t.nie
Patience Tester
Ok. So, this has been on my mind for a while, and I am interested to hear what other people think as well. Has it caught anyone elses attention that hornet/wannabee racing is treated as the red headed stepchild? Not to focus attention on the negatives, but this class has the most spectacular "action" out there, cars are flipping left right and center, and the crowd is on the edge of their seat wondering whose going to roll it next, all of which makes them want to come back next week. Even at Highland, which I thought would ignore them completely, the crowd stays to watch the feature. That really amazed me, but they stay because they dont want to miss it if a car rolls. And lets get real here, in hornet racing thats a pretty good probability in any race. A friend told me she has been watching racing since she was a kid, and hornet crashes were by far the most violent and frightening thing she had witnessed at a track.
If anybody thinks the fans dont like the crashes, think again. In Rome, the gladiators fought to the death, and humankind has been entertaining themselves watching other people take risks ever since. When it comes right down to it, though, I dont think there is any doubt that we are out there taking the biggest risk of all. Jeff Zohner has been seriously hurt, Chuck Rose flipped at Godfrey and spent a couple days in the hospital with back injuries, Cassie flipped at Highland and said she had a headache for a week. Has any other class got an injury record like that so far this season? I dont think so, not by a long shot. This isnt about the risk though, we all know it when we get in a hornet or wannabee; we see it and accept it every week when we race.
This brings me to my point. Since we are really putting on a show for the fans, why arent the 4 cylinder classes getting more media exposure? Not at the track, but on the web sites. Take this one for example. Jimmy, thanks for the site, but why is it that you put so few pictures up of the wannabees when you post the I55 pictures thread? I can only assume that this reflects the opinion that wannabees dont count for much. Take a look at the Brownstown or Highland sites. Again, no pics, just the feature winner, if that. And when it comes to write ups, again, we dont seem to exist, just a list of results while the other classes get write ups. Funny that, cause more action happens in one hornet feature than in a whole night of racing in the other classes, and thats almost guaranteed.
There is another thread where the question is asked again, how will tracks survive. Well, whether you want to admit it or not, the average person in the street loves to see action. You know, flips, crashes, etc, just like in all of the Hollywood blockbusters. Its only after they get familiar with racing that they appreciate the finer skills. The hornets provide the bulk of that kind of entertainment. Seems to me that if a track was serious about getting people in, they would play to the publics desire for thrills and spills, and start promoting the 4 cylinder classes with photos and advertisements featuring the action, not just the boring procession of modifieds circling the track. I just think the class is there, and the people are watching, but the promoters/media/webmasters are so focused on taking car of their big name UMP Lm's or AARA mods that they are not capitalizing on the potential market. And we end up getting ignored in the process.
And one last thing. Pass the helmet for Jeff. We may not be "real" racers to you, but his injuries are as REAL as it gets.
If anybody thinks the fans dont like the crashes, think again. In Rome, the gladiators fought to the death, and humankind has been entertaining themselves watching other people take risks ever since. When it comes right down to it, though, I dont think there is any doubt that we are out there taking the biggest risk of all. Jeff Zohner has been seriously hurt, Chuck Rose flipped at Godfrey and spent a couple days in the hospital with back injuries, Cassie flipped at Highland and said she had a headache for a week. Has any other class got an injury record like that so far this season? I dont think so, not by a long shot. This isnt about the risk though, we all know it when we get in a hornet or wannabee; we see it and accept it every week when we race.
This brings me to my point. Since we are really putting on a show for the fans, why arent the 4 cylinder classes getting more media exposure? Not at the track, but on the web sites. Take this one for example. Jimmy, thanks for the site, but why is it that you put so few pictures up of the wannabees when you post the I55 pictures thread? I can only assume that this reflects the opinion that wannabees dont count for much. Take a look at the Brownstown or Highland sites. Again, no pics, just the feature winner, if that. And when it comes to write ups, again, we dont seem to exist, just a list of results while the other classes get write ups. Funny that, cause more action happens in one hornet feature than in a whole night of racing in the other classes, and thats almost guaranteed.
There is another thread where the question is asked again, how will tracks survive. Well, whether you want to admit it or not, the average person in the street loves to see action. You know, flips, crashes, etc, just like in all of the Hollywood blockbusters. Its only after they get familiar with racing that they appreciate the finer skills. The hornets provide the bulk of that kind of entertainment. Seems to me that if a track was serious about getting people in, they would play to the publics desire for thrills and spills, and start promoting the 4 cylinder classes with photos and advertisements featuring the action, not just the boring procession of modifieds circling the track. I just think the class is there, and the people are watching, but the promoters/media/webmasters are so focused on taking car of their big name UMP Lm's or AARA mods that they are not capitalizing on the potential market. And we end up getting ignored in the process.
And one last thing. Pass the helmet for Jeff. We may not be "real" racers to you, but his injuries are as REAL as it gets.
passing the helmet would help a bunch ! thank you for your concern !!!! thanks again! we'll be back as soon as the doc lets mee!!!!!
