Originally Posted by Crankin:
Good questions in there, as well as your other post.
One thing for sure is Midgets rarely draw good crowds… Which is a total shame because racing quality is more times than not, top notch! Midget Week draws good crowds, but after that, there are no other National Midget races in the state??? There’s probably a lot of answers to those questions in that alone.
Heck, the biggest Midget track in the country (Sun Prairie) hasn't had a Midget only race in probably over a decade. Yet for 70 or so years, it was Midgets only. Almost all of their races now have some form of Sprint Cars with the Midgets.
I have often wondered if a field of Midgets being driven predominantly by “kids’ has hurt grandstand attendance? Please don’t roast me for that, it just something I’ve always kind of wondered, and those “kids” put on some fantastic racing. With that said, in my lifetime it has gone from Midget only races to multiple classes. From 40 lap features to 30 lap (and some are 25). And, from being able to watch a race from the stands, go into the pits afterwards, and have a beer with the heroes you just watched. To a lot the drivers not old enough to drink a beer. Again, not putting anyone down, I’ve just always wondered if that had any affect on attendance?
Another thought is the decline in the amount of Midget racing in the country. In the early 80’s, i can think of 15-18 Midget sanctioning bodies running all over the country, off the top of my head. Now, I believe there’s only 5 National dirt Midget sanctions.
At first, i was on the other side of the fence about Flo. I thought all the exposure was great!
It still is for maybe the Chili Bowl, but i am starting to think that it is hurting attendance at tracks. I could go on for awhile on this, but I’ve babbled on too long already.
One thought i did have, which probably won’t be popular, is area blackouts within a certain amount of miles from the track. I do realize there is technology to get around being blacked out, but it could help getting some butts in the seats at these tracks? Not just the blackout, but no replays in that region either, for 2 weeks.
Just some thoughts that your post provoked.
Then of course there is the cost of Midget racing, and what that’s done. But that would be a whole other book.
Agree about the thought of "kids" racing. It takes a while to get to a point to be interested in following 15-16 year olds (maybe if their dad raced, or once you saw them run/win a time or two...etc).
Also agree about FLO. I will never believe it gets a measurable number of fans TO GO to the tracks (it helps in different ways however; overall interest / sponsor value / allows for national following / and so on....). I just think the promotors should get more of a cut (I do not know about a USAC race, but I've heard numbers as low as $500...BUT, how many REALLY are watching on FLO? I do not think 20,000 people were tuning in to watch these midget races this wknd. MAYBE 2,000 people from a 3-hour radius of the track? & that would only be cuz it is was in Indiana...other parts of the country, I suspect even less. I think in every case, the black out idea would be great!).
Now, I do have to point out, since 2022; there HAS been "MIDGET" only races scheduled at Angell Park, on Labor Day weekend...the Fireman National shows feature separate events for the USAC and BMARA versions. Both are great shows. The BMARA version is not known as a "National midget" but other than an OEM block, head, and crank (& 2.4 L); it's basically the same car and the top ones go faster or as fast as the USAC cars. I like watching both forms (this show is the only time I see the USAC version anymore) - it works out well. This year's (the 40th!) is scheduled for Sunday only; August 31st...(how many laps will the features be...???).
