State of the sport, now and the future.

As a fan of Stock Car racing I eagerly await the start of the 2012 NASCAR season. I wonder what changes the front office will impose on the teams in an effort to end the practice of tandem racing and if anything can be done to increase the excitement on the track. I hear they are working in several areas that show promise but it will take the teams running in practice to determine if the changes are practical, and that wont be long now. I hope they find that Magic Bullet that will make for great Ol Time racing and excite the fans so the dwindling ticket sells can improve. All things are possible.

I also wonder about the next generation of fans. Will they be just as loyal to sponsors, drivers and teams as many fans from the past? Will they fall in love with a manufacturer now that we have common templates? Will there be older fans 50 years from now reliving the racing of their youth with the same passion as us here at Racers Reunion? I do think all this is possible if NASCAR listens to their fan base and makes changes based on getting stock car racing back to something that closely resembles the product of the 60s and 70s. The fans will be there if the racing excites the fans and the cost of a ticket doesnt continue to grow faster than the economy. There is hope.

I am a GIS Technician for an Electric Cooperative in Gaffney, S. Carolina and most of my duties require the creating and correcting of maps using many tools. One of the most useful tools I have is aerial photos of the seven counties we serve. Every day I load photos of the areas look for the different features to make corrections to my mapping system and I see things that make me smile. I see small ovals cut out of fields and back yards over our entire service area. Young boys and girls creating their own Darlington or Martinsville, honing their skills on their go carts and chasing the checkered flag against their heros. The fan base is there but it must be nurtured and excited or it will dwindle. Im not sure how far NASCAR is willing to go in an effort to replicate the racing of the past or if that is even possible, but it is obvious that the decreasing support is caused by more than just the economy. I understand and expect the usual comments about NASCAR not being willing to listen, but I do hope that Daytona shows us that they are on the right track.

I second your wish and compliment you on the nice piece you have written. Let's hope for some good side-by-side, bumper-to-bumper (not tandem) racing.

Thanks Dave.

BT, another awesome post by you. Like you, I will always maintain the hope and agree that anything is possible. The very fact that the sport of stock car racing exists proves that theory. I think that NASCAR is becoming more inclined to listen to the fans but I think their issue right now is deciding which fans have the biggest impact. The younger fans have the passion. I saw that at Charlotte in May. It is a different passion but passion none-the-less. Like you, I am excited about Daytona. Always have been and always will be. I never miss a lap of that race. I am hoping this year is going to produce something more like the 60s and 70s so let's keep that wish. Always great to hear your thoughts BT. Having you here on Racers Reunion rocks!

Great point Tim. Deciding onthedemographics to target may be the key to how the sport responses. Its sad to think that the older fans, the ones that carried this sport to new heights, may seem less important to the front office in Daytona. Sad but I can understand.