Originally Posted by beliles66:
Probably himself
Posted via Mobile Device
Unfortunately, he is talking about himself. MHess is in a unique position in that his car owner (me) is also one of the promoters at Jacksonville and one of the people deeply involved in the MOWA effort. I don't tell him where and when he can race, but he's also smart enough to see the long term impact on decisions he makes.
Don't think for a minute that as we have worked to put shows together at Jacksonville and make them viable, that it hasn't been suggested to charge an entry fee for sprint cars. It gets increasingly hard to stay on the 'no entry fee' side of things, when you and your partners can look down the road and see that racers are willing to pay to race.
The same holds true as we are booking tracks for MOWA. As we discuss the cost of the show, more than once I've been asked... 'Can't we charge an entry fee to offset some of this cost?'. Saying "No" gets harder each time racers prove that they will pay to race.
This is nothing at all against Farmer City or Jeff the promoter. I have spoken to him numerous times and find him to be professional and honest in our dealings. I've discussed with him why I personally have to take a stand and not participate in entry fee sprint car races in Illinois. The promoter side of me also understands why they are doing it.
I am sure that at some point we will give up the principled fight and give in and pay the darn fee to race at a nearby track like Farmer City. But when we do, my stance against charging an entry fee at Jacksonville and elsewhere becomes hollow and pretty meaningless. Chances are at that point we will fall in line and start charging entry fees as long as racers repeatedly show that they are willing to pay to race.
Personally, it marks a huge shift in the viability of a Sprint Car race as a show. I grew up in a drag racing family and pretty much local drag racing lost its fan appeal over time and is now supported by racers paying for their own purse to divy up - instead of a fan supported show. I'm just not ready to give up and say that the racers have to carry more of the burden than they already do through somewhat inflated pit passes. Let's do a better job of trying to put on a show that fans will pay to see and give them their money's worth and try to race off of their money instead of the participants.
That's my 2 cents anyway. And maybe I'm just beating my head against a wall and not seeing the trend.
Seriously, best wishes to Farmer City and their show this weekend. Hopefully it is successful enough that the math on the next one doesn't have to involve the entry fee.
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