The Future? (1 Viewer)

[Gordon]

Disclaimer: This question is intended to be a serious question about the future of Championship Drag Racing, but it will by it's very nature result in a politically motivated conversation. Still, I have posted it here hoping it gets more exposure and discussion than it would in the Politics Room. I trust the Moderators will monitor accordingly and move it if necessary.

Does Donald Trump's Presidency mean the economy will recover in such a way as to bring fans back to the stands (because they can afford it again), thus improving the demographic enough to reinvigorate potential sponsors? And (if) by doing so, does the health and welfare of the professional classes improve?

Or...

Has Professional Drag Racing gotten to the point that current and future generations just aren't interested in watching cars (or motorcycles) accelerate in a straight line for three and a half seconds because it's just not something they can relate too? Has the technology ruined the sport beyond recovery no matter what the economy looks like? Meaning: Back in the day, folks could put together their own race car, usually with used parts and pieces and because of the limited technology they could be competitive on brains (and a little money) alone. Today it requires high tech parts and pieces and a truckload of money to even enter... to be competitive requires the assistance of one of only a handful of truly talented crew chiefs.

Me, I think it's probably a little of both. Still, I'm curious to read what others think.

 

[Reese]

Has Professional Drag Racing gotten to the point that current and future generations just aren't interested in watching cars (or motorcycles) accelerate in a straight line for three and a half seconds because it's just not something they can relate too? Has the technology ruined the sport beyond recovery no matter what the economy looks like? Meaning: Back in the day, folks could put together their own race car, usually with used parts and pieces and because of the limited technology they could be competitive on brains (and a little money) alone. Today it requires high tech parts and pieces and a truckload of money to even enter... to be competitive requires the assistance of one of only a handful of truly talented crew chiefs.

Could not have said it better myself.

 

[Muddy]

It just takes to long and cost to much to watch fewer and fewer nitro cars make a pass. Most folks don't go to watch any other classes. You fill up the rest of the time by walking around the pits watching for a long gone show from the nitro cars and the ever shrinking manufacturing displays.
So then you decide to stay home and watch on TV if you get fs1. What do you get then?? The most disappointing show on TV. Bad production and worse commentary..

 

[Gordon]

It just takes to long and cost to much to watch fewer and fewer nitro cars make a pass. Most folks don't go to watch any other classes. You fill up the rest of the time by walking around the pits watching for a long gone show from the nitro cars and the ever shrinking manufacturing displays.
So then you decide to stay home and watch on TV if you get fs1. What do you get then?? The most disappointing show on TV. Bad production and worse commentary..

So if I'm reading you right, you don't think a potentially changing economy is going to make a difference on the sport? Or do you think an improved economy increases fuel car counts & thus improves the live show, both on the track and in the pits?

 

[mick]

remember in pits many years ago when lahaie had miller deal, was the white/gold scheme......asked crew guy how status of sport was. he said 'it's up and down'. i think it is the same, only difference is jfr, kalitta, and dsr.....if those teams were gone, the same numbers would turn out.....a couple short fields, a few healthy fields, most 16-19 fields....don't let the multi-car teams fool you. the 'professional' sport does not depend on them.....if they all folded tomorrow there would be a hiccup....if one of them folded tomorrow you'd barely notice it.
PS could change dramatically, and it could for the good.....for all involved.
PSB is cheap....will always have full fields, especially with HD money involved.
FC & TF is a waaaay cool hobby for successful folks that enjoy HP and speed....IMO the cost is inline with inflation.

please, no one get greedy and this little niche will do just fine.....good tv / bad tv / doesn't matter.
10 more years for sure; then better start wondering how to replace us 40 and above crowd.
actually should have a plan in place already; i'm not sure if nhra does at this point. the social
media is great; that's where the youth are at.....would be great to see nhra getting into high schools
if they can......not sure how to do that, high school automotive classes are in past....
and that's too bad......not every kid has 'college' stamped on their forehead.

forrest lucas seems like the best person to have taken interest in nhra in the last handful of years.

 

[mick]

gordon, i think a trump economy could have a significant impact on sportsman racers.....from strip to local dirt. all the away around....cut the small business man's corporate taxes = more profit = more racing....had it before, can have it again. there's a certain percentage of racers that are just plain very successful, and will always race, whether pro or sportsman, and god bless them.......sell, sell, sell....what a great country we live in.

 

[Gordon]

gordon, i think a trump economy could have a significant impact on sportsman racers.....from strip to local dirt. all the away around....cut the small business man's corporate taxes = more profit = more racing....had it before, can have it again. there's a certain percentage of racers that are just plain very successful, and will always race, whether pro or sportsman, and god bless them.......sell, sell, sell....what a great country we live in.

Agree wholeheartedly, Mike, it is a great country we live in indeed!

 

[Nunz]

Lots of talking points here. So many factors that will dictate the sport's future, at least the big show. The biggest factors I think, are costs to race, and the ability to attract newbies to the fan base. A better economy will help, but remember, we've been through some strong ones and drag racing has never been a easy sell to big, non-automotive sponsors. We've had the beer, oil, and tool wars, but think of the companies over in NASCAR. They're ALL there. So I'm not sure how we break down that wall. As far as attracting the youth of America, that will take some real effort. As many have discussed, it's such a different world than the '70s-80s. Do young kids build model cars anymore? Imagine if every middle or high school in the country included model car contests as part of mandatory art class or whatever. That could create a huge new wave of interest among young kids who may not come from a racing or gearhead family. It would probably be a big boost to companies like Revell, who in turn may see fit to get back into racing as a result. Maybe it's a crazy thought, IDK, but NHRA certainly needs to think of initiates that will foster the future growth of the sport.

 

[sammi]

You missed a scenario. Trump wrecks economy, country in chaos, DSR and JFR migrate to Russia and start courting the oligarchs for sponsorship.

For those of you who live in the world of facts. Under Reagan the S&P 500 improved 118%, Bush #41 51%, Clinton 210%, Bush #43 -40%, and Obama 152%

Bottom line, if you tie the health of the economy and stock market to the S&P, you better start hoping for a Democrat to run the show.

One last thing. The ratings bonanza, enjoyed by the Discovery Channel with their hideous Street Outlaws show, is a result of younger car people flipping the bird to us old guys who long for the good old days. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[Draw 3D]

You missed a scenario. Trump wrecks economy, country in chaos, DSR and JFR migrate to Russia and start courting the oligarchs for sponsorship.

For those of you who live in the world of facts. Under Reagan the S&P 500 improved 118%, Bush #41 51%, Clinton 210%, Bush #43 -40%, and Obama 152%

Bottom line, if you tie the health of the economy and stock market to the S&P, you better start hoping for a Democrat to run the show.

One last thing. The ratings bonanza, enjoyed by the Discovery Channel with their hideous Street Outlaws show, is a result of younger car people flipping the bird to us old guys who long for the good old days. Nothing more, nothing less.

First; using current economy, the stock market is no reflection on the real economy.

Second; when I take my car out to car shows or to the races, I get a lot of young people looking, asking questions and generally being interested. I don't see them as "flipping the bird", rather, they want to be involved but people wrongly judge them as you have done.

 

[cantdrive55]

Personally I don't think Trump being in office will somehow make auto racing more appealing to a prospective sponsor. If you want a good gauge for how Fortune 500 companies are viewing motorsports I'd look at NASCAR and their current situation. They have a new title sponsor in Monster Energy. The price tag for Monster is $20 million a year, and right now it's a 2 year deal. The outgoing title sponsor, Sprint, was worth about $60-$75 million a year. That's a significant drop in value, and that's for what many consider the leading form of auto racing here in the United States. What does that mean for NHRA? Honestly I don't know. Everything is about ROI. This is where the Fox Sports TV package and sponsorship marketing comes into play. If the numbers are good and sponsors are getting their money out of it; it's a win-win. The complicating factor is that everyone's situation is different. So what works for Don Schumacher Racing might not work for John Force Racing, or vice versa.

If you want to use the numbers regarding our economy and the S&P; I'd have to say it's a bit off. For example during GHWB's (41) term it only improved by 51%, yet that was during what many might call a peak era for NHRA ('88-'92). There were plenty of sponsors during that time frame; way too many to list. The real issue is the cost of going racing has skyrocketed to levels that only millionaires and billionaires can afford to play, and that's with sponsorship. How many people can afford a $100k turn key Factory Showdown Stocker? And that's just for the car; least we forget a truck/trailer, tools, tires, fuel, food, hotel, crew, computer & software for tuning, and entry fees. I'm sure I left out a few things

The interest, or appealing to a new generation of fans has easily been NHRA's biggest hurdle. Their reluctance to embrace new technology like EFI for 25+ yrs didn't help their cause. They completely screwed the pooch with the import scene. Which like it or not is where all the new young fans were. I think today's import scene is played out; mostly because there was zero leadership, or direction. It just sorta died on the vine. I'd say the new area that deserves attention is the electric/hybrid vehicles. Big Daddy's electric dragster is one of the coolest innovations in the last 2 decades; yet gets little to no exposure because it's not a fossil fuel breathing entity.

Discovery Channel found a niche with Street Outlaws and gave it an audience. What many might fail to realize is that the TV show removes certain elements, i.e. Cops. And a certain aspect that is notorious with street racing, i.e. illegal.

 

[HEMI6point1]

Sprint is around 34 billion in debt. That might have something to do with them leaving NASCAR.

 

[HEMI6point1]

The interest, or appealing to a new generation of fans has easily been NHRA's biggest hurdle. Their reluctance to embrace new technology like EFI for 25+ yrs didn't help their cause. They completely screwed the pooch with the import scene. Which like it or not is where all the new young fans were. I think today's import scene is played out; mostly because there was zero leadership, or direction. It just sorta died on the vine. I'd say the new area that deserves attention is the electric/hybrid vehicles. Big Daddy's electric dragster is one of the coolest innovations in the last 2 decades; yet gets little to no exposure because it's not a fossil fuel breathing entity.

Discovery Channel found a niche with Street Outlaws and gave it an audience. What many might fail to realize is that the TV show removes certain elements, i.e. Cops. And a certain aspect that is notorious with street racing, i.e. illegal.

Wasn't there a once-prominent pro stock team that mentioned testing EFI on their dyno and found it actually made less HP than carbs? I think the NHRA was scared it was going to run off a lot of teams due to all the testing, costs etc. Of course, NHRA did a good job of that by letting costs in lots of other areas spiral into critical mass.

Imports? I can respect a properly tuned machine, but it's hard to attract a crowd when only 6 or so cars show up in a certain class. Plus, with the exception of GM's ecotec engines on seemingly every run those imports would blow something up causing delays. Also, it's hard to attract hot rodders to an event when the cars sound like giant weedwackers or sound like they're farting down the track. Besides, the audience that was there were probably only in it for the bikini contests. Oh, by the way.... can someone tell Import guys that the big slicks go in the back?

As for street outlaws, I have never watched a single episode mainly because, as a long time fan of DRAG RACING, it's against my principles to support a show that glorifies street racing.

 

[glofria]

If this is any indication of what is to come, we all are going to be doing better: https://www.conference-board.org/data/consumerconfidence.cfm

Whether that translate to corporate sponsorship remains to be scene. I think that how appealing the pro series to companies looking to advertise is more important. But as a consumer the cost of a ticket to enter an national event has increased compared to the satisfaction of being there and the experience in return.

 

[Muddy]

So if I'm reading you right, you don't think a potentially changing economy is going to make a difference on the sport? Or do you think an improved economy increases fuel car counts & thus improves the live show, both on the track and in the pits?

Gordon, I'm sure if the economy improves companies are going to be willing to invest more dollars in advertising. However, I doubt it will be NHRA drag racing or fuel cars until and unless NHRA completely revamps the show and reduces the cost, in my opinion it will continue its slow spiral downward. I'm no fortune teller but I think they must go to a 2 day format with 2 qualifying rounds on Friday for all classes and 1 for nitro and alcohol qualifying only Saturday morning. Eliminations on Saturday morning/afternoon/evening with less classes. Say, the 2 pro nitro classes, the 2 alcohol classes, 2 door classes and 2 dragster/altered classes. They must also reduce the number of national events and really raise the importance level of division races They could start by eliminating the races at short or substandard tracks. Perhaps to 18 or so That's just my opinion and as I said I'm not a fortune teller but I've raced everything from a 1953 ford flathead (my et was in minutes) automatic to a AA fuel dragster, I did attend my first national event at age 13 in 1957 and I stayed at Holiday Inn but not last night..

 

[RM FAN]

I see big time drag racing taking a hit if someone does not figure out how to get the next generation interested in a National events. And I said it before and totally agree with Keith about the import deal, NHRA missed the boat on that one. There are lots on imports still racing and not just in the US. As for attracting hotrodders to an event.....that is one of NHRA biggest downfalls. A national event should attract everyone who loves cars. If only NHRA had the right person with a VISION working for them. As for Street Outlaws i never miss a show. I also like most of the Fast and Furious movies. If you think kids are not interested in cars and racing, Denver has a serious street racing problem where several hundred cars get together in the summer to race on Sunday nights. That many kids getting together to race sure seems like an opportunity to me.
Great question Gordon.

 

[TooTall999]

If you think Trump and his billionaire cabinet are going to do anything to help the average working American, you've been sniffing too much nitro.

 

[Justin@NRE]

With car counts, you guys are overlooking the most important part of drag racing, the sportsman. The Dad who got into hot rods and racing on weekends, spending most of his free time working on the car, and the kids that grow up working on the car and going to races with the old man, maybe even racing Jr's. This is where new racers and fans are born. If the economy gets better for everyone, there will be more sportsman racers returning with their families and future generations getting hooked.

The lack of emphasis on vocational education and training these days certainly doesn't help the cause. There is still love for the automobile, but we get nothing but moderation and efficiency crammed down our throats on a daily basis. Hot rodding modern vehicles is done with a laptop. Between everything going green and engine technology squeezing tons of power out of small packages, the excesses of drag racing haven't quite caught up with main stream automotive marketing these days. And I say excesses because on the surface, drag racing is all about brute force. Making inconceivable amounts of power to the average Joe and seeing how much of it we can get to stick to the track. When I say inconceivable, even the average econo-box you can buy these days has around 200 hp, and you can buy cars from the factory these days with 600-700 hp that aren't exotic supercars and under 400cid, some even with only 6 cylinders. A Cup car maybe has 200 more horse than what they can buy off the showroom floor, and the engine lasts for hours screaming RPM. At a drag race, there are several different classes, several combinations that run power levels anywhere from 1 to 17 times what they have under the hood and the crazy power cars have to rebuild them, often.

Our sport is perfect for the attention span of people these days, but people are only going to watch loud cars going fast in a straight line for so long before they get bored if they aren't otherwise invested in the racing. I think we lose fans because the show is so diverse at most drag races. People outside the sport think drag racing, they think get to the finish line as fast as you can and first. Well then almost the entire day at the drag strip, they are running cars in index and dial-in based classes, some of which are hard enough to understand for the people who are actually running in them! So now you've confused the average Joe as to why these cars aren't running as fast as they can. They get up and leave, missing the part of the drag race that most people could realistically participate in if motivated enough with some disposable income. You expect people to come to the track, and most people agree they are there for the spectacle of the fuel cars. In a 12 hour day at the track, the fuel cars aren't on track but for maybe 2 hours total(depending on oildowns) of that 12 hour day with maybe 4 hours total of actual heads up classes. Then after seeing 3 second fuel cars, 5 second TA cars and Pro Mods, 6 second PS, now you go to Super Comp and 8.90 seems slow and the rest of the 8 hours you're there is filled with cars that look like they're crawling down the track by comparison and there are SO MANY of them! So, do first timers leave feeling shorted? I don't think so in most cases, but I do think it makes it a little more difficult to justify ticket prices in the future. I don't know that they go out of their way to start planning for next year's event.

Does that mean I want to get rid of bracket/index classes at Nationals? No, but I think we need to come up with better packaging for the show. There is always a large amount of downtime on the nitro, Pro Sportsman and Pro Stock cars, no getting around that, but maybe split the classes by day. So Friday/Saturday stay similar to what we have now, only difference is you've run the index/bracket classes to completion or at least the finals, Heads Up classes make 2 qualifying hits each day just to give those fans a taste. Sunday is all Heads Up classes.. TAD, TAFC, PM, PSM, PS, FC, TF, then maybe run the finals of the other classes between semi's and final of the heads up as kind of a quick showcase. I could see the potential for gaps in racing, but I doubt it would be much worse than now. NHRA could really sell some sponsorships on between round entertainment. Do a 10 minute demo/display between each class, kind of like the Traxxas/Geico people do during oildowns now. Book bands to come in and play a couple songs between rounds. But I think this is how you package the show for Live TV as well. Instead of the mindless banter between commentators where you can clearly hear cars running in the background, you cut to the band or the sponsor. Works for the Superbowl.... lol. We simplify the live track experience and offer real entertainment between rounds.

 

[Paul]

If you think Trump and his billionaire cabinet are going to do anything to help the average working American, you've been sniffing too much nitro.

Well it can't be much worse for the working class, which is why traditional blue states went red. Putting America first and making our business environment competitive vs. other countries will only do good things for jobs and our economy which you should see a trickle down impact to drag racing with more discretionary income.

 

[Rajunz]

I can remember the late 70s, early 80s, probably half of the national meets were only 8 car fields. Sometimes you only had 10-11 cars trying to qualify, yet the fans still packed in.