A while ago I wrote a letter to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. I did not send it, but I wrote it to one of my friends. It was after I visited it and I was not too impressed with it. Alot of things really troubled me. So I wrote this.

Dear Sir Or Madam,

I recently visited the NASCAR Hall of Fame and have some ideas that could make the experiance better. I feel there are some areas that need to be better told. The NASCAR Hall of Fame should be a celebration of everything that has helped to create NASCAR to what it is today and beyond.

First let me give you a little background of who I am. I am 31, I have been a NASCAR fan since I was 10. I used to watch many races down the road from my house at the Oswego Speedway. In addition I have attended many NASCAR races racing ranging from a big NASCAR race to a small saturday night dirt track.

What needs to be pointed out are several key elements that have helped to spread the popularity of NASCAR. I really thought that this is what
the Hall of Fame was about. It is. However it could be told in a better way. One thing I thought was lacking was organization. I felt like the displays were jumbled. Things were just not in order or categorized well. I have been to other hall of fames such as the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Hockey Hall of Fame. At the Baseball Hall of Fame for example, you have many floors with many exhibits. One devoted to records, the other devoted to baseball's impact on culture in America, team histories, the origins of baseball and the various aspects of how the sport evolved along with celebrating the many people who helped to make baseball an American past time.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame I think needed to do a better job with the historical section. The section with the pit stops, inspections and technical stuff just overwhelmed me too much I wanted to go upstairs and see the historical stuff. Don't get me wrong, I think thats great and all. To the fan who already knows enough this is not something of interest. I felt like it was just in the way of wanting to know the history. After seeing the film at the beginning I thought wow, I cannot wait to see many artifacts and exhibits that got NASCAR to where it is today. I was disappointed to see a huge section devoted to educating fans on the stuff of today and less on yesterday. Ultimately thats the big issue I have.

Most people love to see artifacts and many key things. The NASCAR story is one of the many great American stories. Many contributed. The NASCAR Hall of Fame should be the place for this. Lets ask ourselves, how would NASCAR have gotten as big as it is now? Well it was the France Family who decided to sanction stock cars and run races nationally, regionally and locally. It's the track owners who built tracks, host races and attract drivers and fan. It was sponsors like Unocal and Winston who helped to make the purses and contingencies to attract and motivate the drivers. It was sponsors like STP and GM Goodwrench who made it possible for many great drivers to race. Its the mechanics and crews who work day and night to put a car on the track to win. Its the drivers who raced on the tracks and put on great shows that attracted another element. A very imoportant one. The fans. The people who supported, bought the tickets and travel to the tracks.

So what does the NASCAR Hall of Fame need to do? It needs to bring the lives of the France family, the founders, the drivers, mechanics, crews, sponsors, tracks and fans to a visitor of the NASCAR Hall of Fame. So you divide the hall of fame into those exhibits.

-The France Family and founders. Through the use of artifacts, pictures and video you could introduce the visitor to the France family who helped to create NASCAR. You show tickets, pictures of the gas station Big Bill France owned. Artifacts from races and perhaps some old cars too. I like the display of the old office Bill France Jr had in the inductee room. Incorporate that. Show his management style there. Have video of interviews by past drivers talking about the France family. Also have stuff on the people they worked with be it promoters or track owners.

-The drivers. The stories of the pioneers of the sport need to be told. The stories of moonshining and running from the cops needs to be told better. The stories of danger and the kinds of characters are what facinate many. I saw Junior Johnson's Moonshine still. Thats a start there. Various artifacts of various drivers such as Dave Marcus's wingtips and Richard Petty's cowboy hat serve to show the visitor the kinds of characters the drivers were. That many of them are like you and me and had alot to do with attracting fans. Not only that but perhaps show how what the drivers do off the track. What they enjoy doing when not racing like show Dale Earnhardt fishing or hunting. Kyle Petty and his charity work. What also I think needs to be shown is how some drivers were only popular regionally like say Richie Evans. Even though most NASCAR drivers did not compete on the Sprint Cup Series, some made names for themselves regionally and through small NASCAR races on short tracks. There is no limit to the number of local legends out there and they need to be recognized too.

-The sponsors. The Union 76 tower was nice but it could have been used better. Also lets not just forget and write off the impact Winston and RJ Renyolds Tobacco had on the sport of NASCAR. Without a sponsor like them, NASCAR would not have gotten the exposure. In most books and in the Hall of Fame its as if the impact of Winston is ignored and not part of the history. There were many other sponsors who helped too and I think they need to be recognized despite the fact they no longer sponsor. They just need to be recognized and I am sure theres no shortage of some old Winston artifacts as well as maybe the famous 76 Unocal ball that was seen at most tracks. Find a way to show how sponsors in the sport has evolved from say a local business to a Fortune 500 company on the hood of a car.

-The Car owners- The people who run successful racing operations need to be applauded. Theres many famous car owners past and present who did amazing things. Richard Childress a former midpack driver becoming a championship car owner with Dale Earnhardt. The Alan Kulwicki story of a successful driver/owner winning a Championship. Then who could forget Junior Johnson. Not to mention owners of today like Jack Roush, Roger Penske and Rick Hendrick.

-Crews and Mechanics- The guys who work on the cars need thier stories told. They need to be represented and celebrated for thier innovations and hard work to help keep cars racing fast. An exhibit illustrating the work and machines they work on would be neat to see. This could be where you could show the pit stops and some of the hands on stuff.

-The Tracks- Just a plaque with a piece of pavement is not enough. Think posters, programs, pictures, flag stands, pieces of the wall and film. Show the tracks from the past, the present too. Heck show even the small local tracks too. Have an exhibit showing the various NASCAR sanctioned tracks. Illustrate them past and present with facts about each one. Have video of drivers describing the various tracks. Bring to life the people who built and promoted the tracks.

-The Fans- End the walk through the hall of fame with a tribute to the fans. Show the most dedicated fans. Show various objects fans have maybe donated to show the love of the sport. Allow for maybe pictures to be donated. Maybe invite kids to draw pictures and hang them up. Show and illustrate the impact the fans have had on the sport. Show why and how the fans are an important aspect to the sport. Allow them to leave something in the Hall of Fame for others to enjoy maybe.

Without the fans the sport would not be where it is today and there probably would not even be a NASCAR Hall of Fame. We are the ones who brave the weather for a race. Spend the money to travel to see a race. Take time out of our sundays to cheer on our favorite drivers. The Hall of Fame should honor the makers of the sport, fans included. The one thing I noticed when I visited the NASCAR shops was that the race teams display the trophies they have won. Its not just the drivers trophy or the teams's trophy but the fans trophy to celebrate. As a sign of respect its displayed for the fans.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame is like one big trophy for the fans and I want to thank you for making it and hope you take these suggestions to heart. I love this sport and everything that made it possible. Look forward to enjoying NASCAR for many generations to come.

Sincerely,
Chris Krul