[bigsby]

I'm 29 years old and have been going to 15+ open wheel shows a season for the last 6 or 7 years. I didn't grow up with the sport, sure I went to a few races with my dad as a kid at our local track Tri-State Speedway, but by no means was it a weekly thing. I started to go again as a young adult and really caught the bug. I try to make it a point each season to take at least one friend along that's never been to a race before. Some of them have become regulars with our small group, others are a one and done. I am well aware of the typical age landscape in the grandstands and have thought about it quite often. The older crowd definitely outweighs the younger people, some tracks more than others. I see a lot of the same older people at multiple tracks I go to, but I can say the same thing for the younger crowd.

As for Silver Crown, maybe it is something you needed to grow up watching. I've only seen two SC races, both at Eldora with the 4 Crown. I do much prefer sprint cars and their shorter all out races. However, I do understand and appreciate the differences in Silver Crown to sprint cars.

With all that, I guess I'm just trying to point out that I don't feel your outlook on the generational gap is a bleak as you make it out to be. I've seen more and more of a younger crowd over the last several years and feel it will continue to grow. Young people just don't know about it, so it's up to the young people like myself that do to educate and bring more fans to the track. For the older generation, reach out to the younger crowd that you do see at the track, educate them on the history of the sport. Help bridge the generational gap.