If I get home from the races before sunrise, I feel like I've been cheated. Also, my wife wonders what kind of mischief I've really been up to!

I'M with you on that Marv.

I would rather the track be prepped and prepped some more baby!!! Thats why TSS has the best races and takes awhile to get over.. Cry about it if ya dont like it but would ya rather see some dusty ass race and not be able to see the action????

"Huh? Hockey takes three 15 minute breaks that are often extended for cellebrities. Football takes a half hour half time and quite honestly several times there are several minutes between plays. Its made for TV. Baseball takes the 7th inning stretch which is no where near the other sports. five or ten minutes.

Racings a bit different. Number of accidents, track conditions. We got started late at both LBurg and That by at least a half hour but the show moved quick once it got going and a few lulls allowed for great conversation."


Mr Nungester, there is no need to exaggerate to make this case. Hockey actually takes TWO 15-minute breaks While The Surface Is Prepared. And I have yet in my life seen a "celebrity" delay a hockey game, though I suppose it is possible that occurred at sometime in history. Halftime in football is NOT a half hour unless it is the Super Bowl, and that is one reason many fans hate the halftime shows at that game. All the replay delays are a nuisance and it grates on people when they do get lengthy. The primary point is that these breaks in action are definitively time-structured and consistent. You Know What To Expect.
I certainly haven't expressed discontent with Lawrenceburg's pace of their program. While it can always be said that any racing fan knows going into a show that delays both anticipated and not are possible or likely, it doesn't require a "just-shut-up-about-it-and-be-happy-you-are-at-any-race-at-all" when you see delays that are unjustified, extensive and all too often unexplained. As I stated before, Efficiency is simply more courteous. It would allow for even more of the "good conversation" that could take place after the event, while you wait out the rush of folks who are leaving immediately.
Anyone who goes to Haubstadt KNOWS there is going to be a total re-working of the track prior to either the B or A main, and it is going to be accomplished with the almost dizzying efficiency of carpenter ants in earth-moving vehicles. It is anticipated, efficient and effective. It isn't one of the other forms of casual discourtesy. It is closer to the big leagues in that manner: effective and structured.
I am never going to complain about the "natural" time a racing event takes. But it is in every fan's right after purchasing a ticket to criticize inadequacies, in whatever form they feel compromised. If that results in not attending the next event, then there is the lesson for the track operators to learn.

It seems to me that we have two types of people on this thread with polar different philosophies and perspectives. And they will never understand the other side.

Every track and series has a certain percentage of racers and fans that will hang around and drink beer and tell lies in the dark pit area until dawn. Those folks will never see the point in caring what time a program gets done.

Then you have the other side, the guy with a wife and a couple of pre-teen or smaller kids in tow. This is usually the type of fan that has to go into work early on Saturday morning to get the time and a half needed to pay for this troops trip to the track the night before. That fan, as he carries his sleeping grade-schooler on his shoulder back to the car before the first feature his the track will never understand why the premeir class feature can't be on the track by 9:30.

I believe it is a matter of perspective... After going through a few cancer battles, I am happy to be alive... and I have an appreciation for being able to go the races and enjoy them that others may not. Bottomline... I am just glad I get the chance to go to the races and I don't want that time to end regardless of how long it takes.

Racing is my escape from the crap that goes on at home. I don't have a car yet, but by working on my buddies car, it takes my mind off of that crap and allows me to get away from it. I agree with Bill, I wish it would never end.

to me, and i'm usually wrong, no one is saying you cant stay all night, drink beer and tell story in the pits. by getting the races done earlier you could have more time to do that. to grow the sport i feel you need to look at the family that show up to the races with kids and friends in tow. have time after the races for the family's with the kids to go to the pits see the cars, talk to the drivers, get autograph and start new story for years to come. when i was a kid that is what i did and now i have owned a car for 18 years now. with the late races you see less and less kids in the pits. look at the race series you go and support every week. how many rookies have their been in the last 2 years. 1 maybe 2 in the last 2 years? where do the rookies come from? kids in the pits. now get the cost in control and in the next few years hopefully will see good car counts again.

Mr. Gardner what gets me is people leaving with 10 laps to go thats when you see some of the best racing!!!! Randy Smith

I have two points.

The first one is your body's schedule. I also have a job that requires me to be at work at 5:30am. My body wakes up every day at 4:30am. This includes Saturday and Sunday, but I can usually go back to sleep. In order to keep my sleep patterns the same, my body wants to go to sleep every night at 9:30. This includes Friday and Saturday nights. I do take naps on the weekends to help me get to/recover from the races. However, Sunday night is horrible to try to get back on schedule.

The second point is simple efficiency. Why would I want to go back to a 56K modem, when I can have DSL. Why would I want to go to a track that can't start on time, that drags the program out, and takes endless intermissions. When I can go to a track that starts on time, runs the program efficiently, and has a set intermission. Once you see an efficient program, an efficient program only makes you mad. If the track must have an intermision, it should be a timed intermission. My favorite is when the announcer states, "We are now going to take a 10 minute intermission", and then puts a ten minute counter on the lap board. When the clock reaches zero, the main events roll on to the track. Once I have seen this, why would I want the endless intermission that many tracks prefer.