Posted on 03/22/2006 11:54:47 AM PST by colonel mosby
There's no disputing NASCAR's phenomenal growth in recent years. The sport sprouted from it's Southeastern roots and opened tracks in Kansas City, Chicago, and California. Fortune 500 companies lined up to sponsor cars and drivers. Networks paid $4.5 billion for a TV contract. Officials say the fan base is 75 million.
But, in its race to claim a place beside other professional sports in a world of glitz and glitter, NASCAR is jeopardizing the grass roots fan base that helped build it.
(Excerpt) Read more at ajc.com ...
I've been saying this for some time now. When they started having rappers sing the national anthem, they lost me. At least they still have a prayer before the race but I bet that won't be around much longer.
and soon allowing them Japanese cars.
Welcome to the next level of a sport's popularity. Most of the towns that build the NFL and MLB in the "glory" days wouldn't even be considered for a team anymore. Those small places that were the foundation of the leagues are OK for the halls of fame these days, and maybe an exhibition game once in a while, but an actual team or meaningful game is out of the question.
Which rappers? Not all rap is violent 'gangsta' stuff.
But it all sucks!
Pro wrestling flamed out in the late 80's after Cindy Lauper et al got on the bandwagon. It was what, a decade before it recovered.
They're doing the same thing the NHL does.
The Atlanta powers, including the Journal-Constitution, pursued the NASCAR Hall of Fame vigorously. When it was awarded to Charlotte, Atlanta's attitude changed.
This is free enterprise working at wide-open-throttle. Sure the quaint Southern charm is gone leaving only fond memories, but this is business, BIG business. NASCAR is the envy of most professional sports in how well run and profitable it is. Many old school, die hard fans turn to smaller racing leagues for the old southern charm fix.
Yes it does!
Nextel Cup races rarely sell out at traditional venues like Atlanta Motor Speedway. Last season, there were empty seats for both Atlanta races, three Charlotte races and the fall race at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.
If this ain't an ominous sign, then I don't know what is. There was a front-page article in USA Today about the poor ticket sales at the recent Nextel Cup race at California Speedway -- which is supposed to be one of the featured tracks in the "new" NASCAR world.
NASCAR has always walked along that very thin line that separates "competitive sport" from "staged event," and it now has far more in common with the World Wrestling Federation than with any real sport.
I don't have any idea. I never listen to any of them so I don't know one from the next.
I don't watch that either. LOL
Nextel has nothing to do with it. They were transferring race dates from tracks like Darlington and rockingham to KC & Chicagoland (you get the idea) before NEXTEL signed on.
The NHL and NASCAR are sports whose participants are overwhelmingly white. In our era, the elite and brainwashed liberals find this to be unacceptable, although the NBA is as overwhelmingly black as the NHL and NASCAR are white. Hence, the owners are under media and social pressure to be "inclusive".
>>Welcome to the next level of a sport's popularity
I knew it was getting more popular here in the Northeast when I saw the sports section of a Boston paper and, under "What They Were Watching" (TV ratings for sports) "NASCAR
_Rain Delay_" was getting fairly good numbers. _Rain Delay_!
(Most of the higher numbers were for March Madness games of
course...)
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