Originally Posted by flagboy55:
What non wing event would you consider our Knoxville? Like people have called Knoxville the Super Bowl of sprint cars, so to break it down to a sub category of only wingless, what is our super bowl?
That's easy, it's The Four Crown. It features everything that is good about USAC, and everybody wants a win at The Big E.
That's also why it makes me just a bit sad that the All-Stars apparently have to be attached to it in order for it to be a successful event. Or The Outlaws, even, to be honest. I miss the old 2-day format: qualifying and heats on Friday, hotlaps and a bunch of mains on Saturday. I know it's never coming back, though.
I guess USAC itself left this open to happen when they axed the stock car division.
I never did mind the modifieds there, though. Hewitt, Hines, Darland, and others made that interesting enough.
Originally Posted by chrismattlin:
That's easy, it's The Four Crown. It features everything that is good about USAC, and everybody wants a win at The Big E.
That's also why it makes me just a bit sad that the All-Stars apparently have to be attached to it in order for it to be a successful event. Or The Outlaws, even, to be honest. I miss the old 2-day format: qualifying and heats on Friday, hotlaps and a bunch of mains on Saturday. I know it's never coming back, though.
I guess USAC itself left this open to happen when they axed the stock car division.
I never did mind the modifieds there, though. Hewitt, Hines, Darland, and others made that interesting enough.
Says something to me about the All Stars that they can only run Eldora when USAC is there. . Earl had em about eight to ten times a year
Originally Posted by Charles Nungester:
Says something to me about the All Stars that they can only run Eldora when USAC is there. . Earl had em about eight to ten times a year
I think that Tony Stewart's overhead, even adjusted for inflation, is at least twice what Earl's was. Take that however you may like it, but I enjoyed the quaintness much more, myself.
Last year, we attended the Knoxville Nationals (10 yr in a row) and two weeks later attended the Smackdown (1st time) at Kokomo. Both were good events, but there is no comparison in the events.
I understand that Knoxville is only about 8,000 population, with 25,000 people attending the Nationals, and Kokomo is about 60,000 with maybe 6,000 (or so, my guess) attending the Smackdown, but the town of Knoxville is INVESTED in the Nationals. There are events going on all week through the town, and the people there seem to genuinely appreciate the fans in attendance. Nearby towns (Pella and Newton that I know of) also promote and get involved in the festivities. The excitement and anticipation builds throughout the week, and by Saturday night the tension is so high you could almost cut it with a knife. By contrast, the motel we stayed at in Kokomo didn’t even know there was a race going on, let alone it was a 3 day event! There was little to no acknowledgement anywhere in Kokomo that we saw of an event being held. No “Welcome Race Fans”, promotions, or the like. While Kokomo Speedway did a decent job of trying to build excitement for Saturday night, it just isn’t the same.
Don’t get me wrong…we enjoyed both, but trying to compare the two is comparing apples and oranges.
Chris, 4 Crown is my favorite event in the world, but not exactly the apples to apples I was looking for. I’m talking sprint cars only, like Knoxville. Hey
But USAC is more than just sprints, so it's The Four Crown. But, if we're talking just sprints, then it's Indiana Sprint Week. Everybody and their brother has copied that, and rightfully so. The Knoxville Nationals is danged near a week and probably more if you wanna be serious about it (Capitani, Front Row Challenge, Nationals itself). So Indiana Sprint Week it is!
We took the Hall of Fame tour at Knoxville on Saturday. they said with infield, suites and sold out grandstands, attendance would top off at just a little over 30,000 people
Originally Posted by openwheelfan1:
Last year, we attended the Knoxville Nationals (10 yr in a row) and two weeks later attended the Smackdown (1st time) at Kokomo. Both were good events, but there is no comparison in the events.
I understand that Knoxville is only about 8,000 population, with 25,000 people attending the Nationals, and Kokomo is about 60,000 with maybe 6,000 (or so, my guess) attending the Smackdown, but the town of Knoxville is INVESTED in the Nationals. There are events going on all week through the town, and the people there seem to genuinely appreciate the fans in attendance. Nearby towns (Pella and Newton that I know of) also promote and get involved in the festivities. The excitement and anticipation builds throughout the week, and by Saturday night the tension is so high you could almost cut it with a knife. By contrast, the motel we stayed at in Kokomo didn’t even know there was a race going on, let alone it was a 3 day event! There was little to no acknowledgement anywhere in Kokomo that we saw of an event being held. No “Welcome Race Fans”, promotions, or the like. While Kokomo Speedway did a decent job of trying to build excitement for Saturday night, it just isn’t the same.
Don’t get me wrong…we enjoyed both, but trying to compare the two is comparing apples and oranges.
The city of Kokomo is more aware of the track than it used to be. For years there was no involvement. When the Smackdown first started, I went out to local businesses, and let them know about what was going on. We sat up driver appearances in several restaurants. Although the population isn't 60,000, there is more for people do in Kokomo than a place like Knoxville. Our local daily paper downsized in 2020 to 5 days a week. With it we lost a weekly racing column, that didn't help. Josh Spencer has been active trying to boost community involvement, and does a good job. Let me know if you are coming, and I would be more than happy to try to steer you in the right direction.
Openwheelfan1 You’re in some way taking me where I’m hoping to go. I understand completely that there is no comparison in the size and commitment to the event. But I’m trying to keep it “in class”. We’ve gotten a little off track, no pun intended. ISW is different in that it travels to different tracks 4 crown is different with 3 classes. The purpose of the comparison is twofold. First, the size and popularity I think is a great gauge on the overall comparison of W vs NW. We talk about guys leaving wingless for wings. It’s very clear there’s a much bigger demand for wings except here in Indiana. Secondly, 30,000 filled up the Marion County Fairgrounds Saturday night, and I’m wondering if we can fill Kokomo Speedway in a week and a half from now in the state that’s the undisputed bastion of non wing racing. All of it seems to me to be a very accurate study on the supply/demand of sprint car racing.
I’m very proud to be a diehard Hoosier state sprint car fan. I want Indiana to continue to be the paragon of wingless, and continuing to make Smackdown a premier event will help keep up our reputation
