Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

There has been talk of fan attendance being down at a lot of shows--especially weekly shows it seems.  It seems like the WOO ruining sprint car racing has been brought up, the economy, yada yada yada.  What surprises me, is that no one has brought up the real culprit in the demise in not only grass roots race attendance but attendance in a lot of other entertainment brands.  KID'S SPORTS!!!!!!!  

I'm a father of three and two of my kids are in Jr. High right now.  I had not one open night in the entire month of June and I refuse to let my kids do the travelling club sports.  My nights are full enough just doing the local "free" town sports.  I had to skip my daughter's softball game to attend the WOO show in Rockford, but some folks won't miss one of their kids games for anything--because they have been told that they are bad parents. 

My wife and I used to get together with my sister (who lives 2 hours away) about once every two months and go out for a night on the town for supper and gambling.  Haven't done that in two years.  Why?  Her 11 year old son is in a ball tournament every single weekend from the 1st of April to the middle of July!!!!!  Then, when baseball is done, for some reason, they begin a mid-summer basketball league.  Followed by fall soccer league.  Followed by a 6 month basketball league.   We're not talking a quick game on Saturday morning.  We are talking entire weekends--sometimes beginning on Thursday nights and not ending until Sunday night. 

My point?  How can any of those people attend a race when they have been convinced that the only way their kid will play on their high school baseball team is to give up 6 full summers and drain their bank account?  How can people in their upper 50's to low 70's attend a race when all of the other grandparents are at little Johnny's baseball game in Timbucktoo.  (Some of them 6-8 hours away for 8 year old kids!)

I have to become the bad parent and not only skip a game here and there but if the kid wants to go to a race, I tell him he is going to have to skip a ballgame. 

Some of you may not think this is a big deal, but you are VERY mistaken.  Went to Dubuque Iowa for 4th of July.  Hit the casino on Saturday night.  Dead.  Usually packed on 4th weekend.  The bars--Dead.  Live bands.  Dead.  What did we see everywhere?  On Saturday the 3rd and Sunday the 4th?  Little kids with baseball uniforms and parents and grandparents all over the place.  Our hotel was packed with nothing but kids in tournaments. 

I remember the good old days when we mustered up 6-8 little league teams right in my little home town, we played on tuesday and thursday night for the month of June and then come Saturday night, my parents either took me to the race track or we went on a family vacation.

Those days are gone.  And with it, R.I.P. family night at the track, adult softball leagues, etc. etc. etc.

You may think I'm nuts, but I can name 50-100 people that would be at the local dirt track if it werent for their kids or grandkids sports being scheduled now every single weekend.  And I'm in a town of 3000. 

The economy is shifting--not tanking. 

I did'nt even read your post. Your headline said it all. Go away!

Maybe you should read it then.

Unfortunately, this has been my experience too.  I'll be very lucky to get my grandsons to Knoxville one night this season, and it's been that way for the last 2 years for the oldest one (10 y.o.a.)   And it is indeed all because of their involvement in youth sports. Their family is unable to even take a "vacation" together over a long 3 day weekend because of games, practices, camps, exhibition games, tournaments, etc.  Currently, the 10 year old is playing All Star tournament baseball games as well as attending basketball practice.  

For baseball, the kids are to arrive at least 1/2 hour before game time for practice.  The games their selves are limited to two hours, but then it takes another 1/2 hour to get equipment loaded up, etc. before you're ready to leave.  

Add in the 20 - 30 minutes travel time each way to the ball field(s), and each baseball game is a 3-1/2 to 4 hour time commitent.  And if you have two children playing, you can almost bet that one is going to play sometime in the morning and the other isn't going to play until at least 4 hours later. 

For years and years I couldn't wait until I had a grandchild I could take to Knoxville with me.  I thought it would be something we could do as a special bonding experience.  Something we would always remember.  Something that I myself wished I had been able to do more often with my own late father.  But as long as they're involved in organized sports, it's simply not going to happen and I feel very bad about that.  Bad for me.  Bad for my grandkids.  And bad for the sport of sprint car racing.

Enjoy it for what it is. You either love it or not. Theres no cryin in racin!

Can u even read?   Just curious.  Absolutely no crying about sprint car racing involved in my comments.  Take the time to read, or stop commenting.  

This year was finally the year-three of us were finally going to take our sons to the Nationals.  They are all 10, 11 and 12.  But wait!  This year we are going to start football practice a week early!  Now just me and one buddy going.  Went from a group of 8-10 down to 2 people. 

I'm sure he was referring to my post, Egress.  Damn.  Sorry I flinched and showed a moment of sentiment.  I'll try to remember to always be a big boy next time.

You’re probably right about parents not able to go to races because of their kids commitments and that’s why I have no plans for kids. I am happily married but we have no plans to have kids as there are many befits not having them including going to hundred plus races a year in the USA and Australia. As the saying goes if you have kids you have no money or spare time and can’t travel when you want.

I agree 100%, the tracks we race at I have no idea how they stay open, your right every parent thinks there kid is going to the NBA, MLB, LoL.Both of my Kids were College Athletes and one raced Karts and missed games because of it. He never made it to the NFL. But he still climbs in a sprint car twice a week and enjoys it still. Kids cant get off there phones long enough to watch heat race. We all need to do a better Job of promoting, to get young kids invloved. Just an old guy still turning wrenches. I hope the fans come back because the racers are still putting on a great show.

Take your kids to a race. I brushed the dirt off my kids and carried them to the truck after the race. They are now 23 and 30 yr. Old beautiful daughters that still love hangin with the old man watchin racin!

Egras your pretty spot on there I think. In general though it starts with the parents. Maybe don't let or make your kids do all these sports when they are so young. Limit it Or they may resent that sport someday as well. I remember hating football camp cause it always started Monday of the front row challenge. I would get out of there as quickly as possible and still try to make the race. Thankfully those days are over. I honestly don't see this changing anytime soon. 

I witness the overboard sports dedication, and it drives me nuts.  It does not seem healthy or helpful to me.  I watched one of my friends get burnt out by his son's non stop lacrosse, and it didn't appear to help anyones quality of life, or opportunity at the next level.  I blame coaches who want to inflate their own importance, and specialty coaches looking to line their pockets.       I  played college lacrosse, and i don't think that the nonstop camps and tournaments really help.  I started in my junior year of high school, skipped 6 years while in the Navy, and was still a starter for 3 years in college.  Outside of the season, I played with race cars plenty and had a life.   I had plenty of teammates who lived the full time lacrosse life style growing up and they were no better than the pick up hockey, little league baseball, high school lacrosse and summertime surfer teammates. I have also coached and watched players come to me after spending a fortune on personal coaches.  They had inflated egos and bad habits built up by these "experts" that I had to fix as a volunteer coach.  Best bet, live a balanced life and work your ass of at practice and you'll make it.  52 weekends of tournaments is just putting laps on the engine, and your body doesn't get a rebuild.  I hope that makes sense.  My point is, bring the kid to the races, because if they have it, they'll make, if they don't have it, I hope they are smart.

This is all true. The big question is how many of you are or were drivers , car owners, pitcrew members, raced a kart, worked at the track, etc... Or had a family member or friend, where the kids could be all over something that raced?

Me, I was like 3 years old and got hooked when on wednesday in 1967, I got to go to a mid week practice. I was hooked, I got to ride in the car during wheel pacing. I never got to go to the races or race till I was out of high school. Then I did circle track then motocross on a 3 wheeler and quad. Then went back to dirt circle track and haven't left yet.

I see part of the problem is people in the 80's never took their kids or raced and the kids never got hooked. I go to alot of tracks and it's grandkids of racers or kids because there relative raced and the kids saw it. Also we are having more girls only in familys that raced and the girls don't want to race.

Also we have to look at what is more expensive for people with 3, 4 or more kids. $150 plus gas to have them play summer sports Baseball, Softball, Soccer. When it cost's $150 to get the car to the track plus parts each week.

Most sprint car teams are owned by mom and dad these days unless the kid has got out on there own with a good job. I see a lot of kids race till 18 then go to collage and get out of collage and race a d-warf car or some entry level class.

Very good points egras, spot on. My kids are only playing their respective sports when they are in season. 

egras-

There's no question that the majority of tracks out there that think they can keep doing what they did in the 80's, because it worked then, are really going to grapple with this issue.

I highlighted 'majority,' as there are a few exceptions out there that seem to be impervious to change as a whole.

Kids are a huge impact at tracks. And if your local track is not working on kid attractions (like kids bike drawings, snow cone machines, a specified play area, kids bike races at intermission; etc.), then it's already impacted attendance.

But it's not just all kids either. You had mentioned casinos in your original post. They were not really part of the global entertainment options in the past, but now the majority of the population centers have casinos in their 'Saturday night drive' possibilities for entertainment. Yet, another slice of the pie being wedged in.

Performance Racing Industry recently published a feature story on this subject matter (not just the kids component, but several of the puzzle pieces pulling fans away from the track) that you may enjoy reading.

Here's a direct link to the article online: http://www.bluetoad.com/publication/?i=287978&p=98 

...give it a minute to load because they use a service provide to host the pages online. 

But one suggestion/possible partial solution for tracks on race night and trying to resolve the kids sports situation, would be to allow 'kids in their team uniforms to get in for 1/2 price.' Example: lets say the majority of kids sporting events end by sundown - about the time racing fires up. But by the time the family schleps all the way home to change, regroup, and travel to the track - it's too late or too much hassle. But if the kids know that it's not only OK - but 'cool' - to wear their team uniform to the track, then it could be a free 'vehicle' to get families to go right from one activity to another.

There are a multitude of things that tracks can do to take a stab at some of these new (and not so new) challenges. But they've got to at least try.

One thing hasn't changed over the years, good old fashioned legwork goes a long way to get fans and teams to support your track or series...but you have to accept that times have changed and you have competition from sources that weren't so impactful.

I certainly agree with what the OP said. I work in a very wealthy school district and the amount of field trips we do for extra curricular a tivies is huge.  Couple that with this becoming less of a gearhead society and I don't envy any track promotors. 

add to that the cost to participate at even an entry level has become prohibitive for most blue collar families, even if family "A" has no desire to compete, if their friends and neighbors (the ones they'd come watch) are priced out of business everyone finds other stuff to do. 

another thing is that society as a whole has gotten softer....and racing is far from soft. 

Very good ideas and I will read that article.

I have accepted the fact that times have changed and was simply pointing out the huge impact that this new world of kid's sports has had on certain parts of the economy.  Some areas will not suffer and will thrive from this new way of thinking.  Some examples:  Hotels, Bar/Grills, and restaurants will thrive through this.  They are always full--every weekend, all year from tournaments.  Wanna buy into a successful hotel?  Buy into one next to a thriving sports complex. 

Past times and businesses that have and will suffer because of this:  Bowling alleys, race tracks, casinos, adult sports.  When I say adult sports, our men's softball league is over in my hometown.  6-10 teams per year just 15 years ago.  Played every Friday night with a great group of 18-55 year olds.  Very competitive.  Then, all little league and girl's softball went from Monday/Wednesday or Tues/Thursday to pretty much every single day of the week including Sunday mornings and afternoons.  ???    Not only no diamonds open to play on but no dads available to fill the teams anyways.

Bowling leagues?  Down as much as 50% in the last 15 years in our area with our local bowling alley closed.  (Not the only reason in our town though--but that is another story)

Casinos?--Guys at the poker table I talked to Saturday afternoon couldn't believe how slow it was.  They are a bunch of regulars and as they started naming off names of guys that were missing from the table, it was constantly "he's got his grandson's ball tournament in Des Moines" or "his kid is playing in a tournament in the Quad Cities" and so on and so forth. 

Not saying change is bad, but this is what is happening everywhere.  A lot of the people that participate in these activities can't afford to be doing so either.  So wait until that bubble bursts.  When my son asked if he could do the travelling baseball team next year instead of the "free" one in town I got the calculator out and showed him why the answer is no.  I'm not spending $6000-$7000 for hotels, travel and food for 10-12 weekends of baseball when there is a $40 league in town that travels a 15 mile radius.  Not good economics. 

Don't know the answer--don't think there is one.  But dmantx, you have a couple of great ideas and many of these race tracks and businesses are going to have to think outside of the box if they are going to survive let alone thrive. 

Thanks for keeping an eye on attendance. I know it's important to you. I'll keep watching the race. 

Not worried about.  The races I have attended this year have all been well represented. 

I've just seen a number of comments where fans are suprised by the low attendance at a few races this year.  Throwing in my two cents as to why I think those numbers are down--and will stay that way. 

Sorry for the input