re: Thoughts on the new Nascar Charter system?

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Wasn't too long ago it was the fastest growing sport in terms of ratings. Remember that?

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And then Bill France Jr. died and his dipshit son Brian France took over. He has been a disaster from day one. It also didn't help that their biggest star was killed back in 2001.

I read an article the other day that quoted Tony Stewart that said Brian France hasn't set one foot in the garage area since becoming the head of NASCAR. He doesn't attend drivers meetings and never goes down and meets with the teams. He doesn't even attend the meetings with the fan council that was setup by NASCAR's own design.

Stewart said that it's rare to get a hold of Brian France at the track during a race weekend. He usually just shows up on Sundays and goes straight to the executive suite and stays there until the race is over.

Bill France Jr. and Bill France Sr. always took time to go thru the garage area and get the input of the teams. They were often on the ground level with the officials and were easy to communicate with. They realized that the teams and the drivers were what was making them the money and they wanted to keep them happy.

Brian France thinks its the opposite, he truly believes that NASCAR itself is what the keeps the fans interested and not the actual product they put out (the racing).

He has had NASCAR ignore several things the fans of complained about and push ahead with his "vision" instead. When the low down force package was proven to be a success he wanted to pursue the high down force package. When everyone complained, he was infuriated when drivers and teams complained. The guy is way in over his head and it shows.

Why won't NASCAR just die?

Looks mighty protectionist, which is rarely productive.
Maybe it's time for a competing organization for stock car racing.

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Looks mighty protectionist, which is rarely productive. Maybe it's time for a competing organization for stock car racing

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Definitely makes it hard for newcomers to break in.

So you can sell your owner points basically?

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They should do promotion/relagation like soccer. They have the perfect set up for it. It would be a solution to the barrier of entry issue for new teams and still have stability for the season.

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Anyway you arrange it, I hate seeing slower cars start the race and faster cars go home. I didn't like the 'top 35' BS, either.

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And then Bill France Jr. died and his dip shite son Brian France took over. He has been a disaster from day one. It also didn't help that their biggest star was killed back in 2001. I read an article the other day that quoted Tony Stewart that said Brian France hasn't set one foot in the garage area since becoming the head of NASCAR. He doesn't attend drivers meetings and never goes down and meets with the teams. He doesn't even attend the meetings with the fan council that was setup by NASCAR's own design. Stewart said that it's rare to get a hold of Brian France at the track during a race weekend. He usually just shows up on Sundays and goes straight to the executive suite and stays there until the race is over. Bill France Jr. and Bill France Sr. always took time to go thru the garage area and get the input of the teams. They were often on the ground level with the officials and were easy to communicate with. They realized that the teams and the drivers were what was making them the money and they wanted to keep them happy. Brian France thinks its the opposite, he truly believes that NASCAR itself is what the keeps the fans interested and not the actual product they put out (the racing). He has had NASCAR ignore several things the fans of complained about and push ahead with his "vision" instead. When the low down force package was proven to be a success he wanted to pursue the high down force package. When everyone complained, he was infuriated when drivers and teams complained. The guy is way in over his head and it shows.

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Every single bit of this. I've been a NASCAR fan since the late 80's. NASCAR's rapid growth is what severely hurt it because the France family got greedy. They shut down competitive tracks and built those 1.5 mile cookie cutter tracks in places that were not their traditional core fanbase. Once the novelty wore off those places are largely empty now.

The product on the track is what killed my interest, especially on those 1.5M tracks. It's just not entertaining to watch. They changed the cars and added all that downforce which basically turned the races into follow the leader. Goodyear also played a big role with these harder compounds that just don't wear out. Tire management just doesn't exist anymore with the exception of Darlington and Dover.

NASCAR could bring back core fans like myself by just doing three simple things. Raise the front air dam, lower the rear spoiler, and soften the tires. Make the drivers have to drive the damn cars and manage tire wear. Put strategy back into it instead of making half the races a fuel mileage contest.

As for the charter system, just looking at the surface of it I'm not a fan. Owners spend a shite ton of money on these cars and engines. If they show up, let them race. With that said though, they also have to do something about the start and parks. You should be required to complete a certain % of laps in a given period.

Kyle winning the championship last year despite missing all those races doesn't bother me one bit. He was hurt on the track and met the criteria to be eligible and was clearly the car to beat the last half of the season. An NFL player isn't ineligible for the Super Bowl if he misses half the season with an injury and neither should a NASCAR driver.

I think NASCAR needs to put MUCH more emphasis on actually winning the race. Split the purse in half with one part split up the way is now with the other half going to the winner. Put more point emphasis on winning as well.

Just my $.02 worth.

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NASCAR could bring back core fans like myself by just doing three simple things. Raise the front air dam, lower the rear spoiler, and soften the tires. Make the drivers have to drive the damn cars and manage tire wear. Put strategy back into it instead of making half the races a fuel mileage contest.

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Those changes were what was done for this season. Goodyear has said that the tires will last a fuel run if the tires are managed. If the driver doesn't take care of the tires they will wear faster and speeds will drastically decrease over a full fuel run.

We will have to see how that works out.

Yes. Depending on who you listen to describe the testing, anywhere between 5-10% less downforce.

Apparently one of the tests had about 15 cars are they were passing each other pretty well. I will try to find the write up. I think it was on Jayski.

The true test will be in actual race conditions though. Won't know until Atlanta.