How sad ...
I am a fan of auto racing -- and airplane racing -- and boat racing --- anything with speed. But it is sad to sit here and watch first day of qualifying for the Indy 500, a race that is one of sport's great traditions.
It used to be that 300,000 people would come to the track to watch first day qualifying for the pole. Today there is hardly a fan in the seats.
I said 10 years ago that Tony George would destroy open-wheel racing with his power-fight with CART. When people with names like Unser and Andretti did not participate at Indy for 6 years straight, the writing was on the asphalt that it was over.
Indy has never announced the race day attendance. But it is guessed that it was somewhere around 400,000 ... I know in 10 years that I went, it was just huge. Last year the rumor puts attendance at 250,000.
NASCAR has beat them every way imaginable. Large fields of competitive cars, good rules to give the best possible race, lots of fan stuff to make interest ... and the all important TV contracts.
So sad ... and so unnecessary .... there was plenty of room for everyone.
It used to be that 300,000 people would come to the track to watch first day qualifying for the pole. Today there is hardly a fan in the seats.
I said 10 years ago that Tony George would destroy open-wheel racing with his power-fight with CART. When people with names like Unser and Andretti did not participate at Indy for 6 years straight, the writing was on the asphalt that it was over.
Indy has never announced the race day attendance. But it is guessed that it was somewhere around 400,000 ... I know in 10 years that I went, it was just huge. Last year the rumor puts attendance at 250,000.
NASCAR has beat them every way imaginable. Large fields of competitive cars, good rules to give the best possible race, lots of fan stuff to make interest ... and the all important TV contracts.
So sad ... and so unnecessary .... there was plenty of room for everyone.
posted by John Stone at 12:54 PM
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