Excitement Gone! (2 Viewers)

[.]

This thread amazes me, but is so predictable of this place. A bunch of fanboys who aren't willing to invest more than 130 bucks a year on a sport they claim to live and breath. And bitch about it when they do.

Poor, poor you all. You didn't get to see a 32 car field try and qualify. You didn't see any world records set. You didn't see your favorite driver win.

Ya know what? There are teams out there going to races. Living on the road. Chasing points. Scrounging parts. Eating fast food. Living 3 or 4 to a hotel room. And local guys who look for 2 or 3 races in the area they can afford to go to and still keep a day job and a house payment current.

You want to play? Go buy a full TA/FC operation. CHEAP. 175k for Vern Moats' operation. Turn key with spares. Hit the road, walk the walk, talk the talk. You wouldn't last 2 races. And that is a good setup.

Otherwise, sit on the couch, bitch about the NHRA being screwed by ESPN, and how you don't get to see as much as you want to see at a national event, and the fact they charge 5 bucks for a diet Coke that you don't need anyway. And then come post here about how fed up you are about the sport.

I swear, some of you who have never owned, invested in, driven, sponsored, or even had anything to do with an actual race car are some of the biggest whiners I have ever heard in my life.

 

[Toejam]

Last Sunday I stopped in at Quaker City, to see the Great Lakes Nostalgia Funny Cars run. It was entertaining and
brought back lots of memories. They also had some kind of Manual Transmission class running.
The biggest thing I noticed was, it looked like several Nursing Homes had a joint Field Trip. LOL
There was more of us there with white hair or no hair than the 30 and younger crowd.
I did this after going to Norwalk the Sunday before to the Lucas Div. 3 points meet.
Comparing the two? I had more fun at Quaker City.

I haven't been to a drag race in 10 years, but I still stop by the Mater.
1,000' racing, Force and DSR nepotism, the lack of old school independents that gave everyone a reason to root for the underdog kind of took away the lure from me.
I honestly do not see a future, and do not plan on attending any NHRA races unless my friends kidnap me.
It's not entirely the NHRA's fault, although they did pour the cement for their own shoes.
The lack of automotive interest from the younger generation is not there anymore. It kind of passed them by, and might not ever return.

You haven't been to an NHRA race in 10 years, and you want us to believe you know what is wrong with the Sport? Sorry, but anyone who doesn't invest a Dime in this sport isn't a reliable source IMO!

 

[.]

You haven't been to an NHRA race in 10 years, and you want us to believe you know what is wrong with the Sport? Sorry, but anyone who doesn't invest a Dime in this sport isn't a reliable source IMO!

Yeah, but you are the same one who calls people who actually have invested money into the sport liars and accuse them of stealing pictures off the internet to prove they owned and drove race cars.

Have you ever invested anything more than an admission ticket and lots of beer purchases? Investing in a plane ticket and admission is peanuts compared to actually putting money into a car.

And, actually, I think where you and I first go crossways of each other was when you bitched about how much it cost for you to park at Bandimere. Too much for you to pay for the walk you had to make if I recall it correctly.

 

[rckymtn3]

i shared on the FB Pages and with lewis Bloom this stat about PS at RP Currently

Best when read aloud in the Teacher's voice from a Peanuts cartoon. "Muaw mau ma mwah, mwah muaw ma-waa-waa...."

Man, back in the 80s we were thrilled to show up and watch them try to fill 8 car fields. Have things really changed that much?

Hmmm...I remember 26-28 Top Fuel and 22-24 Fuel Funnies at Pomona both ends. Not remembering a drought such as what you suggest, but then that was a few hot dogs ago.

Yet some feel the need to come in here and tell all of us how Shitty Drag racing is in 2014!

It's meant to counteract the cheerleaders. Without it, we would roll down the highway with the smooth, balanced ride of a clown car.

the lack of old school independents that gave everyone a reason to root for the underdog kind of took away the lure from me.

My favorite part as well. Big "works" or "factory" teams were nice, but what brought the excitement and flavor was that you might see some David and Goliath action going down.

 

[StockersRock]

I usually have ten or so people with me and most, don't want to bother watching anything other than Pro Mods on up including the alcohol cars.

While I'm not a big fan of the throttle stop classes, there are generally some good story lines to follow amongst the players, where they are in points, etc. That said, it's a shame to see so much value out of their tickets wasted. I am, however, totally baffled as to why even a casual fan would turn away from the alcohol cars, other than "they don't go 300mph".

 

[Paul]

ALKY'S ROCK!

 

[FABMAN]

Greg you touch the p@#$2d off nerve in Joe, I've never heard him talk to that level .

 

[Toejam]

Greg you touch the p@#$2d off nerve in Joe, I've never heard him talk to that level .

He has had a Hard-on for me for 10 years! He got kicked out of the Political forum now he is phycho!

 

[Toejam]

Such an angry drunk.......

Well I am a Social drinker, a Heavy Drinker/alcoholic I am not!

 

[None]

Such an angry drunk.......

Such an angry A$$ Whole.

 

[Toejam]

Joe im not in this I hope u meant Greg above
gk

Yes I was talkin about Moonbeam!

 

[paoldtimer]

Greg you touch the p@#$2d off nerve in Joe, I've never heard him talk to that level .

Lots of history there...this is mild.

 

[Nick Name]

I haven't been to a drag race in 10 years, but I still stop by the Mater.
1,000' racing, Force and DSR nepotism, the lack of old school independents that gave everyone a reason to root for the underdog kind of took away the lure from me.
I honestly do not see a future, and do not plan on attending any NHRA races unless my friends kidnap me.
It's not entirely the NHRA's fault, although they did pour the cement for their own shoes.
The lack of automotive interest from the younger generation is not there anymore. It kind of passed them by, and might not ever return.

George;
You need to attend some drifting events, or all motorcycle drag races, and Supercross if you think there is a lack of interest in motorsports in the younger generation. It's there a bunch. They just don't like what we liked. Big show NHRA racing is not a very fan friendly experience.

 

[Pete]

This thread amazes me, but is so predictable of this place. A bunch of fanboys who aren't willing to invest more than 130 bucks a year on a sport they claim to live and breath. And bitch about it when they do.

Poor, poor you all. You didn't get to see a 32 car field try and qualify. You didn't see any world records set. You didn't see your favorite driver win.

Ya know what? There are teams out there going to races. Living on the road. Chasing points. Scrounging parts. Eating fast food. Living 3 or 4 to a hotel room. And local guys who look for 2 or 3 races in the area they can afford to go to and still keep a day job and a house payment current.

You want to play? Go buy a full TA/FC operation. CHEAP. 175k for Vern Moats' operation. Turn key with spares. Hit the road, walk the walk, talk the talk. You wouldn't last 2 races. And that is a good setup.

Otherwise, sit on the couch, bitch about the NHRA being screwed by ESPN, and how you don't get to see as much as you want to see at a national event, and the fact they charge 5 bucks for a diet Coke that you don't need anyway. And then come post here about how fed up you are about the sport.

I swear, some of you who have never owned, invested in, driven, sponsored, or even had anything to do with an actual race car are some of the biggest whiners I have ever heard in my life.

Greg, I respect your opinion on the subject. I have been racing for 35 years and had the misfortune of losing my whole operation back in '08. I have been an NHRA member and attended multiple nationals, divisionals and Opens my whole 'career'.
I have loyally bled NHRA all of my years involved, but in the past 3-4 years the twinkle has been lost a bit.
I feel I'm a purist and dont like 1000', 85 then 90%, rev limiters and especially the outrageous costs of running a Pro team. BUT, I overlook these sore spots because Ive loved the sport. There has been a tremendous trickle down effect on ALL classes, so instead of adjusting or requiring real limitations (head flow, blower and/or tire size) to bring the operating costs down for everyone, they keep driving teams off the track and in the end, will end up driving the sport out of business.

THATS what I am tired of. Its broken and its their job to fix it.

 

[Jeff]

There are very few "professional sports" that truly have a broad fan age demographic. While I greatly enjoy Motocross, it's older generation is at least 10 years older than me. From a fan perspective it and Monster Trucks are the young person's "motorsport" (note that I can't call Monster Trucks professional, especially with that Feld now owns all of the trucks).

I think the NHRA needs to abandon trying to entertain the 20 to 30 year old segment for now, and focus on families and long time fans. Yes, that rose will eventually fade but for now its the best thing we've got and the professional show needs to be tweaked for that fan.

NHRA will never die as a participatory sport, but as a fan based professional sport its going to go through a big cycle as the baby boomers age. We see this in many sports now, I think it's impossible to "fix" but it can be managed better than it appears to be.

I do thank the NHRA for making the audiocast, and the app much better this year. They need to do more, and they really need to tweak the live timing on the app .... the scrolling numbers are a joke and the full timesheet needs to be easily seen at the same time as the driver names. I also think it needs to be easy for a fan to take a ride in a two seat drag car in close proximity to the time the race occurs .... give the press (free) and fans (paid) a feel for a burn out and 5 second 1/8th mile run, and then show em the numbers for the pro's.

It seems like to many people think it is someone else's problem to create a home run fix. I don't think that is in the cards.

 

[NYNitro86]

There are very few "professional sports" that truly have a broad fan age demographic. While I greatly enjoy Motocross, it's older generation is at least 10 years older than me. From a fan perspective it and Monster Trucks are the young person's "motorsport" (note that I can't call Monster Trucks professional, especially with that Feld now owns all of the trucks).

I thought Jim Kohler's team (Avenger, Brutus etc) wasn't owned by Feld.

 

[FABMAN]

He has had a Hard-on for me for 10 years! He got kicked out of the Political forum now he is phycho!

Joe, what Political forum are you talking about, is it part of the mater site.

 

[George.]

T

You haven't been to an NHRA race in 10 years, and you want us to believe you know what is wrong with the Sport? Sorry, but anyone who doesn't invest a Dime in this sport isn't a reliable source IMO!

I'm offering my views and opinions. Trust me, I could care less if you think my opinion carries weight, or is unreliable.

My first ever NHRA race was the 82' Springs where Shirley took out Lucielle Lee. I remember Shirl being very vocal on how the TR-3 resin Glaze team was swapping out Jeb's engine into Lee's car. Couple that with a Lee Sheppard and Frank Hawley tearing the place up. It was a show that left you wanting to be involved, and the excitement wave rode high for over a decade. Big, Joe, Dick, Kenny, Tony Christian's personality, Tim Grose's grass roots efforts, Bob Gotschalk burning up every shut down area, Bob and Warren.. Sorry if I yawn over todays "stars" running 1,000 ' of sac religious drag racing. I just can't seem to respect the Force "nail polish and juicy purse" scene after witnessing the 70's-90's scene of real racers.
I attended several races a year, right up to the late 90's. I think I witnessed my fair share of history, and history makers on the quarter mile..

Dude, I'm 55. When someone rides the golden years of drag racing like I did, and then witnesses the total distruction of the Spirit of the NHRA pro classes, and sees the BS that makes up the pro class scene today, I would rather watch re-runs of the old Diamond P classics.

 

[George.]

George;
You need to attend some drifting events, or all motorcycle drag races, and Supercross if you think there is a lack of interest in motorsports in the younger generation. It's there a bunch. They just don't like what we liked. Big show NHRA racing is not a very fan friendly experience.

I think the older generation grew up around cars. Used cars that needed to be fixed, which led to engine work, and then finally a little competition. That seed that used to be planted in everyone naturally isn't there anymore because cars have changed. Heck, I wonder if my son knows how to check the oil in his Liberty. I know my daughter doesn't. I've taken him to drag races when he was a kid, and he just couldn't relate because there was no need to work on vehicles..

Hindsight is always 20-20, but I believe the first bad move of the NHRA was to allow multi car owners to place more than one team car in a single class. Al Hofmann had it right when he told Force to lose the second car. By allowing more than a single team car in one class, it shut out what made the NHRA special, and that was the independent.
Now, nepotism reigns supreme, and the NHRA stands are empty.
Coincidence?

 

[Toejam]

T

I'm offering my views and opinions. Trust me, I could care less if you think my opinion carries weight, or is unreliable.

My first ever NHRA race was the 82' Springs where Shirley took out Lucielle Lee. I remember Shirl being very vocal on how the TR-3 resin Glaze team was swapping out Jeb's engine into Lee's car. Couple that with a Lee Sheppard and Frank Hawley tearing the place up. It was a show that left you wanting to be involved, and the excitement wave rode high for over a decade. Big, Joe, Dick, Kenny, Tony Christian's personality, Tim Grose's grass roots efforts, Bob Gotschalk burning up every shut down area, Bob and Warren.. Sorry if I yawn over todays "stars" running 1,000 ' of sac religious drag racing. I just can't seem to respect the Force "nail polish and juicy purse" scene after witnessing the 70's-90's scene of real racers.
I attended several races a year, right up to the late 90's. I think I witnessed my fair share of history, and history makers on the quarter mile..

Dude, I'm 55. When someone rides the golden years of drag racing like I did, and then witnesses the total distruction of the Spirit of the NHRA pro classes, and sees the BS that makes up the pro class scene today, I would rather watch re-runs of the old Diamond P classics.

Well I guess according to you the sport is finished, and there is nothing either one of us can do about it! Guess I can count you in the "It's all over" crowd!