Southern Nationals Screven

[B_K]

Farmer City was over about 11:30 local time Friday night. Things happen sometimes. I’m 43 and there’s not been one year of my life that I haven’t been around dirt tracks.

Are there things that need cleaned up, sure there are. We run too many classes here. That’s the main issue I see. In the summer at most places down here, you can’t start early. It’s still 90+ at 6:00pm with three more hours of daylight.

It’s just convenient IMO to say it’s a down south thing. I’ve been to terribly ran shows in a lot of places.

[Rajflyboy]

Run the big feature early for the fans. Run the lower divisions late. Temps of 85 or 95... does this actually make a difference in the racing from the fan perspective?

[TerryM]

Run the big feature early for the fans. Run the lower divisions late. Temps of 85 or 95... does this actually make a difference in the racing from the fan perspective?

There is a huge difference between 85 with regular humidity, and 95+ w/high humidity. Somebody at the track said the heat index reached 112. There were heat index warnings issued all day by the national weather service. The only racing before the Super feature was the Super heats and two lower division features. If the show could’ve started on time, the Super feature would’ve been completed by 10:00.

[Rajflyboy]

Hot for drivers and fans yes but what affect does 10 more degrees have on the racetrack itself?

[NeedforLMspeed]

I mean... It is summer time. What do you really expect out of the weather. Just sayin'

[Rajflyboy]

I mean... It is summer time. What do you really expect out of the weather. Just sayin'

Exactly. Or they can run at 8am

[TerryM]

LOL ... somebody in Michigan talking about summer.

[NeedforLMspeed]

I'm not in MI. FYI

[flagone]

As I saw in someone's signature who was complaining. Some people aren't happy unless they are mad. Yes that was more water than intended. BUT at the end of the day every single race was fantastic. It is hot. The So Nats were on 1300s and that makes a huge difference in the heat. I am quite certain than none of you have ever prepped a track in south Georgia in the middle of the hottest week of the year. Screven has one of the best racing surfaces in the south. Not a single driver complained because they knew that the guy wanted to give them the best track they could have to race on. And to the question of "when will southern promoters learn..." I would say when will Northern fans learn that the south and north are different? Different crowds, different economies, different racers and for (not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word)(not a nice word) sure different dirt, different climates and different water tables. I was taught to appreciate differences in things and just enjoy them rather than looking for the worst in everything. He knows it was late and he hated it. But the choice was run later or have a rubbered up track like he had for the WoO show last year. Redd chose the best option. The racing was great and at the end of the day that is all that SHOULD matter. I get so sick of negativity.

[fastford]

now that was a very good honest strait up post flagone , well said......

[Mister Ricochet]

Until you walk a mile in a man's shoes is the saying, right? Yankee until I die here, home track is Fairbury and whether I know it or night, just like any other human being, I'm a product of my environment.

20 yrs ago Kankakee was my home track. Good track, good racers, good fields, closest track to home, ran on Fridays. The promoter could simply not get the show in before 12:30. Up at 4:00 am for work back home at 1:30. We'd talk about how slow the show was, families with 10 yr olds with baseball, gymnastics and whatever a family does on Saturdays stopped coming. Told the promoter who stood at the gate after every race that the show is too long people will stop coming.

I stopped going. Kankakee is a shell of what it was and the late shows aren't the only reason but a big one. I went to Fairbury, 24 miles further, and never looked back. If you hold families hostage up here for 5-6 hrs you risk losing them. If you held them hostage for 7-8 hrs you wouldn't get thru the season.

This site hears people rave about Fairbury and many mock those who do. Nobody can question the surface but what doesn't get mentioned is they run that show like a drill team. They hot lap on time and from there everything else falls into place and you're out by 10:30ish. You know that going in and the way the show is run is as appreciated, and now expected, as the surface.

Indeed, if you don't like it don't go. Any promoter is wise to know what a paying customer does not like or he risks going out of business. Fairbury does not qualify hornets when a tour is there and if you do and your show runs for 6-7 hours they lost all credibility when they complain about the weather, or anything else, as to why a show ran late. Or if they start hot lapping at 7:30-8:00, same thing.

But the customer speaks with their feet, I agree. If Fairbury with it's great surface and racers ran a 5-6-7 hr weekly show they'd lose me as a customer.

[NeedforLMspeed]

I went to a track one time. They ran 3 different 4 banger classes. Stock, Outlaw and one with a certain age group. It was only advertised as 4 bangers. Didn't say anything about having 3 classes of them. Probably wasn't more than 7-8 cars in each one. Then add 5 more regular classes on top of that. Didn't go again after.

[flagone]

Mister Ricochet the "hornets" were also a touring division at Screven and they were racing for the 2nd highest purse and brought the most total cars. EVERY racing class should be treated with respect. I get where you are coming from. I hate running late. I preach about it in seminars. But sometimes it happens in spite of your best effort. I purposely made the schedule so that the Supers feature would be absolutely as early as it could be. Only one event in between each track appearance for them. Supers are the headliner and I fully believe they go as early in the program as possible. But here a large crowd also comes to see "hornets" because they put on a show and have developed a following.

[Mister Ricochet]

Mister Ricochet the "hornets" were also a touring division at Screven and they were racing for the 2nd highest purse and brought the most total cars. EVERY racing class should be treated with respect. I get where you are coming from. I hate running late. I preach about it in seminars. But sometimes it happens in spite of your best effort. I purposely made the schedule so that the Supers feature would be absolutely as early as it could be. Only one event in between each track appearance for them. Supers are the headliner and I fully believe they go as early in the program as possible. But here a large crowd also comes to see "hornets" because they put on a show and have developed a following.

Sir, we are in agreement. Like any other business let the customer (fan) decide. I tried to give the quickest run down of my evolution as to where I carried my racing dollar and the reasons why.

Like the pro told me during the one golf lesson I ever took after I hit the first ball. Asked him how was my swing, he said, "don't ask me the ball told you and will every time". Indeed, same as a race promoter. All he need do is look into the stands and that will tell him all he needs to know.

There are patterns and anomalies. A show that runs 5-6 hrs 75% of the time is a pattern. A show that runs 5-6-7 hrs 5-10% of the time is an exception. Race fans understand and how many show up tells you how you're doing.

[dirtSLMracing]

When a track is having a big Super race there should not be more than 2 support classes. If there are three races scheduled and it takes 5 hours then someone at the track screwed something up. Unless of course it rains, then that is understandable.