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NASCAR Finds Traffic Is Lighter
In an atmosphere of higher gas prices and an uncertain economy, NASCAR is trying all sorts of gimmicks to bring its rabid fans back to the tracks.
(By Jim Cole -- Associated Press)
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Said R. Jon Ackley, an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth who teaches a course in the business of NASCAR: "It's much cheaper to sit at home and watch -- especially if you're traveling 250 miles -- so the tracks are doing a lot more to get fans there because the cost of everything else is so high. They recognize that they have to sell themselves like a rock concert. They can't just assume that people are going to come because they built it."
Alabama's Talladega Superspeedway trotted out an All-You-Can-Eat section in its grandstands for its April NASCAR race. For its October NASCAR event, fans who buy the top-end ticket (an $800 individual suite pass that includes access to pit road and the garage) will receive a $45 gas card.
NASCAR fans tend to travel farther than do NFL, NBA or Major League Baseball fans. And many of them turn race day into a two- or three-day affair, camping on the speedway grounds all weekend.
About 80 percent of Texas Motor Speedway's fans live within a 60-mile radius of the track, according to Kevin Camper, director of sales and marketing. The rest drive as much as five hours for the two annual NASCAR races, or fly.
While gas prices may have caused some to stay home, it hasn't deterred demand for the 11,000 reserved camping spaces on the Texas speedway grounds, which rent for $75 to $300 each.
As a perk for fans who buy premium front-stretch seats for the Nov. 2 NASCAR race at Texas, track officials are tossing in a $75, limited-edition die-cast car honoring John Wayne and the late Dale Earnhardt.
Virginia's Martinsville Speedway is offering a family-of-four ticket package for $104 for its Oct. 19 race, as well as a military discount.
At Phoenix International Raceway, season ticket holders will get a fast lap around the one-mile oval with a professional driver at 130 mph on race weekend this November. Homestead-Miami Speedway has launched a promotion that allows fans to drive their own cars around the 1.5-mile oval.
And Lowe's Motor Speedway is doing a bit of everything. Track officials negotiated a 15 percent discount at 35 area hotels and the waiver of the customary three-night minimum-stay requirement for their fall race. Like Atlanta, the track is offering a $159 Family Four-Pack. And specific sections of the stands have been designated for fans of particular drivers, such as Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, and Dale Earnhardt Jr., so the rabid can cheer along with their ilk. The track has also hired former drivers to mingle with fans who buy pit passes for race weekend.
"We've all promoted against other sports for years, but I don't think anybody has ever promoted against $4-a-gallon gasoline," said Adrian Parker, the speedway's director of communications. "Every track should be trying to distinguish itself -- and if they're not, they should be. We're doing our best to make sure when fans are cutting things out, they're not cutting out Lowe's Motor Speedway."
