Dirt Track Racing & Social Media Negativity. Good article to read.

[HoosierDirtFan]

Dirt Track Racing & Social Media Negativity.
Good article to read.
Link - http://www.smallcarweekly.com/2016/0...dia-negativity

[Hoosier_Dirt]

I can think of a few who need to read this!

[Barbecueboy]

Great, another article about how social media is to blame for the demise of dirt track racing.........

When does the follow up article about poor mgmt, poor promotion, favoritism, rules enforcement, cost of goods and time management etc. going to be released?

I guess blaming others for your own demise is indeed the new American way.

There will always be hotheaded biased posts on about anything and on any forum......most true fans or curious interested fans know the difference between real constructive critisism and just a pissed off fan or crew member or whatever.

The tracks or attractions or restaurants or whatever's that blame their failure all on social media need to realize that it's them and their plan and execution of said plan is what brings on the true negative social media posts, not the other way around.

On the net You can blame anyone for anything, in reality the blame for failure normally lies at the doorstep of the group or person making , executing and working a bad plan to begin with.

[dirtMAN007]

Relation of Ben Shelton maybe ?

[fryefan]

Good article.

[chupp n bloomer fan]

Great, another article about how social media is to blame for the demise of dirt track racing.........

When does the follow up article about poor mgmt, poor promotion, favoritism, rules enforcement, cost of goods and time management etc. going to be released?

I guess blaming others for your own demise is indeed the new American way.

There will always be hotheaded biased posts on about anything and on any forum......most true fans or curious interested fans know the difference between real constructive critisism and just a pissed off fan or crew member or whatever.

The tracks or attractions or restaurants or whatever's that blame their failure all on social media need to realize that it's them and their plan and execution of said plan is what brings on the true negative social media posts, not the other way around.

On the net You can blame anyone for anything, in reality the blame for failure normally lies at the doorstep of the group or person making , executing and working a bad plan to begin with.

Yes it is the new American way. Zero accountability. Nice post BBQ.

[CMatich]

While I do agree that social media has it's place for discussion of various issues related to our sport, it seems that social media quickly moves to plain bashing by many uninformed people hiding behind computer screens.

Let's look at some posts from the Illini 100 weekend and talk about "zero accountability".

"Fairbury is owned by the town"......No
"I see this being it for the Illini"....why?
"from what I was told there are some drivers pulling out and going home".....did anybody actually leave?
"Fairboard don't support the track"....how wrong is this statement!
"not a good seat in the house"....in who's opinion and how in the he!! does it that get fixed anyways?
"hit or miss track conditions"....not really
"no scoreboard"...when did scoreboards become needed in dirt racing?
"why do they even have this race in the first place"....wth....to make $ for weekly shows and improvements
"Izzo probably laughing his ass off"....why?
"the race is now May 13th"....wrong
"I'm just glad I'm not sitting in FC today. They are going to collect money all day and then call the weekend".....wrong
"It was already called"...wrong
"they won't have anymore fans so they will end up calling it"...wrong

The above misinformed posts did nothing to help the event and probably did damage...since everything on the internet is true. How about holding the above posters accountable just like tracks are supposed to be?

Look, I'm all for having great discussions and disagreements, but only if those involved know the facts on the topics being posted.

Do race tracks need improvements? Yes!. Does FC need better bathrooms? Yes. The only way improvements happen is by fans supporting race tracks, not hiding behind a computer screen and bashing without knowing the facts.

I think we all forget that back in the old days we all drove to race tracks not knowing who was going to be there, what the weather was like etc. Guess, what? We didn't complain to the universe, we just took it all in stride as part of the fun we were trying to have. Seems to me the crowds were way bigger back in the old days as well. Coincidence?

[Josh Bayko]

A good promoter reads the criticism and realizes what they have to work on. A poor promoter reads the criticism and blames it for their shortcomings. Around my way, I've seen it work both ways.

[W2Racing09]

While I do agree that social media has it's place for discussion of various issues related to our sport, it seems that social media quickly moves to plain bashing by many uninformed people hiding behind computer screens.

Let's look at some posts from the Illini 100 weekend and talk about "zero accountability".

"Fairbury is owned by the town"......No
"I see this being it for the Illini"....why?
"from what I was told there are some drivers pulling out and going home".....did anybody actually leave?
"Fairboard don't support the track"....how wrong is this statement!
"not a good seat in the house"....in who's opinion and how in the he!! does it that get fixed anyways?
"hit or miss track conditions"....not really
"no scoreboard"...when did scoreboards become needed in dirt racing?
"why do they even have this race in the first place"....wth....to make $ for weekly shows and improvements
"Izzo probably laughing his ass off"....why?
"the race is now May 13th"....wrong
"I'm just glad I'm not sitting in FC today. They are going to collect money all day and then call the weekend".....wrong
"It was already called"...wrong
"they won't have anymore fans so they will end up calling it"...wrong

The above misinformed posts did nothing to help the event and probably did damage...since everything on the internet is true. How about holding the above posters accountable just like tracks are supposed to be?

Look, I'm all for having great discussions and disagreements, but only if those involved know the facts on the topics being posted.

Do race tracks need improvements? Yes!. Does FC need better bathrooms? Yes. The only way improvements happen is by fans supporting race tracks, not hiding behind a computer screen and bashing without knowing the facts.

I think we all forget that back in the old days we all drove to race tracks not knowing who was going to be there, what the weather was like etc. Guess, what? We didn't complain to the universe, we just took it all in stride as part of the fun we were trying to have. Seems to me the crowds were way bigger back in the old days as well. Coincidence?

Excellent post. Zero accountability is not the problem. People are more than allowed to have gripes, but spreading false/incorrect information DOES hurt local racing.

Thanks,
Jeff.

[chupp n bloomer fan]

Excellent post. Zero accountability is not the problem. People are more than allowed to have gripes, but spreading false/incorrect information DOES hurt local racing.

Thanks,
Jeff.

Yeah it is the problem. If you can't read/weed through people's BS, that's your own fault. With the Internet, no reason you can't Google a track, and say what an idiot, that place looks bad a$$. On here, there's people you know are full of sh!t and take it for what it is, then there are others whose opinions you know aren't complete BS and you value their opinion.

If someone can't think for theirself, then yeah, it can hurt a track. I've never not done what I wanted because of 4m or anything else for that matter. Look at movies. Critics will tear a movie apart, and with us, the people that matter, it's a hit and makes major $$.

[fastford]

good read, I did like the part about settling disputes face to face, instead of hiding behind a screen, the OLD school way..........

[W2Racing09]

Yeah it is the problem. If you can't read/weed through people's BS, that's your own fault. With the Internet, no reason you can't Google a track, and say what an idiot, that place looks bad a$$. On here, there's people you know are full of sh!t and take it for what it is, then there are others whose opinions you know aren't complete BS and you value their opinion.

If someone can't think for theirself, then yeah, it can hurt a track. I've never not done what I wanted because of 4m or anything else for that matter. Look at movies. Critics will tear a movie apart, and with us, the people that matter, it's a hit and makes major $$.

Agreed - people should be able to tell.

With that said the stands at a lot of events in America (not just dirt racing) are filled with people who can't think for themselves. There are a lot of people in my generation who won't eat anywhere, or buy a product or anything without looking at reviews first. I'm guilty of it myself, if a restaurant has a bad review I never even give it a chance. With racing I know how to discern an idiot with a stupid opinion, from a legitimate problem -- but I'm very dependent on hearsay. Restaurants and Product Manufacturers have begun to pursue people who lie, or post false info legally and I expect racing to start doing the same thing in the not too distant future.

[kidrock]

For anyone to think social media can't have an affect on a track is foolish but, to say it is it's soul demise is foolish as well. Remember what they say just because, it's on the internet does not always make it true.

[chupp n bloomer fan]

For anyone to think social media can't have an affect on a track is foolish but, to say it is it's soul demise is foolish as well. Remember what they say just because, it's on the internet does not always make it true.

BS. The State Farm lady said its true

[chupp n bloomer fan]

Agreed - people should be able to tell.

With that said the stands at a lot of events in America (not just dirt racing) are filled with people who can't think for themselves. There are a lot of people in my generation who won't eat anywhere, or buy a product or anything without looking at reviews first. I'm guilty of it myself, if a restaurant has a bad review I never even give it a chance. With racing I know how to discern an idiot with a stupid opinion, from a legitimate problem -- but I'm very dependent on hearsay. Restaurants and Product Manufacturers have begun to pursue people who lie, or post false info legally and I expect racing to start doing the same thing in the not too distant future.

As they should 100%.

I agree with everything you said. When it comes to reviews though, if there is 100 good ones, and two bad, I'm going. If it's pretty well split, I'm not.

[W2Racing09]

As they should 100%.

I agree with everything you said. When it comes to reviews though, if there is 100 good ones, and two bad, I'm going. If it's pretty well split, I'm not.

Even if it is split I might not go to a restaurant, honestly does anyone buy stuff on Amazon that isn't rated at least 4 or 5 stars? That is how I feel about pretty much everything - and if it is four stars I have to do additional research before I pull the trigger. That is all well and good but it seems like in racing the happy people don't read reviews. It is rare that someone comes home from a regular night at the races and goes to the track page and says they had a great time -- it just is what it is. That makes everything look negative (look at the posts here it is pretty much the same, they are either negative toward a track or they are not about a track -- very rare that people are talking about how great a track is -- especially if it isn't FALS or Eldora).

I just think it does hurt a lot, it isn't the sole reason tracks are hurting in most cases but it certainly is a contributor.

[Barbecueboy]

While I do agree that social media has it's place for discussion of various issues related to our sport, it seems that social media quickly moves to plain bashing by many uninformed people hiding behind computer screens.

Let's look at some posts from the Illini 100 weekend and talk about "zero accountability".

"Fairbury is owned by the town"......No
"I see this being it for the Illini"....why?
"from what I was told there are some drivers pulling out and going home".....did anybody actually leave?
"Fairboard don't support the track"....how wrong is this statement!
"not a good seat in the house"....in who's opinion and how in the he!! does it that get fixed anyways?
"hit or miss track conditions"....not really
"no scoreboard"...when did scoreboards become needed in dirt racing?
"why do they even have this race in the first place"....wth....to make $ for weekly shows and improvements
"Izzo probably laughing his ass off"....why?
"the race is now May 13th"....wrong
"I'm just glad I'm not sitting in FC today. They are going to collect money all day and then call the weekend".....wrong
"It was already called"...wrong
"they won't have anymore fans so they will end up calling it"...wrong

The above misinformed posts did nothing to help the event and probably did damage...since everything on the internet is true. How about holding the above posters accountable just like tracks are supposed to be?

Look, I'm all for having great discussions and disagreements, but only if those involved know the facts on the topics being posted.

Do race tracks need improvements? Yes!. Does FC need better bathrooms? Yes. The only way improvements happen is by fans supporting race tracks, not hiding behind a computer screen and bashing without knowing the facts.

I think we all forget that back in the old days we all drove to race tracks not knowing who was going to be there, what the weather was like etc. Guess, what? We didn't complain to the universe, we just took it all in stride as part of the fun we were trying to have. Seems to me the crowds were way bigger back in the old days as well. Coincidence?

Great post.......only thing I would say that might be considered a rebuttle or disagreement with it would be that no ,nobody complained to the universe.

It would have been hard to do from a pay phone or one of the old bag cell phones....info gets out much quicker to more people and much more clearly these days.

As for the crowds being bigger back then........too many other choice these days for families and especially kids that used to go with there families.

[Barbecueboy]

A good promoter reads the criticism and realizes what they have to work on. A poor promoter reads the criticism and blames it for their shortcomings. Around my way, I've seen it work both ways.

ALL over it..........just like always.

Great observation .

[MM90]

Great, another article about how social media is to blame for the demise of dirt track racing.........

When does the follow up article about poor mgmt, poor promotion, favoritism, rules enforcement, cost of goods and time management etc. going to be released?

I guess blaming others for your own demise is indeed the new American way.

There will always be hotheaded biased posts on about anything and on any forum......most true fans or curious interested fans know the difference between real constructive critisism and just a pissed off fan or crew member or whatever.

The tracks or attractions or restaurants or whatever's that blame their failure all on social media need to realize that it's them and their plan and execution of said plan is what brings on the true negative social media posts, not the other way around.

On the net You can blame anyone for anything, in reality the blame for failure normally lies at the doorstep of the group or person making , executing and working a bad plan to begin with.

Also to add... If these track promoters complain about social media, but then use it for their own promotion. You can't have it both ways.

[Barbecueboy]

Also to add... If these track promoters complain about social media, but then use it for their own promotion. You can't have it both ways.

Worse thing they can do is actually engage or respond in a combative nature to someone giving critisism about the program on line..........I watched ( from afar) a promoter/owner comepletely dismantel a successful operation at a great track that was once referred to as " the Daytona of dirt" because he is an idiot for one and because he would rather argue with paying fans on the net than address what needed addressing.

Place looks like you could open up a Sanford and son operation in it now.

Shameful