What impact will "recent events" have on bracket racing...and more importantly, does it really matter?

I won't spend much time on the tragic bombing and mass murder of Americans by some group of psychotic radicals. My prayers are with their families and I hope they can heal themselves from such a loss. We have all heard the details time and time again.

The economic upheaval caused by this action will have a long-term effects on thousands of people and almost every aspect of our lives. It will and probably already has had an effect on the little corner of the world we all spend our weekends enjoying: drag racing. Is it being inconsiderate for me to even talk about our sport when so many are trying to get their lives back together? I guess everyone has to do what he feels is "right" and I have decided to go on with my life. I support our military and feel confident the economy will recover completely. I think the best way for the economy to return to normal is for all of us to return to normal as soon as possible. So get with it.....get out there and spend some more money!!!!

I have always hoped George Howard would bring the B&M Racer Appreciation Series to this area and in 2001 he did. The unexpected thing was the very small racer attendance at the two races in Iowa and Illinois. What was the reason? I asked dozens of racers and basically got the same answer from those that DID NOT attend. "The round money starts too late and three hundred dollars entry fee is a bit to stiff for the economy around this area."

Personally, I attended the race at Earlville, IA but did not go to the Cordova, IL race because my local track had a $1,000 and $5,000 that same weekend. Poor scheduling, that is for sure as there just aren't enough "extra" racers to go around. The report I got was that less than a hundred cars showed up at Cordova. The weather forecast was bad and if you race around here it is not unusual to have to tow five or six hours and, if the forecast is bad, it is just too expensive.

Will the recession we are now in (or according to the news broadcasters are about to enter) make it even tougher for bracket racing to survive? I say, without question, it will have a dramatic effect on certain types of events. I think the Big Bucks Races are in serious trouble IF they rely on the "touring professional bracket racers" to make their events profitable. The events that will make it will be the ones that lure in the local racers with good round money and a payout that isn't so "top heavy."

What would that event look like to me and attract me to the event? I see it as $150 maximum entry fee for the weekend, round money that starts with second round winners, $750 semis, $1,250 runner-up and $2,000 to win.

Will the "super teams" show up? Probably not, but the local racers would. Don't charge for the last time trial, we already paid the entry fee, and stop the buy-backs. Run a Consolation Race for the first and second round losers. No double or triple entry cards. I think it is definitely time to rethink some of what we have put up with lately. If the tracks have to keep getting more entry fees and buybacks from a limited number of racers, it is time we ask them to try something different.

The fact that local tracks need support is not news to anyone but it might be more important now than ever before. I have to admit the IHRA Regional Points races I attended this year and the IHRA National Events were very enjoyable. I didn't make it to any NHRA races but I am sure they are very professionally run, if not a little "too much" on the rudeness. I think a lot of racers have decided that they can spend "X" dollars racing and rather than go to a local track every week they schedule six or seven "regional points" races or a National event or two. The downside to this is the local track attendance suffers and eventually the small tracks will be open less often.

The Big Bucks bracket races might suffer the most (of course, I have been wrong before). I really hope they change their entry fee payout plan a little and see if the car counts will increase. I don't think I am the only racer who likes the challenge of the Big Bucks ET races, but the costs are getting out of my league. Maybe I need to ask my Editor for a GREAT BIG RAISE??????? (What do you think Jeffy...?) Then I could go to the races and act like the big entry fees and crappy round money didn't matter.

The reality is that things are getting pretty tight around here and I will be traveling a lot less unless we can secure a marketing partner who can benefit from the exposure drag racing in the Sportsman ranks offers.

There will be some tough times for our sport in the upcoming year, but we are a stubborn group and I think we will weather the ups and downs with only minor problems.

Good Luck to you all and I hope everyone you love is in your thoughts everyday.

Jok Nicholson and FAMILY

jok@racingnetsource.com

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