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It never fails.....
- Thread starter Toejam
- Start date
vegasnitro
Nitro Member
Skip Phoenix ... The March Meet is better.
my friends call me Zappy
Nitro Member
Chris, Randy, are they better than Bowling Green?? (NHRR)
RAPID
Nitro Member
Yes, probably mostly because it is Bakersfield. But there are a TON more Nitro cars show up there than in Bowling Green.
The 1st time I was there there were 88-Nitro cars all running at the same time in the Cacklefest. Right after they push started and drove right in front of the stands. It was very cool!!!
Rapid
4g63rwd
Nitro Member
I can help you guys with some "from the younger eyes" perspective of the fans of our sport. I can tell you guys right now, most young fans are NEVER EVER going to go to any NHRA national events. And it's NOT because they're not interested in cars! Stop by your local track on a Friday night and see who's there and what's being watched go down the track. The younger fans are not interested in the NHRA big show for the following reasons:
Drivers and car owners are WAY too old! Who wants to see someone their grandparent's age going down the track every pass? They can't identify with old millionaires driving racecars who say the same thing after EVERY round!
Racecar identity: Each and every car looks the same in Funny Car (if you took their livery away). NONE of them look like an actual Dodge, Chevy, Ford or Toyota of ANY sort!! Same thing in Pro Stock to a degree. Please name me ONE car in the last 15 years that rolled off the assembly with twin carburetors and 500 cubic inch engines? How about just ONE carburetor? ZERO!!!
Cost: Nitro isn't nearly as important as you guys think it is to lots of young fans. Check out some of the crowds at some of the thrill shows that feature Jet cars, Pro Mods, Wheelstanders, Outlaw 10.5, Outlaw Drag Radial, X275, and on down. You're getting all those cars (most of which look like the car it is intended to look like) for $20-$25. There are some pretty young drivers in some of these classes, and young people often times identify with other young people.
I'll help you guys with what it seems the young fan DOES want to see at the track:
Fast Imports: Of course I'm biased, but we usually have decent crowds at our events.
Outlaw 10.5, Pro Mod, X275, Ultra Street, True Street, etc: Go to the Yellow Bullet Nationals in 2 weeks, I'm pretty sure nobody will be missing the NHRA big show there when Tim Lynch, Frank Soldridge, T.J.Kasper, etc will be there. And almost all 1/8 mile racing.
Import vs. Domestic: Self explanatory. HUGE draws most of the time.
And finally.....what the young kiddies LOVE to watch lately.......GRUDGE RACING!!!! For some reason, the grudge racing scene has picked up significantly. Lots of drama, trash talking, and money changing hands. And these cars are all very plain looking and look like something that 2 or 3 buddies can build and maintain in a garage with everyone pitching in a couple of dollars.
Don't trust my word.....just take a look at what events are drawing big crowds. For two days of exciting racing, it costs $45 to watch with free parking. NHRA, it costs $110 for Saturday and Sunday plus $10 per day to park. They'd rather catch it online or watch the miserable ESPN broadcast.
Drivers and car owners are WAY too old! Who wants to see someone their grandparent's age going down the track every pass? They can't identify with old millionaires driving racecars who say the same thing after EVERY round!
Racecar identity: Each and every car looks the same in Funny Car (if you took their livery away). NONE of them look like an actual Dodge, Chevy, Ford or Toyota of ANY sort!! Same thing in Pro Stock to a degree. Please name me ONE car in the last 15 years that rolled off the assembly with twin carburetors and 500 cubic inch engines? How about just ONE carburetor? ZERO!!!
Cost: Nitro isn't nearly as important as you guys think it is to lots of young fans. Check out some of the crowds at some of the thrill shows that feature Jet cars, Pro Mods, Wheelstanders, Outlaw 10.5, Outlaw Drag Radial, X275, and on down. You're getting all those cars (most of which look like the car it is intended to look like) for $20-$25. There are some pretty young drivers in some of these classes, and young people often times identify with other young people.
I'll help you guys with what it seems the young fan DOES want to see at the track:
Fast Imports: Of course I'm biased, but we usually have decent crowds at our events.
Outlaw 10.5, Pro Mod, X275, Ultra Street, True Street, etc: Go to the Yellow Bullet Nationals in 2 weeks, I'm pretty sure nobody will be missing the NHRA big show there when Tim Lynch, Frank Soldridge, T.J.Kasper, etc will be there. And almost all 1/8 mile racing.
Import vs. Domestic: Self explanatory. HUGE draws most of the time.
And finally.....what the young kiddies LOVE to watch lately.......GRUDGE RACING!!!! For some reason, the grudge racing scene has picked up significantly. Lots of drama, trash talking, and money changing hands. And these cars are all very plain looking and look like something that 2 or 3 buddies can build and maintain in a garage with everyone pitching in a couple of dollars.
Don't trust my word.....just take a look at what events are drawing big crowds. For two days of exciting racing, it costs $45 to watch with free parking. NHRA, it costs $110 for Saturday and Sunday plus $10 per day to park. They'd rather catch it online or watch the miserable ESPN broadcast.
Joe,
Listen to Chris ^^^^^Just saying.
March Meet or CHHR in Bakersfield have to be experienced to be believed.
Rapid
I've heard March meet is better than CHRR!
Re: "I can help you guys with some "from the younger eyes" perspective of the fans of our sport. I can tell you guys right now, most young fans are NEVER EVER going to go to any NHRA national events. And it's NOT because they're not interested in cars!"
I think your post is dead right!
I think your post is dead right!
It's basic "Milking the Diehards"
And really I see more when the Monster Trucks are there as opposed to Nitro. Simple Big Truck Crushing cars and doing tricks. They like that more than Top Fuel. Especially when one is a School Bus which Kids can relate to.
And this year NASCAR has put on some doozies that I could take a nap and not miss anything
As I might have said before. going to the Summernationals this year was dreck. 90* temps for 4 days guaranteed no standout performances No Track records or anything. Then Sunday, Those who won was just "Yawn" I immediately left the track I just was so disgusted with the showing. Next year better have a return to normalcy.
I agree with the sport compacts as well.
Atco's Pan American Nationals is the biggest of them all.
This weekend is Honda Day at Englishtown and while there's some disputes between the Promoter & some of the "Team USA" racers (with the other events the promoter runs at RP). Still a HUGE Turnout.
I wish I could go to the Latin American Sport Compacts 2 at MG but that's the weekend of the RP LODRS race.
With NHRA doing Unleashed, it's very underachieving. Same with the Hot Rod Heritage. Alot of it is catering to certain regions. Hot Rod Heritage is west, once in a while it's outside it like Epping next month.
I scratch my head over all this.
I'd like to see more Team PR & Team USA Sport Compact guys, seeing them at the shakedown 2 years ago was crazy. And they have identities. El Humilde is a red 72 Corolla from PR with Team La Familia and "Oso Tech" Driven by Jorge "Oso" Juarbe. Also from Team La Familia is Jorge Lazcano and his 06 Nissan 350Z. In the US you have PepeLoco based out of NJ with Carlos Montano and his new machine and He and Juarbe are gonna have a match race at Orlando in September;
Agite Pepe Loco Vs El Humilde Septiembre 14 @ Orlando Speed World - YouTube
Also La Otra Grey 70 Toyota Starlet based out of Florida driven by Edwin Burgos is the fastest Rotor Motor Sport Compact.
I was always critical of Sport Compacts because of Fast & the Furious. But with the Team PR Vs Team USA Sport Compacts, Those are what's great.
4g63rwd
Nitro Member
A few things to help you out with here.....we were at the Pan Americans. We didn't make Team USA, but still represented well. And the crowd was one of the most spirited and enthused crowds you're ever gonna see. And it was packed to the gills, as it always is every year. We've been having issues with the promoter at Englishtown for years now....it just all started to boil over this year. We've boycotted events at Englishtown because of it. We've formed the USA Sport Compact Association, and our purses have gone up, and our entry fees have gone down. And we've added A LOT more races. We'll be at Latin American Sport Compacts at Maple Grove, along with 2 days worth of the Northeast Outlaw Pro Mod Association, which I can't WAIT to be a part of! Sport Compacts and Pro Mods at the same event....who woulda thunk it??? Humilde is a 1986 Corolla, not a 72. MY car in my avatar is a 1971, so that will give you an idea of the differences in years. La Otra is a 1981 Starlet, not a 70. Starlets didn't come out till 1981 in the US.
Rob, I'm glad we have you as a fan of our version of drag racing! Please don't hesitate to stop by at one of our next events coming up if you can make it out!!
I have been saying that for 10 years and get laughed at Everytime! But...how many people you know Shawn that are fans of Courtney, Morgan Lucas or Vince Nobile? Those are the demo's you speak of right?
I got a little confused with El Humilde & La otra. I know Carlos Montano/Pepe Loco is a part of USA Sport Compacts along with Luis Corujo & Manny Cruz.
I also agree.
When I see older retread guys who come back like TJ of Dixon, I cringe. Not because they aren't great drivers who may deserve all of the respect in the world, but just who are they pulling "in" from the outside? Grandpa?
As Shawn pointed out, the sport simply has NOT evolved either. Imports are hot, and what does the NHRA use for an import Toyota body? Something that resembles a combo of a paper air plane and a shoe box. Time to take a big look at Pro Stock and align the cars to todays future generation's taste.
FC138fan
Nitro Member
Here's my selfish point of view - I'd rather see the pro stock class die then see it reverted to a stock class. Isn't that what the sportsman ranks are for? Isn't there a class called Stock? Peek at the stands when the Stock class is running... its empty and the people that are there are the same ol grey hairs that have no interest if they were tricked out fast and furious cars.
Fuel FC in my opinion can use some adjustments, but I don't really have a problem with them looking like a paper airplane and shoebox, so long as it sounds like a Nitro FC and runs like a Nitro FC. They are monsters... they should look like a stock car freaked out on steroids (and they do).
I've never been to an import race, and I'll never go to one.. this is because it doesn't interest me. People go to the big show because it's the BIG SHOW, the fastest, the loudest, the superstars of the strip. I'll ride this thing to the ground and hope that it lives on till I'm too old to attend... because it's likely that I will be the last one in my family tree that will shell out the cash to attend... and thats OK with me because if my children don't want to go then whether the NHRA is around after my generation is irrelevant.
BIR one week! Im so stoked!
mick
Nitro Member
nick, be up by the starting line sat. morning around 9am for first round
of stock, great way to start the day
....great cars & drivers of all ages
FC138fan
Nitro Member
nick, be up by the starting line sat. morning around 9am for first round
of stock, great way to start the day
Admittedly, I'm not a huge car guy. I just don't have the time, and haven't had the time to educate myself enough on it to really get into it. I don't know the difference between chrysler hemi's, chevy big blocks, small blocks etc. etc. So when someone running a whaver year hemi with so and so carbs and whatever setup runs a certain number... I don't have the knowledge as to whether it was impressive or not. It would be cool if I did, but I'm not going to sit there and pretend I know what's going on. The cars look and sound cool, but I'd be sitting there just for the show. If I'm there for a show, I'm going to hit up pit row...
Growing up as a teenager it was about girls. And I got girls through social media (I was on the cutting edge I guess) not through driving my hot rod down the strip to the local hang out. Late teens early 20's it was about getting an education, late 20's and now early 30's its about family.
And big as the disconnect was for me and my generation between my real life and the drags, I'm still attending the event. I think my connection to the drag races stems from my dad.. who grew up with tooling around with cars and that serious connection. He went to the races, so I went to the races. I didn't grow up tuning my own car, or doing any real mechanic work or racing, but I still love the drags.
As the crowds get smaller and smaller, the exposure to the younger generation to the sport (usually through the father exposing their children to it) is also getting smaller and smaller. Where my dad and several of his friends were going to events in the 70's (and of those several friends, say five of them have kids, and of those five, four of them get exposed to the drags - me being one of them), now only 4 are attending in this generation... of that 4 the number of people interested in NHRA is less, so they end up going to the race with one friend (like me). Of the two of us, maybe only one of us have kids who will go to the races when they're old enough, so now the next generation, only one person is going, and they're going alone because the number of NHRA fans is so slim. The above scenerio is just another factor why the NHRA might be doomed, and really theres nothing we can do about it except adapt the sport so that it can hang around a bit longer.
Here's my selfish point of view - I'd rather see the pro stock class die then see it reverted to a stock class. Isn't that what the sportsman ranks are for? Isn't there a class called Stock? Peek at the stands when the Stock class is running... its empty and the people that are there are the same ol grey hairs that have no interest if they were tricked out fast and furious cars.
Fuel FC in my opinion can use some adjustments, but I don't really have a problem with them looking like a paper airplane and shoebox, so long as it sounds like a Nitro FC and runs like a Nitro FC. They are monsters... they should look like a stock car freaked out on steroids (and they do).
I've never been to an import race, and I'll never go to one.. this is because it doesn't interest me. People go to the big show because it's the BIG SHOW, the fastest, the loudest, the superstars of the strip. I'll ride this thing to the ground and hope that it lives on till I'm too old to attend... because it's likely that I will be the last one in my family tree that will shell out the cash to attend... and thats OK with me because if my children don't want to go then whether the NHRA is around after my generation is irrelevant.
BIR one week! Im so stoked!
Nick, I can't disagree with your feelings. I'm 54, and I would rather sit in a dentists chair and have a root canal than watch a 4 banger import race.
But, it's no longer about our generation. The NHRA must view the sport through the eyes of the up and coming generation in order to be viable in 15 years.
That's my point. And if the next generation wants to see an import Pro Stocker run against a GM, then that's where the sport should be moving towards, and fast..
I do disagree with the FC class. The bodies look hideous to my kids. 23-18 years old. There are no stock lines remotely close to an automobile. Realize that kids don't get that.
flapjack
Nitro Member
I know of a few people younger than me (by ten or more years, and I'm 42) who are excited by NHRA drag racing based on what I've told them. I am looking forward to actually introducing them to the sport in person. I tend to think that it not only is it on the NHRA to re-invigorate the sport, but on us, as fans, to introduce the younger generation to the sport.
But then I am dealing with people who are already technically inclined and can appreciate the sport for what it is. That said, I've taken my nephews to the races and they liked it, even though they are not gear heads, but I haven't been able to take them since 2010. Being in Rhode Island and my family in Kansas City makes Topeka the only viable alternative, and the last few years have been taken up by family activities. My brother-in-law is always game to go, since he is a mechanic and automobile inclined. I look forward to the day when he and I can take his sons to the races.
But then I am dealing with people who are already technically inclined and can appreciate the sport for what it is. That said, I've taken my nephews to the races and they liked it, even though they are not gear heads, but I haven't been able to take them since 2010. Being in Rhode Island and my family in Kansas City makes Topeka the only viable alternative, and the last few years have been taken up by family activities. My brother-in-law is always game to go, since he is a mechanic and automobile inclined. I look forward to the day when he and I can take his sons to the races.
Larry jr.
Nitro Member
I agree with you to a point, with that being said .
Out here...... I mean out west we have several different typs of racing, like the Lucas Off Road series,and trophy truck off road racing, both huge in this area, and then the Baja stuff in San Diego and Mexico..
.
We also have five NHRA big show races with in driving distance, Not counting Denver and Seattle, that would be seven.
We also have one of the oldest and biggest Indy Car race , and in fact the oldest street race for the Indy Cars, The Long Beach Prand Prix, That race is a must attend for any racer. We also have a huge Drift crowd here as well. Also drag boats and every type of round track racing there is.
Nostalgia drag racing was born out here and is HUGE, need I say more on that subject.
But as I mentioned, off road is the big thing out here where I live right now.
The problem with drag racing is drag racers, we tend to promote ourselves not our sport,
We also have tendancy to parade around telling eveyone just how great we all think we are with seeminly little reguard for anyone but oneself, and very little regaurd for the people who put on the "shows"' and for the paying fan who busts they're butt to come out and support us.
Now with our the support of the promoter and the fan, were would the racer be?
I'll tell you where, sitting right here on his or her butt on the internet complaining about the very people who make they're whole lifestyle possible.
Ha , bet you didn't think I could say that did you, now that I have I challenge you all , being someone who came from the WE Make Our Living Racing a Funny Car era, Not I own 4 F/C teams and Three T/F teams and thank the lord for all my sponsors and brands of what ever is this years sport drink, I have news for you, those guys are the ones keeping it alive.
Go to the races, if the races suck go some more if they still suck go some more, if they still suck keep going untill they don't, because my fellow races and all you fans if you stop going eventualy IT WILL STOP and will really Suck.
You want to see 6 second 10/5 tire guys race ? go to the races, you want to see imports go into the 5.'s go to the races , you want to see jets go to the races.
Build a car and go race it, any car its drag racing it don't matter run what you brung.
If you can't afford to go to the races or race one yourself find someone with a race car and help them so you can go to the races.
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