Letters to the Editor
-
NASCAR DECLINE
I'm not a NASCAR fan (I'd rather watch paint dry), but I've got lots of relatives who are devoted fans. I had a conversation about this decline with my brother-in-law from South Carolina a year ago, well before the election cycle. Although we are culturally far apart, we are good friends, and we agreed on the problems with NASCAR - overexpansion. He contended that NASCAR's decision to expand its number of racetracks and of course the number races held each year has completely diluted the quality of the racing. If you have more races, more people can enter, so the racing pool is much less exclusive. It also means that except for the top tier, the purses at these races are smaller. He called it the "K-marting" of NASCAR. Add to that the increased competition on TV for all sports viewers, not to mention the internet, gaming, reality shows and all the other entertainment options being offered to the same demographic, the decline was inevitable, and it's not confined to car racing. Look at the statistics for baseball, football, and (dare I say it?), even figure skating. Everyone is going to have to settle for a smaller piece of the pie.
dlwitt