NASCAR at NHMS this Weekend

[moose tracks]

Originally Posted by Rattlesnake Gal

Just wanted to give everyone a heads up that this is a big NASCAR weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Leaving for NH Thursday night. Going to the track on Saturday to see the Mods. I prefer the Mods over the Cup cars. I will watch the Cup race on TV. To many people and trafic on Sunday for me. Anyone else going to Loudon this weekend?

[Skip]

Originally Posted by moose tracks

Might not be too many people this Sunday. The track is giving away thousands of free tickets across the State to a variety of agencies and politicos in an attempt once again to fill the stands. They offered the entity I work for 800 tickets alone!

[trfour]

And or donate it to someone who would appreciate it!
http://www.nhms.com/handler.cfm/temp...med_id=1427665

You got to be there in person, ( at least once to talk about it ).
http://www.winnipesaukee.com/photopo...php?photo=1304

Wanna beast's. ...

Terry
____________________________

[Blue Thunder]

Originally Posted by Skip

Might not be too many people this Sunday. The track is giving away thousands of free tickets across the State to a variety of agencies and politicos in an attempt once again to fill the stands. They offered the entity I work for 800 tickets alone!

Although I've been an auto racing fan since I was a kid, I really didn't get into NASCAR Cup racing until the early 90's. My brother, my wife, and I had tickets to both races in July and Sept. (Laconia Grandstand, turn 4) for many years.
For those of us that have been to a Cup race at Loudon, there truly is "nothing like being there". Having said that, even with all of the improvements that the Bahre Family made over the years, the hassle of the traffic, the summer heat, and in the end, ticket pricing, made us give our tickets up. In the 90's and early 2000's there was a waiting list of 30,000 people looking to get tickets. Now the races don't sell out and they have to advertise heavily. NASCAR has grown epicly in the last 20 years but the economy is affecting them just like all of us.

BT

[jmen24]

Skip, are you sure that the tickets were for Sunday's race. They might be, but the reason I ask is that they gave every household in Loudon 2 tickets for Saturday's races and a few other private orgs got the same. If they gave away Sunday tickets as well, then that is truely a gesture from a group. The economy is hitting NASCAR really hard these last few years.

Unless it is a military type organization than the Sunday tickets make sense, happens quite a bit.

[Skip]

Originally Posted by jmen24

Skip, are you sure that the tickets were for Sunday's race. They might be, but the reason I ask is that they gave every household in Loudon 2 tickets for Saturday's races and a few other private orgs got the same. If they gave away Sunday tickets as well, then that is truely a gesture from a group. The economy is hitting NASCAR really hard these last few years.

Unless it is a military type organization than the Sunday tickets make sense, happens quite a bit.

Definitely Sunday tickets, which we've been offered before but never such a staggering amount. As of today there have only been a handful of people choosing to take them.

Have had several acquaintances from other agencies telling me the same offer is being made across the State.

As another poster noted above I too was a season ticket holder (four tickets) for both races for over a decade but gave them up several years ago after the hassle at Loudon took it's toll on us. Today I wouldn't even go with the free ticket offer. NASCAR has left me behind with a lot of changes they've made the last few years that I think have really taken a lot of the challenge and sport out of the races.

That said I wish the new owners well and hope that even with the economy in the state that it is that they have a good turnout for the weekend!

[Happy Gourmand]

from WMUR
"Romney strategist Jim Merrill said the former Massachusetts Governor will meet with drivers in the infield and then hang out in the owner’s box."

[SIKSUKR]

They are giving away many tickets for Sundays race. Last week the Fischer Cats had a promo to the first 300 people that bought tickets would also get free tickets to the Sprint race on Sunday. I questioned if they were for Saturday also until I read the offer. You could buy tickets to the FC's for as little as $6. Parking however will cost you a little more.

[jmen24]

No kidding. They have got to be hurting bad to be giving out that volume of tickets for Sunday. Good for you guys.

Skip, could not agree more with the direction that NASCAR has taken in recent years. Everyone I know that went every year has also given up the tickets. The new cars on Loudon are extremely boring, IMO. Saturday is usually a good show and has been for years.

[Winnisquamguy]

Originally Posted by jmen24

The new cars on Loudon are extremely boring, IMO. Saturday is usually a good show and has been for years.

The new cars the old cars does it really matter they both stink, the track itself is boring with those cars. The modifieds was the only show that was worth going to, I guess the trucks put on a pretty decent show. The track is to flat and needs banking and when Smith took it over there was hope but not anymore. The camping out and partying with your friends was the best part but they ruined that when they started charging you for that and now those numbers are now way down.I see them loosing a race very soon, or should I say Smith moving it to one of his other tracks. Although people are not to happy with him after last weeks episode in Kentucky.

[trfour]

Video/s; http://www.nascar.com/video/preview/...iew/index.html

Terry
_____________________________

PS. Yes, we are all feeling the pinch of todays economy! Remember though that the good days will one day return to Loudon NH. and NHMS through NasCar's interests in the fan base this area is, and will become. And also important to remember is that none of the previous NasCar ticket sellouts at NHIS, were attended or purchased by the majority that have posted in this very thread...

[gtxrider]

A couple of years ago, two I think, Mr. Bahre gave away a few tickets at the Sandy Point Resturant. We had a tickets we could not use so we gave them back.

Attended both races last year but will miss this weekend not due to econonmic pressure. My couch will have to do on Sunday. I plan on being there for the fall race and perhaps the Indy car race in August.


GO Junior

[trfour]

The race lineup for Sundays Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at NHMS.
http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2011...ta/lineup.html

Terry
__________________________________

[Argie's Wife]

The race got out and traffic is STACKED up in Alton - whoa! We've got people inching by the house, whooping it up and waving. Lots of grills in the backs of pickup trucks and lots of out-of-state plates.

It's nice to see the good turn out - hoping the tourist industry did well this weekend!!!

[Superduty1]

Well, whether they gave the tickets away or you bought them, the stands for Sundays Sprint Cup race were at near capacity. It was good to see all the fans come out on a great sunny day in New Hampshire. I sure hope the new owners don't take a race away from Loudon because Nascar is good for New Hampshire. Even if you got the tickets for free, you spent money somewhere in this great state, either on gas, six pack, lodging, dinner, D and D, local supermarket, souvenirs at the track, you get the point.

[LIforrelaxin]

Originally Posted by Superduty1

. I sure hope the new owners don't take a race away from Loudon because Nascar is good for New Hampshire.

Unfortunately as a race fan for many years, I see the direction I believe Nascar is taking, or trying to take. Eventually NH is bound to lose one of the races. Slowly raceways are being built all over the country. I do believe the eventual goal of Nascar is to have tracks all over the country such that every venue and every corner of the country will have a race. This will mean that tracks like NHMS will end up forfeiting a second date. I believe that eventually the only tracks that will hold two events will be Daytona, and Talladega.

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by Superduty1

Well, whether they gave the tickets away or you bought them, the stands for Sundays Sprint Cup race were at near capacity.

I didn't go to this race but I turned it on the tv with about 40 laps left and there was thousands and thousands of empty seats then.

[Webbsatwinni]

We went Sat for the modifieds, it was hot but a great day. They should have more misting stations though, the people were way overheated. I don't know why they were dehydrated, they were drinking lots of liquids.

[SPT13]

Originally Posted by SIKSUKR

I didn't go to this race but I turned it on the tv with about 40 laps left and there was thousands and thousands of empty seats then.

I went Sunday, there were a lot of empty seats compared to yrs ago. There was a decent breeze, so heat wasnt to bad were we sat. A lot of people started to leave with 40-50 laps left, to beat traffic I assume

[sa meredith]

Thousands upon thousands of unsold tickets...despite advertising blitz past month or so...newspaper, radio, TV. Very little walk up crowd purchase.
This coming from a race day volunteer that I know, who directs traffic in the lots.
Says Fall race has 20K plus seats still available.
This is by no means a situation unique to NH. This sport routinely sold out every track it went to, for years and years, as the sport simply exploded in the early/mid 90's, into the early 2000's.
Now watch a Sunday race...pockets of empty seats are every where.
I was absolutely shocked...shocked...to be watching speed vision, and see an ad letting people know that tickets are available for the Bristol night race. After Daytona, it was considered one of the toughest race tickets to come by...Saturday Night at Bristol.
Now, they are trying hard to sell it out.
Sign of times???? I say not so much...
The sport has changed a bit, but really, for me, it just ran it's course. I enjoyed it for a solid 9/10 years, watched every week, but as my sports plate was full enough, I finally just had enough.
I think as time goes on, these venues that now all hold 100K plus, will never sell out.