Attending Night Racing vs Day Racing

What do you prefer

  • All Day Races on TV

  • All night Races on TV

  • All Day races, watching live at track

  • All night races, watching live at track, includes the races that start in day and finish at night

Results are only viewable after voting.
The one thing I don't like about night races is it keeps people from going to their local track. They'd rather sit at home and watch NASCAR on TV for free than drive out to their local track and pay $10+.

As far as attending a night race, it depends on the track and the time of the year.
 
Of the six races within 4 hours of me (Darlington, Atlanta, 2 Charlotte, 2 Bristol), three are at night (Darlington, Charlotte 1, Bristol 2). Darlington is the only night race I still attend because it's only 90 minutes from the house. Bristol and Charlotte make for too long a day for me any more, what with getting there early to get parking, suffering through the heat of the day waiting, and watching what are often two of the longest-lasting races on the schedule. I realize many people enjoy tailgating but to me it's just killing time waiting for what I really came for. Driving home from them aren't an option; they end too late and I'm too tired, so that adds the cost of a hotel room to the tab. Hell, I can barely stay awake for the 600 at home any more, much less put myself on the road afterward.

Day races if I can attend, day races if I have to watch on TV.
 
I've been to around 2 dozen cup points races. All were in the daylight except the 2007 Bristol night race. Nothing compares to under the lights. Also attended both the 2016 and 2018 Clash, and it was a much better experience at night in 2016 than in the day in 2018. I'm usually at the dirt track on Saturday nights so I miss the night time cup races on TV. I'll say daytime on TV, night races in person.
 
I haven't been to enough Cup night races to compare but I like night races for local stuff
 
Mixed feelings, I prefer the ambiance at night more but I hate too see them compete against the local tracks.
Exception: The Southern 500 need to run in the heat of the sun to maximize the already hellacious tire wear.
 
Larsonfan1995 said:
I've been to around 2 dozen cup points races. All were in the daylight except the 2007 Bristol night race. Nothing compares to under the lights. Also attended both the 2016 and 2018 Clash, and it was a much better experience at night in 2016 than in the day in 2018. I'm usually at the dirt track on Saturday nights so I miss the night time cup races on TV. I'll say daytime on TV, night races in person.
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Heck, if you cannot attend or have to work or go to your local track during race time, invest in a DVR and watch it at your leisure, that is what I do.
If not for the DVR, I would see, at best, about 5% of the Nascar Races on TV.
I enjoy Nascar, but, it is not a priority part of my life by any-means.
 
Something about Daytona under lights I cannot get enough of, plus the sun isn’t beating down on you. Sucks that Kansas will no longer be under the lights. Even the couple Sunday evening races we had this year were fun. I hope they try it more often.
 
joe h said:
Something about Daytona under lights I cannot get enough of, plus the sun isn’t beating down on you. Sucks that Kansas will no longer be under the lights. Even the couple Sunday evening races we had this year were fun. I hope they try it more often.
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I personally thought the Sunday Evening race at Las Vegas turned out to be a success.
 
Like so many polls, this one I can't answer because there is not a "depends" option. There are a number of factors that I would consider in choosing between a night race or day race.
1. Weather, For example, Summer day race in Daytona not good, night good, Atlanta night race not good, day good.
2. Drive after race (home or motel). Short drive both day and night race good. Long drive, day race good, night race bad.
3. Family. If I have non racing family with me a day race is generally better, because that leaves the evening for other activities. A night race however, generally means we spend all day and night at the track. If it is just a couple racing buddies then a night race is good for a day of socializing at the track and the night race.
4. Time. Generally I don't like late afternoon start times. I don't like 8 or 8:30 night start times. 1 or 2 o'clock for a day race is good. 6 or 7 o'clock for a night race is good.
 
Nothing tops being at the track day or night. That's what I voted for both of those. We get to go to 2 or 3 races a year if I'm lucky which is not near enough to my liking but it's about all I can afford. Been to Kentucky, Darlington, Bristol, Atlanta, Charlotte/Roval, and Talladega so far. Maybe one day we can get to some more a little further out. All were fun but the absolute best were the Bristol night races.
 
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I enjoy watching just about any sport at night. But especially motorsports. I love to see the shiny paint jobs or wraps under the lights.
 
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I've never understood the appeal of driving home the same day after a race. Maybe if I lived less than an hour from the track, but I don't have any that close to me. If I go to a Sunday race, I always take Monday off work. So attending a race during the day or night really doesn't matter to me, but it depends on the time of year. Night races are much more enjoyable during the summer months when it's uncomfortably hot during the day.

When I'm watching on TV, I typically prefer night races. I like taking advantage of the daylight on weekends to get stuff done before dark. Plus I don't have a local track, so a NASCAR night race usually doesn't pull me away from anything else to do.

Also, night races seen to have a more exciting feel to them, probably because they aren't as frequent as a Sunday afternoon race.
 
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I have never attended a night race, I wanted soooooo bad to attend one the few night races we had here, but just never got the chance, I wish they would revert the spring race back to night .
 
2 Sweet said:
I've never understood the appeal of driving home the same day after a race.
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For me, it's saving the cost of a marked-up hotel room. Like you, I schedule the Monday as a vacation day just in case, but I'm not spending another $120 (at least) if the forecast is clear. Run that sucker, let me get home, and I'll use that vacation day another time.

As to night races being more comfortable because they're not in the heat of the day, I don't know what time you get to the track. If I have to put up with the afternoon heat before the race anyway, might as well start the race; I'm already here and hot.
 
I love going to the Chili Bowl because most of the action is in the afternoon and night. It is in a controlled temperature building so night time doesn't really add to your comfort but you have a chance to go do other things around the town during the day that you may enjoy. It doesn't matter if you are a fan or a team member there is nothing wrong with enjoying other things while you are on the road for racing. At Bristol and Indy every year we rent a boat and go out on the lake on Thursday. When we are racing in New Hampshire a lot of teams go to the beach... I don't have time to list all of the other attractions and great food establishments that we enjoy while in town for a race.
 
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MRM said:
The one thing I don't like about night races is it keeps people from going to their local track. They'd rather sit at home and watch NASCAR on TV for free than drive out to their local track and pay $10+.
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I'm not sure I buy that. 10-15 years ago, I would have. But honestly, I've noticed that people who go to their local tracks will go there instead of watching NASCAR nowadays anyway ... unless it's Bristol.

Our biggest crowds all year at Carteret County Speedway are Memorial Day (vs. the Coca-Cola 600) and Labor Day (vs. the Southern 500).
 
Night racing is cool but should honestly be reserved for special events. Honestly, the one race I think should be a night race, the Daytona 500, is a day race.

With Sunday afternoon races, I get home at a reasonable hour, the racing is generally better, and the fans aren't as drunk as they are at Saturday night races.
 
Was I just looking in the wrong places or is there a shortage of short tracks "pavement or dirt" within a100 mile radius of Charlotte? Since there is a week off between some of our races and I choose to stay on the road instead of driving back to California I use Charlotte as my hangout town for a few weeks a year while we are on the Charlotte, Atlanta and Virginia part of our tour. I was looking for some short tracks to watch some late models or sprint cars and the only thing I found was Bowman Gray stadium and it rained out both weeks I went. Between our Brainerd, Indy, Reading, and St Louis races I use Indy as my hangout town and I can go to a numerous amount of tracks. I also found some nice tracks when I'm in the northeast for our New Hampshire race.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
I'm not sure I buy that. 10-15 years ago, I would have. But honestly, I've noticed that people who go to their local tracks will go there instead of watching NASCAR nowadays anyway ... unless it's Bristol.

Our biggest crowds all year at Carteret County Speedway are Memorial Day (vs. the Coca-Cola 600) and Labor Day (vs. the Southern 500).
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Agree. In today's world there is little to no excuse to not DVR the Cup race on a Saturday night if you want to go to your local short track. We do it almost weekly. From 3-11pm at the short track, turn off phone notifications to reduce chance of spoilers, wake up on Sunday and watch race at some point with the ability to FF through commercials.

Really cannot beat it.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
I'm not sure I buy that. 10-15 years ago, I would have. But honestly, I've noticed that people who go to their local tracks will go there instead of watching NASCAR nowadays anyway ... unless it's Bristol.

Our biggest crowds all year at Carteret County Speedway are Memorial Day (vs. the Coca-Cola 600) and Labor Day (vs. the Southern 500).
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Totally agree. NASCAR fans, Dirt track fans, and Short track fans are all different bases. The days of me worrying about someone in the grandstand "spilling the beans" on who won the Cup race while I was at a short track are loooooong gone. Heck, our local CT track announcer refers to Ryan Preece as a star in the "Monster Cup Series" ... close enough... :D
 
I don't care if its on TV, but if i attend then I prefer afternoon races. Cup series or otherwise.
For me its easier to see well during the day (especially at a large track like Charlotte etc... was kinda hard to see the cars well on the back stretch, its hard enough during the day but worse at night). Get on the road to home quicker... I don't tailgate, so I don't care to be at the track early with nothing to do... Lets get the show in and go home. Afternoon races are also beneficial if rain is in the area, we have all day to get the race in...
Especially races in cold areas during Jan, Feb, March, April, October, November that are in cold areas...
Charlotte this weekend for the World Finals doesn't look like a good time out in the cold.
 
I think the coldest I ever got was at a world of outlaws sprint car race in Las Vegas.
 
At a track, Rockingham, worse than the Bristol snow weekend.

At any sporting event, the Carolina Panthers' first home playoff game. There's still a couple of layers of my butt frozen to those stands.

At all, January at the Army's National Training Center in southern CA. I've been colder for brief periods but not hours at a time.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
Greenville-Pickens weighs in at 125 miles away, down I-85. There's a surprising lack of short tracks in the middle of the Carolinas.
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There are a lot of active short tracks in the Carolinas.. Bowman Gray, Ace, Caraway, Hickory, Orange County, 311, Southern National, Fayetteville, Carteret County, Myrtle Beach, Dillon, Greenville Pickens.
 
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