Fans Have Mixed Views On New Style of Racing At Bristol Motor Speedway

Keith Neufeld and his two young sons embarked on an 18-hour mission Thursday morning. The Neufelds were eager to get their first taste of the Bristol Motor Speedway experiences, so they were willing to endure the long drive from the panhandle of Oklahoma to the mountains of East Tennessee

By: Allen Gregory | Bristol Herald Courier
Published: March 22, 2009

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Keith Neufeld and his two young sons embarked on an 18-hour mission Thursday morning.

The Neufelds were eager to get their first taste of the Bristol Motor Speedway experiences, so they were willing to endure the long drive from the panhandle of Oklahoma to the mountains of East Tennessee

“We’ve been to the tracks in Daytona and Dallas, and we really wanted to see Bristol,” Neufeld said.

Neufeld said he was not bothered by the complaints that smoother concrete surface at BMS has zapped some of the action from the track.

“It seems like the cars are more stable now, and that makes for better racing,” Neufeld said.

Kim Fleckenstein offered a different perspective. The Dayton, Ohio, resident has been attending BMS events since 1985 with her family and friends.

“The old Bristol was better to me, and I just don’t like the new cars,” Fleckenstein said. “It’s like going to a race at Michigan or Talladega where the cars are pretty much right together.”

Fleckenstein was referring to the Car of Tomorrow, an ambitious NASCAR project that was introduced in the Sprint Cup Series in 2007. The COT has earned rave reviews for safety and affordability, but several drivers have struggled with handling issues.

“The racing is just not as competitive as it used to be,” Fleckenstein said.

Fleckenstein said she wasn’t surprised to hear reports of empty seats at Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend.

“It’s because of the economy,” Fleckenstein said. “I used to go to 11 tracks, and now I am down to two because things are so expensive.”

Fleckenstein actually spent the past few weeks trying to sell her BMS tickets for this weekend.

“A lot of people have been trying to sell tickets on the Internet,” Fleckenstein said. “We dropped the prices of our tickets about $70 for the set. We had them advertised for two months, and still didn’t get them sold.
“It’s not just Bristol, everybody is hurting.”

According to Fleckenstein, the best way to fill seats is to drop ticket prices.

“If tracks want to fill the grandstands, they need to rethink things,” Fleckenstein said. “I don’t think adding extra races on is going to help. What really matters is the price of admission.”

Despite the costs and hassles of pulling her camper nine hours from Ohio, Fleckenstein is looking forward to supporting Dale Earnhardt Jr. in today’s Food City 500.

“We love racing, but it’s very difficult for us to think about our drivers out there competing in such a dangerous sport without their fans to support them,” Fleckenstein said.

“It’s kind of embarrassing to see empty seats on TV.”

John Pressley and Johnny Johnson are content to leave the debating the others. They just want to go racing.
The 21-year-old friends from Terre Haute, Ind., arrived in Bristol Friday morning at 4. Pressley and Johnson have been counting down the hours to today’s Food City 500 ever since.

“The economy is going down, but we just decided to come and see Bristol for the first time,” Pressley said.
“I like the fast cars, the speed and everything else about the track. It’s fun.”

That amusement park dimension of racing at BMS also has a strong appeal to young Kale Neufeld. Like father, Neufeld is a fan of veteran driver Mark Martin.

“I like that you can see everything on the track here,” said Neufeld, who attends elementary school. “The track in located in a bowl, so the sound echoes.

“It’s louder than usual.”

agregory@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2544