[Hubie48]

As a much younger man sitting around the infield of Springfield, DuQuoin were highlights for Me. Gary Bettenhausen was just aces in this regard. Stan Fox was also very social before his terrible accident at Indy.

They used to have big parties at Terre Haute as well after the races. Not in the infield but out back behind what is now the pit area. Several of the drivers and teams would break out the grills and coolers and a giant bench racing session ensued.

[oppweld]

Terre Haute is the perfect place for racer /driver interaction. Open the pits for an hour and half till its time for heat in the motors. The little ones rarely make to feature time let alone after, but if they could make some memories early in they day they will wake up the next day asking how the car they sat in finished.

[BrentTFunk]

One of the big appeals to our sport in getting to interact with the drivers. If we lose that we lose the sport. Big time drivers can make more money off merch than they can racing. Plus, you can blow a motor and still sell merch. That may be the best way to keep things rolling during slow times. Interacting with fans definitely builds a driver's brand and could add longevity to a career. I agree that this should be done before and after the races, not during competition.
One thing that hurts visiting after races are too many support classes. It is tough to ask teams to sit around for an hour and a half after they are done, waiting for the other classes to finish. I know a lot of drivers have some very time-consuming schedules, that is why making sure to schedule time each night is very important to the fans, the track and even the drivers. Lose it, and the sport is doomed.
For the record, I in all my years have going, have never seen a driver who was approached at a decent time, ever ignore a fan. Even with the hard work and travel, most should be glad they are not stuck doing 40 hours a week. Only made possible, by fans buying tickets.

[Aurora78]

Last year at Macon on Saturday night after the feature. They had all the cars stop on the track. Fans were able to go walk the track and talk with the drivers.

[cmakin]

Originally Posted by BrentTFunk One of the big appeals to our sport in getting to interact with the drivers. If we lose that we lose the sport. Big time drivers can make more money of merch than they can racing. Plus, you can blow a motor and still sell merch. That may be the best way to keep thing rolling during slow times. Interacting with fans definitely builds a driver's brand, and could add longevity to a career. I agree that this should be done before and after the races, not during competition. One thing that hurts visiting after races are too many support classes. It is tough to ask teams to sit around for an hour and a half after they are done, waiting for the other classes to finish. I know a lot of drivers have some very time consuming schedules, that is why making sure to schedule time each night is very important to the fans, the track and even the drivers. Lose it, and the sport is doomed. For the record, I in all my years have going, have never seen a driver who was approached at a decent time, ever ignore a fan. Even with the hard work and travel, most should be glad they are not stuck doing 40 hours a week. Only made possible, by fans buying tickets.

Oh, man. Support classes. . . you have touched on a HUGE peeve of mine. Down here in the Houston area, that has killed racing. Currently there are only two dirt tracks operating in the area. One is a 1/6 mile track that races micros, about an hour south of Houston. The other track is a 1/4 mile track that races just about everything. I have shot at all of the area tracks in the past 18 years, and have also watched racing and crewed on cars at most of them, too in the past 36 years. I have also watched the sport die. Many nights there were just a couple of hundred fans (if that) in the stands, while there were 6 or more classes racing. Special shows? Well, they would still run all of the weekly classes. To be honest, it has really changed my enthusiasm for local racing. At one time, there were 7 tracks within a 90 minute drive from Houston. Now, as I noted, there are two. The area track that would do the best for special shows was Houston Raceway Park/Royal Purple Raceway in Baytown. Huge stands with suites. They would actually pack the stands for their special shows, even for the regional ASCS races by offering free admission and only charge for parking. I recall one National ASCS show where Brian Brown commented that he only ever saw a crowd that size at the Knoxville Nationals. Many times, prior to the feature, the cars would line up on the front stretch, and the fans were allowed to come down and mingle. Of course, that track is gone now, too. Oh, and at least there, they generally only included one weekly class to support. But, as usual, I digress. . .

[SoIllSprinter]

The pits during the event is a workplace and should be treated as such, fans shouldn’t be allowed. After races open the pits. The NASCARs and Indy Cars of the world give tours prior to the event, maybe that’s possible for the big sprint shows as well. I would hazard a guess that many drivers leave early after the show because not only have they worked their tails off but they have done so under a microscope of constant fans around the work area. Maybe more would stay around for meet and greets if the pits were closed during the event. I have personally heard that fans in pits are becoming more confrontational as well, which is not a pleasant work space for anyone.
To parrot Funk above, though I haven’t done so in years, I’ve never had an experience that wasn’t positive when talking with drivers, owners, or crew after a race, they were all exceedingly accommodating.

[TNRustler]

Originally Posted by Aurora78 Last year at Macon on Saturday night after the feature. They had all the cars stop on the track. Fans were able to go walk the track and talk with the drivers.

I was at that show and thought that was a great idea. Alot of fans went to the infield.

[cmakin]

Originally Posted by SoIllSprinter The pits during the event is a workplace and should be treated as such, fans shouldn’t be allowed. After races open the pits. The NASCARs and Indy Cars of the world give tours prior to the event, maybe that’s possible for the big sprint shows as well. I would hazard a guess that many drivers leave early after the show because not only have they worked their tails off but they have done so under a microscope of constant fans around the work area. Maybe more would stay around for meet and greets if the pits were closed during the event. I have personally heard that fans in pits are becoming more confrontational as well, which is not a pleasant work space for anyone. To parrot Funk above, though I haven’t done so in years, I’ve never had an experience that wasn’t positive when talking with drivers, owners, or crew after a race, they were all exceedingly accommodating.

I agree with this comment, too. I am old enough to recall when you had to be on a race team (oh, and male and over 16) to get into the pits.

[B99]

Originally Posted by SoIllSprinter The pits during the event is a workplace and should be treated as such, fans shouldn’t be allowed. After races open the pits. The NASCARs and Indy Cars of the world give tours prior to the event, maybe that’s possible for the big sprint shows as well. I would hazard a guess that many drivers leave early after the show because not only have they worked their tails off but they have done so under a microscope of constant fans around the work area. Maybe more would stay around for meet and greets if the pits were closed during the event. I have personally heard that fans in pits are becoming more confrontational as well, which is not a pleasant work space for anyone. To parrot Funk above, though I haven’t done so in years, I’ve never had an experience that wasn’t positive when talking with drivers, owners, or crew after a race, they were all exceedingly accommodating.

Agree with this wholeheartedly. Unless you are a team member, official, or media you don't belong in their work space during an event. Have someone come and stand in front of your truck or tractor or forklift or sit on your desk while you're trying to work and see how you like it. But there is a tradeoff for that, teams have to be willing to stay a reasonable time after an event to interact with fans. Hey if there are three-four more features after yours, how about you drivers go to the fans? Go to the stands, sign some hats, give away a few shirts if you got 'em. For many fans that night may be the only opportunity they have to interact with you. For you as a driver, tht night might be your 15 minutes of fame. Don't f*ck it up.

[snowdrift]

Berlin speedway is the best for this they open pit gate after the races are over .As a car owner you know it’s going to take one hour or more before you can leave but it’s the best of time watching them kids getting in and out of that sprint car and talking to drivers