DRRP Article on DoD

[W2Racing09]

I just got around to catching up on my DoD reading and came across the article about DRRP getting zero SLMs one night recently. Anyone who says DLM racing isn't in trouble needs to re examine some facts. A track getting zero cards (while two tours in the region running the same weekend both paying over $2500 to win got less than 20). Not like single digit car counts are acceptable but I think at least it isn't such a shock as seeing zero cars show up. That is ridiculous.

http://www.dirtondirt.com/blog.php?id=443

Thanks,
Jeff.

[zeroracing]

One reason that car counts spiral downward is cuts in payout. I never understood this. One local track pays $ 700 to win, if less than a dozen show up they go to 2nd place pay for winner, if less than another number (don't remember) then it goes to third place. So they have been paying $ 350 to win for a late model race... Hard to drive an hour or two, pay $ 25-30 for pit passes and burn fuel to run for break even. Not even counting putting tires on the car or wear and tear.

[3 wide]

They should of got the message when nobody showed up they don't want to pay anything it is ridiculous the way they run this place I had a friend of mine won the outlaw pony feature a few weeks ago and he told me he spent every penny of it getting in the pits and putting gas in his truck last year they were charging a 40 dollar entry fee in the lower classes paying 500 to win and they wonder why nobody shows up this place is a joke.

[3 wide]

Doe needs to do articles on race tracks with low car counts that know what is going on this place has no idea what they are doing.

[old fan]

car counts on the rise in our area

[W2Racing09]

car counts on the rise in our area

What area is that?

[3 wide]

Middle Tennessee they even charge the fans 5 dollars to watch practice if they have a practice night I don't know of any race track that does that and they wonder why they don't have any cars I can tell why

[castone]

Any race track that has multi pay scale are in trouble, because the cars will not keep coming not knowing what pay they will get - if the cars come the fans will come. Guarantee a good pay-out and stick with it, and you may lose money on the start but the cars and fans will start coming back.

[speedemon3b]

Middle Tennessee they even charge the fans 5 dollars to watch practice if they have a practice night I don't know of any race track that does that and they wonder why they don't have any cars I can tell why

I also live in middle Tennessee and the thing that bothers me the most is that almost every track runs on Saturday night

[champion24]

Everyone wants to race on Saturdays! Regardless of the region. Penton(silent T), AL races on Fridays most of the year & makes it work. They did rotate Saturdays with EAMS for a year recently. Back when Mrs. Thomas was in charge of EAMS. I agree with the "pay the $$, cars come, then the fans come" theory. But it's not my money! Tracks must work together to some degree.

[old fan]

what area is that?

st louis not big numbers but getting in the 20s for a weekly with a few drivers coming back from being off, do you really need 7 classes

[3 wide]

They have run some special races on Friday night and done pretty good hard to say what they would do on a regular Friday night but it is all the little things they do charge 5 dollars to watch practice 40 dollar entry fee for lower classes paying 500 to win and I could go on and on

[W2Racing09]

st louis not big numbers but getting in the 20s for a weekly with a few drivers coming back from being off, do you really need 7 classes

Just did a quick check of the closest track to St. Louis (it seems) which is I-55 Speedway.

Results from August 5th, 2000 show the following:
5 Divisions, 126 cars and 26 Late Models.

Results from August 1st, 2015 show the following:
5 Divisions, 78 cars and 14 Late Models.

Two cars shy of half as many Late Models in the pit area 15 years later. The division is trending downwards as a result of costs, and in fact the entire sport is trending downwards. They got 26 Late Models that night, and back then the Late Models cost what the Modifieds do now. I suspect 15 years from now we will be comparing the Modified counts to the counts we have now and Late Models will be long gone as a local division. Costs are out of control across the board.

Thanks,
Jeff.

[3 wide]

Very good observation but I wonder what the payout is now compared to then I think that is what is driving these car counts down you have to keep the payouts in line I have noticed that the race tracks with a good payout are drawing plenty of cars these promoters that want to pay what they did 10 years ago are finding it tough I believe the drivers have decided they are not going too run for nothing and they are parking them and I don't blame them look at Dixie they are paying 2 thousand or better and drawing a good field of cars every week just one example if you are a promoter you got 2 choices you run big races only or you up the weekly payout.