Just when it looked like Wally*mart was going to be the salvation of NASCAR, the whole deal has fallen apart. As a fan of competitive racing and fair play...I have to say I am disappointed that this deal wasn't put together. If nothing else to stop Chad Knaus from being rewarded yet again for being the biggest cheat in the whole garage area.
Speaking of trouble in the home improvement warehouse sponsorship camps....Home Depot has to make some decisions in the very near future. Do they hinge their good name on some sleazy little punk or do they get out before he embarrasses them big time. Joey Logano has already shown his true colors...he doesn't care who he wrecks and he has no remorse about it. Is Joe Gibbs trying to assemble the biggest cast of misfits on the planet?
I know Tony Stewart had a few rough moments early in his career and between Joe and Bob Nardelli, they were able to smooth the rough edges....but Coach Gibbs is a few years older and Bob Nardelli is now at Chrysler. So that leaves the incoming punk in the hands of the current two biggest punks in the sport. Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin setting an example for a kid that is already not much more than a common street thug....oh boy. How long before we have to have armed guards on pit row? Raw talent can only carry you so far on the track. Eventually your fellow competitors tire of your nonsense and take matters into their own hands. The problem with vigilante justice is there is always the risk of innocent victims falling prey to the actions. You won't see a lot of tears for Kyle or Denny or Joey getting stuffed in the wall...but nobody wants to see it happen at the expense of the other drivers on track with them. Suddenly I don't envy Greg Zipadelli...it would be great to see him join Home Depot in departing the Gibbs organization.
On a lighter note...it seems kind of funny to see the Burton name back on the Cat car...perhaps this will bring Jeff the same good fortune at Daytona that it brought Ward. A 14, 31, 29 top three tonight would be great...but it will be even better next Sunday! Here's to a great season for Tony, Jeff and Kevin. And a special shout out to Geoff...good luck in the coming week.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
The Wal*mart Cup - Day V
Just when things were starting to look promising, the greedy track owners have managed to set negotiations back almost to square one. Whoever the genius was that decided that local coverage blackouts would be a good idea seriously needs to be taken out back and flogged. Once that is complete, he needs to go in for a thorough head examination.
The economy is in the freaking toilet. People are worried about silly things like putting food on the table or even keeping a roof over their heads....and some Einstein wannabe thinks that blacking out local coverage of the races is going to increase attendance. I have news for you, not only will it not increase attendance, it may very well alienate some of your loyal fan base. The last thing you need to be doing is running off fans!
There is only one way to increase attendance at the tracks...make it affordable again. People simply have a budget these days...and if they have decide between necessities and luxuries, guess what is going to win. I can tell you that I have drastically cut back on my NASCAR related travel. I would much rather see a race in person than watch it on TV, but when the prices keep spiraling out of sight, I keep my dollars in my pocket.
This isn't rocket science that we are talking here. If a person has a $100 entertainment budget and that is stretching things....they are not going to spend $150 just to buy a ticket, which doesn't include parking or camping or food or travel. What the track operators need to realize is simply this....you can find a way to get that person to the track, into a seat, with a hotdog in hand and a beer on the side....or you can just get nothing. Do the math...100,000 fans in the seats @ $100 each or 20,000 fans in the seats @ $200 each. Me, I'll take the $10,000,000 gate and work with it....but the current crop of geniuses seem to think that they would rather take $4,000,000. Economics baby, simple economics...somebody needs to wake up.
The economy is in the freaking toilet. People are worried about silly things like putting food on the table or even keeping a roof over their heads....and some Einstein wannabe thinks that blacking out local coverage of the races is going to increase attendance. I have news for you, not only will it not increase attendance, it may very well alienate some of your loyal fan base. The last thing you need to be doing is running off fans!
There is only one way to increase attendance at the tracks...make it affordable again. People simply have a budget these days...and if they have decide between necessities and luxuries, guess what is going to win. I can tell you that I have drastically cut back on my NASCAR related travel. I would much rather see a race in person than watch it on TV, but when the prices keep spiraling out of sight, I keep my dollars in my pocket.
This isn't rocket science that we are talking here. If a person has a $100 entertainment budget and that is stretching things....they are not going to spend $150 just to buy a ticket, which doesn't include parking or camping or food or travel. What the track operators need to realize is simply this....you can find a way to get that person to the track, into a seat, with a hotdog in hand and a beer on the side....or you can just get nothing. Do the math...100,000 fans in the seats @ $100 each or 20,000 fans in the seats @ $200 each. Me, I'll take the $10,000,000 gate and work with it....but the current crop of geniuses seem to think that they would rather take $4,000,000. Economics baby, simple economics...somebody needs to wake up.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)