NASCAR Has A Good Problem That Needs To Be Fixed
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- NASCAR attendance numbers have been steadily climbing in numbers since the 2020 COVD pandemic shut down NASCAR from bringing fans to the track. For the most part this is really good looking on TV for NASCAR and gives an added boost to those watching in the stands and from home. Yet with this some issues have risen, ones that are problems born from a good thing with more fans now being at the track. NASCAR has a good problem that it needs to fix.
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What races are you going to next?
I’m going to Indy this weekend
none im poor
Going to las vegas playoff race and Michigan next year.
Indy
@@JGR4LIFE20same
i was there, there was a tornado warning, the track had to cut stuff, we were there 6 hours early and it was BRUTAL.
Where?
I'd argue the worst traffic was leaving the Xfinity race. Absolutely brutal. We sat in the same spot for almost two hours before deciding to cut through another lot.
@@MetooFour07OnYTreally?!?! I left the Xfinity race and it took 2 minutes to get out but we were parked right near the exit road
@@MetooFour07OnYT Really. I was there and had no problem getting out. Got back to the car around 530, took the canopy down, got in the car by 545 and was out of the parking lot by 6. and we were one of the first ones in Saturday and parked furthest from the exit. Even Sunday it only took us about 25 minutes to get out and again were parked the furthest from the exit
We were there pretty early, around 9 am and got out in like 15 mins after the race. We found an amazing way outta there haha
Part of the problem is most tracks use temps to work. These people aren't parking experts. They're practically volunteers that sign on to work the weekend for an okay amount of compensation.
I attended the race at Pocono. I was lucky enough to get there 15 minutes after the gates opened 8AM. The storm hit at about 10:30am, and everyone, including employees, had to seek shelter. When the race started, I noticed there were several empty seats in my section. When we left, I noticed traffic was leaving much faster than years past, which I thought was unusual. It usually takes forever to get out of there. I then started seeing the social media posts and the complaints as we were leaving. Absolutely hate it for those who couldn’t make it, but it is in no way the fans fault at all that the traffic was backed up.
I was there employees didn’t seek shelter they stood there just not directing traffic. I can’t speak for everywhere but Atleast my entire line
@@MikesAMinerI can vouch for that. The staff just looked like they did not want to be there.
Traffic was a standstill where I was parked getting out
I take off work the following monday after a race, only because of how long it takes to get out of the track and home. This year at Dover, my dad and I just hung out and watched the swarm of people file out of the track, including the cup drivers and Fox broadcast team. It was crazy.
@@toddmanger7194 This year at dover I timed how long it took for me to get to the highway after I got in my car. 1 minute 37 seconds... Didn't run into any traffic leading. Could've just been where I parked though
Traffic used to be that bad at Atlanta, thats one reason we lost the championship race.
Went to Atlanta summer 2022 and was actually surprised with how easy it was to get there and get parked. No complaints finding parking or drinks. A little wait to leave but not bad overall.
@dustingaddis1148 it's a breeze now that the track has its own exit on the interstate. In the 90s it was just backroads other than US 19/41
Dover was pretty bad this year too. I think the tracks have underestimated the crowd when planning traffic and parking. Attended Pocono this year and learned after last year to leave and get there early in the morning, which is something I haven’t done there since the 2000’s
Dover was horrible this year. I ended up parking on the other side of US13 about a mile away and walked
I went to Dover this year too. Traffic was stand still for at least 2 miles. I took back roads and they were at a stand still. I think the problem was that there were open lots but no signage or police directing people that way. Everybody was trying to go to the hotel parking
I've been going to Pocono for 20 years. Yes, Long Pond is always a weird weather area, and the storm warnings are undoubtedly going to throw a wrench into things. Maybe I was lucky by leaving early but I actually waited much longer in 2023 to get into the track than this year. Charlotte (in 2008) was actually my worst traffic experience getting in and out.
The local police for the most part do a really solid job letting the traffic flow through multiple lanes and getting fans into multiple entrances. To that end, getting out (again FOR ME at least) was not too horrible. Pocono is one of the best tracks at listening to fan opinion so I have no doubt they'll get better for next season and beyond. Still a great weekend with very solid racing!
I got there at 9am and it was a breeze getting in. After the race i tailgated for a little over an hour and then we hit the road. I didn't have any issue's. They need to start these races earlier though. Races should start at 1pm, we didn't get home until almost 10pm and we live only an hour and a half away! The sun was going down as we were leaving!
Good ole NASCAR fails to learn from their past mistakes.
This was due to inclement weather you act like this always happens
@@aiwash2766 Point System, Cautions, the Cars that sucked for along time, Leaving tracks and than only coming back 30 years later.
That because nascar not ducking Tony stark lol
@@tufstuff2586wow you really tried to weasel your way outta that dumbass comment huh
@@JeffWeselyan Well I mean some stuff are easy to fix
reminds me of my first Pocono race back in 2000. My parents and I had to wake up around 3am just get there early enough so we wouldn't get hit by traffic. Suffice to say, got there by 6 something and traffic was starting to get bad.
makes me wonder what they'll do going forward once attendance goes up.
I would LOVE to go back to Michigan International Speedway this year
I live about 5 miles from Pocono Raceway right off a route 115 and they had those roads closed for a few miles each direction going into the track and it was still a nightmare
What they can do for traffic is to stop building tracks where there’s two lane roads, even though now they converted to three lane in some spots
One each direction and a center turning lane
$12 water bottles should be criminal
Pocono was in the past notorious for traffic jams and for the most part, (I have been there many times) worked out by having police control the flow into the track all coming in one way on both lanes. I don't know what happened this time but it has been good in the past.
I heven't been to Pocono since 2012, but they used to set up cones the full three miles to I-80 to split the traffic into three lanes all going south in the morning and north after the race.
I was at that pocon race this year, but i was camping in the infield since thursday. What really made everything messed up was the rainstorm that hit around 10 30
If your coming to the race , plan on tailgating!! Don't leave your starting point in just enough time for the green flag !! It is the fans fault if they do that!!
I've been a Nascar fan since the 2001 Daytona 500 and grew up in the mid-west and close enough to drive to a few tracks but never seemed to work out to go to a race but while on vacation the summer of 2017 I had a chance to take my daughter and nephew to Kentucky speedway for the Xfinity race and we had a blast with all the track side stuff to do got to watch cup qualifying and righy before the race it rain and rained and they pushed the race to nexted day and never had another chance since maybe one day i'll get to go but the traffic leaving didnt seem to be so bad that day. Thanks for the channel. Enjoy what you bring to the table on Nascar!
Jeez, Mother Nature is even dumping hard on the NASCAR FANS on the way to the track. Good Christ.
There's a reason why I'll take a bus or train if the option's available: I don't want to get stuck in a traffic jam, and NASCAR should have made partnerships with public transit agencies like they did in California with LA Metro and Metrolink when the Clash and Auto Club Speedway were in session
Pocono briefly had a partnership with Martz for buses from Mount Pocono and NY Port Authority. It only ran for about 2 years or so in the early 2010s. Dover is way better with this, they have a shuttle that goes to Christiana Mall off I-95. Other than that, the only way you can have bus travel to these races is through travel package providers.
I dodged a bullet by camping in the infield at pocono. At least the traffic makes sense at Pocono, but Dover has no excuse. There is no reason why a 3 lane highway should only have 1 lane open to get into the track. Especially since the center lane just becomes a lane of stopped cars trying to merge right. Richmond was by far the easiest to get in and out of. They even made both sides of the highway go one direction when leaving
I live about 10 minutes away from pocono. i WAS a mile away from the track by the start of the race, then by the END OF STAGE 2, i was still about half a mile away. by the time i made it to the Racetrack i was told that the parking lots were full. people ended up parking on the side of the road, in store parking lots like the DG across the street and Pocono Organics. I ended up turning around and went home
Its too bad they can't build more lots across the street, because they have that solar panel field that generates electricity for the track, i believe. The whole surrounding area there seems like and issue. I've only noticed this when I worked up there last year rebuilding the victory lane.
I was there and my friends were attending their first race got there at the beginning of stage 3. I knew I had to get there early by at least 10am and did luckily but I didn’t think it would be this bad. Pocono has always had an atrocious traffic problem to where my dad even emailed Doc Mattioli one time in 2007 to explain how bad it was then. Route 115 used to be two lanes on race day so there’s no way half the crowd would have been there if that was still the case
Side note:
I live in Mechanicsburg pa which is 20 minutes outside of Harrisburg and I was following a few of the haulers down Interstate 81 and much to our surprise the section of I81 was shut down due to a bad accident earlier in the afternoon so the haulers were forced to get off my exit and ended up driving through my town to get to back to the highway in the next town over. I never in a million years thought I’d see NASCAR haulers driving down the same road I take to work everyday.
I was also at the same Richmond race as you in 2021 and Dover 2023 which was terrible
Attended Darlington and Charlotte Motor Speedway this year and both had almost full stands. Darlington was a breeze getting into, even when getting there only 2 hours before. Leaving, it was a pain. We sat in standstill traffic for over an hour and a half before traffic control police arrived, but after they got there we got out quickly. Charlotte, on the other hand, was a complete mess (and I’m not talking about the horrific management of the rain delay). We planned on getting there over 5 hours in advance. We were at the front of the traffic line and were packed on the road until traffic control came and did almost nothing to fix the problem. They did the same thing you mentioned about Nashville’s first race- they let everyone in despite people’s reservations of lots. As i said, we were at the front of the line but we eventually got to a spot over 2 hours later being forced to park in the farthest lot from the track. Even with the majority of fans leaving during the rain delay, it still took 2 hours of sitting in a car to leave the facility. You would think that a sport about cars would efficiently get cars out of a parking lot! Darlington wasn’t bad, I wasn’t too upset afterwards and the race was fantastic. The coke 600 however was completely ruined by the rain delay and the traffic control (the race itself and the Memorial Day events were amazing, but damnit the management might keep me from returning in the future!)
I was at Talladega earlier this year and the traffic flow getting out of there was amazing. Yes we parked close to the main road to get out of the lot earlier but once we got on the main road parallel to I-20, all lanes were open to cars going away from the racetrack and they even put up signs up on which lanes go to which places. Obviously Pocono doesn't have as wide of a road but sometimes the traffic can be bad there.
Nashville traffic wasn't too bad this year.I agree about the night races though, it was miserable in the stands until the rain cooled everything down
Pocono was my first in person race this past weekend. I got there early knowing how sporting events are. I was complaining about getting out. I never realizing people missed the first part of the race. 😢
I was there with a friend of mine on Sunday. When we were 20 minutes away from the race track it poured rain Also, Pocono had severe thunderstorm and tornado warning displayed. We were fortunate to be there on time to get on Pit Road. When we got to our seats the two rows in front of us were empty.
I went to every Pocono race from 2004-2009, with sellout crowds. Traffic was always an issue because of where the track is. We used to leave at 7 am to get to the track around 9 AM, and we never got in the car and tried to leave until several hours after the race. Police used to shut down the roads leading to I-80 so 2 or 3 lanes could run in one direction. Maybe that has changed.
I’ve been going to Richmond since the early 2000’s , some line than at EVERY booth. But since the pandemic the lines are worse since everyone had cut back on souvenir haulers, sponsors booths etc.
I am local to Pocono, (5 miles from the track) traffic was bad, mainly due to the backup from earlier storms
Also as someone who’s lived in a lot of state, Pennsylvania in general is run by people who have no idea how bad their crap is because they’ve never been anywhere better and “that’s how we have always done it”.
PA culture is just okay with things sucking, and sometimes not even realizing things can be better.
i went to Dover this year and it was a mess trying to get to the track. My Dad and I just parked off in a Grocery Store lot and walked 1.5 miles. On another note: I worked up in Pocono last summer with the new victory lane they put in. I took notice to all the roads leading to the track every day driving there. It is single lane roads in the mountains in the surrounding areas. It is clearly not built for mass amounts of people coming in for 1 weekend out of the year. Its a track and community problem nonetheless.
I live 20 miles from Pocono. I left my house Sunday at 1115am and got to the track at about 1pm. Not sure what happened to traffic after that but it wasn't that bad when I went through.
Pocono is notorious for having traffic issues because there is really only 1 main road leading to and from the track. Its just the way it is. Obviously more can be done to alleviate the traffic coming in and leaving. But its still a fantastic track in a great area.
Sonoma is our home track and from 2017-2021 it was easy getting in there. But in the last 2 years it was crazy getting in. I can see the crowds coming back. I’m surprised an SMI track let us bring in soft shelled coolers. After only clear bags in 2021.
We went to the Pocono Race and we were in a traffic jam that was still 7 miles from the track for 20 minutes without moving. Ended up turning around and taking a gravel road to get around it but still is crazy that people are missing the whole race.
2016 Sprint Unlimited was the last race I went to in person. Currently I don’t have plans to go to any races cause I can enjoy the race from my home, and I don’t miss the traffic
I went with my mom in 2022 and both parents in 2023 to Talladega, and I had to hurry up between stage breaks or late in a stage to get concessions, miss the first few laps to get us some earplugs, and head out a little early because the last time we went, most teams' souvenir trailers were closed at the checkered flag. And also to beat the outgoing traffic. We arrived a little late to deal a bit less with the incoming traffic.
Richmond next month will be my first race, hopefully it isn't as crowded as it was for you
Richmond is never too bad, infrastructure is pretty good
Agree with night races in the summer.
Nashville,Atlanta,Gateway, Richmond, Chicagoland
Curious about Nashville next yr if its a night race thats where im going but if its day race in the brutal heat ill stay home with cold beer and a big screen in the AC.
I live in Michigan and attended my first nascar race last year after 10 years of going to my last one. Me and my dad attended Sunday and on the way out the traffic was terrible. They were doing construction also which made it much worse. It was only 1 lane that was open and took us like 2 hours to get out of the town
You do have to keep in mind the entire reason for the thirty minute hold on all activities if there's lightning detected within an eight mile area at most outdoor sporting events now is because of what happened at Pocono in 2012. One fan was killed in the parking lot after getting hit by lightning and nine others were injured. The track was sued by the family of the man that was killed. The jury found the track wasn't at fault, but after that incident the track isn't going to take any chances whatsoever. I'm local to Pocono and been going to races since the 90's. The track is just in a rural area and they do a much better job with traffic flow now than in years past. Ironically the worst traffic jam I was in heading to the track was in 2013 for the return of IndyCar. We were stuck in a several mile backlog for over an hour on Long Pond Road simply because the local fire company decided to do a "boot drop" and solicit donations from cars heading to the race. I wasn't happy about that one. as far as my next race - I'm not sure, but it won't be at any NASCAR-owned track. Went to the Glen last summer and it was just a miserable experience. They had nobody directing traffic, had to park in the mud, walked about a mile looking for the ticket tent because there were no signs, spent forty minutes in line waiting to go through a metal detector and had to empty out my pockets and backpack for them to search me, all the food they sold was obscenely expensive, the staff were just rude, and because I gave them my phone number when I bought the ticket they signed me up for texts and calls from every single NASCAR-owned track trying to sell me tickets. Even after opting out of all of those and blocking the numbers, they still leave voicemails about "great ticket deals" and "your personal ticket representative". I'll stick to Pocono and heading to the local dirt tracks after that experience.
So at Watkins Glen, they have people go through metal detectors and still search them afterwards??? Does TSA run that place??? Sounds like that place must have FBI agents roaming around too
I was at the Nashville race in 21. The traffic was atrocious. They delayed the start of the race half an hour to let more ppl get to their seats .We were also at the all star race the year it was at Bristol when they ran out of water and beer and soda. There was literally nothing there to drink. It was over 90 degrees out that day also.
I remember going to the Inaugural Kansas Speedway race and the traffic was backed up big time, they were not ready. I went to all 4 races they had that year, Truck, Indy, Busch and Cup. It was the Cup race that was backed up.
It's crazy the rules are so inconsistent. I've never paid for parking and carried coolers with food/drinks to Kentucky, Charlotte, Daytona, Talladega, Bristol, Indianapolis, and Richmond. I don't know who at Nashville thinks it's okay to charge for parking and restrict fans to only bring in water. If I'm going to spend 6+ hours at a race, I always plan to bring my own food (as I did at Mid-Ohio recently for the Indycar race). KY Speedway didn't allow ANY outside food/snacks/drinks in the pre-SMI ownership days, but it had changed when I went in 2019.
I was just at Indy and the handled the crowd perfectly there was a 2 hour jam due to a car crash but that is uncontrollable but it was good getting out the will call was handled great Chicago the will call was terrible bad that is also a problem in a lot of track long will call lines if they can fix that will make the experience 10X better
I live about 45 or so minutes from the track and I left my house early and got there before the storms. A little backup traffic past The Wawa and it wasn’t terrible.
A few friends and I went to the Coke 600 in 2021 (awful race in its own right). My buddy and his gf went to grab food about idk, 70ish laps in. They didn't get back to their seats until lap 240. There is NO world in which that is acceptable. Its not like they wandered all over the place either. They went to two concession stands and missed HALF of the longest damn race of the year. Insane.
Loudon, Ive gone to 40+ cup races there since 2002. The last 5 years, parking has been abhorrent. They shut down VAST swaths of prime tailgating land because they don't want to hire staff and they want to funnel everyone into two lots. Entrances and egresses are then absolutely stacked from beginning to end.
We ignored the people parking us this year and blew by them. Ill be damned if my NASCAR race day experience is screwed by a race track and company that doesn't care enough to hire the staff to make a good experience. Treat us like rats in a cage, expect us to bow to them, yet THEY are the ones taking the biggest piece of the NASCAR revenue pie. Make it MAKE sense. That doesn't even touch on the hour of traffic in 3 miles I sat in at 9pm; The crowd left at the end of the race wasn't even Xfinity sized.
I go to Charlotte for both Cup points races, and this was my first time going to Pocono. We got there 3 hours early, it wasn’t too bad cuz we still got into the track around 1. But, I was surprised how it was just a two lane road
Dover this year ran out of all food at all their grandstand concessions except for chicken tenders midway through stage two. Not even halfway through the race! Also just in general had the worst concussion options I have ever seen at a track. Stands were pretty full that day. Also I will note that traffic going into the track was relatively smooth so they at least have that part figured out.
I was there and I was surprised it was a sell out crowd but I’m not surprised with the track not being prepared. My dad and I got stuck in a torrential downpour on the way there and we got stuck in the traffic but managed to find a spot on some guy’s property. We then had to walk about a mile to the grandstands, which honestly wasn’t that bad but the grass in the parking areas was SOAKED!!!! There were puddles everywhere and a lot of mud and I’m probably wrong but I think that was one of the factors for the massive traffic jams. Another reason was the track staff, from my perspective, it looked like they didn’t know what they were doing or did not want to be bothered. But i could be wrong. Regardless though, I still enjoyed every minute of it. I love Pocono
I will say, I have always been pleasantly surprised by Talladega race traffic. Its been consistently reasonable for me, especially for it having some of the highest attended races and being in the middle of nowhere.
This issue isn't just confined to the Cup Series as there were issues getting into & out of the Xfinity Series race at Portland last month that I attended mainly due to the fact that the light rail system in Portland the MAX was not running as frequently as it should have been & was running on its weekend schedule where trains came every 30 minutes instead of every 15 on weekdays. In addition there were long lines of people trying to get into the parking lot if they drove, though the majority of fans I talked to took the MAX to & from the track. If the Xfinity Series comes back to Portland next year, I really hope that the MAX light rail system is significantly better prepared to handle the crowds of a NASCAR race & is running more frequently than this year. At least NASCAR is seeing a surge when it comes to attendance unlike Indycar & especially F1 (last year's Vegas GP was an absolute disaster in terms of planning & one of the reasons why I won't attend an F1 race any time soon).
I was there. Coming from Delaware and its about and hour and 50 minutes there. About 30 minutes from the track it started down pouring and i had to park off for about 20 minutes before it completely stopped. Knowing Pocono is grass parking, i knew that was going to be a nightmare. I got to the track around 1130am. Was packed but traffic was moving fairly good. I did start to notice the amount of traffic wasnt equaling the amount of parking. For it being sold out again i had a feeling that was going to be an issue. I went last year as well but going to such a massive event its always good to leave early and get there early.
As I recall, prior to its very thoroughly welcomed return as host of the All Star Race, there were concerns in some quarters about how Wilks County, North Carolina, would cope with the huge influx of people descending on North Wilksboro Speedway for the 2023 All Star Race.
I don't recall hearing anything about bad traffic in the area, but I'm curious about how it was. The first motorsport I attended was the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) at Brands Hatch in 1998 (it was during the immensely popular Super Touring era). As I was 9 years old at the time, while traffic was slow coming in, I remember feeling that at least it was moving.
I was there for an air show last year (probably 1/8 size of this crowd) and i missed half the show trying to get in and it took over an hour to just get off the property let alone get to the highway. It’s tough cuz the roads there are tight wooded roads but they need to just make huge adjustments and expect massive crowds
I remember at the 2019 Vegas summer race it was still in early September and it was 105°F and they were selling water for $5 per bottle the same as a 20oz soda. I was honestly appalled considering you could buy a whole case of water for under $5 back then.
Traffic was always bad at New Hampshire. Progressively getting better and better through the years (because less people attended unfortunately). I get Kentucky being bad for the inaugural event for it but a track like Pocono that's been around for decades should have no excuse for a traffic jam.
Both years I went to Fontana they closed off access to the main road that connects to the track for miles. For the people driving there it looked like a huge problem getting in. I took a train from downtown and got an Uber to the border of the closed street and just walked across the street to the track 😩
Went to my first NASCAR race last year at IMS. I had no problems but I knew it was the road course race. Having places to refill your water bottles at IMS was great to have. Going this weekend to IMS for both races, will see how it is with an oval race. But being able to bring in my own food and drink is always a good thing there and traffic is always good getting and leaving the track
If North Wilkesboro can make it work traffic wise, anyone can. It just takes significant planning, coordination and staffing. I think most fans plan for some traffic, but not hours and hours worth.
Huh, I remember a number of tracks with stands on the back straight in the 90's and very early 00's. Those same tracks now don't have any stands or are all tarped off on the back straight. Daytona said they were record numbers of fans there this year. Atlanta said the same, and their stands were 60% full or so. But, yeah, not having enough water or people to help get fans into isn't great.
I went to Pocono and Charlotte the past 3 years. Pocono the past 7 or 8. Traffic at Pocono has always been kinda bad but these last two or three years its been ABYSMAL. I got lucky with Pocono this year getting in on the last row before they closed the main track parking lot. Charlotte on the other hand? Complete breeze getting in and out, yes theres traffic but it genuinely is not bad at all.
I love going to Kansas speedway because we can get in and out without paying for any concessions by bringing a cooler. I would hate to only have the option of purchasing concessions especially when it is hot.
i went to the race this weekend and there was a pretty bad storm hours before green flag but even then i somehow had great luck getting into and out of the track, yea there was obviously traffic and i live about an hour and a half from pocono and i left the house around 930 ish got to the track about 2 and a half to 3 hours before green flag
I was at the 2021 September Richmond race, the reason why there was long lines specially at the haulers was it was during covid and didn't have as many haulers as before so that was the main reason why so you can't blame them for long lines there at that race
I'm a NASCAR fan from Peru, and this year I'm planning to go to the Talladega race!
When I go to a race, which is 2-3 a year for the past 5 years and an occasional race for about 20 years, I arrive to the track at 10:30 -11:00. I want to be in the stands as soon as the track grandstands are open. I like seeing the track come to life. And I’m out the door as soon as the checkered flag flies unless my driver is the winner. Then I stay past the burnout. It is what it is.
I'll be going to Michigan for the second time, second year in a row. Hoping it doesn't rain and hoping there's no traffic getting in 🤞🏻
Still perplexed why NASCAR schedule Daytona race in the hottest time of year, during peak hurricane season.
My friends been watching since covid. Pocono was his first race. He got there during stage 3 and it soured him big time. Shame.
My first race was Pocono 2001 and we camped out. All week long. It was amazing. 2021 had some traffic but it wasn’t anything out of normal big event traffic.
I went to NH speedway for first time this year left 2 hours early to get there for 10am and traffic was there but way they do it is use the shoulder as a live lane to track so was very easy getting to track actually got there before 10am so was able to get to all the vendors and buy what I wanted all before 12pm. And must say was surprised they let people bring in bags with drinks so didn’t have to buy any. Definitely glad NH isn’t like those tracks. And even leaving the track while was down pouring still could use the shoulder to drive speed limit
Went to Talladega in 2021, traffic was what I expected and the place wasn’t even chock full of fans. But the whole highway dega is on is like built for it. Big lanes and stuff. Local police guided everybody really well. I’m used to going to LSU football and baseball games in Baton Rouge, (100000+ fans, tailgaters, media etc) sitting in a single lane for HOURS AND HOURS, so that’s all I can really compare it against, dega traffic was what I expected but not hours long bad.
Totally agree on the cooler aspect....charge 5-10$ at the gate to bring your own cooler...easy. traffic....a bit sticky. Pocono is my home track, grew up about 40 min away. Traffic has always been an issue. It's I. The middle of nowhere. No major metrolitan center or easy off ramp. Ya just plan around it because who's gonna pay for it? Nascar, the state, the county, the township? Major construction for 1 race a year isn't worth it unless someone is doing it for free for ya. For us, we just always stayed way later until traffic died down before we left.
Why are we charging anything to bring your own cooler when it has never been a problem in the past?
NASCAR's tracks are taking the biggest share of the network revenue, they are making out like bandits in ALL of this. Why do they need to squeeze the fans and their experience for the last few drops?
If you know what is best for you, you take public transportation to the track when available. I live in St. Louis it just seems ridiculous the tolerance people have for traffic paying more for gas while idling than the 1 dollar fare to use the bus, or the 2.50 dollar fare to use the metrolink which has a station that goes right to the stadium. In addition, for World Wide Technology raceway, metro runs a free shuttle bus from one of the metrolink stations to the track.
I went to my first NASCAR race at the 2023 New Hampshire race and got there well before the green flag, but then the trams weren’t running frequently enough and missed the first few laps. They started the race at 12 for some reason after getting postponed due to rain. And my second was the 2024 NASCAR Chicago street race and getting there was no problem at all thanks to good public transit.
Pocono needs an actual parking lot and people to direct the exiting traffic. When it was time to leave, it took me close to 1.5 hours to just get out
took us 20 minutes to get out Sunday and we were parked furthest from the exit. And being a Blaney fan I stayed until all of victory lane was done so I didn't even get to the car until around 645 and was back on the road at 715
My family has had PSLs at Louden since day 1 back in '93 when you had to wait YEARS to get a seat and this has ALWAYS been a problem. It will never be fixed until it affects the Nascartel bottom line. They already have your money, they don't care if you can't get in.
Having grown up near Six Flags New England and traffic trapping me in my neighborhood--and having worked there and learned capacity was over 100k--I can tell you that part of the problem was understaffing, which really caused problems at times we knew in advance we'd need all hands on deck.
I know it's a different animal to our guests, but its many of the same principles behind the scenes.
And leave the bottled water prices low, don't sell it for more than $2/pop.
On especially hot days we'd give away iced water for free--granted, you still had to stand in line for it, which is a problem where there's no shade:
I was there . The thing you need to understand is that it’s only a 2 lane road going to the track it’s a country road in the middle of no where . They put both lanes going to the track . Really not much else they can do but build more roads lmao
There are 4 roads leading to MIS, they're all 2 lanes until you get near Jackson, Ann Arbor or Toledo
If NBC wants to start the race at an ungodly hour (for a day race) of 4pm local, I'm leaving my house near Flint at 10am to beat traffic...That's 7am if for some reason NASCAR gets sane with a 1pm start
For a noon football game at Michigan Stadium, I'll leave Flint at 6am
The 4 pro Detroit teams are all in a concentrated area...I'll leave 4 hours before the game is supposed to start
Traffic management should be better if no weather is impacted. I would like traffic to have alternative manner to get there like Uber/lyft/taxi and a lane for them to get in and out. For concessions maybe mobile ordering or a tablet to pay and then pick up quickly. Most arenas now that maybe tracks could invest like grab and go stuff and pay either contact less payment or via hand (yes the Amazon tech which does work). I think ISC is pretty cool with coolers in think SMI might be the ones needing to relax the rules on coolers.
Probably not going to any races this year due to my own racing schedule, but in the near future, I would like to rent an RV, and take a bunch of friends on a road trip to the Daytona 500.
even on a bright sunny day dover traffic is the worst ive ever seen. moved half a mile in 2 hours
People hate on Phoenix raceway but the fan experience is top notch
Sat in traffic for 3 hours and missed the first two stages. But just got nearly a full refund from pocono today. Class act and can’t wait to go next year!
@Theiceburg Richmond has needed a $50+ million investment for probably over a decade or longer. I live right near the track so I would know. I have been every Cup race there since 2005. Even with all the grandstand removals, the concessions and walkways just cannot handle the rush.
There are ways to track could remedy some of these problems but the grandstands need to be torn down and rebuilt along with repaving / adding variable banking. NASCAR has neglected to properly invest at many of its aging facilities and it shows most at Richmond and Martinsville
NASCAR is back baby! It’s far from perfect in its current form, but NASCAR seems to finally be receptive to many of the issues people have with it and is actively trying to make it better. And the on-track product, while wildly inconsistent, has been insanely good at certain tracks. The Gen 7 car has its major issues (again, that NASCAR knows need to be solved) but it does make for some very good racing at most of the larger or banked tracks.
Plus I feel like we’re finally getting past that phase where all the fans left because they missed “classic” drivers like Earnhardt, and fans are starting to follow current veterans more.
I wonder if there is an MRN radio station affiliate in the Pocono area, for anyone who wasn’t able to make the start of the race, didn’t have SiriusXM, and didn’t want to look at their phones while they waited in traffic. Assuming cell service is good in those areas to begin with. Sure, you could always pipe audio through if you have Bluetooth or an auxiliary jack.
I went to the Nashville race, and traffic wasn't really that bad as we were in for less than hour and leaving the track was only 10 minutes, and I never thought they had run out of water since we brought our own bottled water.
At the Texas race this year it was the biggest crowd I had seen there in years. We had slight delays getting in and out but I don’t think we waited 20 minutes in each direction. Acceptable. But I hope if Texas keeps drawing a larger crowd every year like it’s been trending since 2021 that they are ready. They do have a good road network in and out of the track next to I-35 and huge parking space. And the DFW police force directing traffic did their job really well. Also Texas allows you to bring in food and water and alcohol into the stands as long as it’s not in a glass bottle.
I was stuck in thsi traffic it made me miss 2/3 of the race and it was my first time. That being said I know to leave much earlier next time especially since I drive out from NYC
From looking at the videos and thumbnail, their is no reason in this day in age that they still have only 2 lanes roads.
Their should at least be four lanes minimum.
Possible multiple entrances to get into the racetrack/facility.
You don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure this out!
With all the money that these tracks are getting from Nascar and the revenue being brought into the state/County, something should be financially worked out to build more adequate roads around these facilities.
I went to my first NASCAR race in 2016 at Dover speedway with my dad and I haven’t been to any NASCAR race since.
I'll say this for Iowa, I no issues getting in or out. Was like 2-3 hours early, and everything was pretty good getting in and out!
I’m definitely going to Atlanta. I’d like to go to the Southern 500
They actually let me drive ON THE TRACK . When leaving. Was 0 traffic out for me
Ive been to over 70 cup races since I was 7 years old in 1997. Pocono has always had this problem. There, Michigan especially in the early to mid 2000s when it was sold out with the extra stands that were once there in the corners, and Kentucky 2011 were the worst I've experienced. I think tracks in the middle of nowhere with not many roads to it are always going to be like that. It's weird how I live in Indy and the traffic is not as bad as you think it could be. Probably because it has many roads and ways to get in and out. Indy's also just experienced and experts at traffic flow for these big events.
I am planning on going to walkin's glen next year
I don’t know why nascar is getting off to having so many day races in the summer. They should all be either Saturday night under the lights or Sunday if they must. Only races that should be day races are the tracks without lights. Period
Atlanta has allowed us to bring coolers in due to the heat. Traffic is bad but not awful I think due to the location being pretty remote but we’ll see in the coming years as attendance seems to be increasing.