Smith made right call on proposed Bristol tax

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Tennessean Article

Local newspaper article concerning Bristol Race


Commentary by LARRY WOODY
Senior Writer



Even coming from a politician, the greedy audacity is mind boggling.

A Sullivan County commissioner last week proposed a 10% ''entertainment tax'' aimed at Bristol Motor Speedway and the 160,000 fans it attracts twice a year.

Fans already are being price-gouged into paying $200 for a $50 motel room during race week, but the politicians wanted to squeeze them even harder.

Track owner Bruton Smith threatened to move his NASCAR races if the tax passed. The politicos did the math: Bristol's two race weekends pump $397 million into the economy, while the entertainment tax would generate about $2.5 million. They backed off.

''It's a dead issue,'' Jeff Byrd, the track's vice president and general manager, said at week's end. ''There are 24 commissioners, and 23 are opposed to the tax. The one who suggested it was simply making an idle suggestion and the media got hold of it. I don't think it would have gone anywhere.''

It might have been an idle suggestion but Smith didn't make an idle threat.

''We will do anything to prevent it,'' Smith said of the tax. ''Even moving.''

Would Smith seriously consider yanking races that twice annually sell out a 160,000-seat facility? You bet he would. He owns five other tracks and could switch the races there — probably to Texas Speedway and Las Vegas Speedway — and sell the same number of tickets.

Remember, this is the same Bruton Smith who along with Bob Bahre bought North Wilkesboro Speedway in 1996 for the express purpose of closing it. Smith moved one of Wilkesboro's races to his new Texas track and Bahre moved the other to his track in New Hampshire.

Today North Wilkesboro Speedway is growing weeds, just as Bristol Speedway would be if Smith moved the races. The state's largest sports facility would become the state's largest vacant parking lot.

Bristol Speedway didn't cost the taxpayers a cent. Unlike our pro sports facilities in Nashville, the Bristol track was built and is maintained with private-sector money. Bristol has a golden goose and some greedy politicians threatened to cook it.

Maybe something good will come from the hair-brained tax idea. It has drawn attention to the motel price-gouging that currently exists and is being addressed by legislatures in Georgia and Alabama.

''I have provided the language from the legislation being considered in Georgia and Alabama to our state senator,'' Byrd said. ''I think we may see some action taken.''

Because race fans turn out in vastly larger numbers than fans of any other sport, they are easy prey for hotels. A routine Winston Cup race creates a bigger demand for rooms than a Super Bowl. Price jacks of 200% aren't unusual, making lodging the single biggest expense during a race weekend.

To tack a 10% tax on top of what fans are already paying would be unconscionable. Bruton Smith did the right thing by taking a stand, and the politicians did the smart thing by backing down.

A message has been sent: Cities that are getting fat off racing better not get too greedy.

 

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Article Link


Also mention of new Texas track, and proposed New Jersy track


If tax passes, Bristol races move to Las Vegas and Texas



BY BRUCE MARTIN
SportsTicker
Apr. 26, 2003 6:12 p.m.
FONTANA, Calif.—
From the can you believe this department: Speedway Motorsports chairman Bruton Smith said if a proposed entertainment tax is passed in the state of Tennessee, he would move both NASCAR Winston Cup race dates from Bristol Motor Speedway to two of his other tracks.
Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway would each get one of Bristol's dates, giving each track two Winston Cup dates.

Of course, that statement is more political posturing than anything else, but NASCAR officials said they would allow Smith to leave Bristol if he desired.

"We talked back in January about promoters who wanted to move dates around," NASCAR president Mike Helton said. "If the promoter doesn't want to have races there, it's a whole different ballgame.

"Me, personally, I'd have 36 races up there but that's not the way it works. If the promoter wants to move them, that's something we would be open to."

Jim Hunter is NASCAR's vice president of corporate communications and agreed that the sanctioning body would not stand in the way, even though Bristol Motor Speedway may be the hardest ticket to get of any Winston Cup event with both races drawing in excess of 150,000 fans.

"Absolutely, NASCAR would allow that to happen," Hunter said. "Who says it's the hottest ticket in NASCAR? A few people buy tickets to the Daytona 500, the Brickyard 400 and the Coca-Cola 600. We announced in January that we would entertain moving events within a corporation. Would we move two? I don't know. But we would certainly entertain it if that is what Bruton Smith truly wants to do.

"I think 200,000 people whether they are in Tennessee or Texas, I wouldn't place more importance on one over the other," Hunter said. "Market wise, there isn't any comparison. Although I would make the argument that television doesn't know what the market is. It's the race track."

A new race track in Houston also was announced last week, but both NASCAR officials said they have not considered that market for a Winston Cup event because the 36-race schedule over 38 racing weekends is pretty much maxed out. Also, a superspeedway in New Jersey has been under consideration, although there have been no firm plans to start construction of the track.

"Texas is a big state - it's like five or six other states put together - and Houston is a huge market area, but we have not expressed any interest in that facility whatsoever," Helton said. "New York City, to be within the skyline of that, would be a bit deal to us. But we're not going to add any more weeks to the schedule."

According to Hunter, NASCAR chief operating officer George Pyne, vice chairman Brian France and Helton have begun discussions with tracks currently hosting Winston Cup races about next year's schedule.

"I only know what I've read about Houston Superspeedway," Hunter said. "There has been no communication between that track and NASCAR. The same with New Jersey. If a track is being built with the express purpose of running a NASCAR Winston Cup race, I wouldn't suggest they build it because we are on record as saying we don't have any dates. The only way we can provide a date is the scenario that we talked about back in January."

Hunter also said it would not be a good business move for any proposed racing facility to build a speedway on the hopes that it would get a Winston Cup date.