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

Sorry, but I just don't understand why folks are complaining about WoO ticket prices.

Does your local concert venue sell kids' priced tickets when Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, or Justin Beiber comes to town? Not likely. The WoO is just like that - a premier show that usually justifies the higher price. A promoter has the right to make money when he can; so while a $35 WoO ticket is a bit high priced, it's not out of the range when compared to other forms of entertainment today. I've seen articles on the prices of 3D movies these days - imagine spending $20 for a two hour movie.

Would I like to see a kids' discount on WoO tickets? Probably - but I understand why a promoter does what he does....Your options are simple; don't like the prices? Don't attend. Yeah, I know, where will today's kids see the WoO and their heroes? I'll counter that with most kids nowadays have cell phones, PS3 systems, and more video games than they should logically have. Now how does that make any more sense....If you're posting on here complaining about prices, you have the technology to check prices before traveling to the track...or you coul pick up the phone and check prices There's no point in claiming surprise and shock at ticket prices today......

And as Latsh pointed out, the dollar is worth less than ever before....so you're going to have to pay more

Chuck.....

As others have said. awesome post. I was curious where your finance degree is from? I have a business administration degree from Kutztown University, so I know a Finance degree is no joke. Probably the two toughest classes I took for my bachelor's degree were the Finance classes required in my program. Of course, it didn't help that all the Finance profs at KU only taught in English about every 10th word that came out of their mouths. LOL

I was also interested in your comments about season tickets at PSU. I have a co-worker that is a PSU alum, and he got me hooked on attending games there about 5-6 years ago. I usually attend two or three games each season, so I have been reading the PSU message boards with great interest the past several months about the price increases. Not saying you should or shouldn't renew your PSU season tickets, but it blows me away what fans in the SEC and other marquee programs across the country are paying for season tickets. Almost all the schools in the SEC require a donation of several thousand dollars just for the right to be able to purchase season tickets.

I also have to agree with Sprinter25 in that I don't understand this whole thread. The OP can come on here to complain about the ticket price, but could not go online to find out the price before the event? The Outlaws don't have anything to do with the ticket price, and I say all that as someone that is not even a fan of the Outlaws.

York College, and I started in accounting and went three years into it before realizing that I hated it and could never do it the rest of my life. Finance almost seemed simple in comparison, although my degree is officially a Bachelor's in BA, with dual minors in Financial Accounting and Finance and Economics. It's sounds impressive to some I guess, but it's really just the result of me never being able to make up my mind and eventually I needed to stop spending money and start making it. I'm 27 now and I still don't know what I REALLY want to do, I'm the sole materials manager/buyer for a small electronics company in the interim.

As for PSU, we had season tickets since 1978 (4 years before I was born) in my family. The tickets this year were going to have a face value of $60 I believe, PLUS a mandatory $400 donation on each seat, which we had 4 of. If there are 8 games this season, we would have been paying $110 a seat basically(not including the parking pass, thinking it's another $20/gm though). It's damn hard to get people to go along when they have to pay that much, so we usually ended up losing money on every ticket we didn't use ourselves. The thing is, you can by tickets from scalpers right at the door for $30-$40, so at two games, my dad and I sold our tickets at face value+ before hand, still went up, bought tickets for half price, and saved $100. We just decided that's what we'll do from here out, if there's a game coming up we REALLY want to see (OSU, MICH, ND, etc...), we have the connections we can still buy tickets from people at face value...but for 6 of the 8 games, we'll easily be able to buy tickets in the parking lot for $40 an hour before game time. If for some reason we can't, we have no problem watching them play from the Rathskeller downtown. I like football and all, but racing is the ONLY sport where I NEED to be there. You can't recreate the sights, sounds, and smells of a race on TV (probably because most of them are harmful for you and if they blew the smell of burnt fuel/brakes/clutch/tires around and played the TV at 120db people might not stay at the bar, haha)

I had to take Financial and Managerial Accounting for my degree. They weren't a piece of cake, but some smart professor selecting made them at least tolerable. The only "C" I ever got in college was in Financial Management, but there was definitely a language issue going on there.

I read the a couple different PSU boards fairly regularly, so I know what you are saying about buying tickets outside the stadium for all but the marquee games. I actually go on bus trips to PSU with a company out of Pottsville. Other than Michigan/Ohio St. games, the cost is usually $140-$180, and that includes the bus trip, a ticket and all the food/beer/soda you want. As soon as we arrive, the people running the trip set up a huge grill for burgers, hots dogs, sausage, etc. I am surprised more people have not dropped the season tickets, with the lousy schedule of recent years. But I guess are willing to pay through the nose for Alabama next year.

I agree with you guys on the race tickets being a deal. It is still a great family value entertainment. I have "no degree" but have many successful businesses including 2 racetracks. Neither could exist without my other businesses. Maybe we are not good at it, but we love it and will continue to provided family entertainment as long as we can hold out. More tracks have gone away the last few years because of the economy etc.

We all love dirt track racing and some love to bitch. I would rather pay 10.00 or 12.00 bucks for a regular Sat night show and or 30 for a big one than to pay 4.50 for a cup of coffee at Starbucks..

The saying is "If it's too loud you're too old". Well, the other saying is if you won't spend $15 for the Greatest Show on Dirt, then you're too cheap. Or, you don't live in the real world and can't understand what everything cost nowadays.

This thing's just turning into a pity party already....What the hell is it with some people nowadays, wanting everything given to them at a discount??? Don't understand the point of ranting on a message board about the price of race tickets. Call the track, maybe the'll give you an answer, or the simpathy you want. My hobby is attending races, so I budget accordingly and pay the price at the ticket window. If racing is your hobby and you find its too "expensive" maybe find another, more affordable one.

Knoxville Natioanls attendee since '95
Favorite Tracks...River Cities, Knoxville, Cedar Lake
Favorite Drivers...S.Kinser, T.Kaeding, K.Madsen, S.Smith
Proud Canadian 

From PA a lot of us say it, but that's part of what makes our racing so good, we get to see a two division show stacked full of talent for $15 or less, I think kids are free but I'm not sure since I don't have one. To be honest, I don't know how the tracks make any money some nights...

I don't have any kids (yet), but the idea of having a son or daughter that was excited to go to a sprint car race with me, especially at knoxville, would be priceless.

For those that honestly can't afford to go, I feel for you, I really do. But for every 10 people that claim they can't afford to go, maybe only 1 truly cannot afford it.

I'm not saying this is the situation here, but I am disgusted when I think about all the guys that claim they can't afford to take their kids to a WOO show but go out drinking a few nights a week or go to topless joints.

That may be true but by over charging for kids and even young adults race tracks are preventing their future customers from getting hooked on racing. This is slowly killing racetracks across the country and will continue at an even faster rate as ticket prices escalate.

If I ran a racetrack (I never will) anyone under the legal age to drive in whatever state the track was located in would be FREE unless I was regularly selling out every single seat at the track.

Ages 16 (or whatever the legal age to drive is) through 18 or so would be half price or less of regular admission.

If there was a college nearby I would make dang sure that I had cheap tickets available at the college offices.

Getting young people hooked on racing is what racing needs. All of the old farts are slowly dying off and they are not being replaced at a 1:1 ratio.

In order to get young people hooked they need to be AT THE TRACK, that won't happen if their parents can't afford to bring them along or as they get older (HS and College) can't afford tickets for themselves because of limited $ to spend.

Again if the track is sold out regularly by all means charge full price.

It's been years since I've seen a sold out grandstand at a dirt track including local WoO shows and the Knox Nationals.

DIDDO!

Best Post Yet!

Some people just don't get it!

But the point here, that some seem to be missing, is that a WoO race does not have to be where your kids get exposed to sprint car racing, Take them to a local short track for a regular program...the WoO is a premiere, showcase series that deserves to charge a premium for its product. And a WoO event is a "special" show that just doesn't come around every week. So a promoter has a right to charge the prices that he does....don't like the prices? Don't go...it's your choice. But everyone makes buying decisions based on price every day...they just don't get on message boards and bi*** about the prices.

Either that, or skip a few local shows, SAVE YOUR MONEY in order to buy WoO tickets. Just like you saved up to buy that 50 inch TV......

You don't buy your kid a Corvette for his first car, do you? Yoy buy him something safe, and sane, where he's not likey to do something stupid, and get a ticket - or worse.

Chuck.....

Back to Knoxville......okay, rain got them Saturday.

I don't know what their weather was like yesterday but it seems they could allow for a Sunday race when they have a weather problem on Saturday night.

Not only Knoxville but all the other tracks, too.

TSA...It's not a GROPE...it's a Freedom Pat!

Well Said!! As a fellow Penn Stater now living in the midwest, and with similar degrees, I believe you are totally correct.

I've been going to WOO races on a regular basis for the past five years or so and I think the ticket prices have changed very little in that time. I know for sure the purses for the drivers have not gone up during that time. As best I can remember, I paid at least $12 and probably $15 for each of my grandsons at the three WOO shows I took them to last summer. (they were six and nine at the time). Two weeks ago I went to a local track that was running a special 360 show along with their regular stock show. Ticket was $12 for a show with about six stock car classes and 23 sprint cars. Makes a full sprint show with the WOO at $30 a bargain in my mind.

Dirt track racing is by far the best entertainment value in America in my opinion. I know you can get cheap ass tickets to some low ranking minor league baseball game blah, blah, blah... but that is not the same excitement you get at a dirt track event. Out here in California as has been stated before, tickets to Outlaw shows are anywhere from $40-45 for just a regular WoO event. Gold Cup if I am not mistaken is even more. I don't mind one bit and actually think I should pay more so the racers could make a little more. I wouldn't bitch about it because bitching about it would make me look like a real jackass when the racers are risking their own lives and their family's financial future so I can cheer and drink beer while being highly entertained. Go to any pro sports event, kids are not any cheaper than adults and at big race events I feel it should be the same deal.

You want to introduce kids to racing? Do it locally at your weekly events that are wayyyyy beyond a bargain. They practically give tickets away in my estimation. I just went with some friends and my brother to an event down at Ventura Raceway, it was $14 and there was a lot of divisions all putting on good racing and the non winged sprint car main event was worth the $14 alone. If that kind of awesome weekly action doesn't hook a "kid" on racing nothing ever will.

Budget your money and hit the events you can afford, if you cant afford an event don't go but most of all don't bitch online about it!

"Winged or non-winged its all about 
the sprint cars for me!"
http://mattmusselldesigns.daportfolio.com

Fortunately at this point, I'm able to see most of the races I want to see and pay the going rate. I made the trip to Knoxville from California and had a blast. Got to see some racing, and see some friends that I only get to see once a year.

While I would have paid the $30whatever price for Friday's show, I got lucky and got a phone call saying get over here know and I can get you a ticket for $10. Worked out very well because I feel that was about what the Friday night show was worth.

matt

Well said, exactly how I feel, drivers and teams should be getting more $. Nobody can name another sport as exciting as sprint car racing period.

Grady

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