Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Look`s like people are starting to finally wise up about Nascar.
The once always sell out of Bristol,is over it look`s` like.

Bristol look`s just like all the other Nascar track`s that you
can turn on if you want to take a three hour nap.

Come on spring, let`s` get the Sprinter`s` & Midget`s out
for some real racing.................:23::31::31::8::8::31::69:: 67::22:

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Could not agree with you more, especially about gettin the real racing season started. The sad part about this (empty seats) is it is happening in ALL forms of motor sports.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

the spring race didn't sell out last year but is worse this year, have friends down there and they sad there's a big difference, the fall/night race last year barely sold out thanks to some creative marketing, this year ticket sales for it are wayyyyyyyy down. I went to the fall race last year, to be honest I went back to the motorhome at 400 laps and watched the end on TV

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I had to laugh when Mike Joy tried to play it off by saying "the fans were scared away today by the threat of rain". :5:
More like the threat of being ***** by the crazy ticket prices.
David.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Anyone know what the average ticket price is for a Bristol Cup race?

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Last year me and Dad went with some friends, we had really good seats in the Petty grandstand, for all 3 races, trucks, nationwide and cup it was $175, so $350 for both, throw in the added costs, we went with 2 other guys, split expenses, I paid half since there was 2 of us so my share was $200 for fuel, $125 groceries/ice, $150 for a camping spot in someone's yard, no hook ups so my total costs for 2 people was $825 not counting souviners, meals going to and coming from, stuff at the track etc, not cheap and to be honest, not worth it. With my DARF card and going to other, bigger races around here I'll be spending my racing dollars closer to home and enjoying it more

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I have season tickets (2) for spring and fall races nationwise/sprint cup in the Pearson Terrance and they were $737.00. They dropped the price from 2009 tickets.

REH

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

The announcers stated that the backstretch grandstand was only about half full, but said the front was nearly full. Ole DW said that there were still about 100,000 people there. That's not too good when you have 165,000 seats in the stadium.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

If you notice none of the nascar races are sold out anymore. Did you see the empty seats at Atlanta and Calf? I agree ticket prices are way over priced. My closest track is Kansas City and the best time to go is for Q. and practice day. I think tickets are $15 and you can set anywhere see all the cars and drivers and everything that goes along with the event. Then go home and watch the race on TV which in my opinion is the best way to watch a Nascar event!!

Q

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

A lot of people like the old Bristol better. I think that's part of it. Can't understand it myself. I think they made the track a ton better and it lets the racers actually race now without requiring the use of a bumper to get a slower car out of the way.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

When it was PAVED it was great, then they went concrete and it sucked bad for years, it's much much better with the new changes. As a side note, to show how some sell-out for the sponsers, when they introduced the drivers songs were played, picked by the drivers, Martin Truex picked the Napa Know How song, my friend called and told me about the race after it was over, he said people booed when they played that.....

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I think the downward trend in attendance at any racetrack affects all of us negatively. I live 45 minutes from MIS and have only been there 3 times. It isn't a whole lot of fun, the crowds, the prices, the time commitment. But I never wish ill will on NASCAR, I don't want to see them fail.

But this whole music, and picking out "your song" is just a little too close to wrestling for me. I fell asleep, woke up with 7-8 to go, turned it off once I saw Stewart wasn't going to win, that was enough to change the channel.

I do find it amusing how those on this board who love to call it Napcar and Nascrap seem to know so much about it....

To me we still have a whole lot of rain to wait out around here before the racing gets going. I can admit I like it more then baseball, basketball, football and hockey.

I would like to make it to the Whelen Modified race and the truck race in August at Bristol. Then come home before Cup and Nationwide...

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I love open wheel racing best of all. My first memories of racing were with my Dad in the early 50's when he ran dirt stock cars which morphed into super modifieds and later sprint cars. He quit racing in the late Fifties and I didn't start until the late 60's. I couldn't afford to run a sprint car so I started racing AMA flat track. I did that till I got too old to take the abuse. Didn't race again until about ten years ago. Found my level of pain (financial that is) in Micro Midgets. Been doing that ever since. However, I love all forms of racing. Yes, I even like to watch Nascar Cup racing. I can remember when you were lucky to find anything about racing in the newspaper, and only then, if the sports guy happened to be a race fan.The popularity of Nascar in the last 20 years has brought all types of racing to a higher level and it concerns me when it does not do well. Sorry about the rant but I'm frustrated when guys seem to take pleasure from the most prominent face of our sport hurting. Flame away!

Rick Fields

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

:14: Last time I went to a NAPCAR race was 2002 at Charlotte, never again. I enjoyed the people I went with and racing? where the cars that were in front of me are behind a wall. Tickets were $89 for the 1st turn, bathrooms were shut down after the race so we couldn't use them. I had just had knee surgery so I had a handicap parking permit. The spot were off the back stretch. We had golf carts before the race but you almost had to mug one of the drivers to get them to stop. After the race they were no where to be seen so I hobbled back to the truck. Thanks to who ever invented 4dr trucks (instant bathroom). Then a 4hr traffic jam getting out. I'll take a weekend short track anyday, I can talk to the driver and crew after the races, see the cars up close and just have good time. :31:

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

As I watched on tv today it looked as if our old tickets (8of them) 16 rows up dead center of turns 3/4 were empty. Would rather spend that money on some dirt track racing.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

My better half and myself spent part of NASCAR weekend in Vegas. We used to spend outrageous money to park our RV at the track and attend all of the festivities. We can't afford that luxury anymore. NASCAR seems to be trying to get the Smackdown,Cage fighting crowd for an audience. We laughed when walking through the war wagons and saw row upon row of "me too's" waiting to throw their money at Danica's souvenirs. Saw lots of high dollar jackets. It was quite cold and windy though. I guess I am rambling. We actually went for the USAC and WoO shows, which were spectacular! They are fast paced, short and sweet and absolutely mind blowing to watch. NASCAR would probably do well to watch and learn. Unless of course they are looking for someone other than race fans to watch their show. I used to be a major fan of NASCAR, but it's literally gone Hollywood. I hope the open wheel shows never go that route.:27:

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

The wife and I used to have season tickets to PIR in the 90's. Then the track was sold and at the race after 9/11 the security was awful and the prices went through the roof. The only good part was Manzy Fri/Sat. We didn't re-up, but went to Charlotte for the Coke 600 in 02. Or hotel was 45 minutes from the track Sat. that went to a 5 hour drive on raceday. Horrible !!! No more NASCAR after that.

NASCAR is like the credit card companies...they have overcharged us for years and we have finnaly said no more!! :19: Bristol was proof of that.

I still have my inherited Infinion motorhome spot/NASCAR tickets that I have kept for sentimental reasons, but I have sold them off for the last 6 or 7 years now and I only live 30 minutes away!!!

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

This is really funny, Several coworkers and friends went to the Bristol area this past weekend. They have went to the race the last 10 years. They stay in a cabin in a really nice area. They liked the area so much that they went for there yearly visit. Only this time, no one bought tickets to the race. In there eyes they ruined the track when they changed it.People want to see the beating an banging. Nascar should have made all of the mile and a half tracks, halmiles. Bet you would see many more sell outs.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

heres my opinion, i used to love Nascar, but i went to World of outlaws at haubstadt in 2001, and have been to 2 Nascar races since, then i went to a few non-wing sprint car races in 2002, and i was flat a$$ addicted now. All the guys i work wit are big nascar fans and i try and tell them if they ever goto Sprint car race they will see some real racing, they talked me into goin to the Nashville Busch race last year, i made it bout 20 laps and i said screw this and left, went downtown Nashville to Coyote Ugly....had ahole lot better time!
But if you are a racefan and love racing and never saw a sprint car race ppl are missing out, it is so funny when you take someone that has never been before and watch their reaction to the racing!!! Priceless
dont know bout yall but i'M ready to get dirty and smell sum Alcohol!!

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I was down there this weekend, and I had several opportunities to get tickets for the Bristol race but passed. We went to the outlaw show at Bulls Gap. Wow, I wish USAC could get a date down there. What a racetrack.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I agree about no ill will on Nascar. At least the owners are:6: giving our young open wheelers a chance unlike Indycar.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Tickets sales must be really down at Bristol. Just got an e-mail from Bristol Speedway for tickets available for the August week-end races. This is hard to believe that at one time there was a 3 year waiting list for tickets for the August race and now they have ticket available. I guess they won't be advertising the hardest sport ticket to get anymore. You expect tickets sales to be down at some tracks but who would ever thought this would happen at Bristol.

REH

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Once an event doesn't sell out you lose all those sales to the ripoff ticket brokers trying to make a buck on those tickets. If the event doesn't sellout they have no interest in the tickets and I bet a ton of Bristol's sales were to the brokers. Then there is also the human nature factor. When somebody tells you you can't go to something, which before was because you couldn't get a ticket, you wanted to go. Now that you can just call the track and get a ticket, you think there must be a reason everbody else doesn't want to go and you don't want to go either.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

I just got back from Bristol and I did enjoy the weekend. They have made the track, in my opinion, much more raceable than it has been before. We always take the motor home and 8 guys and have been going to Bristol & Talladega for over 20 years. We used to attend another 4-5 NASCAR races per year as well but that went out of the window a number of years ago. Priced us out of the market.

With the economy being in the dump, ticket prices have remained the same for the most part or become cheaper. One thing we have noticed is a lot more people drive in the day of rather than spend the money to camp. The attendance at the Saturday Nationwide race is the worst I have seen with the current configuration of the track.

I doubt seriously that they had 100,000 people there for the Sunday show. If so, many were diguised at empty seats.:3: I also agree that this doesn't look very promising for future events. Last year I predicted to our guys that 2010 would be more difficult than 2009. The reason, we have to buy tickets 9 months in advance and last year we had already purchased them so most people still went. This year, not even close.

I have taken a lot of the money I spent on NASCAR races and now go to more open wheel, short track events. NASCAR is in trouble on numerous counts as TV ratings are down, attendance is down, sponsorship is down, etc. I will say this, the next two years will decide the fate of all entertainment venues and I hope auto racing survives.:(

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Well, from what I am gathering, Nascar and it's tracks loss are gains to local tracks and the surrounding businesses. :8: Last year some of my wife's relatives were down from N.Y. for our wedding. A couple of her uncles were diehard nascar fans so we talked alot about racing. I talked them into staying in town and going to Kokomo for the sprintweek show. After our usual tailgateing in the parking lot the racing was on and the look on their faces was priceless. They will definetely be coming back this summer to see some real racing!

I try to let nascar fans around here just how awesome the racing is at our local tracks and hopefully, if I can get them to come out once, they will be back.:32:

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

The only time I ever went to Bristol, Kevin Harvick won and your seats are almost exactly where I sat. It was the old Bristol before they made it 2 lanes. Back when all the drivers left there mad at someone.

Re: Bristol--- No longer a sell out
 

Face it people like the wrecks. Put bristol back to the way it was and it will sell out again. Step #2 build more short tracks, or go back to existing tracks. I watched sunday just long enough for them to get strung out, then switched back to basketball. Smaller tracks, more beating and banging, thats what people want to see :14: