NASCAR reacts to recession
With money tight for race fans, NASCAR and member racetracks, such as Daytona International Speedway, are trying to make racing affordable for those tightening their household budgets.
The Speedway saw this storm forming years ago.
"We do surveys after every one of our races," Speedway President Robin Braig said.
The racing industry is battling other sports and entertainment outlets for the consumers' dwindling discretionary money supply.
"The industry in general has reacted to that (bad economy)," NASCAR President Mike Helton said. "We are trying to be responsive to the fact that there's a lot on everybody's plate. We certainly want to keep NASCAR on the plates."
Here are a few measures NASCAR and Daytona International Speedway have taken to ease the race fans' financial burden:
· TICKETS: After shuttering the backstretch grandstands for last summer's Coke Zero 400, the Speedway has aggressively advertised a $55 grandstand ticket for Sunday's Daytona 500. Braig said the 500 will have a "full house" for Sunday's Sprint Cup Series opener.
For the most part, the Speedway has dropped its two-day race ticket requirement. Until recently, fans who bought a ticket for the Daytona 500 also had to pay for Saturday's Nationwide Series race. That policy, for the most part, has been rescinded.
"We have de-coupled tickets in many sections," Braig said. "We made available 65,000 single-event, front stretch grandstand tickets for the Daytona 500."
· CONCESSIONS: Daytona has reduced the price of almost everything it sells on racetrack grounds, from soft drinks to T-shirts to collectibles.
· PARKING: Race fans who park their cars or RVs in the Speedway infield pay a parking fee, but on big race days, the track has auxiliary parking areas at no cost. Spectators park for free and ride a shuttle to the track.
· HOTELS: The Speedway worked with area motels and hotels to trim the cost of staying in Daytona Beach during Speed Weeks. The effort was championed by Daytona Beach Mayor Glenn Ritchey and Braig. A large group of area lodgings dropped minimum night stays and lowered the cost of a room for one night to $99.
· DO IT YOURSELF: Unlike other professional and college sports venues, the Speedway allows spectators to take their own food and drinks into the grandstands and infield, a long-standing tradition in stock-car racing. The Speedway is promoting and marketing the bring-your-own-stuff concept.
· CLOSING COMMENT: "We think the whole industry is looking and reacting very sincerely to this as an issue and trying to figure out how to make it all work," Helton said. newsjournalonline.com