NASCAR at Indy

[richardwise]

I watched the Indy race yesterday as Jeff Gordon made history getting his 5th win there. I had always thought Rick Mears would, and was disappointed when he retired before he did. It was nice to see some good racing rather than the usual nascar crash fest. One thing that really stood out to me was all the empty seats. Maybe people think they get a better view from tv than the grandstands, and it sure is a lot cheaper.

[CAT-RN]

I guess the thing to remember about the Speedway track is the total number of seats. No doubt there was a massive number of empty seats. But probably still more in attendance that many of the other NASCAR tracks.

Russell

[Seasonal]

I watched the race via DVR on my 65inch. Took a little over an hour to watch with no commercials. Also glad that old Jeff won. Since he brought JJ to the team, championships have been harder to win for Jeff.

I live about 5 hours away and have looked at attending but good tickets are expensive and you can't take a nap when the race concludes. Lots of empty seats though.

[Cowracer]

Originally Posted by richardwise

One thing that really stood out to me was all the empty seats. Maybe people think they get a better view from tv than the grandstands, and it sure is a lot cheaper.

TV viewership is down too. NASCAR (the sanctioning body) has changed its focus over the years and the result is bland drivers, cookie cutter tracks, generic cars and an environment where non-driving wobble-heads like Danica Patrick and Dale Earnhardt Jr are somehow "stars".

NASCAR used to be focused on putting on races and keeping the fans happy. Now they are focused on nothing else other than keeping the corporations (sponsors) happy. In 84 when Ford came out with the Thunderbird Aero Coupe and Bill Elliot was kicking buttocks, GM cried foul, and Big Bill France said in plain english "Well, go and build a better car...". Nowadays if Ford wins two races in a row, Toyota cries and next thing you know, Ford is getting a quarter inch trimmed off its spoiler.

It amazes me how a major sponsor's driver can get a post race TV interview after finishing 23rd. And its always the same boring, pre-packaged statements..."Well we had the Thrashwell-Snailby Chevrolet running pretty good, and the crew worked hard all week to give us a great car, but we just ran out of laps before we could make our move..." Blech. Bland as hospital meatloaf.

I used to be a huge NASCAR (and racing in general) fan. But I gave up watching years ago. Last year, I was reminded why. Out of pure boredom, I turned on a race. The picture below show it all. My screen is 21 inches tall. And 10 of those inches were taken up with useless graphics, ads and bullcrap.



Nawp. I'm done with em.