Do food and facilities matter to you?

jason88cubs · 8/10/25, 4:25 PM

Was talking about how Spoon River Speedway seems to be struggling with fans and car count and suppose posted this

"It was on my list of tracks to attend this year as a new-to-Illinois resident, but friends who had been there said things about the bad facilities and food so I scratched it off my list. Facilities and concessions do matter and are a big part of how many younger fans (myself included) view the racetrack experience."

It really made me curious..do food and facilities have a impact on if you go to a race?

For me it doesn't I go for racing. I pretty much never eat at a track. It's very rare I do eat there. If I planned on eating I'd likely throw a turkey sandwich in the cooler. I just can't handle greasy type food or hot dogs. Facilities don't matter either. Sure some bathrooms could be nicer (Farmer City) , but heck I also sat top row at Granite City Speedway (IL) and wondered if it was just a matter of time before it fell lol

So I was just curious if that stuff has a impact on if you go to a track or return to one?

The55 · 8/10/25, 5:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jason88cubs

Was talking about how Spoon River Speedway seems to be struggling with fans and car count and suppose posted this

"It was on my list of tracks to attend this year as a new-to-Illinois resident, but friends who had been there said things about the bad facilities and food so I scratched it off my list. Facilities and concessions do matter and are a big part of how many younger fans (myself included) view the racetrack experience."

It really made me curious..do food and facilities have a impact on if you go to a race?

For me it doesn't I go for racing. I pretty much never eat at a track. It's very rare I do eat there. If I planned on eating I'd likely throw a turkey sandwich in the cooler. I just can't handle greasy type food or hot dogs. Facilities don't matter either. Sure some bathrooms could be nicer (Farmer City) , but heck I also sat top row at Granite City Speedway (IL) and wondered if it was just a matter of time before it fell lol

So I was just curious if that stuff has a impact on if you go to a track or return to one?

If the sport is to survive, facilities matter. Restrooms are important, particularly for getting families to attend. I typically eat at the track because it saves hauling a cooler and I like to support the track and concessions are a portion of their profits.

Chief Wahoo · 8/10/25, 9:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jason88cubs

I also sat top row at Granite City Speedway (IL) and wondered if it was just a matter of time before it fell lol

100%, it’s a long way down

It’s all about the racing!! With that being said, I don’t wanna persuade a track owner from trying to upgrade.

Charles Nungester · 8/10/25, 9:41 PM

The restroom and stands were replaced 7 years before the track was changed at burg
But I sure as hell don't miss standing in a inch or two of urine and water to go in a trough. Using two different concessions to get all I wanted, A grandstand who's top four rows had separated and blocked off and getting bit a dozen times a night from a drainage ditch behind the stands that never dried out.And lighting that was inadequate.

I've been in worse. Pit side at twin cities and a couple others Whitewater was a terrible restroom.

Made me wonder how someone got a family or girlfriend to come.

openwheelfan1 · 8/10/25, 9:55 PM

Facilities absolutely matter to us! We typically travel a minimum of 2 hrs one way to any track that runs sprint cars or midgets, so we usually have to eat at the track. Decent, SAFE food is important! And as we are both above the Social Security age, we are not going to expose our knees to climbing rickety bleachers!

flagboy55 · 8/10/25, 10:35 PM

Not once have I considered facilities a consideration to attend a race. It’s all about the race program and product on the track. I do however appreciate nice facilities, and applaud tracks that upgrade them. But there are some tracks that have massively upgraded facilities, and forget about the important part

nathans1012 · 8/11/25, 3:28 AM

I never once have I thought about facilities when going to a race track. I'm not paying $12 - $15+ to sit in the stands or $30+ for a pit pass to use the bathrooms or concession stands. My @$$ is coming to see a race. If the facilities are decent and the food is good, then so be it.

miledirt · 8/11/25, 6:35 AM

Same here... food for sure and for the most facilities, don't enter my thinking in making a decision about going to a track. My decisions are more about how well they run their program. If it's the 5,6+ classes thing with the sprint feature starting around 11, I'm out. Too old - ha!

kb78 · 8/11/25, 7:37 AM

Good topic!!

For me the facilities do not matter as much, although as I get older I do tend to pay more and more attention to the stands.

If my wife is going then facilities absolutely matter!! She is not climbing sketchy bleachers or using a porta-john.

deadhorse30 · 8/11/25, 7:46 AM

When I go to the track it's for racing. I'm making the trip to Port Royal for the first time this weekend and it's because I love their program on Flo. That track puts on some amazing racing. I have no idea what their facilities are like, doesn't matter to me. I'm a race fan, that's what I care about.

With that being said, my family is a different story. I have a wife and two teenage kids. They're not interested in crap food and porta pots. If you want to promote a family type atmosphere you have to have decent facilities.