The 2009 IndyCar Series schedule:

[-Helix-]

I love the idea that oval fans are there because they love the IRL sooo much, but in reality Chicago and Kansas are showing up because of the NASCAR "season ticket" package where a lot of NASCAR fans try to unload their tickets on the net or give them away to friends. Does Iowa get good crowds? Of course, but that's because its in Iowa. What else is there to do in Iowa on a summer weekend? Watch the corn grow? It's not like they have any A-level professional sport or entertainment of any kind in that state. Homestead is filled with smokers who show up because they get free tickets and can smoke outside

I'm not even sure what this garbage is trying to say.

But why on earth would these supposed NASCAR fans go to an IndyCar race if they have no reason for being there?

If I had tickets to a ballet yet I had no interest in ballet, I doubt I would use them.

But apparently you went to Chicago and Kansas and questioned every single person there on why they came to the event and found out this information. I wish I had your free time.

And I'm pretty sure it's legal to smoke in Miami, as it is in most places in the world. Why would smokers have to go to a race just to be able to light up? Seems like a waste of parking/gas/concession/etc money when you could just smoke at your own house.

Logic is a great thing. You should try it sometime.

[Miatanut]

George noted that several tracks have signed letters of intent to become charter members of the 1996 series, and several more are expected in upcoming weeks. "We are more concerned about he quality of the race promoters for 1996 than we are in quantity," said George. He noted that while the new league is interested in the majority of its events being held on oval tracks, road course will be on the 1996 schedule.

Absent from the news release was anything about american drivers, or stepping stone from USAC to Indy. I will continue to look, but I don't recall ever seeing a statement from TG saying that was his goal. I do recall reading TG's responses to questions about those issues being addressed through the creation of the league. There is a difference between stating your goals and saying that those issues will be favorably affected.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erHQmiqD8BI

[indycool]

Helix, nine times out of 10, it's "follow the money."

If Dover Downs offered a sanction fee of $10, or the IRL demanded a sanction fee of $10 million, it'd be easy to determine which became disinterested enough to cause the other to say "no."

But we don't know if either of those things happened. Or something else of significance that led to it. Something happened, because Nashville is a good sports town and Firestone has significant interest there. We just don't know what it was.

[indycool]

Miatanut, how does that video, from before the league was even announced, support what you claim?

[Rex Monaco]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erHQmiqD8BI

No wonder nobody listened to TG at CART, they fell asleep before he could make his point.

[Miatanut]

Miatanut, how does that video, from before the league was even announced, support what you claim?

I didn't claim anything. I let Tony explain it in his own words. Somebody made a comment that Tony wasn't talking about an oval-based league populated with American drivers.

Did you watch it?

That WAS the announcement of the league. Between all the 'uh's" and "um's" (some things don't change), he said he wanted his league to have "more of an American flavor (code for stopping the American series from being over-run with F1 retirees and rejects)" and be oval-based. From that point forward, CART was expected to do as Tony told them, or he would take his ball and go home. They didn't, then he did. Just as recently with Las Vegas speedway (again, some things don't change).

If the real intent in forming the league was to just create the current, but weaker, imitation of CART, what was the point of these last few years?

[indycool]

Well, if you read all that into TG's statement with your "code," are any aliens coming in from Pluto in the next few days?

I didn't see any "line in the sand" drawn from that. In fact, Craig's statements were to have discussions with TG. Sure, a lot of things happened later, but not with THAT video clip.

[MDS]

Insult my state like that, its on. For the record I have NEVER been in a corn field or cow pasture. Over half the population lives in cities, have top flight schools and universities, enjoy such things are concerts and our many casinos.

I'm sure Iowa is a nice place to live, for some people who like a certain lifestyle. My problem with Iowa is, its a tiny media market with a small population, and little local media or corporations to drawn from.

A lot of IRL races are in the middle of nowhere.

Out of the top 10 markets the IRL has has four races: Los Angeles, Chicago, the Bay area, and Dallas. The could have picked up an established race Houston, and an oval near Boston but chose to let that market go.

Only seven IRL races are in the top 20 U.S. Media markets: St Pete, Detriot, and Miami. They could have picked up Cleveland, but chose not to.

Only eight IRL races are in the top 30 market: Indianapolis. They dropped Nashville and could have picked up Portland.

Four races are in the 30 to 40 market range: Kansas City, Columbus, Milwaukee, Cincinnatti

There are no races in the 40 to 50 market range. That means out of 19 races only 12 are in major top U.S. 50 media markets. Racing in front of small crowds in the middle of no where, like Iowa and Richmond do the sport little good.

This schedule was one big chance for the IRL to make waves, bring positive attention to itself with a series of marquee events, instead they throw out dull, almost the same as the year before crap, and people wonder why the Indy 500 ratings are below the NASCAR average and far below the NASCAR broadcast channel average.

Sure ISC events might be off the table, but take Eddie Gossage up on his five track deal to get New Hampshire and Las Vegas on the schedule. I'd much rather see the season end with a 400 mile event at LVMS than a 300 miler at Homestead.

This was the year to back Paul Newman's effort to get a race at Floyd Bennett Feild. It would be a big market marquee event in Brooklyn in April to lend exposure to the Indy 500.

Pikes Peak has been sold, if NASCAR didn't put anything in the lease prohibit it, look at staging a race there.

Look at having an early season race in Brazil. The league has a number of Brazillian drivers and sponsors, so it would more than likely be successful. It's in the same time zone as the US and because of the climate you could stage a race at the PK circuit in March.

Mexico City could be another March race date on a big stage.

There were bigger better options out there, and none of them made it on the schedule. I don't know if that's the tracks' or promotors' fault, but I bet a fair bit of the blame can find a home in Indianapolis.

[indycool]

MDS, congratulations on an understanding of markets. You get an "A" in reading market population lists and an "F" in how racing schedules come together.

There are many elements to a schedule: Promoter, sanctioning body, venue, weather, dates, TV, where sponsors want to be, where competitors want to be, where fans want to be, etc. If all those elements strike a bargain, you are likely to have a successful race. If it was just to take a list of the top 50 markets, say "okay, NYC is No. 1 so we'll go there," any sport would do it in a heartbeat. But ISC already struck out building a track there and CART's efforts at the Meadowlands were a disaster.

Iowa? Newton is just down I-80 from Des Moines, a city with the second largest number of insurance company headquarters in the nation behind Hartford, Conn. Near Des Moines are the Knoxville Nationals, one of the premier events in sprint car racing in the nation and an event with a long racing history. IMO, it should not be dismissed as a bunch of hayseeds.

Houston? A loser, financially. Loudon? Probably in 2010. Cleveland? A loser, financially. Portland? A loser, financially. It's still a question of who dropped who on Nashville and I'm not convinced that both sides, promoter and sanctioning body, just couldn't agree on money. Vegas? Lost money on both IRL and CC at LVMS, lost a TON with CC downtown, enough that the promoter it talked into it canceled his other race in Phoenix.

Did you/do you expect all of that, the top 19 markets, to just be knocked over in a nice tidy row in six months' time and throw out the rest? If so, you knock out the Indianapolis 500 because Indianapolis isn't in the top 19, even though it contains the world's largest seating facility and the world's longest standing auto race.

Richmond? Draw a circle 100 miles around Richmond on your atlas and see what you find.

Pikes Peak? It's closed. Period. All gone. No more. Brazil? What good does that do American sponsors for teams and series? CART's teams and sponsors complained in the late '80s and early '90s when it was making noise about going abroad. Surfers? Mexico City? Same thing. Don't think Mexico City even has a promoter now. Motegi? Honda and Firestone, two of the major sponsors, want it and they get it.

Six months to execute all of your wonderful options would be next to impossible, even if venues suddenly sprouted up in NYC and elsewhere on your target list and were following the IRL like a Pied Piper to your doorstep.

This will take time and, IMO, you will never be pleased with it.

[MDS]

You cannot deny this schedule release was their chance to carry any momentum from the merger and they wiffed. I don't think anyone outside of the fans of this message board and two others care. It's dull, its repetative, it is in a bunch of tiny markets with two major events and then a whole lotta nothing.

As far as Newman's race in Brooklyn its something he's been working on for three years now. If Tony George got behind it they could have gotten it done. The legwork has been done, there is a promoter in place, it could be done at a lower cost because its an abandoned airport. Had it been made a priority it could have happened.

There is a lack of inspiration and vision in Indy. They've got there one used-to-be-big event and a NASCAR race and as long as those two things are cash cows they're not really inspired to get off their ass and do anything else. Had Michael Andretti not taken the inatitive, lobbied and put his own money into Toronto the only thing that would have changed was a couple of dates, all the tracks would have been the same.