[SWScaleChassis]

The $$ has to come from somewhere if purses are expected to stay at the same level.

Suppose you nix the driver pit passes. Raising pit pass prices or front gate prices only makes logical sense to me to make up for the loss of each shoe's armband. In a sport of show business, the last thing someone spending their money on a ticket is expecting is a price increase because the performers don't have to pay their way in.

I've also been to enough place across the nation that for my dollar spent, I wouldn't be exteremely pleased knowing that some drivers got a 'free ticket' into the back gate.

At the end of the day, "You gotta pay to play"

[Midget 89]

Originally Posted by trannyman We'll,it's going on right here on In.

Huh?

[trannyman]

Should've said here in Ind.,not on ind. Sorry about that.

[jdull99]

Me thinks anyone who tows any-type of car with a # on it to race at any local track ON AN OPEN TRAILER, should get 2 free pit passes! A handful of open trailers sell more tix than a any enclosed with the best graphics!

[racegal]

I agree with you Wayne. I have always thought that too.

[wingless1]

I guess it's the time you grow up in. When I ran midgets from 1982 till 1996, it never entered my mind that I would not have to pay for a pit pass. I understood our entry fee and pit pass to be part of the tracks insurance, track employees pay, sometimes the push truck drivers would get a couple bucks out of the pot. You paid your entry fee, and your pit pass, just like buying gas for your car, no big deal. At that time most club presidents, track owners, promoters made it clear to us our pit pass was for competitors insurance. We raced in New Mexico, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, on a regular basis, small time track owners in smaller towns had to meet our insurance standards, to help out we paid for our pit pass, no big deal. When I was president of the RMMRA for 1989, when I negotiated purses for our races with track owners, paying for insurance was always part of the negotiation, pit passes helped pay for that part of getting to race. The thought never crossed my mind not to have drivers pay for the tracks insurance, as I saw it and no one ever even brought it up. And I was very, and I mean very low budget when I start out, I ran Firestone take off's on dirt well after everyone else was on new Hoosiers, if I could not afford a pit pass I figured I could not afford to race that simple. But I never missed a race because I could not afford a pit pass, not bragging or complaining, just the way we did it.

[wingless1]

One more thing, in all the years I owned and drove midgets, the very few stand alone midget shows we ran, anywhere, just did not get very big crowds. If we raced with local hobby stocks, or sometimes local sprint car clubs the crowds were better, most track owners gave our club a shot as part of a Memorial day show, or 4th of July weekend, or a county fair date. As for weekly home shows around Denver, CO we always split with sprint cars, and late models. The very few midget only show's we ran seldom drew more than a couple of hundred fans, so as a midget club we could not demand much from a track owner or promoter.

[Wayne Davis]

Mitch...that is your choice...I chose to help our racers out by negotiating a pit pass as part of the purse, that way each and every racer gets a little help not just the top five that can afford to pay for their entire crew if they chose to. The track has the option to refuse giving a pass...their choice....Tell ya what...go to a race and stand at the pit window yourself and ask the drivers do you want to pay for a pit pass or get in free....

Again it is my way of giving back to the racer...we don't have a big points fund nor do we race for a ton of $$$$ and every $$ a racer can save this day and time is a blessing.

Thanks for all the response...This is what IOW is about....some like to get into a pissing match but for the most part it is a good tool to ask questions and get others thoughts....thank you all again for your responses

[wingless1]

I know this is from a long time ago in a galaxy far far away.....I kept these records my rookie season, we opened in Albuquerque, NM but I could not afford to travel to that show. There was a 2 day USAC National Midget show at Raceland as well, but I skipped that show, was saving all my money for RMMRA shows as I was shooting for rookie of the year. That last race at Lakeside (1/5 mile paved) I had no muffler, mine was stolen early in the season, the club pres Bill Redden was promoting that race, so he called and asked if I was going, told him I couldn't, no muffler. So he gave me one of his spare super traps, I could not afford a new one. I did win Rookie of the year for 1982.

[Nut'n but Dirt]

The tracks make their money to pay the purse from the backgate, which means owners, crews and drivers have to pay their way in. If you were going to pay anyone's pit pass, it should be the owner who has paid for all the car parts, etc. to race. Just saying. But, at the end of the day, I need a racetrack to "play", and the only way to do that is everyone paying their way.

Now if you think drivers should get in for free, then fans could start paying for a driver (or owners for that matter) to help defray their costs. I've had friends of mine do that, and it is awesome to find out that someone has paid for you.

Thanks to all of you racefans for coming to the races.