For our U.S. fans, are we not affected?

[!!WALDO!!]

A few things to note in this conversation:

NASCAR race attendance is down
NASCAR merchandise is down
NASCAR tv ratings are up

IndyCar race attendance is up
IndyCar merchandise (supposedly) is up 70%
IndyCar ratings are up

Not really suggesting anything with these notes, other than the fact that the sky is not falling. The only area that I see a real weakness is sponsorships. In NASCAR especially, this now a significant issue. Seems to be less so in IndyCar. Not sure about team sponsors, but of course the league seems to be adding new minor sponsors every few weeks.

Not this weekend as far as NASCAR was concerned. Only 10 open RV spots so about $30,000 in loss revenue but infield was up by $25,000 for the weekend so down $5,000.
Rube Row was full and many many full bags.

[Nethead]

Sorry I an not a hero worshipping, ala NASCAR type.
Drivers come and go, the cars are the stars.

Sarcasm, hardly but if you want me to I am quite good at it.
Bob
PS--I went throught "gas crisis" and had none of the problems you had; yous was justin ins the wrongs places.

I side with Bob here--automobile racing is about the vehicles. Sure, there are legendary competitors in every category & subcategory of racing--the Parnellis, the AJs, the Jackies, the Big Daddies, the King Richards--but they're famous for how fast they are in vehicles, not for how fast they are running on their own two legs! Track & Field events have their own heroes...

Sure, a great pit crew and great mechanics go a long way towards how fast a vehicle is as well as towards how fast a driver is--not to mention sponsorship money to hire the best people, buy the best parts, yada yada yada. But automobile racing--or the racing of anything mechanical (be it yachts, motorcycles, aircraft, go-karts, ORVs, whatever)--is about the machines foremost and other considerations are generally secondary. If it's your living, or some member(s) of your family is taking big risks to race automobiles/aircraft/motorcycles/whatever, then your perspective is naturally quite different, but I am talkin' about those who have no personal interest in those driving or crewing the vehicles. That's most of us, as can be easily determined by comparing the number of people in the grandstands to the number of people in the garage area and in the pits.

I loved to see Parnelli win as much as anyone, but I wouldn't have traveled to the end of the street to see Parnelli take on AJ, Jackie, Big Daddy, and King Richard in a foot race! Would you?

[!!WALDO!!]

I side with Bob here--automobile racing is about the vehicles. Sure, there are legendary competitors in every category & subcategory of racing--the Parnellis, the AJs, the Jackies, the Big Daddies, the King Richards--but they're famous for how fast they are in vehicles, not for how fast they are running on their own two legs! Track & Field events have their own heroes...

Sure, a great pit crew and great mechanics go a long way towards how fast a vehicle is as well as towards how fast a driver is--not to mention sponsorship money to hire the best people, buy the best parts, yada yada yada. But automobile racing--or the racing of anything mechanical (be it yachts, motorcycles, aircraft, go-karts, ORVs, whatever)--is about the machines foremost and other considerations are generally secondary. If it's your living, or some member(s) of your family is taking big risks to race automobiles/aircraft/motorcycles/whatever, then your perspective is naturally quite different, but I am talkin' about those who have no personal interest in those driving or crewing the vehicles. That's most of us, as can be easily determined by comparing the number of people in the grandstands to the number of people in the garage area and in the pits.

I loved to see Parnelli win as much as anyone, but I wouldn't have traveled to the end of the street to see Parnelli take on AJ, Jackie, Big Daddy, and King Richard in a foot race! Would you?

People came to see the drivers. If you attended a Hoosier 100 in the 1960s you would realize this.

CART was the concept that put TEAMS ahead of TALENT and look what it got them.

Oh BTW there were 30,000 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in 1964 to see Parnelli race A.J. in a Harness race. The race was to be a tie but both horses got slapped bad and Foyt won.

I guess many traveled to the end of the street, huh?

[Chris R]

I do not think CART put the teams before the talent - the drivers were well promoted and were definitely "heroes" it got a little more difficult after the split - but until 1997 or so it was pretty driver centered... Mears, Rahal, Sullivan, Andretti(s), Unser(s), Zanardi, Tracy, Fittipaldi - all these guys were pretty well known to varying degrees even to a larger audience... I think ride "buyership" is what took the focus off the drivers because it destroyed continuity and this affected both AOWR series adversely...

Racing is about man (and woman) and machine - too much focus on either is not good for the sport - this is about people and technology - on paper AOWR should be a slam-dunk sport for today's consumer......

[!!WALDO!!]

Twenty years of great racing, heavy sponsor involvement, fan interest, high profile drivers and the second best OW series in the world?

Just because the owners committed fowlicide on the goose trying to get to the golden eggs, don't dis the series itself.

Really, 65% of those sponsorship dollars went to a race they didn't sanction. When given the chance they turned their back on it.

So what did it get them and those fans? Marco Greco for Rick Mears.

There is the reason NASCAR got the jump they did.

[!!WALDO!!]

- on paper AOWR should be a slam-dunk sport for today's consumer......

I have talked to today's consumer and they can't relate to this product, tomorrow, today or yesterday. They have never seen a car in a driveway or on the highway.

The important thing to realize is that 99% of this Nation drives but only 2% are race fans. Thus we are talking to very few ears.

[garyshell]

Twenty years of great racing, heavy sponsor involvement, fan interest, high profile drivers and the second best OW series in the world?

Just because the owners committed fowlicide on the goose trying to get to the golden eggs, don't dis the series itself.

Really, 65% of those sponsorship dollars went to a race they didn't sanction. When given the chance they turned their back on it.

So what did it get them and those fans? Marco Greco for Rick Mears.

There is the reason NASCAR got the jump they did.

Exactly which part of "Just because the owners committed fowlicide on the goose trying to get to the golden eggs, don't dis the series itself." didn't you understand???

Gary

[garyshell]

I have talked to today's consumer and they can't relate to this product, tomorrow, today or yesterday. They have never seen a car in a driveway or on the highway.

You really do need to slow down and read what you are writing. Recently you asked for examples of your incoherent writing from Jose, well here lies a PERFECT example.

Gary

[!!WALDO!!]

You really do need to slow down and read what you are writing. Recently you asked for examples of your incoherent writing from Jose, well here lies a PERFECT example.

Gary

It was English but I guess I missed something.

[!!WALDO!!]

Exactly which part of "Just because the owners committed fowlicide on the goose trying to get to the golden eggs, don't dis the series itself." didn't you understand???

Gary

He maybe talking about 1994 or later when reality should have set in when the egos got really too big on their 6th brithday. From that point on they listen to nobody except themselves.

This the formation of the cancer. Exactly which part of the history didn't you understand???

I used to get paid in those days to plant flowers for CART and soon they didn't need them.

Did you ever talk to fans about CART in the 1980s? I did and 9 out of 10 racing fans did not know CART but knew the names Foyt, Andretti, Mears, Sneva, Johncock, Al Unser, Danny Sullivan and Bobby Rahal all from the 500 and no where else.

The T in CART stands for TEAMS.