Eldora Crowd
 

Saturdays crowd at Eldora was the smallest I can remember for an USAC show.

Is this a sign that gas prices are going to take their toll on track attendance?

Or was it because they were running on Pole Day?

Beautiful day with comfortable temps, and with so many rain outs, I would have thought they would have had a much larger crowd.

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Or, part of the crowd was at Haubstadt for the MSCS???

Jim Morrison

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Usac never gets a big crowd for a normal show there anymore. Thats why they ran the World of Outlaws the friday before the 4-crown to try and put more people in the stands.

Re: Eldora Crowd
 

Originally Posted by Bilbee17:
Usac never gets a big crowd for a normal show there anymore. Thats why they ran the World of Outlaws the friday before the 4-crown to try and put more people in the stands.

That is true, also it is a rescheduled race which always hurts attendance.

Re: Eldora Crowd
 

could be price of gas or the greed of reserving the top 11 rows

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Economy is not good, gas prices are sky high, weather has not really been that great, and lots of choices vying for the entertainment dollar. You may have your own reasons other than these for not attending.

I will stick mostly to the home track ('burg) as long as $$$ is like this for me, with maybe an occasional trip outside of Cincy.

I have only been to two events this season so far. I don't think I'll hit more than 8 - 10 events this whole season. The money is just not there for me to do the 40 - 50 events in a season like I used to. I am a racing addict and it really hurts when I can't afford to get my fix.

Times are tough for me and lots of others out there.

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Maybe people are tired of Eldora not living up to the hype the way it used to.

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Originally Posted by dfish:
Maybe people are tired of Eldora not living up to the hype the way it used to.

You mean the way it used to not live up to the hype?:O:

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This race was my first one back to Eldora in probably 10 or more years. Not because of anything in particular, just didn't seem to be on my radar screen. Plus living in Brownsburg we have so many tracks near by with such awesome racing, I chose to be close to home and more recently see my friends race, when I felt good enough to go.

I will say this, man was it dusty. Even Tracy after his win said he was really scared the last few laps trying to see where he was going. It reminded me of racing at Terre Haute during the day. Most of you probably don't remember seeing a day show however.

I took a few folks who had never been to a dirt race and we had to move our stuff to the top of the hill in turn one during the feature so we could see what was going on. Out next race for them, if I can get them to go again, will be Bloomington with that red clay and 3 wide racing.

Gas prices.... We rode over in a Toyota Camry and that wasn't cheap. I cannot imagine towing with one of those big Diesels. Funny, I wonder if they will go back to towing like I did with an open trailer? Naw, those teams are too spoiled.

George Wilkins

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:greenflag:SEVERAL REASONS FOR THIS! I LIVE 28 MILES FROM ELDORA! NO TV ADV.NO NEWSPAPER ADV. NO RADIO ADV. AND ADV. IN SPEEDSPORT NEWS REACHS 700O NATIONWIDE AND MOST GOT THERES SAT! TO MANY TRACKS RACING SPRINT CARS IN THE AREA!!! NO PROMOTER!! TRACK IS ALWAYS DRY AND DUSTY! TONY NEEDS TO HIRE SOMEONE TO DO PR AND ADV. THAT KNOWS ITS NOT EASY TO GET PEOPLE TO GO TO RACES ANYMORE! ITS GOING TO GET TOUGH THIS YEAR FOR EVERY PROMOTER! ITS GOING TO TAKE A LOT OF HARD WORK AND TIME TO GET IT DONE! ALL NASCAR RACES ARE DOWN BIG TIME! PHOENIX HAD 40.000 LESS THEN LAST SPRING RACE!

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i just love eldora but it's been a long time since i could sit in turn 4 on the terrace and not get really dirty. i don't mind it once in a while but it has become the norm in the last couple of years. Saturday night i had to move after the 1st heat. went to turn 1 and could see but still a cloud of dust all night with no water before the main even. several of us left the speedway (pole day) around 4pm to make eldora. several others stayed because they figured it would be dry and slick. i just wish someone would take the track prep more seriously. i know poeple that have been going there for years and years that have given up on going anymore. :confused:

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Originally Posted by duel:
i just love eldora but it's been a long time since i could sit in turn 4 on the terrace and not get really dirty. i don't mind it once in a while but it has become the norm in the last couple of years. Saturday night i had to move after the 1st heat. went to turn 1 and could see but still a cloud of dust all night with no water before the main even. several of us left the speedway (pole day) around 4pm to make eldora. several others stayed because they figured it would be dry and slick. i just wish someone would take the track prep more seriously. i know poeple that have been going there for years and years that have given up on going anymore. :confused:

I also left IMS to get to Eldora to see the show. They were talking about approaching weather from the West on the PA so that might have been why they didn't do any track prep prior to the feature. It seems that they were in the hustle mode just trying to get the show in.

As far as the crowd goes, I am sure that gas prices, pole day, Haubstadt show and the race being a make up date all contributed to the smaller crowd. Even with the dust, I still enjoyed the show.

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Let's face the facts. Alot of the die hard USAC crowd is getting older and either not able to go anymore or are on limited funds now.

I think back how nice it would have been to be retired in 1965 when I thought USAC sprint cars were the ONLY SHOW in town. I rarely go to any races anymore because most of the people I knew back in the day are gone or don't go anymore. I'm just afraid the show has gotten old for some of us and the younger people all they know is fenders.

Bubba Smith

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I believe that "they" are afraid to make a heavy track at Eldora for the non-wing racing.

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Originally Posted by Bubba Smith:
Let's face the facts. Alot of the die hard USAC crowd is getting older and either not able to go anymore or are on limited funds now.

I think back how nice it would have been to be retired in 1965 when I thought USAC sprint cars were the ONLY SHOW in town. I rarely go to any races anymore because most of the people I knew back in the day are gone or don't go anymore. I'm just afraid the show has gotten old for some of us and the younger people all they know is fenders.

Bubba Smith

Some of that's true, but it's too much of a generalization, IMO. The automatic, be there rain or shine fan base has gotten older. There is still a fan base out there, though. But, you're not going to get them unless you're willing to promote your event. Several examples come to mind. Terre Haute was a rescheduled event, on a Sunday and had a real nice crowd. Brownstown had a respectable crowd, even though it was on a cold and blustery day. Sprint Week always has huge crowds. The middle of the week, Kamp Motor Speedway events had some very full stands. And I can't count the number of times I have been packed into Jiggs' grandstand, like a sardine. The days of just scheduling a USAC race and watching 'em pour in are over.

Jerry

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I think SUPERDUKE and Offy22 nailed it: Lack of promotion and track prep.
In the later years it seemed Earl didn't want the track heavy for the non-wingers (for safety reasons, one has to assume), even though there are generally more, if less spectacular, crashes on a slick track. I really thought that would change when Stewart bought it, but it hasn't. I think people are tired of seeing the thing slick off during qualifying or heat racing.
I can't speak to the lack of promotion too much, but if Duke lives in Sidney and didn't hear a word about it, that doesn't bode well. Seems the days of a guy really going out and getting a crowd are over. Just my $.02.

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i thought the racing was good and the track was fast for most of the night. it just seems as if the clay has a whole lot of sand in it. i'm sure those guys are trying the best they can to keep the dust down. i just wonder if the large outlaw and late model crowds notice how bad it has become or if they even care....

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I just hope they get the water truck up and running so DW will have something to do when the prelude to the dream comes around!! The heats had some good racing but I have never seen a non wing sprint car show that dusty before !!! I know the gas prices stink but if they don't try to do something about the track prep, I will save my money and spend it at Gas City and Kokomo !

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Here I thought the track was pretty decent compared to the past except for the ruff stuff in turn three. But what the heck do I know. I was there also for the WOO and Allstar shows and the track seemed better than the previous years. Oh well.

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I think the another reason for a small crowd was nascar racing on tv. The casual fan can sit at home watch it, and get live updates from Eldora and Haubtadt. As for the track, I sat near duel,and it was dusty, but the track never took rubber. I will take dust over rubber. I am afraid if they would have watered it may have gotten rough in 3 and 4. Remember last years opener and everyone complained about that.

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:checkered:

Originally Posted by nonwing:
This race was my first one back to Eldora in probably 10 or more years. Not because of anything in particular, just didn't seem to be on my radar screen. Plus living in Brownsburg we have so many tracks near by with such awesome racing, I chose to be close to home and more recently see my friends race, when I felt good enough to go.

I will say this, man was it dusty. Even Tracy after his win said he was really scared the last few laps trying to see where he was going. It reminded me of racing at Terre Haute during the day. Most of you probably don't remember seeing a day show however.

I took a few folks who had never been to a dirt race and we had to move our stuff to the top of the hill in turn one during the feature so we could see what was going on. Out next race for them, if I can get them to go again, will be Bloomington with that red clay and 3 wide racing.

Gas prices.... We rode over in a Toyota Camry and that wasn't cheap. I cannot imagine towing with one of those big Diesels. Funny, I wonder if they will go back to towing like I did with an open trailer? Naw, those teams are too spoiled.

George Wilkins

ONE OF THE REASONS FOR ALL THESE DRY DUSTY TRACKS IS THE 18" WIDE WHEEELS AND 20" WIDE TIRES! THEY ARE STEAM ROLLERS PACKING THE TRACK! GO BACK TO 12" WIDE WHEELS AND DIG INTO THE TRACK FOR TRACTION NOT LOOKING FOR THE TRACK TO TAKE RUBBER WITCH IS NOT DIRT TRACK RACING!!!!!!!!!! AND THE LACK OF TAKING CARE AND PREPARING THE TRACK!

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I didnt go because sister Rose was :angry-smiley-007: but i also heard that they stopped selling ruben burgers at the concession stand....:headbang

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Originally Posted by SUPERDUKE:
:checkered: ONE OF THE REASONS FOR ALL THESE DRY DUSTY TRACKS IS THE 18" WIDE WHEEELS AND 20" WIDE TIRES! THEY ARE STEAM ROLLERS PACKING THE TRACK! GO BACK TO 12" WIDE WHEELS AND DIG INTO THE TRACK FOR TRACTION NOT LOOKING FOR THE TRACK TO TAKE RUBBER WITCH IS NOT DIRT TRACK RACING!!!!!!!!!! AND THE LACK OF TAKING CARE AND PREPARING THE TRACK!

Good point. would also need less motor.

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Yeah, Brent, it takes a big, hittin' spec 360 to run in the top-five from the back. haha

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Originally Posted by Kirk Spridgeon:
Yeah, Brent, it takes a big, hittin' spec 360 to run in the top-five from the back. haha

I thought his run was great. Probably made possible by the 22 other cars with big tires and motors wearing out the track. Actually Kirk I can't say that, I didn't think the track was that bad. I did think it was a good show though.

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I also thought the track was in good shape, when we pulled across the track the truck and trailer sank a little due to all the water in the track. But what do I know that was only our third time running there.

Jerry #66j
www.joshspencer.com

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Originally Posted by dfish:
Maybe people are tired of Eldora not living up to the hype the way it used to.

I AGREE ELDORA IS NOT ALL THAT!! LIKE IT WAS AT ONE TIME.ONE THING I DO LIKE IS THERE PIT PASS PRICE $25 FAIR.WHARE I THOUGHT KOKOMO WAS A PIT MUCH AT $35 KOKOMO RACING IS AT ITS BEST EACH RACE.MAYBE SMOKE NEEDS TO GO GET SOME OF THAT CLAY FROM THE BURG THE DUST IS JUST BIT MUCH AT ELDORA.

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I never even knew the race had been given a make up date.

My fault I guess but, wheres this promotion we're hearing about?

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Hey its a dirt track, you win some you lose some, but what really counts is that they finally got one in; right guys, no one got hurt and all had fun, not rich but fun.
???? why can MSCS put on a 10,000.00 show and they have only been in existance for a few years, I remember running with them getting fourth in the feature, and hardly making any money at all, now they pay pretty good, and here USAC has been doing this for a while and don't pay that well, and drops off like a rock.

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Originally Posted by Offy22:
I believe that "they" are afraid to make a heavy track at Eldora for the non-wing racing.

I've only been to Eldora once. It was last years KR.....It's not just the nonwing races that get the pitifull dry conditions. I knew it was going to be a long night when they were kicking up dust while the push trucks were RUNNING IN THE TRACK!!! :headbang :censor:

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All I needed to see was Clayton and Stanbrough was going to Haubstadt sealed the deal for me even more the difference in track prep plus the racing action at Tri-State is always better than eldora with no dust involved.

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Tony hope you read this and Wake up and get a track prep person who waters more than on race day as a racer and as a fan I won't be back till things change as far as the extreamly dusty track conditions and the USAC officials should tell you the same as several of us have voiced our concerns. and as always Larry Boos did a excellant job.:thumbsdown:

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It's not always a lack of water that causes the dust. Sometimes its the clay/dirt that makes up the track surface and I think the last batch of dirt they got at Eldora is horrible. They should also get rid of the sheep's foot roller. When you pack the track down like pavement the water can't sink in. Look at the racy tracks that don't get so dusty and don't turn slick/black early(Haubstadt, Bloomington, Kokomo) now think about the tracks that have all the little dimples all over the track when you get there(Eldora, Paragon, Kamp's) they're usually taking rubber and kicking up dust during hotlaps. Could you imagine Eldora covered in Bloomington red clay:eek:

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:redflag:THEY NEED TO GET RID OF LARRY AND LARRY!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Gotta disagree with ya Superduke....Boos lives at the track and would do anything to keep Eldora a premier track. He has no control on the track maintenance.

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Originally Posted by sam:
Gotta disagree with ya Superduke....Boos lives at the track and would do anything to keep Eldora a premier track. He has no control on the track maintenance.

HE IS A JERK AND VERY RUDE TO A LOT OF PEOPLE NOBODY THAT WORKS THERE LIKES HIM! ASK SOME OF THE HELP!

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Random:
1 Was the crowd smaller than other times ? Yes
2 Was the crowd smallest ever? No way
3 The BigE is alot bigger than 20 yrs ago!
4 There is no way you could have put all the people at Eldora Sat. in Gas City!!!
5 When Eldora slicks off and they run the fence, all is good in the world!!
When a track is tacky all are fast and passing is minimal. When a track take rubber on the bottom and its a parade, that sucks. When you go to Eldora you know you are going to see the best run the fence!! It takes talent and some bravery. IMO thats as good as it gets.
6 Last week I made reference to the best being at Eldora and a few heros going to MSCS race. Then some decided to beat me up because I was negative. I have re-read that post several times and do not understand the negative, if I would have said I did not want to go to the tractor parade, or see top speeds of 85mph or that the talent pool was shallow, then I could understand the bashing, but, all i said was I was going to Eldora to see (imo) the best?

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Originally Posted by SUPERDUKE:
HE IS A JERK AND VERY RUDE TO A LOT OF PEOPLE NOBODY THAT WORKS THERE LIKES HIM! ASK SOME OF THE HELP!

I think Larry Boos is a nice guy and has never been rude to me. I don't get to make as many trips to Eldora as i would like to but if i have a question or comment i e-mail the track and Larry always gets back to me in a timely manner and keeps me up to speed. :wink

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:checkered:

Originally Posted by Tim Watson:
I think Larry Boos is a nice guy and has never been rude to me. I don't get to make as many trips to Eldora as i would like to but if i have a question or comment i e-mail the track and Larry always gets back to me in a timely manner and keeps me up to speed. :wink

ASK THE TRACK HELP!

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What position does this Larry Boos person hold down at Eldora? Is he in a key position?