where would you go next?
 

I saw somewhere, that ratings for the Eldora truck race were down 20 percent from last year and that's about 50 percent of the first one. (Don't hold me to this, I don't remember exactly where I saw it) But if it's true, do you think they might want to consider another venue to spark interest? If so where would you recommend they go? I kinda hate to talk about it because this is indiana open wheel, and this is fenders, but a lot of you are dirt track afficianodoes, so I value your opinion. I would pick the Terre haute action track, plenty of infield pit room, and they might have to throw em sideways to get around. What do you think?

Ratings being down for the truck race from year to year probably isn't a huge concern to them. They likely look more into how the rating stack up against their regular races. If it's falling behind them they may consider moving it. Having it at terre haute would be cool, 1 major problem would be seating. I believe Eldora seats upwards of 40,000. What does terre haute seat? 5k maximum capacity? Especially if you can't watch from the infield due to pitting. I think it would have to go to a mile. And I think if it did it would basically another pavement race. I personally believe eldora is the prime location for the race. And personally it's the only truck, nationwide, or sprint cup race I watch all year.

That's the first truck race I watched all year also.I think with all the channel changing to watch any kind of motorsports is a huge problem.I also loose interest in any kind of car race when I don't even know the names or background Of the drivers.

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I believe part of the reason the ratings were down was due to the network it was on. Not everyone has NBCSN in their channel lineup. I think Eldora is the best location for this race even through it seats nowhere near 40,000.

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Illinois has a couple of nice one mile tracks that have been researched with stock cars. They generally run in conjunction with a big open wheel race the day before. Competition has usually been excelent and they do seem to keep um sideways for what seems like forever. And it is a day race on dirt.

Honest Dads himself:6::6:

It would be cool if NASCAR went to the dirt miles with the trucks. No disrespect meant to the ARCA series but the trucks would bring a lot more attention to these great facilities. I seem to remember shortly after the first Eldora race that NASCAR batted around the idea of a few more dirt races for the trucks and the tracks that were popping up were Knoxville and the dirt tracks attached to the Bruton Smith owned tracks.

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leave it at Eldora, but pull the windshields out and do some track prep so its not asphalt by the end of the night. Show it on a regular network (FOX /NBC) and not one of their cable channels, you could keep the quals and practice on the secondary channels but atleast show the heats and main event on a channel everyone gets and maybe some actual advertising on said channel well before the race.

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I'd go to Knoxville, they have the room and seating for a big crowd.

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Indy Mile, Springfield, DuQuoin, Knoxville, Belleville + Eldora.

They could put dirt on Bristol again and do it there

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Nascar gives Eldora a free pass on the SAFER barrier stuff. If they run them on a mile track, they might not be as lenient with that deal.

DuQuoin at night would be my choice.

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Being a born & bred, tried & true Illini I would absolutely love to see NASCAR trucks come to one or both of the Illinois mile dirt tracks. Either of our mile dirt tracks (along with the Indy Mile) is where a dirt race of the magnitude of a NASCAR National touring series should be held and both would be perfect for not only a NASCAR truck race, but for an Xfinity and even a Cup race. ARCA, and before them USAC, put on a great show 3 or 4 out of every 5 races on the dirt miles. Thankfully ARCA has been steadfast in their support of the traditional fairgrounds tracks of Illinois.

Unfortunately for those of us who love the mile dirt tracks and race fans in general the Illini mile dirt tracks are owned and operated by the State of Illinois. And even more unfortunate the State of Illinois is beyond broke and could not, and would not invest in the adequate infrastructure necessary to host such an event. Even if the state wasn't completely broke I sincerely doubt that the Chitcago politicians would stand for any type of investment that would involve auto racing, especially downstate.

The only way a national NASCAR event could be feasible at Springfield and/or Du Quoin is if there was private investors who could be convinced a return on investment could be somehow realized with the state involved. When pigs soar with the Eagles!!

As much as I dearly love the Silver Crown cars on the miles, I personally salivate from the thought of a sanction with the relevance of NASCAR racing at our miles but then reality sets in and instantly spoils the moment.

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If they leave Eldora, my guess would be that would be the end of dirt. I am sure only Tony Stewart could have sold them on the deal. Of all the tracks mentioned only Knoxville would have anything close to the infrastructure to put on an event like this. I watched the race on fox sports 1 (the old speed channel), and I thought the track was prepped well for the trucks. You have a lot of drivers who have very limited dirt experience, and a heavy track would have been a disaster. Plus once the track takes rubber, you lose the dust. I don't think they will leave, as the ratings weren't horrible, and a lot of people were in the crowd. NASCAR has seen the money they have put into the facility for that event, so I don't think they will drop them real quick. Of course I thought the same about IRP.

DuQuoin at night would be the coolest, depending on if it had enough seating capacity. The state has spent some money there on a new wall and fencing. They also extended the fence at Springfield. While they're at it, throw some dirt tires on the Indy cars and run them too!

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That was the first truck race I have watched since Eldora in 2014. And, it is the last truck race I will watch until Eldora 2016.

I figured the Dirt Track at Charlotte would be their next step.

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Someone said the race was on NBCSC or something like that but it was on FS1. Stewart's ties to NASCAR got the race there so it ain't going anywhere and as BrentTfunk said Eldora has the infrastructure. That track has everything to handle a large crowd and plenty of motorhome/camping space. Plus, it takes huge bucks to put it on and Tony has the big bucks. Track conditions are horrible but they're running 40mph so who cares. The track reminds me of a normal night at Bloomington.

Not enough passing on the mile tracks for my liking. "If it ain't broke don't fix it"

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Tom Guess you haven't been to Bloomington this year cuz the prep is a lot better than years past.:6: This was the first truck race I ever watched it was interesting but I wouldn't go to it in person I hated the surface looked and acted like they were driving on ice but understand a lot of those truck guys have never ran dirt before and would have been lost on a heavy track . One thing Fox Sports needs are some announcers who know a little about dirt racing those guys are terrible :7:

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i think paragen speedway dont realy care i dont go anway

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I've been to B'Ton once this year, Jim, and really do plan on hitting another one. I-69 just about makes it too easy not to go. Boy, I love that highway. When they get it done in 6-9 months we'll get to the speedway from here in an hour and a half. I don't like not being super nice to the track as it is a tough business and I get that. Would it kill them to actually work the track at intermission, tho? I know they don't have TSS equipment but once the night starts that's it for track prep and it does look like Salem many times with the tire smoke and screeching. I just feel that if the O'Conners or Helfrichs ran the place the track would have many more great races than now. The potential has been there for years but it just never seems to be reached consistently. Hey, I'll still go. It's getting closer travel-wise all the time.