Gallup survey bursts NASCAR’s bubble
If someone is reading this page, in this town, at this time of year, it's pretty obvious. Cruising the grounds of Daytona International Speedway, more often than not the answer would be "racing," stock-car racing specifically.
Problem is, when you're caught up with this crowd, and surrounded by like-minded folks Sunday after Sunday, either on the couch or in the bleachers or atop the converted school bus, you tend to think everybody feels the same way.
That's why the most recent Gallup poll of American sports fans served as such a wakeup call. How many selected auto racing as their top choice?
"I'd say about 65 percent," said driver Clint Bowyer.
"Percentage-wise, I'd say 60 percent, maybe 50 percent," said Pat Honsinger, a fan from Jacksonville.
"Oh, let's say 71.5 percent," said driver Bobby Labonte.
"I'm gonna say about 75 percent," said Steve Bennett, a fan from Maine.
"I would say that 28 percent would say that racing is their favorite sport," said driver Kenny Wallace. "How far off am I?"
Well, Kenny, the good news is, you're not as far off as the others. Bad news is, you're still quite a ways off.
Ready for the sobering news? "I've got a bad feeling about this," said Bennett, and rightly so.
There's a reason why NASCAR's Boys in Marketing didn't fire off a press release upon seeing this report, and here you go:
Four percent. Four. F-o-u-r. 4 percent (so much for NASCAR being the 2nd most popular sport in America). More at Daytona Beach News Journal