The Attendance Thread

FLRacingFan said:
Daytona's gonna be fine.

Going back up the page, still bewildered by Homestead's placement in the calendar. Total lack of consciousness of what other competition there is in the area and the state that time of year. At the very least still should've been a playoff race. They haven't been selling out 46k for the finale until the week of the race.
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They'll be lucky to get 25k I think. Homestead is going to be in trouble.
 
From Reddit and quotes from people who went to the Clash

That place was loud man. It was awesome to see such a rowdy crowd. I wish TV picked it up.


I was legit caught off guard by how loud the crowd was when Kyle Busch’s car came to a stop. Place went berserk during the final laps too with every lead change!
(LMAO)

Was there, was a great crowd! Brought a non-nascar fan with me and the family and they sure enjoyed themselves!
 
february-17-2000-the-start-of-the-second-gatorade-125-nascar-cup-race-picture-id155110221

Duel crowd back in the day,..... during the day.

A little sparse tonite.
 
Hotrod said:
february-17-2000-the-start-of-the-second-gatorade-125-nascar-cup-race-picture-id155110221

Duel crowd back in the day,..... during the day.

A little sparse tonite.
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I'm old but not "old" 37 so as a kid I remember the pre-boom or at least the very early stages of it. While the excessive declining attendance bothers me the pic above clearly reflects the kool-aid period. It wasn't long before that pic there were 25k there and the races were aired on CBS in condensed tape delay form.
 
35K for the Duels? Not sure what the comparison is compared to 2016-2019 but that doesnt seem bad.
 
About 25k in attendance.
Saw Texas is removing seats in turn 1 and closing seats under the suites.
 
rowdy3 said:
About 25k in attendance.
Saw Texas is removing seats in turn 1 and closing seats under the suites.
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25k seems realistic. It looked about 1/4 full to me. The test comes after this week.

A real good seat for the 500 can still be had on Stubhub for $125 which is very reasonable imo. I have to think that's below face value....
 
KodiakRusty89 said:
Ticket prices on stubhub for the 500 are still quite reasonable. After what I saw today it was an easy decision not to make the trek down at the end of the week. I respect the tradition of the event but it's become far more about accidents and luck than quality racing. I'm going to save my money and either go to Atlanta or the first round of the NCAA Tournament in March.

My interest in attending the Indy 500 is going way up given what Daytona has become.
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The Indy 500 was a one and done for me. I'd never go again. You can only see parts of the track no matter where you sit, where I had sat in turn 4 was very uncomfortable seating wise at the time and it was hot as hell when I went in 2009. Add that to the traffic and dealing with getting in and out of there and I'd always choose to stay home and watch the big 3 races that day instead of ever going again.
 
StewartHaas-Gibbs Racing said:
The Indy 500 was a one and done for me. I'd never go again. You can only see parts of the track no matter where you sit, where I had sat in turn 4 was very uncomfortable seating wise at the time and it was hot as hell when I went in 2009. Add that to the traffic and dealing with getting in and out of there and I'd always choose to stay home and watch the big 3 races that day instead of ever going again.
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Yeah, with the cost of cable to watch most of the TV racing, cost of fuel, accommodations, traffic, food and drink at the track, it just doesn't make sense to attend (unless you live relatively close to the track.)

Indy has gotten away with horrible site lines (and still does) with the 500, but I don't think will ever be that popular with other races there. Daytona has great site lines for a track of that size, but the costs versus TV is still a factor for everything other than the 500. The catch 22 (don't know where the phrase came from) is Nascar and Indycar have to have strong TV partners, so attendance will most likely continue to slip.
 
^ From the book by Joseph Heller. They made an excellent movie by the same name.

Milo Minderbinder was my favorite character.
 
What aunty said. The Army will discharge you if you're crazy. If you want out of the Army, you obviously aren't crazy.

And yeah, Indy sucks as a place to watch a race, at least on the oval course. Maybe the road course offers better sight lines. The oval Turn 1 corner should be a great place to catch the last four turns of the r/c when Xfinity (or anyone else) runs it.
 
Great Monday crowd in Daytona !!!!!!!! Way to go fans !!!!!


HatsOff.jpg
 
I agree the crowd looks good! When the green flag flew it was a bit empty but by the end of the first stage people had settled in. I'd say it's about 2/3 full which is good given the late Monday start time....
 
Do any of the tracks with 2 cup series races still sell out both of their races? I know Watkins Glen and Darlington sell out but they only have 1 race. Daytona sells out the 500 but I don't think they sell out the Summer race.
 
Jeff Turner said:
Do any of the tracks with 2 cup series races still sell out both of their races? I know Watkins Glen and Darlington sell out but they only have 1 race. Daytona sells out the 500 but I don't think they sell out the Summer race.
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Phoenix has sold out every time since they remodeled
 
Larsonfan1995 said:
Phoenix has sold out every time since they remodeled
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Sellouts for any sporting event in the era of the secondary ticket market don't have the same meaning. There's noticeable empty seats at basically every race outside of the 500 (on Sunday) and maybe Darlington. Even Watkins Glen has pockets of empty seats in certain grandstands. The camping presence there is awesome though! No doubt the crowds at the Glen have remained among the best in NASCAR.

Hopefully Vegas pulls in a good crowd with their recent "right sizing" movement. While I still like the Southeast/Southernish presence after Daytona (Richmond, Rock, Atlanta) Vegas should offer more fan friendly weather. Plus, Daytona to Vegas has some cachet....
 
Jeff Turner said:
Do any of the tracks with 2 cup series races still sell out both of their races? I know Watkins Glen and Darlington sell out but they only have 1 race. Daytona sells out the 500 but I don't think they sell out the Summer race.
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No; I think if Martinsville can keep it's good vibes going they might be able to sell-out both dates within a few years. Cheap tickets, great racing, and now that the spring race is moved up, decent dates.

My best guess is that the last track to get sell-outs for both it's dates in a season would be 2010 New Hampshire (I think that was the last year of a sell-out crowd), late 00s Bristol, or perhaps Daytona in the early 2010s.
 
Speedbowl14 said:
No; I think if Martinsville can keep it's good vibes going they might be able to sell-out both dates within a few years. Cheap tickets, great racing, and now that the spring race is moved up, decent dates.

My best guess is that the last track to get sell-outs for both it's dates in a season would be 2010 New Hampshire (I think that was the last year of a sell-out crowd), late 00s Bristol, or perhaps Daytona in the early 2010s.
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I'm with you on Martinsville! Of the 4 races I attended last year the only one I renewed out of fear of not getting the seat I wanted is spring Martinsville. With the move to a May night I figured there will be an uptick in attendance. Plus, a renewal rate of $45 for this view might be the best value in NASCAR...

55502531_2426923690673381_4234924739828645888_n.jpg
 
Speedbowl14 said:
No; I think if Martinsville can keep it's good vibes going they might be able to sell-out both dates within a few years. Cheap tickets, great racing, and now that the spring race is moved up, decent dates.

My best guess is that the last track to get sell-outs for both it's dates in a season would be 2010 New Hampshire (I think that was the last year of a sell-out crowd), late 00s Bristol, or perhaps Daytona in the early 2010s.
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Don't rule out a sellout for the Martinsville night race this year. The fact that it's at night may attract a few thousand extra.
 
Wonder if the Pocono doubleheader may come close to selling out, as they already fill it about 70% these days.
 
Larsonfan1995 said:
Wonder if the Pocono doubleheader may come close to selling out, as they already fill it about 70% these days.
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Camping will do very well imo. The fact it's a busy race/first-ever double-header weekend combined with the camping being huge in the Pocono Mountains anyway will play well. My guess is the Saturday double-header will fair better since they'll be more unknowns and the trucks/cup combo offers more variation. Obviously, the one big variable is weather for something like this. Those that attend Pocono know the history...lol.

Once things pick back up at work I'll have the chance to ask a couple of guys who are have business interests associated with the track. The local news has been active in promoting the event. Our local ABC/CBS/NBC affiliates all did a sports feature from the track last week to highlight the weekend and talk about Daytona. With the loss of the Indy weekend, the second cup weekend and the 2021 schedule shakeup this is a big year for Pocono. The track has a cult like following which helps. My one concern is the fact the non-campers having to travel both days having a negative effect on Sunday grandstand attendance. Ultimately, time will tell if the plan reaches the desired outcome.
 
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Larsonfan1995 said:
Don't rule out a sellout for the Martinsville night race this year. The fact that it's at night may attract a few thousand extra.
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I will hopefully be going but can't buy tickets til that week (my buddy and I can't do a Sunday race that weekend).
 
Speedbowl14 said:
No; I think if Martinsville can keep it's good vibes going they might be able to sell-out both dates within a few years. Cheap tickets, great racing, and now that the spring race is moved up, decent dates.

My best guess is that the last track to get sell-outs for both it's dates in a season would be 2010 New Hampshire (I think that was the last year of a sell-out crowd), late 00s Bristol, or perhaps Daytona in the early 2010s.
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As was pointed out above, it seems like Phoenix is selling out both races now. Also I just looked on the seat map for Vegas on Ticketmaster and it looks like their race for tomorrow is almost sold out (a few singles left, very few pairs) and their second race in the Fall doesn't have much more available, so maybe they'll end up being pretty much sold out for both.
 
Jeff Turner said:
As was pointed out above, it seems like Phoenix is selling out both races now. Also I just looked on the seat map for Vegas on Ticketmaster and it looks like their race for tomorrow is almost sold out (a few singles left, very few pairs) and their second race in the Fall doesn't have much more available, so maybe they'll end up being pretty much sold out for both.
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I remember when Vegas really was sold out. Solid peeps all the way through 3 and 4. Now those seats are gone. Even with the further removal of seats, Vegas hasn’t been sold out in years.
 
KodiakRusty89 said:
Sellouts for any sporting event in the era of the secondary ticket market don't have the same meaning. There's noticeable empty seats at basically every race outside of the 500 (on Sunday) and maybe Darlington. Even Watkins Glen has pockets of empty seats in certain grandstands. The camping presence there is awesome though! No doubt the crowds at the Glen have remained among the best in NASCAR.

Hopefully Vegas pulls in a good crowd with their recent "right sizing" movement. While I still like the Southeast/Southernish presence after Daytona (Richmond, Rock, Atlanta) Vegas should offer more fan friendly weather. Plus, Daytona to Vegas has some cachet....
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I just looked at the seat map for the Vegas race tomorrow on Ticketmaster and it was almost sold out, a few singles left in some sections, very few pairs (and even very few re-sale tickets). Maybe it will end up selling out by race time. I also checked the Fall race for ****s and giggles and it looks like it's mostly sold as well, although I don't know if they've released the non-renewals for that one yet. So maybe Vegas and Phoenix will end up being the only tracks having sellouts/near sellouts for multiple races this year. Never thought I'd see the day when NASCAR's best-selling tracks were both in the Southwest.
 
Jeff Turner said:
I just looked at the seat map for the Vegas race tomorrow on Ticketmaster and it was almost sold out, a few singles left in some sections, very few pairs (and even very few re-sale tickets). Maybe it will end up selling out by race time. I also checked the Fall race for ****s and giggles and it looks like it's mostly sold as well, although I don't know if they've released the non-renewals for that one yet. So maybe Vegas and Phoenix will end up being the only tracks having sellouts/near sellouts for multiple races this year. Never thought I'd see the day when NASCAR's best-selling tracks were both in the Southwest.
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I expect a really good crowd tomorrow! The cheapest single on Stubhub is $102. The second cheapest is $225!! For perspective, if I opted to go to the Daytona 500 I had my choice of many GREAT seats in the $120-$140 range leading up to last Sunday.
 
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BobbyFord said:
I remember when Vegas really was sold out. Solid peeps all the way through 3 and 4. Now those seats are gone. Even with the further removal of seats, Vegas hasn’t been sold out in years.
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They removed a ton of seats! No question! But Michigan, Talladega, Richmond and Dover (might be others) have cut their capacity by more than 50%! Las Vegas still has a listed capacity of 80k which is a good number imo. Maybe in another season or two they'll be tossing up some temp bleachers in turns 3-4....
 
KodiakRusty89 said:
They removed a ton of seats! No question! But Michigan, Talladega, Richmond and Dover (might be others) have cut their capacity by more than 50%! Las Vegas still has a listed capacity of 80k which is a good number imo. Maybe in another season or two they'll be tossing up some temp bleachers in turns 3-4....
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I sincerely doubt it.
 
BobbyFord said:
I sincerely doubt it.
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I do too but stranger things have happened I suppose...

Bottom line though, based on the secondary ticket market (a good barometer of demand) and Jeff Turner's Ticketmaster nugget Vegas's % of capacity should be really good! The amount of times two consecutive NASCAR races drew 75% of capacity during the last 5 years might be counted on one hand. Bristol/Darlington and maybe Pocono/Watkins Glen are the only combos that really come to mind. The last time it was 90% or more? That legitimately could be close to a decade.....
 
KodiakRusty89 said:
I do too but stranger things have happened I suppose...

Bottom line though, based on the secondary ticket market (a good barometer of demand) and Jeff Turner's Ticketmaster nugget Vegas's % of capacity should be really good! The amount of times two consecutive NASCAR races drew 75% of capacity over the last 5 years might be in counted on one hand. Bristol/Darlington and maybe Pocono/Watkins Glen are the only combos that really come to mind. The last time it was 90% or more? That legitimately could be lose to a decade.....
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I’ve been there every year for over a decade. Last year (Sept race) was decent. Prior to LVMS acquiring two dates we used to attend the race at the beginning of the season. Since we also attend Fontana, we decided to switch to September for Vegas. I’m not sure if it is weather related but Vegas isn’t drawing sold out crowds. It wasn’t sold out in the March event either. They keep removing seats so they can claim that it’s sold out. It isn’t sold out.
Fontana, on the other hand has been more crowded in the past couple of years. I’ve had seats at Fontana for 20 years.
 
BobbyFord said:
I’ve been there every year for over a decade. Last year (Sept race) was decent. Prior to LVMS acquiring two dates we used to attend the race at the beginning of the season. Since we also attend Fontana, we decided to switch to September for Vegas. I’m not sure if it is weather related but Vegas isn’t drawing sold out crowds. It wasn’t sold out in the March event either. They keep removing seats so they can claim that it’s sold out. It isn’t sold out.
Fontana, on the other hand has been more crowded in the past couple of years. I’ve had seats at Fontana for 20 years.
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I'm with you on Vegas's past ho-hum attendance. But I have legit reason to believe tomorrow's crowd will turn heads so long as the weather cooperates.

The meaning "sold out" means very little in this era of ticket buying bots and online brokers. You need to hire family and friends to increase your chances to get certain concert tickets because of the bots.
 
Solid crowd but definitely not as big as I expected. There's plenty of noticeable empty seats. See how Cali does next week....
 
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