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Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,354
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Yes, F1 Fans, Kimi is going to be running Nascar at the Glen and I am hoping he does reasonably well. It would be fun to have the " Flying Finn " running something in the US , as we know we would get some good copy during the race or afterwards with his interviews!
 

TMSBOSS

Spending my pension on car parts and track fees.
7,530
5,247
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Illinois
Disagree. But then again, you may have been to more NASCAR races than I have.
The new Fan Center at Dega is amazing. Daytona is a great venue. Kansas is ok, hey it’s Kansas, do you expect fireworks and a parade? Chicagoland was convenient and a good show. Charlotte is amazing for NASCAR, I’m not sold on the Ford school being there.
l‘ve never “Felt the Hate” at a NASCAR event.
YMMV.
When interviewed at The Glen Kimi stated that the one thing that stands out to him is the relaxed family atmosphere. He could be wrong, I guess.
Fan numbers are up.
Team investment is up
Sponsor investment is up.
Diversity is up.

Got to Hate that kind of Hate. Lol.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,354
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
The funny thing is friends in Europe love and respect Nascar, and with some of the guys coming over from Europe and beyond it shows to me they also respect this type of racing. I am glad to see after Covid numbers are up in IMSA, World Challenge, Nascar, F1 and more. They have all had to change due to the Pandemic , but they have also had to change due to a new spectator, who seems to have a shorter attention span. I know I am watching more NASCAR with the addition of more Road Courses and the two races at Watkins Glen this weekend will be fun to watch ----- not spoiling the Xfinity race in case someone has it taped.
 

Dave_W

Cones - not just for ice cream
984
1,277
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Connecticut
Not only Kimi, but Mike Rockenfeller and Joey Hand as other "road course ringers." I remember Joey for having the most spectacular crash I've ever seen. I think he said he one of his driving shoes came off during the crash and he never found it.
 
6,362
8,185
If all is looking up then why are NASCAR tracks pulling seats?
The heyday was about 1985 to 2010.
Glad to see some road course guys in there, I'm so tired of being asked what NASCAR team I work for.
 

JDee

Ancient Racer
1,797
2,001
Exp. Type
W2W Racing
Exp. Level
20+ Years
5 miles from Mosport
I dunno, seems like most of the seats were taken out years ago, but Marty is pulling some this year for a "beautification project". They're just accepting the reality that the young generations don't give a chit about racing.
I suppose at some point in time this sport is dead, which is too bad, but I doubt I'll be around to see it. So I'll enjoy what we've got while we've got it.
Despite all the bullhist with Nascar (OK boys, let's just pick us a winner here in our closed off "inspection tent". Who did we say gets the big motor this week? LOL!!) I still enjoy that style of racing. I'll pretty much watch any kind of 4 wheel internal combustion racing, Formula E is something I cannot stand, those whizzer cars are just too quiet.
I actually dread the thought of having to buy an electric car, though given my age I might just escape that punishment.....
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,354
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
I think with the ton of video game choices and soon Metaverse adventures it will be a trick to get some of the younger generation to stay as interested in Racing as we are. The choices for outside entertainment are double what we had and unlike so many of us on here, we did not have many things to distract us from a Football, Baseball, or Basketball game for instance. Going to a Sports Channel today there are so many things to watch or go to it is no wonder and to that end we have seen Nascar change, F1 change, IMSA, etc. It seems like it kind of goes in cycles and there has been a resurgence in folks watching Sports Car racing whereas NASCAR has lost viewers and I credit a lot of that to Dr. Panoz who turned Le Petite Lemans into a new spectacle along with working to marry European racing with that in the US. It took some time and now many races have concerts, carnivals, etc. with the races and it keeps folks entertained throughtout the day and night. We are seeing many venues experience returns to normal attendance with changes to attract a new audience seems to be working. Like everything else in the World life can not stay static, and though like JDee and Blacksheep, I wish the current generations could enjoy the basic spectacle more, I have learned to understand why they view it so differently than we do . Heck, they have already run the entire race on their video games and it only took an hour, tough to sit for 4-5 hrs. when there are so many quick choices for fun and leisure. We had only a few things to watch or do, I can't even count all the sports and activities one can watch or participate in today.
 
6,362
8,185
You can't even got a lot of zoomers to show up for work, do you think they'd want to spend their leisure time actually sweating, in competition with someone else and no participation trophies?.
I've always said that men love to build and create, when their life is over, they want to feel that they left some type of mark on society, from a skyscraper to temperature/ pressure curves(lol). Real men want to create. Sadly, we've factored out masculinity in our society, how many comic strip or comedy shows show the dad as the idiot fall guy?
Boys need to be boys, men need to be men, sure there are a few exceptions
( Sarah Fisher comes to mind) But in general we've managed to wussify the zoomer generation. It's not their fault, you and I let it happen, we've all bought in to this toxic masculinity BS.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,354
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Must be a Florida thing, here in the Midwest we still have a lot of guys that are hands on, and very pro building, adjusting, etc. but then we are in boring land, where folks have had to make their own entertainment for years, ha. Either way, understanding where you are coming from, but honestly we don't see much of that in Nebraska, though like everywhere else there are getting to be more and more activities and things to occupy folks minds and time. My grandson is 6 and all he wants to discuss is Monster trucks, racing and dinosaurs, so I have a good feeling he will do just fine.

No argument it is getting harder to get folks to work, but honestly that really started over 20 years ago. I do think, like you, that we have a little bit of ourselves to blame for that. Funny, Nebraska gets a lot of jokes done about it, but we are consistently one of the top 2-3 States with the lowest unemployment. We had been Number 1 and all of a sudden it is news that new are now only #2. I always loved that when I was selling as it seemed folks cherished their cars, it was a payment they never missed, so we had little trouble getting customers financed compared to some areas of the US.
 
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54
60
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
Under 3 Years
Gibsonia, PA
Bill, I think you touched on the different way in which each generation experiences the world. I can recall a brief, contentious conversation I had many years ago when my son who blurted out during a discussion about driving skill, that with all the time he was spending on his racing video game, it would be just like the real thing...or something to that effect. To which I replied...you can probably guess. So, I in summary to his statement, I replied that too many environmentally/sensory feedback inputs were missing for this to be so.

It wasn't until many years later and after he'd experienced many miles really driving that he conceded. I can understand where his earlier statement came from though. We don't know, what we don't know. We old farts didn't have these other stimuli when we were their ages, to interfere, or should I say "add" to experiences. We just did the "thing", whatever it was.

Having said this, today many amateur and pro drivers use simulators in the off season, or to work on improving certain aspects of their skill set. The difference is that simulators in this example are additive to the actual experience of driving or racing. So, that the other "real world" experience is already part of this supportive technology, and not the other way around.
 

TMSBOSS

Spending my pension on car parts and track fees.
7,530
5,247
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Illinois
If all is looking up then why are NASCAR tracks pulling seats?
The heyday was about 1985 to 2010.
Glad to see some road course guys in there, I'm so tired of being asked what NASCAR team I work for.
Why would anyone pull seats? simply roping them off would seem like the best answer. Except, State and local governments are taxing the tracks by the seat. The state taxed the seats, full or empty rain of shine.

The majority of NASCAR, IMSA, Indy and F1 fans have Never been to a race. With numbers down, pre covid, tracks had to make a hard choice, pay taxes on empty seats or tear down seats. It did not get any better during Covid. Now with attendance increasing at all the tracks, some are regretting their choice.

Do folks ask you what NASCAR team you work for because they have never heard of NASCAR? food for thought.
 
6,362
8,185
Why would anyone pull seats? simply roping them off would seem like the best answer. Except, State and local governments are taxing the tracks by the seat. The state taxed the seats, full or empty rain of shine.

The majority of NASCAR, IMSA, Indy and F1 fans have Never been to a race. With numbers down, pre covid, tracks had to make a hard choice, pay taxes on empty seats or tear down seats. It did not get any better during Covid. Now with attendance increasing at all the tracks, some are regretting their choice.

Do folks ask you what NASCAR team you work for because they have never heard of NASCAR? food for thought.
Oh that's all they've heard of, but most of those asking are in their late 30s, early 40s, no one else even knows about auto racing
 
225
177
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
Under 3 Years
Colorado Springs
Bill, I think you touched on the different way in which each generation experiences the world. I can recall a brief, contentious conversation I had many years ago when my son who blurted out during a discussion about driving skill, that with all the time he was spending on his racing video game, it would be just like the real thing...or something to that effect. To which I replied...you can probably guess. So, I in summary to his statement, I replied that too many environmentally/sensory feedback inputs were missing for this to be so.

It wasn't until many years later and after he'd experienced many miles really driving that he conceded. I can understand where his earlier statement came from though. We don't know, what we don't know. We old farts didn't have these other stimuli when we were their ages, to interfere, or should I say "add" to experiences. We just did the "thing", whatever it was.

Having said this, today many amateur and pro drivers use simulators in the off season, or to work on improving certain aspects of their skill set. The difference is that simulators in this example are additive to the actual experience of driving or racing. So, that the other "real world" experience is already part of this supportive technology, and not the other way around.
It has it's place, but it's not the same. The one thing you didn't mention was the risk. Its easy to be a video game hero when you crash and just start over. When you crash in the real world, risk injury / death and expenses, it's completely different.
I think with the ton of video game choices and soon Metaverse adventures it will be a trick to get some of the younger generation to stay as interested in Racing as we are. The choices for outside entertainment are double what we had and unlike so many of us on here, we did not have many things to distract us from a Football, Baseball, or Basketball game for instance. Going to a Sports Channel today there are so many things to watch or go to it is no wonder and to that end we have seen Nascar change, F1 change, IMSA, etc. It seems like it kind of goes in cycles and there has been a resurgence in folks watching Sports Car racing whereas NASCAR has lost viewers and I credit a lot of that to Dr. Panoz who turned Le Petite Lemans into a new spectacle along with working to marry European racing with that in the US. It took some time and now many races have concerts, carnivals, etc. with the races and it keeps folks entertained throughtout the day and night. We are seeing many venues experience returns to normal attendance with changes to attract a new audience seems to be working. Like everything else in the World life can not stay static, and though like JDee and Blacksheep, I wish the current generations could enjoy the basic spectacle more, I have learned to understand why they view it so differently than we do . Heck, they have already run the entire race on their video games and it only took an hour, tough to sit for 4-5 hrs. when there are so many quick choices for fun and leisure. We had only a few things to watch or do, I can't even count all the sports and activities one can watch or participate in today.


If you'd have told me when I started playing video games as a kid, that I could make a career out of it, I'd have thought you were crazy as a sprayed roach. But here we are, folks have professional, paying jobs playing video games. That are watched by hundreds of thousands of people. That I don't "get it" is irrelevant, plenty of people do.
 

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