3.0 Stance: Daytona 500: USA TODAY motor sports writer Gary Graves and Game On! blogger Reid Cherner discuss the Daytona 500, 10 years since Dale Earnhardt's death.
Kyle Busch's car (#18) launches into the air after a collision with the number nine car driven by Kasey Kahne. / Sam Greenwood, Getty Images
Fans take in the TUMS Fast Relief 500 at Virginia's Martinsville Speedway. / Jared C. Tilton, Getty Images, for NASCAR
Carl Edwards makes a fan's day. / Sam Greenwood, Getty Images
It's been 10 years this February since the Daytona 500 crash that took the life of racing star, Dale Earnhardt Sr. (Shown here in 1997.) / Tony Ranze, AFP/Getty Images
The Great American Sweethearts: Stephanie, left, Becky and Brittany / Tom Pennington, Getty Images, for Texas Motor Spee
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NASCAR's tightest title battle in 18 years took place three months ago, yet it was hard to find the electricity at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The stands were littered with empty seats. And ESPN's audience for the Ford 400 — in which Jimmie Johnson captured a fifth consecutive Chase for the Sprint Cup — was flat compared with the 2009 season finale.
NASCAR has spent the past three seasons trying to inject excitement on the track, and it resulted last year in records for green-flag passes, average lead changes and leaders per event. Still, attendance was down at 27 of 36 races in 2010, TV ratings sank 10% last season (off 33% from its 2005 high), and a dearth of sponsorship continued to plague teams as Fortune 500 companies looked elsewhere with their marketing dollars. It has left many seeking ways to revitalize NASCAR.
USA WEEKEND Magazine surveyed drivers, analysts and insiders about NASCAR's woes. Here are five suggestions for refueling the mojo.
1. Get the younger crowd back.
The most alarming part of NASCAR's declining audience is that much of it has occurred in the 18-34 age demographic highly coveted by the corporations whose marketing budgets fuel the sport's teams. Jeff Gordon's new sponsor in 2011 — the AARP Foundation's Drive to End Hunger Campaign — isn't the only sign the fan base seems to be graying. Nielsen research says the median age of the NASCAR viewer is 51.6, which trails the NBA (39.3), NHL (43.4), NFL (46) and Major League Baseball (51.4).
Technology is viewed as the way to win back young people for NASCAR. Its revamped PR department is embracing social media. Johnson is hoping to release a video game in 2011 aimed at men 18-34 and says drivers should consider appearing in comic books and cartoons. "I've always believed you build a fan for life if you connect early," he says. And Gordon plans to expand his visibility on Facebook and Twitter.
Consultant Ray Evernham, a former ESPN analyst and crew chief, says NASCAR should send drivers into schools, teaching kids about the technology already prevalent in the sport, such as monitoring race-day radio transmissions through scanners.
2. Improve the "It" factor.
At its November race last year, Texas Motor Speedway launched a campaign called "No Limits," bringing tattoo artists and chain-saw sculptors to a pre-race carnival show. The track also introduced the Great American Sweethearts, modeled after football cheerleaders.
Speedway president Eddie Gossage says the goal was to make racing hip for both old and new fans. "We're in the business of hot cars and cool chicks."
Under No Limits, season-ticket sales have increased 7%, and merchandise sales have spiked.
Bill Sutton, a University of Central Florida professor and marketing consultant, suggests a course that mimics the backroads used by the bootleggers who helped found the sport. "Maybe it's Bo and Luke Duke come to life for the younger generation."
3. Bring back the base.
NASCAR research shows more than half its fans have a combined family income of $50,000 or less. That blue-collar base has been decimated in the recession, and many still are trying to scrounge up cash to attend races despite tracks offering more value through enhanced amenities, concessions and merchandise.
It might not have been enough to offset years of ticket price increases and other forms of gouging. "We've almost killed the goose who was laying the golden eggs: That's the fans," says New Hampshire Motor Speedway general manager Jerry Gappens. "We put blinders on while letting hotels double, triple and quadruple rates."
Besides reducing its prices, New Hampshire Motor Speedway also has made multimillion-dollar improvements to its camping showers and added a $1.2 million scoring monitor and video board. "You want the experience here to be better than TV,' Gappens says.
4. Shorter is better.
Asked what they would change about NASCAR, the top three finishers in the points answered nearly in unison: shorter races, shorter schedule. It was a week away from Thanksgiving at the end of a season that began on Valentine's Day, so it was hard to blame Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin and Johnson for wanting a break. Even for those vying for a championship, 36 races spread over 10 months is too much.
Most drivers say 28 to 30 would be more manageable. Paring distances seems a good idea, too; virtually all NASCAR races take at least three hours.
5. Discover a new working-class hero.
This year's Daytona 500 will mark a decade since the death of Dale Earnhardt, and Gossage says there was a lag as the sport felt the effects of losing a homespun icon.
In the absence of Earnhardt — who had an eighth-grade education but boundless street smarts, swagger and charisma — NASCAR initially became a darling of Wall Street, and the infusion of corporate cash from staid companies enveloped drivers in a veil of political correctness. "It's a little more slick now," Sutton says. "You don't have the real hard country mentalities from early on."
Once known for being trash-talkers who spoke their mind, drivers have become polished spokesmen who often toe the line on controversy. Gossage says that has created a void for fans who see their stars' lives as touchstones. "We need another guy like Dale, but they don't just come along. He's special."
Mike Boykin of GMR Marketing recommends rotating 10 drivers to sign autographs after a race once a month. "What started the connectivity to fans was Richard Petty standing at the fence for four hours after races signing autographs."
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