.

I'm real sick of how the France family's propencity to make money by entering into deals that conflict with the best interest of the sport. It's time for NASCAR to go public and be run like a professional business with an eye on growth. I find myself recording the race and chasing through more and more laps of pure boredom.

I say it's time for a smaller engine so the cars will slow down. Then they can dump the plate, aero-dodads and rock hard tires and get back to racing. The new points system is simple, but it takes away the opportunity to make up for a bad race quickly by running top 10's.
 
Races should be at least 2.5 hours long. Fans that go through the hassle and expense to attend a race shouldn't be short changed because of our national ADHD crises.

Do not trim the schedule. If 38 events is too much for you then don't watch all of them. No one forces any of us to watch every practice and qual session. Hell, I wish we had even more racing.

Fix the damn aero push by stopping the cars from being sealed to the track. That will allow for more passing and more action.

Broadcasters need to do a better job of showing the action instead of following what the broadcasters are saying. Call the race instead of telling stories and offering unwanted opinions. Try to replicate the experience we have at the track.
 
Maybe NA$$CAR should use the turbocharged V6 engine that is run in the INDYCAR Series, eh, FB?

Lighter, smaller, less horsepower (550-700HP).
 
Matthew2470 said:
Broadcasters need to do a better job of showing the action instead of following what the broadcasters are saying. Call the race instead of telling stories and offering unwanted opinions. Try to replicate the experience we have at the track.
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With all the cameras and audio tech available, you would think someone at nascentral would use it to show cars racing each other hard in split screen and with the driver audio. Some of these battles for 25th are the best damn action on the track.
 
Matthew2470 said:
Races should be at least 2.5 hours long. Fans that go through the hassle and expense to attend a race shouldn't be short changed because of our national ADHD crises.

Do not trim the schedule. If 38 events is too much for you then don't watch all of them. No one forces any of us to watch every practice and qual session. Hell, I wish we had even more racing.

Fix the damn aero push by stopping the cars from being sealed to the track. That will allow for more passing and more action.

Broadcasters need to do a better job of showing the action instead of following what the broadcasters are saying. Call the race instead of telling stories and offering unwanted opinions. Try to replicate the experience we have at the track.
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This is the reason I delay the race on TV and listen to the action on PRN or MRN.
 
robbybee said:
Maybe NA$$CAR should use the turbocharged V6 engine that is run in the INDYCAR Series, eh, FB?

Lighter, smaller, less horsepower (550-700HP).
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No, I don't want to see turbos or blowers. But if they are 'stock' cars, nascar needs to decide what era of stock they want to use. If they went to 330 CI and overhead cams, the engines would be far more 'stock' than they are now. By basing the race engine on a stock block, more manufacturers would participate.

NASCAR is a friggin mess. Nobody can look at a race and get excited about the car they commute in winning a race anymore. The France's have ripped the heartS out of the sport.
 
FenderBumper said:
MoeJoe will be happy to hear someone talking about tires. He says part of the problem is that Brian France owns the Ad company that promotes Goodyear, and he won't allow too many blown tires.
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I'm all for the tires losing grip as they wear out but blown tires? I don't really want to see that being the result. We went through that 'big time' back in the Hoosier/Goodyear tire war days and the results were deadly.
 
FenderBumper said:
MoeJoe will be happy to hear someone talking about tires. He says part of the problem is that Brian France owns the Ad company that promotes Goodyear, and he won't allow too many blown tires.

I'm real sick of how the France family's propencity to make money by entering into deals that conflict with the best interest of the sport. It's time for NASCAR to go public and be run like a professional business with an eye on growth. I find myself recording the race and chasing through more and more laps of pure boredom.

I say it's time for a smaller engine so the cars will slow down. Then they can dump the plate, aero-dodads and rock hard tires and get back to racing. The new points system is simple, but it takes away the opportunity to make up for a bad race quickly by running top 10's.
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AND YOU NAILED IT.

On the other hand, F1 is suffering because of tires that are too soft. The drivers aren't pushing the car because they are afriad the tire will disappear so quickly.

Nascar has the points problem. The sliding scale we had was way better than what we have now. Rewarding somebody for passing a guy in the 30's is the same points as passing a guy for 2nd. BS I SAY!
 
robbybee said:
Maybe NA$$CAR should use the turbocharged V6 engine that is run in the INDYCAR Series, eh, FB?

Lighter, smaller, less horsepower (550-700HP).
Click to expand...

DTM runs a 480 hp deal. They have to many aero do dads though.

But it is exciting to watch sometimes when it's on instead of PIMP MY TRASH BUCKET
 
I think the worst thing in NASCAR right now is all these boring and stale corporate shill drivers we have now. I don't hate Johnson or Gordon or Kasey or Kenseth or etc, etc, etc but my god they are all boring.

I'm not saying I want to see guys going out there and wrecking each other intentionally but I just want to see some life and passion back into these drivers instead of Carl Edwards making sure that he runs to the broadcast booth in the middle of a race because he's no longer in the race to make sure to tell me to make sure I go buy Aflac or whatever else is on his car that week.

Also I'm one of the "younger generations" of NASCAR fans and I still hate all the shilling that goes on by these robots. It's f*cking putrid.
 
StewartHaas-Gibbs Racing said:
...and I still hate all the shilling that goes on by these robots. It's f*cking putrid.
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AGREED!

But the big money that it takes for a team or driver to be competitive requires big-money sponsors.
And why are big-money sponsors willing to spend big money on NA$$CAR sponsorships?

EXPOSURE

Sponsors know it. Team owners know it. Drivers know it.
So everybody does their best to recognize the big-money sponsors who pay big money to see their
corporate logo in Victory Lane.

The only way to end this practice is to end the big-money sponsorships. And I think that we would all agree that ending big-money sponsorships in NA$$CAR would be unhealty for the sport as it is today.

Would that be a bad thing or a good thing? I dunno. That's a topic for another thread.

DPK?? :cool:
 
robbybee said:
AGREED!

But the big money that it takes for a team or driver to be competitive requires big-money sponsors.
And why are big-money sponsors willing to spend big money on NA$$CAR sponsorships?

EXPOSURE

Sponsors know it. Team owners know it. Drivers know it.
So everybody does their best to recognize the big-money sponsors who pay big money to see their
corporate logo in Victory Lane.

The only way to end this practice is to end the big-money sponsorships. And I think that we would all agree that ending big-money sponsorships in NA$$CAR would be unhealty for the sport as it is today.

Would that be a bad thing or a good thing? I dunno. That's a topic for another thread.

DPK?? :cool:
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I do agree that they need to do it but I also watch tons of other series of racing and NASCAR is by far the worst when it comes to it. Formula One is probably the series that has the least amount of shilling going on and it's wonderful. I can't even recall the last time one of the drivers who got on the podium thanked any of their sponsors in F1. I know it's a necessary evil in NASCAR but some of these drivers take it way too far. I've gotten to the point where I fast forward almost every single drivers interview because they almost all say the same garbage.
 
Well at least someone listens to the fans, Bruton Smith. Remember he heard the rumble about the races at Bristol and is trying to bring back the good old days of racing. Folks, the pure and simple answer to this is sponsorship and the cost of fielding a team. The sport has morphed into a money sucking giant that only thinks of itself. Long gone are the days of a driver having to prove himself before getting a premier ride. They want instant success or out the door you go and we'll find another young talent that can sell our products and might be able to race a good race. If Dale Earnhardt were to come along today, he'd still be racing the local circuits and never moving up.

NASCAR has something to watch out for these days and racing fans are becoming more and more interested in the Indy cars. No, that series isn't going to take over the top spot in racing over NASCAR, but this years Indy 500 made a big impact on racing fans. And let's not forget the NHRA either. Fans of racing want excitement and will go where they can find it. If changes aren't made in NASCAR, the series will only continue the slide it began some time ago.
 
Devise a point system that is top heavy.

Like 100 points to win,
2nd =75
3rd= 60
4= 55
5th= 50

There should be no points for finishing worst than 30th and very few for 20th.


The idea is that winning needs to be huge, a system like the one above would force more risk taking, and even limit inter team cooperation, because there's is bigger difference in the rewards.


Even finishing 2nd is much much better than third with the above.


Forget superficial points like preserving 43 cars line up on the, grid, which is exactly what the current point system and the last do the best.


Who cares if we have 36 or 43 cars to line up for each race. When Winston per TWR established the system, it was a battle to get 30 cars consistently to show up, often at very small venues.


I need to race reference it, but I do remember a cup event at the Nashville fairgrounds drawing about 30 or less entries around 1980. There was little talk of minimum speeds either, we just don't have those concerns now, or need the antiquated rewards system. One that appreciates just riding around, even if you are 178 laps down, or that thinks two p20s equates to winning a race in terms of the points.


Maybe doing a podium style victory lane would help too, making it a bigger deal to finish very well in the top three.
 
StewartHaas-Gibbs Racing said:
Formula One is probably the series that has the least amount of shilling going on and it's wonderful.
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Hard to compare F1 and NASCAR since the BIGGEST "sponsor" is the team itself as in, Ferrari, McLaren/Mercedes, Red Bull, etc. But I get what you are saying and I agree.

buckaroo said:
Well at least someone listens to the fans, Bruton Smith. Remember he heard the rumble about the races at Bristol and is trying to bring back the good old days of racing.
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BIG Mistake, IMO. Knee-jerk reaction. Quite short-sighted.

buckaroo said:
NASCAR has something to watch out for these days and racing fans are becoming more and more interested in the Indy cars.
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NASCAR played second-fiddle to INDYCAR racing, in terms of fan interest and TV contracts, before Tony Effen George stuck his own prominent proboscis into the mix!
 
NASCAR made that side skirt adjustment. Obviously that won't make much of a difference on track but it sent a message to the teams, drivers and fans that they are aware of the issues and plan to address them. I understand they can't make a sudden massive change mid-season but this 2013 car is going to give them a great opportunity to address the aero issues. Plus the cars are going to look awesome.:)
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I'm all for the tires losing grip as they wear out but blown tires? I don't really want to see that being the result.
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Neither do I. NASCAR and Goodyear have gone too far insuring that it almost never happens, and it's affecting the racing.

Why not give the teams ONE soft set of tires per race? Use it or don't use it, but it would bring some tire strategy back to pit road and promote that exciting passing at the end of races.
 
FlFlash said:
I've been pretty happy with the racing this season, where's the problem :idunno:
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Same old , same old Flash . Fans complainin about the cars , the tires , the point system , the Frances , the lack of passion in some drivers ( too much in others ) . It would all be so much easier if Nascar would stop reacting to every fan gripe . There was absolutely nothing wrong with the old point system , but they changed it for the fans , there was nothing wrong with the old Bristol , but they changed it for the fans ,they didn't need the chase , but they put it in for the fans , change , change , change . I love Nascar , but I am sick to death of the changes.
 
ted@economy said:
Same old , same old Flash . Fans complainin about the cars , the tires , the point system , the Frances , the lack of passion in some drivers ( too much in others ) . It would all be so much easier if Nascar would stop reacting to every fan gripe . There was absolutely nothing wrong with the old point system , but they changed it for the fans , there was nothing wrong with the old Bristol , but they changed it for the fans ,they didn't need the chase , but they put it in for the fans , change , change , change . I love Nascar , but I am sick to death of the changes.
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I doubt NASCAR had anything to do with the changes at Bristol, Bruton owns that track and no one tells him what to do.

As for the changes, NASCAR has been changing almost daily for sixty years. If you arent changing, you aren't keeping up with the competiton.
 
Smoke14 said:
I doubt NASCAR had anything to do with the changes at Bristol, Bruton owns that track and no one tells him what to do.

As for the changes, NASCAR has been changing almost daily for sixty years. If you arent changing, you aren't keeping up with the competiton.
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Fine , take out Bristol and put in these new body styles that the fans just got to have . Think they will stop the complaining ? Nope , just give new reasons to complain . I think Nascar is the only sport that is run by the whim of the fan .
 
One of the problems is all these damn drivers are friends..they go skiing..golfing and drinking together...All their wives are friends and no one wants to make waves on the track any more.....Look a Brad last week.....he apologized to the 14 on the radio more times than Obama would have.
 
This article hits on stuff I've said all year. I think the main culprit is the Chase though... it makes that mid-season stretch worthless.
 
Bucky Badger said:
..Look a Brad last week.....he apologized to the 14 on the radio more times than Obama would have.
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Brad made it very clear that he didn't want to be turned into the wall by Tony for something that was unintentional. The fact that he was that afraid of retaliation , should prove to you that 'old school racing ' is alive and well out there.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
This article hits on stuff I've said all year. I think the main culprit is the Chase though... it makes that mid-season stretch worthless.
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I agree with you Andy . The fans wanted this stupid chase to make the racing better . It hasn't done that , at all . It just eliminates 31 teams from the competition.
 
ted@economy said:
I agree with you Andy . The fans wanted this stupid chase to make the racing better . It hasn't done that , at all . It just eliminates 31 teams from the competition.
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I'm not so sure that it was the fans who were/are responsible for The Chase.
But whether you like it or not, the fact is that no driver outside the Top 10 in points, with 10 races to go, will EVER win the Championship. So, it's just no big deal - to me, anyway...
 
ted@economy said:
I agree with you Andy . The fans wanted this stupid chase to make the racing better . It hasn't done that , at all . It just eliminates 31 teams from the competition.
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It makes the racing good for two or three races. Of course, there's only one Chase race worth a damn in the first place. They do something to make the final 10 races better yet use 9 of the worst tracks in the country (yes, that includes Talladega).
 
ted@economy said:
Fine , take out Bristol and put in these new body styles that the fans just got to have . Think they will stop the complaining ? Nope , just give new reasons to complain . I think Nascar is the only sport that is run by the whim of the fan .
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I am not following you on this one because in my eyes the COT was a direct result of Sr's death. We haven't lost a driver since the new car design was implemented. There have been many changes in the name of safety and I am alright with that as well.

The chase, it is what it is...
 
The Chase isn't going anywhere. Several of last few title battles have been awesome. And it also adds excitement to the summer months as several teams jockey for a Chase spot. The 10 races leading up to The Chase actually mean something, unlike the pre-Chase years where no one talked much about points because all but 3 drivers would have a chance. Don't you guys remember how much it sucked? The complaints about Kenseth coasting through the 2nd half of the 2003 season were deafening.
 
robbybee said:
I'm not so sure that it was the fans who were/are responsible for The Chase.
But whether you like it or not, the fact is that no driver outside the Top 10 in points, with 10 races to go, will EVER win the Championship. So, it's just no big deal - to me, anyway...
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No, but things have been done to appeal to the fans and it makes the racing worse. The COT was too "boxy" even though 2008 and 2009 had some incredible racing. The cars aren't "aerodynamic enough", so now we get aeropush BS. The tires "wear too fast" so now they don't wear at all, even at Darlington, and the field is strung out all race and we're lucky to see any passing at all for about three quarters of the race.

The fans also listen to the drivers and think that what the drivers want gives us a good product. Usually, when a driver says the track is fun to drive on and a race will be good, I end up taking a nap by lap 60. There are very few instances where the drivers hated a product and the product actually sucks (restrictor plate races where they ride around single file in a big pack waiting to wreck, and instances like Indianapolis in 2008).
 
Even the crappy fuel mileage races of last year are better than every race this year because, at the least, you didn't know the final results with 20 to go.
 
Matthew2470 said:
Except for Martinsville. :(
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That's because Martinsville's the only consistently good track left on the schedule. But I'm sure Brian France and Goodyear are working together to find a tire compound to ruin the racing at that track, or they'll reconfigure it in to a progressively banked high banked POS track.

I'll stop now, don't want to give NASCAR and Brian France any ideas.
 
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