Mid Ohio and Laguna Seca next?

[Railbird]

For what it's worth (http://venus.13x.com/roadracingworld/scripts/NewsInsert.asp?insert=5502)


I don't know anything about the source.

[RaceChic]

Road America was bad enough!!!:mad:
I hope this is not true. I hope it isn't based on a reliable source. I would detest it.
I hope this isn't a sign........:shakehead

[Gurneyflap]

Not intended as a dig at you, but..."Duhhh!" Ahhh, DIRECTION! Doesn't seem to be headed MY way!

[nrc]

That would certainly be a sure fire way to cause me to lose interest in the series.

I doubt that this person has any real sources besides the general notion that CART is moving away from permanent circuits to street racing. While CART has certainly helped that impression along, I still don't think it's at all clear that CART would have dropped Road America if RA hadn't been trying to put them over a barrel.

[Ziggy]

While this is pretty vague, I do think this is the direction of the series. The urban street race's are proven money makers. The history of the sport and its venues is changing with the times We live in. I felt this from as far back as '92 when I went to Mid Ohio for the first time. When you buy a program there, it does not even mention the previous races. They build no history, therefor its easier to bail. Just think folks, We no longer have a Michigan 500..... and if that was not a great race on a great racetrack, I will eat my keyboard.

Pook built his reputation on putting together street racers and making them profitable. It's what he is good at. It was My one fear when He was bandied about as CEO. After a couple of years at sea without a rudder, Pook was the only guy left with a fighting chance to keep the series afloat.

Freakin' shame

Ziggy

PS - Looking through photographs of Michigan and Mid Ohio last night, I was amazed at the size of the crowds. I went to the races, but just the stark reality of the crowd size in the photo's made me sick. The stands at Michigan were very populated, and the field for '94 was 28 cars!

[Gurneyflap]

Oh, I don't really think it takes that much analysis. How many of you think "The Mile" is building all those new stands for CART? I don't think so. And although I just dropped a bundle there for the first night race, I don't expect it'll cost that much next year, if you know what I mean. You know the attendence drop there mirrors that at RA? A BGN race at night would probably sell out and I don't think the IRL really cares HOW they do at the gate. (Gee, would they be "ecstatic" with 20,000? Cross your fingers that we can beat that!) All they want is to be back at "The Week After Indy."

[oddlycalm]

The changes could make AMA National races the largest and most important spectator events at the three targeted tracks."

Which makes a pretty convincing case for why this is a load of BS. This is a bike guy fantasizing.

[RaceGrrl]

My thoughts as well, oddlycalm.

[cart7]

Ahh, but Laguna has been on the chopping block, so to speak, previously with an almost yearly mention of moving the race to the streets of San Fran. Personnaly, I'd rather lose Laguna over RA or MO. The track is really to small for champ cars, although I'd miss the corkscrew. Unfortunately, if this would go, I'd be another tuning into ALMS for my sportscar only racing on road courses and would probably skip quite a few Cart races. Street racing only, sounds about as exciting as ovals only.

So what happens if TG picks up those 3 venues? It's been bantied about as rumour feed before. Would road racing fans actually watch or attend irl races there as a sign of protest to Pook for abandoning them??? :confused:

[nrc]

Originally posted by Ziggy
While this is pretty vague, I do think this is the direction of the series. The urban street race's are proven money makers.

That's because the unproven money losing street races are relegated to the trash can and forgotten. The only advantage for making money with street courses is that they're convenient for B2B type suite packages. Most of them don't draw that many more fans than natural terrain road courses have historically. The trade-off is a generally poor TV product.

I think some street races is a great thing for the series. But too many will turn it into something that nobody cares about once it leaves their town because they can't bear to watch it on TV.

[oddlycalm]

Originally posted by cart7
So what happens if TG picks up those 3 venues? It's been bantied about as rumour feed before. Would road racing fans actually watch or attend irl races there as a sign of protest to Pook for abandoning them??? :confused:

If TG picks up even one roadrace venue, I can tell you what you will have; tediously slow support type events. Those cars will come off of corners like molassas in January. They would have to have new transmissions, and a lot of chassis changes, just to get to the point where they could run them at all... just to get to dreary boredom.

People talk about this like it will really happen. It won't. It's a smokescreen that TG and those on his payroll are laying down to mess with the feeble minded of CART's promotion partners and fans, of which there seem to be plenty.

Pook's job is the ensure CART's survival, and he will do what it takes. I believe he's sincere about retaining the diversity of the series, but the survival of the series may force the issue. One thing you can be sure of, CART has a management team that will make decisions.

Talk of Pook abandoning the fans is absurd. The fans are the only thing that can assure CART a future. Nobody at CART is laboring under the illusion that a series of street races can survive, but between being undermined by ISC, and jerked around by RA, it's gonna be a long hard road, and he's going to have to play tough with the people that try to sidetrack the show for their own reasons.

[Gurneyflap]

Problem is, the feeble-minded seem to be ruling the roost lately!

[Flywheel]

This sounds like a perfect topic for direct questions to Pook at next Town Meeting. Would love to read his response.

[RTKar]

Also, wouldn't the irl competing on road courses increase the cost of entering a car in the series? I would assume different wing packages would be needed as well as gearing. Increasing the cost to compete at this time is something the irl can ill afford.

[pchall]

Some IRL functionary once said it would double the cost of racing at the first right turn.