NASCAR Death Bed

I actually don't mind the stages. I think those are the least of their worries.

I'm not sure what a "true" fan is but I'm not going anywhere. Sure the changes in years past change the way I perceive accomplishments but that doesn't mean that I still don't enjoy the racing. And if NASCAR truly is on its death bed, I have Lancaster Speedway 40 minutes west of me, and Spencer Speedway 25 minutes east so all will be well.
 
Wrangler1 said:
I actually don't mind the stages. I think those are the least of their worries.

I'm not sure what a "true" fan is but I'm not going anywhere. Sure the changes in years past change the way I perceive accomplishments but that doesn't mean that I still don't enjoy the racing. And if NASCAR truly is on its death bed, I have Lancaster Speedway 40 minutes west of me, and Spencer Speedway 25 minutes east so all will be well.
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I've been thinking about this recently. I honestly feel that if NASCAR were to die (which will not happen) it would have a ripple affect on our local racing as well. Because if you don't have young kids dreaming of getting to that top level, with all the TV, all the hype, and everything else, then they're not going to get drawn into the local stuff as a starting point.
 
Wrangler1 said:
I actually don't mind the stages. I think those are the least of their worries.
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Stage fright is common round these parts. I don't get it but then again others don't understand why I hate the Chase, err Playoffs. Oh well.

Death bed. Nope, not yet. NASCAR continues to pull in the largest television audience of the weekly racing series choices. They'll be around long after I'm gone.
 
VaDirt said:
I've been thinking about this recently. I honestly feel that if NASCAR were to die (which will not happen) it would have a ripple affect on our local racing as well. Because if you don't have young kids dreaming of getting to that top level, with all the TV, all the hype, and everything else, then they're not going to get drawn into the local stuff as a starting point.
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Which I would agree if NASCAR were to cease to exist all together. I to do not think that will be reality any time soon. It may take a step back or take on a variation of its current role.
 
VaDirt said:
I've been thinking about this recently. I honestly feel that if NASCAR were to die (which will not happen) it would have a ripple affect on our local racing as well. Because if you don't have young kids dreaming of getting to that top level, with all the TV, all the hype, and everything else, then they're not going to get drawn into the local stuff as a starting point.
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You sure, I raced for many years at a local track and had no aspirations to go big time. I just looked at the reality of it all and enjoyed myself at my level of affordability.
 
Wrangler1 said:
I actually don't mind the stages. I think those are the least of their worries.

I'm not sure what a "true" fan is but I'm not going anywhere. Sure the changes in years past change the way I perceive accomplishments but that doesn't mean that I still don't enjoy the racing. And if NASCAR truly is on its death bed, I have Lancaster Speedway 40 minutes west of me, and Spencer Speedway 25 minutes east so all will be well.
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I think a true fan is made to feel appreciated. Some of that has been lost on some in the sport.For example, I remember stories about Richard Petty staying for hours after the race to greet fans and sign autographs. Not so much anymore as a lot of the current crop of drivers seem to cringe at the prospect of mingling with the very people that the sport relies on for sustainability.
 
Stu Jameson said:
I think a true fan is made to feel appreciated. Some of that has been lost on some in the sport.For example, I remember stories about Richard Petty staying for hours after the race to greet fans and sign autographs. Not so much anymore as a lot of the current crop of drivers seem to cringe at the prospect of mingling with the very people that the sport relies on for sustainability.
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You can't really blame the drivers after all they have jets burning fuel waiting for them. :sarcasm:
 
Stu Jameson said:
I think a true fan is made to feel appreciated. Some of that has been lost on some in the sport.For example, I remember stories about Richard Petty staying for hours after the race to greet fans and sign autographs. Not so much anymore as a lot of the current crop of drivers seem to cringe at the prospect of mingling with the very people that the sport relies on for sustainability.
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The drivers of old had much more in common with the fans that supported them as compared to today. If you are a ride buyer or have been coddled since being a youngster you are not going to want to mingle with the great unwashed. People segregate themselves based upon standard of living and lifestyle more than anything else.
 
Team Penske said:
You sure, I raced for many years at a local track and had no aspirations to go big time. I just looked at the reality of it all and enjoyed myself at my level of affordability.
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While that may apply to you, there are (and have been) many racers that started because they saw Earnhardt, Gordon, Waltrip, or any other of their racing heros on the TV, and that is what got them started, Maybe they didn't have aspirations to be on the biggest stage of them all, but it was because of that stage that they started racing. And if (which again, ain't gonna happen) NASCAR goes away, it will have an affect on our racing communities across the country.
 
VaDirt said:
While that may apply to you, there are (and have been) many racers that started because they saw Earnhardt, Gordon, Waltrip, or any other of their racing heros on the TV, and that is what got them started, Maybe they didn't have aspirations to be on the biggest stage of them all, but it was because of that stage that they started racing. And if (which again, ain't gonna happen) NASCAR goes away, it will have an affect on our racing communities across the country.
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I don't know what it is like in other areas but several short tracks that were in operation 25-35 years ago have gone away for good. There are still a couple that are fairly well attended but overall the car counts are way down.
 
Stu Jameson said:
I think a true fan is made to feel appreciated. Some of that has been lost on some in the sport.For example, I remember stories about Richard Petty staying for hours after the race to greet fans and sign autographs. Not so much anymore as a lot of the current crop of drivers seem to cringe at the prospect of mingling with the very people that the sport relies on for sustainability.
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Trust me, I hear what you're saying. But I think society has changed just as much if not more than the sport has and it's the frantic attempt to chase a moving target that has many feeling lost. Idk just my irrelevant $0.02.
 
Wrangler1 said:
Trust me, I hear what you're saying. But I think society has changed just as much if not more than the sport has and it's the frantic attempt to chase a moving target that has many feeling lost. Idk just my irrelevant $0.02.
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I think you are right about trying to hit a moving target as the pace of change is so rapid that that you barely have time to get used to some things. With respect to NASCAR if you asked 25 people what they wanted to see changed you would probably get close to 25 different answers.
 
Wrangler1 said:
Trust me, I hear what you're saying. But I think society has changed just as much if not more than the sport has and it's the frantic attempt to chase a moving target that has many feeling lost. Idk just my irrelevant $0.02.
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SO much of this is true. Society has evolved in such a way that every single sport and entertainment has found it difficult to get people to keep engaged for 3 plus hours. I'm 32 years old and I consider myself a bit of an older generation type of guy, but I will pay extra money for my convenience in life and if something is going to inconvenience me, I want to find a way to get by it or avoid having it impact my day, hour, minute, second etc......Drivers of yesteryear didn't have a 24 hour news cycle in their faces and looking for the next story to make or break you. It is a different time and I cannot blame a driver for hopping out of a car and not wanting to talk and be courteous to people that he doesn't know after a rough day at his job. I know when I have a rough day I go home and sometimes will completely check out on my family. A few races ago I watched on TV as Jr. was walking after a DNF and he was walking from the card with a TV reporter doing an interview and a fan shoves a pen in his face for an autograph........he was great about it and laughed it off in astonishment as his PR person ushered the fan away. Its things like that that make it difficult for these guys to take time to be good to the fans.
 
Wrangler1 said:
Trust me, I hear what you're saying. But I think society has changed just as much if not more than the sport has and it's the frantic attempt to chase a moving target that has many feeling lost. Idk just my irrelevant $0.02.
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Harvick was talking about signing autographs. He says he has to prioritize who he signs. he says a little kid wearing anything Nascar he tries to sign, but some guy with 20 hats he will blow off. haha says sometimes he is running late and he has to blow off some. He said Thursday night he was at a supermarket signing autographs for 2 hours..best place to get an autograph. Makes sense
 
clarkfn2284 said:
SO much of this is true. Society has evolved in such a way that every single sport and entertainment has found it difficult to get people to keep engaged for 3 plus hours. I'm 32 years old and I consider myself a bit of an older generation type of guy, but I will pay extra money for my convenience in life and if something is going to inconvenience me, I want to find a way to get by it or avoid having it impact my day, hour, minute, second etc......Drivers of yesteryear didn't have a 24 hour news cycle in their faces and looking for the next story to make or break you. It is a different time and I cannot blame a driver for hopping out of a car and not wanting to talk and be courteous to people that he doesn't know after a rough day at his job. I know when I have a rough day I go home and sometimes will completely check out on my family. A few races ago I watched on TV as Jr. was walking after a DNF and he was walking from the card with a TV reporter doing an interview and a fan shoves a pen in his face for an autograph........he was great about it and laughed it off in astonishment as his PR person ushered the fan away. Its things like that that make it difficult for these guys to take time to be good to the fans.
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The drivers have a lot of pressure on them and with all the sponsors that are primaries on most cars throughout the year it only makes a challenging situation more challenging. Reading what Carl Edwards said upon retirement it sounded like he was burned out from having to fly around to all the dog and pony shows that were required of him. I have no earthly idea how the drivers put up with the daily harassment without blowing a gasket.

With respect to attention spans I think it is a case of people being almost afraid to engage fully in one thing for fear of missing out on something else. I am very fortunate as I come from a time when there was such a thing as a milkman and doctors made house calls. I am not saying my time was better or worse than any other time but it worked for me as we didn't have a lot so we had to be resourceful and creative in figuring things out and many times that required a lot of planning and pre-work. I can remember times when I anticipated getting a letter or waiting on something else but you don't have to get out of bed for that sort of thing today.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
The drivers have a lot of pressure on them and with all the sponsors that are primaries on most cars throughout the year it only makes a challenging situation more challenging. Reading what Carl Edwards said upon retirement it sounded like he was burned out from having to fly around to all the dog and pony shows that were required of him. I have no earthly idea how the drivers put up with the daily harassment without blowing a gasket.

With respect to attention spans I think it is a case of people being almost afraid to engage fully in one thing for fear of missing out on something else. I am very fortunate as I come from a time when there was such a thing as a milkman and doctors made house calls. I am not saying my time was better or worse than any other time but it worked for me as we didn't have a lot so we had to be resourceful and creative in figuring things out and many times that required a lot of planning and pre-work. I can remember times when I anticipated getting a letter or waiting on something else but you don't have to get out of bed for that sort of thing today.
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Sometimes they can't...look at Danica at Pocono.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
With respect to attention spans I think it is a case of people being almost afraid to engage fully in one thing for fear of missing out on something else.
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Not me. My life gets really simple on race day. Love it. Total release. Completely supported by my wife. #MarriedWell
 
New sports come along a lot more often than they used to. It could be that a lot of people are chasing the new sports, as opposed to staying loyal to any sport. Look at drifting, and world rallycross. They have decent followings, those fans had to come from somewhere. Some may have come from other motor sports, but most, I would say, have started at a young age, and those fans would have been fans of other racing series, if these sports did not exist. I have nothing to back that up, but it would seem to be part of the puzzle.
 
Yogisd1 said:
New sports come along a lot more often than they used to. It could be that a lot of people are chasing the new sports, as opposed to staying loyal to any sport. Look at drifting, and world rallycross. They have decent followings, those fans had to come from somewhere. Some may have come from other motor sports, but most, I would say, have started at a young age, and those fans would have been fans of other racing series, if these sports did not exist. I have nothing to back that up, but it would seem to be part of the puzzle.
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Well said. I have much younger second cousins etc. that are into sports that didn't exist 10 yrs ago. One went to 3 countries last year to compete in a sport on skates but is like bobsledding with jumps. Why? the thrill and danger was his answer. He said Nascar is for p****y's now, they are so well protected they have no fear acting stupid. I can agree with that reason and maybe that is one reason so many are leaving. The danger aspect is all but gone.
 
StandOnIt said:
Harvick was talking about signing autographs. He says he has to prioritize who he signs. he says a little kid wearing anything Nascar he tries to sign, but some guy with 20 hats he will blow off. haha says sometimes he is running late and he has to blow off some. He said Thursday night he was at a supermarket signing autographs for 2 hours..best place to get an autograph. Makes sense
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KH was signing autographs around the Busch beer tent last Sunday. A stage was set up and he left through the crowd but stayed awhile to sign autographs. Seemed to be pretty patient getting everyone he could until two highly intoxicated (or very goofy) people came stumbling and bumbling up to him and yelling at him to sign. He soon after left.
 
Team Penske said:
the thrill and danger was his answer. He said Nascar is for p***y's now, they are so well protected they have no fear acting stupid. I can agree with that reason and maybe that is one reason so many are leaving. The danger aspect is all but gone.
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I guess compression fractures to the spine aren't good enough for some. :confused:

Maybe we need to get back to the basal skull fracture days? :(

WTH

I'm at a loss.
 
Yogisd1 said:
Look at drifting, and world rallycross.
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WRC is awesome. Just started getting into it because Toyota went there. Hard to see the crowds--all the trees, etc. Not much TV stuff to be concerned about, but the app is amazing. Cars are engineered to the max.....and fans of that genre seem to be just fine racing the clock instead of side by side. Right up my alley. Really cool.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
The drivers of old had much more in common with the fans that supported them as compared to today. If you are a ride buyer or have been coddled since being a youngster you are not going to want to mingle with the great unwashed. People segregate themselves based upon standard of living and lifestyle more than anything else.
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Thinking that maybe you have met the wrong people/drivers. This has not been my experience.
 
Revman said:
Thinking that maybe you have met the wrong people/drivers. This has not been my experience.
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Thanks but no thanks as I can't think of any current athletes today other than JJ, Matt Kenseth, Carson Wentz, Auston Matthews or Phil Kessel I would want to meet.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I guess compression fractures to the spine aren't good enough for some. :confused:
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Also shattered legs, ankles and lots of concussions. I go stand as close as I can get to the wall for a few minutes at most every race we attend just to remind myself how nuts and skilled the drivers are. That means every driver in the race. Front, middle and back. I may not like a few of them but each and every one of them have my respect for what they do.
 
Team Penske said:
Well said. I have much younger second cousins etc. that are into sports that didn't exist 10 yrs ago. One went to 3 countries last year to compete in a sport on skates but is like bobsledding with jumps. Why? the thrill and danger was his answer. He said Nascar is for p****y's now, they are so well protected they have no fear acting stupid. I can agree with that reason and maybe that is one reason so many are leaving. The danger aspect is all but gone.
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Once in a while a driver gets hurt or breaks some bones but it is not as common as injuries seen in sports like football or hockey and I would expect more skiers, rugby players and cyclists get seriously injured more often. Statistically it is probably more dangerous for drivers to walk down a staircase, cross the street or drive on the road.

I am not trying to candy-coat the potential danger of being a Nascar driver but in reality I am likely at far greater risk for injury or death every time I get on one of the motorcycles.
 
Simple Fan said:
Lol, NASCAR is not on its death bed. Now if they actually applied most the suggestions I read on here then they would be on their death bed.
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It is hard to say as Nascar is not exactly a cerebral organization and they haven't exactly done anything that has attracted viewers so or stemmed the erosion of its fan base.

The best ideas I have heard have come from young people and involve the locations of tracks, on site amenities and the ability to communicate verbally and through social media from the moment they walk in. Maybe it isn't so much that the product needs to keep changing but more of a case of how the product is presented. Nascar needn't worry about geezers like me but should concentrate on what will get youngsters to the track and in turn watch the races from home.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
The best ideas I have heard have come from young people and involve the locations of tracks, on site amenities and the ability to communicate verbally and through social media from the moment they walk in. Maybe it isn't so much that the product needs to keep changing but more of a case of how the product is presented. Nascar needn't worry about geezers like me but should concentrate on what will get youngsters to the track and in turn watch the races from home.
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I agree but most the suggestions I see are wanting NASCAR to go back to the old days. Smalker tracks, no playoff, and shorter schedule but I just dont see that helping matters any and actually thi k it would hurt NASCAR more than help. NASCAR is still the leading motorsports series in the United States so I fail to see how its on its death bed. The changes are for the good of the sport and if changes weren't being made then that would be cause for concern for me.
 
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