Has anyone heard of any new drivers who may be going to LOLMDS?

[dirtdobber45]

So truehttp://www.4m.net/images/attach/jpg.gif

Nice...yummy

[calverton]

I can't see paying 5-10k for something everyone in the grandstands is gonna be drooling over lol. My wife turns enough heads as it is with her 34 Cs. My dad always said get a ugly woman so nobody else would wan her lol

you are lying

[mud duck]

I'm not saying that my opinion should matter to them. Although I would no longer be a Valvoline customer were they to drop Richards and Sheppard that money is just a drop in the bucket for a big company. If a more beneficial sponsorship target came along it would definitely be a smart business decision to pursue it. Dropping Richards and Sheppard in place of Francis does not do that. He is significantly less marketable than Richards and Sheppard, and in addition he wins a fraction of the amount of races which leads to less press and less visibility for his team and sponsors. I'm absolutely not being biased right now, there is no logical way of looking at a decision like that in any way being beneficial to anyone but Francis. Now if the decision maker is somehow related to Francis then there is at least an explanation.

As far as it not being a fact that Francis struggles to make shows, all it takes is a quick look through the DoD LOLMDS results this season to determine otherwise. Not only did he miss the World Finals on Saturday night, but he has used several provisionals with the LOLMDS this season, he has several times transferred to the main using one of the final spots in a consi and he has also missed qualifying altogether for some major events (such as the Dream).

Basically, in this sport people see what the winning drivers are doing and they do it. Whether that means going out and buying a new chassis, new shocks, new products, etc. That is how this sport is no matter how much sense it makes. If Valvoline wants to sell VR1 Oil, and other products to Dirt Racers then they certainly want to be involved with a winning team.

Thanks,
Jeff.

I'm not saying the rumor is true or not. But, would it really hurt for Francis to get the sponsorship over Josh?? Your sort of making it sound like Steve is not worthy?? There's a lot of guys out there that don't win ever week W2. But, they also need sponsorship get up and down the road. Its obvious everyone knows where your love is directed. But, it's not like Mark will fold and the house car won't be out there on the track if Valvoline leaves. To make the statement, you won't buy Valvoline if they leave Josh is stupid!! The sport needs sponsorships no matter who's car their on!! And they should be supported, even if you don't love the driver. There are other drivers out there besides Josh and BShepp you do realize that don't you?

[MasterSbilt_Racer]

You don't need God to get some DD's. Mine will have a set of fun bags soon 

That purchase often ends poorly.

[MissouriMadMan]

back to the original post...... don't know if anyone heard anything while out at the World Finals but if Jesse Stovall could secure some more sponsorship he would like to run more national shows. two years ago he had 19 wins running MLRA and MARS and only running the in Midwest and won the MLRA points this year. not sure if he could run full time nationally but I did hear the team is going to head either out west this winter/spring or head southeast and see how it goes, don't think they have made there minds up yet with what direction to go after the first of the year, but would really like to branch out from the Midwest.

[W2Racing09]

Sometimes this is just painful to watch.........


If everybody in the room can see it but you can't.......it's probably not " everybody else" that's incorrect.

Love how folks that have been watching slm racing for 4 or 5 years think they can tell people that have been watching or involved for 40 or 50 how dirt racing is suppose to go..........laughable

Carry on.

Do you think DLM racing just exists in its own world where big companies throw money at "The Good Guys" and don't expect anything back in return? I don't claim to be a DLM expert, but I do claim to be pretty well versed in advertisement and marketing.

There is no upside to dropping Richards and B.Shepp in exchange for Francis. There are few drivers where there would be an upside, maybe Pierce, or someone like that but certainly not Francis. This isn't Reece Monuments or Seubert Calf Ranches or something like that. The person making the decision on which cars to sponsor is accountable to someone unlike those businesses, and decisions need to be rationalized and make sense. You can't just say I like Francis better or something like that.

If you have reasoning behind the decision beyond "You don't know the history" or something like that then by all means lets hear it but so far all you both have done is tell me that I'm being biased in saying that Richards and B.Shepp are much more competitive than Francis (which is actually fact not opinion), and that Francis had the sponsorship before (a long time ago).

Thanks,
Jeff.

[SLIDING SIDEWAYS]

back to the original post...... don't know if anyone heard anything while out at the World Finals but if Jesse Stovall could secure some more sponsorship he would like to run more national shows. two years ago he had 19 wins running MLRA and MARS and only running the in Midwest and won the MLRA points this year. not sure if he could run full time nationally but I did hear the team is going to head either out west this winter/spring or head southeast and see how it goes, don't think they have made there minds up yet with what direction to go after the first of the year, but would really like to branch out from the Midwest.

I thought he looked good at world finals. Car was fast

[W2Racing09]

I'm not saying the rumor is true or not. But, would it really hurt for Francis to get the sponsorship over Josh?? Your sort of making it sound like Steve is not worthy?? There's a lot of guys out there that don't win ever week W2. But, they also need sponsorship get up and down the road. Its obvious everyone knows where your love is directed. But, it's not like Mark will fold and the house car won't be out there on the track if Valvoline leaves. To make the statement, you won't buy Valvoline if they leave Josh is stupid!! The sport needs sponsorships no matter who's car their on!! And they should be supported, even if you don't love the driver. There are other drivers out there besides Josh and BShepp you do realize that don't you?

I don't think it would really hurt the Richards team, with B.Shepp going back to his own stuff though I'm sure every little bit of sponsorship helps. I don't necessarily think Steve is unworthy, he had Optima Batteries this season and that is a good sponsor too.

I go out of my way to patronize companies that support my favorite drivers, series, tracks, (sports teams, and anything else). Josh Richards is my favorite driver so I buy Valvoline stuff even when it costs more for my daily drivers. I also make sure to support companies like Bad Boy Off Road, Craftsman (I've bought Craftsman exclusively since they began sponsoring WoO -- aside from Power Tools), and Morton Buildings is currently in the running for the Pole Barn I'm having built in the Spring (although a local company that also supports racing is probably who I will go with considering price and the customer service I've received so far). If Valvoline were to drop Richards and B. Shepp I wouldn't go out of my way to buy them anymore -- in fact I would probably start buying more AMSOIL (which is what I already use for pretty much all of the other synthetics that I buy) since they sponsor Billy Moyer Jr which is another driver I'm a fan of.

[Barbecueboy]

Do you think DLM racing just exists in its own world where big companies throw money at "The Good Guys" and don't expect anything back in return? I don't claim to be a DLM expert, but I do claim to be pretty well versed in advertisement and marketing.

There is no upside to dropping Richards and B.Shepp in exchange for Francis. There are few drivers where there would be an upside, maybe Pierce, or someone like that but certainly not Francis. This isn't Reece Monuments or Seubert Calf Ranches or something like that. The person making the decision on which cars to sponsor is accountable to someone unlike those businesses, and decisions need to be rationalized and make sense. You can't just say I like Francis better or something like that.

If you have reasoning behind the decision beyond "You don't know the history" or something like that then by all means lets hear it but so far all you both have done is tell me that I'm being biased in saying that Richards and B.Shepp are much more competitive than Francis (which is actually fact not opinion), and that Francis had the sponsorship before (a long time ago).

Thanks,
Jeff.

No upside ????

Here are a couple.

Gets Francis cheaper.
Rewarding the longtime Francis loyalty.
Other sponsor synergized relationships , maybe it's just a good fit for Steve , his current group of new sponsors and the valvoline guys again.

So to say there is no upside is a bit of a stretch........actually it's not even stretch, it's just incorrect.

I ,like others though think it will be a multi pronged approach with the valvoline guys expanding sponsorship , not cutting it back.( but all you assumed was that I just think they are bailing on your guy Richards).........objectivity blinded by the rose colored rocket glasses again, because I never once even came close to saying anything of the sort.

What kills me about you sometimes is the condescending nature of your posts......as if you have to explain to us how it all works.

Like your claim of having a marketing background.....to hear you talk and to read your stuff you make it sound as if you have that market cornered on 4m.

I am in that business, so I kinda know how that marketing stuff goes Jeff, I got my degree in 1985....about 10 years after seeing my first late model dirt track race with my father.

Happy you are enthusiastic and passionate about the sport.......but give the guys that have been around it a little while some credit.

I've learned the hard way that just because you have an assumption about someone or something, it doesn't always make it so.

given you two examples of that in this very post.

[Barbecueboy]

Do you think DLM racing just exists in its own world where big companies throw money at "The Good Guys" and don't expect anything back in return? I don't claim to be a DLM expert, but I do claim to be pretty well versed in advertisement and marketing.

There is no upside to dropping Richards and B.Shepp in exchange for Francis. There are few drivers where there would be an upside, maybe Pierce, or someone like that but certainly not Francis. This isn't Reece Monuments or Seubert Calf Ranches or something like that. The person making the decision on which cars to sponsor is accountable to someone unlike those businesses, and decisions need to be rationalized and make sense. You can't just say I like Francis better or something like that.

If you have reasoning behind the decision beyond "You don't know the history" or something like that then by all means lets hear it but so far all you both have done is tell me that I'm being biased in saying that Richards and B.Shepp are much more competitive than Francis (which is actually fact not opinion), and that Francis had the sponsorship before (a long time ago).

Thanks,
Jeff.

And the valvoline on Steves car, wasn't exactly a long time ago............think you mentioned your first slm race was in 2012 maybe???

So for you, yeah......maybe it was a long time ago.

I remember being at Charlotte when he wrapped up the championship in the beitler car....and it wasn't all that long ago...believe the valvoline sticker was on the car....but maybe I'm wrong.

[MasterSbilt_Racer]

Since when does DLM racing move the needle for Valvoline and make product fly off the shelf? I have a hard time thinking there is much impact.

[Josh Bayko]

Since when does DLM racing move the needle for Valvoline and make product fly off the shelf? I have a hard time thinking there is much impact.

I doubt it moves the needle much, if at all for Valvoline. However, it certainly doesn't hurt them to give out a few sponsorship in DLM racing, because it's rather affordable (in the grand scheme of motorsport sponsorship) advertising.

[MasterSbilt_Racer]

I doubt it moves the needle much, if at all for Valvoline. However, it certainly doesn't hurt them to give out a few sponsorship in DLM racing, because it's rather affordable (in the grand scheme of motorsport sponsorship) advertising.

Agreed. But I guess my point was that if it doesn't move the needle, performance of the car is very unimportant.

[W2Racing09]

Heard the other day Steve Francis has took the big valvoline sponsorship from Richards and shepherd and will field his own cars and run Lucas next year. And there is a newer s and s hauler out on 60 by his shop and it's not tims his is a 5150

No upside ????

Here are a couple.

Gets Francis cheaper.
Rewarding the longtime Francis loyalty.
Other sponsor synergized relationships , maybe it's just a good fit for Steve , his current group of new sponsors and the valvoline guys again.

So to say there is no upside is a bit of a stretch........actually it's not even stretch, it's just incorrect.

I ,like others though think it will be a multi pronged approach with the valvoline guys expanding sponsorship , not cutting it back.( but all you assumed was that I just think they are bailing on your guy Richards).........objectivity blinded by the rose colored rocket glasses again, because I never once even came close to saying anything of the sort.

What kills me about you sometimes is the condescending nature of your posts......as if you have to explain to us how it all works.

Like your claim of having a marketing background.....to hear you talk and to read your stuff you make it sound as if you have that market cornered on 4m.

I am in that business, so I kinda know how that marketing stuff goes Jeff, I got my degree in 1985....about 10 years after seeing my first late model dirt track race with my father.

Happy you are enthusiastic and passionate about the sport.......but give the guys that have been around it a little while some credit.

I've learned the hard way that just because you have an assumption about someone or something, it doesn't always make it so.

given you two examples of that in this very post.

If you are involved in this business then you should know that the "upside" you mentioned isn't exactly the type of stuff you list in a board meeting when you are explaining to your boss why you just spent $25-30k of the advertising budget on a Dirt Late Model - aside from the less expensive part, which isn't necessarily true since nobody knows the specifics.

Also, I made sure to quote the actual person who stated that Francis was taking the Richards/Sheppard sponsorship to clear up any confusion there. More power to them if they want to additionally sponsor someone -- like they have with the Conley's, Cody Mahoney, Gregg Satterlee and others in the past as well. I wasn't arguing that they shouldn't sponsor Francis, I was arguing that dropping your two high profile/marketable drivers and in exchange sponsoring Francis does not make much sense.

As I've said previously, the condescending part is coming from your head. My posts are not meant to be condescending, but there is nothing I can do to stop you from feeling that way beyond saying I'm sorry that you feel that way.

Thanks,
Jeff.

[NormP]

Agreed. But I guess my point was that if it doesn't move the needle, performance of the car is very unimportant.

That was going to be my point to Jeff when I got home from work, but you beat me to it.

Valvoline is a multi-national company with God only knows how much money going out for everything under the sun. Dirt Late Model racing is a pretty small segment of autosports. So I don't think Valvoline is as concerned about who the best in the business is as Jeff thinks they are.

As far as the sponsorship goes, there is a pretty decent history with Steve Francis the hometown guy, and I think Jeff is completely overlooking that. And as BBQ boy said, it wasn't that long ago that the big V was on his car. He only let it go because he was going to CBR with the Georgia Boot ride. It wasn't yanked from him by anyone.