NASCAR vs. NHRA (version 3,000,000) (1 Viewer)

[jackass]

NASCAR was in the right place at the right time... Days of Thunder did some but not as much to help things grow... it got the sport some recignition.. but most came in looking for the beating and banging like the movie and it realy wasn't the same...

i think the biggest thing that helped NASCAR was when Joe Gibbs started his team....that brought the NFL fans in.. NHRA had him and a majior non automotive sponsor but lost them.. and thats a shame because if you know anything about Gibb's and his automotive back ground he was a drag racer first... Yes i know there were other non automotive sponsors before Micky D's.. but.. none the size and caliber.... KB and Budweiser were close ..but the money wasn't the same from what i have been told..

Both NASCAR and the NHRA had great growth potential in the late 80's and early 90's... with WINSTON.. but when Winston left only NASCAR stepped up to the plate to assume the promotion void.... NHRA did some but left a lot to be done.. i think they have realized it.. but realy can't catch up due to what NASCAR grew to be...i wished they would have.... but its a huge hertal to over come.....

And the NASCAR New York office was suposed to be a outlet for the NY corperations to have easy access... From what i am hearing from some on the inside it has lived up to it potential.. and my be partly moved to the new offices coming at the NASCAR Hall of Fame....

Also.. according to Jayski's web site the ratings from the Daytona 500 are below the ratings 2 years ago.... adn the BUSCH races saturday ratings on ESPN2 were way below the last few years ratings... ESPN/ABC gave up the rights to the Daytona 500 for the next 7 years for the full Busch schedule... kind of stupid on ESPN/ABC's and NASCAR's part if you ask me.....

Billy

 

[Butch]

NO WAY ... definitely "Stroker Ace" was the movie that took NASCAR mainstream and made it cool. Without "Stroker Ace", "Days of Thunder" never gets green-lighted.

It all started with Thunder Road then Redline 7,000 thats when I started to listen to NASCAR on the radio.

 

[rocketman]

Timing, Days of thunder, the split, TV coverage, the media, the media, the media.

 

[downtime]

The first thing that should occur is for NHRA and IHRA to fly under a unified banner. The combined participant base is quite large and sanctioning bodies (or trade organizations) mission is to further the entire industry as opposed to stealing each others properties.

I'm nit saying the programs of the respective organizations are comparable but I am saying that pushing both sanctions without some marketing cohesion is far more expensive and less productive than sucking it up and furthering the promotion of sanctioned drag racing. Professional football and professional basketball did this decades ago with great success and as much as "everyone" hates this concept I believe it is the most logical., least costlky, and most effective way of raising public awareness and support for our sport.

 

[yoda]

The first thing that should occur is for NHRA and IHRA to fly under a unified banner. The combined participant base is quite large and sanctioning bodies (or trade organizations) mission is to further the entire industry as opposed to stealing each others properties..

I don't know Ted.. Most of the people I know that like the drags don't really care which flag it flies under- in fact, given the opportunity to tune in or go to a track, most everyone I know is more restricted by distance/ location, and not by affiliation.

I'm sure the membership role will increase a bit, but the actual amount of fan base/ participants won't increase- it will just reflect a larger number because the two are added together. On top of that, the amount of classes combined won't offset the amount of classes eliminated, which will in turn eliminate participants, at least on a National event scale. That is unless IHRA tracks run cars that were based on their rules and NHRA tracks run cars based on theirs.

Maybe just one Professional sanctioning body incorporating TF, FC, PS, PM and PSB, and then anything else falls under a combined NHRA/IHRA banner, dedicating an entire race weekend and series to the Sportsman classes?

 

[Engineczar]

Did anyone catch the bumper music at one of the breaks during the Daytona 500? It was the same music the NHRA uses during it's telecasts. At least we have one thing that Nascar felt a need to copy.

 

[downtime]

I don't know Ted.. Most of the people I know that like the drags don't really care which flag it flies under- in fact, given the opportunity to tune in or go to a track, most everyone I know is more restricted by distance/ location, and not by affiliation.

I'm sure the membership role will increase a bit, but the actual amount of fan base/ participants won't increase- it will just reflect a larger number because the two are added together. On top of that, the amount of classes combined won't offset the amount of classes eliminated, which will in turn eliminate participants, at least on a National event scale. That is unless IHRA tracks run cars that were based on their rules and NHRA tracks run cars based on theirs.

Maybe just one Professional sanctioning body incorporating TF, FC, PS, PM and PSB, and then anything else falls under a combined NHRA/IHRA banner, dedicating an entire race weekend and series to the Sportsman classes?

The details are extremely important, but I'm thinking only along the lines of marketing and promotion. NASCAR is a "brand" that evryone recognizes.

I wear my NHRA membership pin on my sport coat and have done so for many years. For every one person that recognizes it I bet twenty more look at it and ask me what it is. Many people actually look ar it and say "oh, I thought it was NRA"... "What is NHRA?" With NASCAR that confusion doesn't exist.

"Everybody" associates product branding with NASCAR. The drag community simply has not achieved the penetration into mainstream America for the last few decades.

I really think that the Professional racers should devote a few moments of time to taking a look at the 50,000 foot view and considering the basic steps necessary to secure the future of the sport from a long term perspective to assist the sanctioning bodies in working in concert (if not together).

And when I think to myself that it is the role of sanctioning bodies to do this (and it is), ultimately it is the racers as the sport will simply not be here if it implodes upon itself due to escalating costs, uneducated public perception, and encroaching suburbia.