by Patterson Belser
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This past week, we saw an early end to the Daytona 500, which has been widely reported.  Hopper put up a great post in regards to how the governing body of NASCAR does not care about the fans, and it could not be more evident in the way they finished the 500.  I truly could not agree more with much of his sentiment. 

Reading all of the post-race hubbub, and being quite angered by the way the race finished myself, it reminded me of something I read about a week ago on another blog.  Dustin Long posted a NASCAR Fan’s Bill of Rights on February 8, 2009 on his blog located here.  It is collection of ten rules and regulations that he would like to see NASCAR’s governing body follow and maintain to make the sport better all-around, but especially for the fans.  The list is below, with comments from me in italics.



1. No track's traffic plan shall leave fans idling in parking lots more than two and one-half hours after the checkered flag falls.

I know in my limited experience going to races, this is a chronic problem.  It is not like organizers are not expecting 100,000 people to be at a race and are then shocked as to how to deal with the traffic situation.  Get off your asses and do something about it.

2. Tracks and NASCAR shall petition hotels for redress on the exorbitant mark-ups charged to fans on race weekends.

This is an idea that I could not agree with more.  The idea that a hotel in Joliet, IL should cost anything over $100 a night (and that is being generous) is preposterous.  When local business get together and all raise prices at one time for one specific purpose (in this case, all hotels getting together and raising prices for race weekend) then this is a term known as price gouging, and it is, in many cases, illegal.  With many race tracks offering low-priced tickets for this race season to make it so fans can get out to the track, then it is completely counterproductive to then charge ridiculous rates to stay in one of the local hotels for that race.

3. NASCAR shall retain all six short-track races on the Sprint Cup schedule and prohibit those dates from being moved to larger tracks.

Again, I fully agree with this.  The “Cookie-Cutter” mile-and-a-half tracks out there are quite plentiful.  NASCAR has switched many races to these tracks because they are made to have more room for people in more seats in the stands, thus, more ticket sales.  But with so many of these tracks in the current schedule, it makes one wish for more short-track racing.  Short tracks offer excitement that is unparalleled by the mile-and-a-half tri-ovals that are stacked throughout the current schedule.  I say that NASCAR’s governing body should not only make it mandatory to keep the six short-track races, but to add a couple more to the schedule.

4. Free parking within close distance of a race track is an inalienable right.

This one is a little bit more difficult.  One would think that the price of a race ticket would include parking, but this would be a problem for those that are not driving to the track (such as the aforementioned hotel people).  At the same time, the parking lot at the race track is only used for parking for the race.  Otherwise, people would not have a need to park there.  But, in an economy where if you go to a concert at your local amphitheatre and have to pay to park, then this is the norm.  I do agree that it is unfair, though.  If people plan to camp on-site, I can understand an extra fee involved for parking.  If people are staying in the infield all weekend, and extra fee is completely understandable.  But for the fans who are showing up on Sunday morning to see the race and will be leaving directly afterwards (barring the 2.5 hour wait to get out of the lot), parking really should be free.

5. TV networks shall be expressly prohibited from switching a Sprint Cup race to another channel, the exception being the rare case in which a delay extends the event unreasonably.

This exact instance happened last season, with the race changing from NBC to one of the ESPN’s (possibly The Ocho).  There are times through the race season where I will TiVo the race and watch it later on Sunday.  This is strictly due to the fact that we here in Chicago have approximately four weeks of summer, and I’ll be hornswaggled if I’m not going to get outside every free chance I have to enjoy those few days.  So, if I come home and get a few hours into my TiVo’ed race, only to realize that the last ten laps are not on my recording (after I set it up to record for an hour after the event is scheduled to end), then I have all the right in the world to be angry.  It is not like they will ever switch networks for an NFL or MLB game, right?

6. NASCAR shall make no rule abridging the notion that all men are free to go as fast as they can and that only the 43 fastest cars make the starting lineup.

Qualifying for a race SHOULD be exactly that.  I understand why the top-35 in points rule was put into place, and that is so the drivers that are the best and are going to be out there every single week have right to automatically be out there every week, giving back to the fans and sport.  But who is to say that these top-35 would be exactly who they are if some of the eight outliers could get into more races after not being ousted by the top-35 rule?  Let racers race. 

7. The right of fans to witness more than just the top running cars during a broadcast shall not be violated.

This one is difficult to argue.  NASCAR is an individual event, unlike most sports.  Trying to give 43 drivers equal screen time is almost impossible, and it is not quite fair to the guys running in the top.  But, as a former big fan of golf, I would be frustrated every week watching Tiger Woods get well over half of the coverage because of his popularity and marketability.  But, race leaders are race leaders, and in my opinion, have more of a right to be broadcast than the guy running in 41st.

8. Late starting times shall be considered cruel and unusual punishment.

Living in the Central Standard Time Zone, this generally is not a huge issue for me.  I do not like it when the Simpsons get cut off due to races running into prime-time.  At the same time, for the majority of the race season, most prime-time television is just full of reruns, so that is not a big issue.  But, for those that have to wake up early on Monday mornings and get to work, a race finishing later in the evening can present problems.  I will support this, even though it seldom has affected me.

9. Except for the harshest of weather conditions, fans never shall be subjected to a race that ends under caution.

Races that end under caution suck, plain and simple.  It is something that angers all of us equally, and there should be some other option for these instances.

10. NASCAR, its sponsors and teams shall make no demands on drivers that infringe upon their life, liberty or pursuit of a personality.

Unfortunately, corporate culture and its major importance in the sport of NASCAR do, without a doubt, infringe upon how drivers conduct themselves.  I reported a couple of months back that AFLAC asked Carl Edwards to be careful and not to do anything out there that could possibly embarrass them as a corporation.  Last time I checked, Edwards was one of the nicest guys out there and I can not remember a time where he even got slightly saucy in front of the camera.  There should be some defining line between what a corporation represents and how they influence the drivers they sponsor. 

Watching highlights from previous Daytona 500’s last week, everyone remembers the infamous “fight” that happened between Bobby Allison and Cale Yarborough after wrecking on the final lap of the 1979 Daytona 500.  This was one of the most exciting moments in all of NASCAR’s storied history.  While we do not need to see weekly fights, we do want to see emotions.  I believe that is one of the reasons why the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. / Brian Vickers incident from this past weekend was such a big deal.  The aftermath brought out many emotions in the drivers.  Kyle Busch, Vickers, and Earnhardt, Jr. were visibly angry on camera, and everyone had the right to be that way. 

Sponsors should realize that they are sponsoring individuals in a sport that will have emotions running very high at times, and outbursts are not only likely, they should be supported.  I would be willing to bet that the high level executives in these corporations that sponsor many cars have had what is known as “Road Rage” before, and should understand that when a person is operating a motor vehicle, whether it is on a track running at 190 m.p.h. or on the freeway en route to the corporate headquarters, tempers will flare.  So let the drivers be themselves…that is part of what they get paid to do.