Yeah figured tire bill had to be higher but was thinking overall motor cost should be even if not a little lower if compared to a winged car. Absolutely no clue on cost in regards to the chassis. And yes it sucks that they have a lot more higher paying shows.

What's a late model?

Ahhhh! A NASCAR fan!

I think pretty much everything on a late model is more expensive. That's why LM racing in IN and IL has been declining for many years. Many stock car people have switched to sprints for that reason.

I'm a die hard sprint car guy, but the Late Models must be doing something right because there are many many more of them out there.

It's been said by guys who have driven and won in both sprint cars and dirt late models that the late models take less talent and are easier to drive and more experience to figure out the set up and tire selection as opposed to a sprint car.

A driver of a dirt late model is less apt to be injured, or worse, than a sprint car driver in the event of crash and that no doubt influences participation. I was told by a well known Midwest dirt late model driver who also is a very good friend that he drove a sprinter one time and never wanted to drive one again. His exact words were that "a sprint car is way too violent" and he never wrecked, it was just too violent for his taste.

Work as a sports editor at a newspaper. Lots of stick & ball people ask me what my favorite sports is. I always say sprint car racing. This isn't what they expect and they always say .... Ahhhh! A NASCAR fan!

it also takes twice as much money at the car wash lol. as far as the talent statement it takes talent to be a good drive in any division! the thing to me about sprint cars is the drivers abilty to make a bad set up work by changing ur line or just hustling the car. not that u cant in a stock car but ur a little more limited like pavement racing. but the driver still has to be talented or the best set ups will just be mid pack. i love all types of racing just a fan of passing and good hard racing

Late models cost way more than a sprint car to run weekly. Maybe a WoO wing sprint costs as much as a late model, but I highly doubt it costs more. There is just more to a late model. There is more technology and technology means more $$$. And please don't try to argue that fact. Go to the Indy museum and look at the 1920's Indy cars. Sprint cars are running the same style suspension that they ran nearly 100 years ago. Now that's all fine and dandy and they put on great races, but from a technology and engineering aspect, sprint cars are boring. Maybe that's a small part of the popularity difference.

And for reference a brand new Club 29 (a popular chassis brand) with good parts is around $45,000 for a roller. A brand new wide bore engine is around $45,000 as well. It costs around $90,000 or so to build a brand new top of the line late model capable of winning the big races.

But I think the main problem in sprint car racing is the level of envolvement on the fan's part. Late model racing fans know everything about the drivers and their chassis, engines, etc. I know people who love sprint car racing but they couldn't tell you what kind of chassis Darland runs. In late model racing that's a huge rivalry. And also sprint car drivers play an ongoing game of musical racing seats. It makes it hard for fans to identify with drivers when they are in a different car and different number every other race. Sprint car racing as a whole needs to get better at building brands. Drivers need to stick with the same numbers and need to keep the same general car look to allow fans to build a bond with that driver and car. The old school Indy style of numbering and lettering the cars to identify with the team isn't as effective as identifying with the drivers. It may be good for those of us who are hardcore fans, but to the average fan they just care about the drivers.

Great post, Dustin. I think you nailed it about branding the sport. Big time LM racing does a good job of that.