Word: nascars
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Sutherlands, while perhaps more dedicated than most, are typical motor-home owners. Free-spirited retirees like them--along with party-minded young men who want something tall from which to watch NASCAR races and then live it up--have been the engine of the RV industry for years. But now both groups are being joined by a new type of RVer: baby boomers who are looking for an inexpensive, hassle-free holiday with their children. Nearly 40% of today's owners are in the 35-to-54 age range, double the percentage of a decade ago. And while the words...
...NASCAR's expansion has been fueled in part by shrewd salesmanship. The league markets itself as a slice of the American heartland, with "fan-friendly" drivers who keep up a hectic schedule of autograph signings and charity events. And NASCAR has flooded the market with races. "A lot of it is quantity," says Joyce Julius Cotman, a sports-marketing analyst based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. "They have the Winston Cup Series, the Busch Series, the SuperTruck Series--every weekend, there's some kind of NASCAR event going...
...sport has made some of its most impressive gains among women. They now make up 38% of NASCAR attendance, up from 15% in 1975. "It's not just for men with red necks and potbellies anymore," says Susie Anderson, a nurse from Bennettsville, South Carolina, who was one of the few women fans when she started attending NASCAR races 21 years ago. Female participation has surged in part because the sport has become more family oriented, says Janie Brown, who teaches a course on NASCAR's business strategy at North Carolina's Elon College. Modern speedways set aside parking space...
...modernizing of NASCAR's audience is a reflection of changes in average American income and education level, especially in the Deep South. Almost a third of NASCAR fans have household incomes above $50,000, and more than a quarter are professional or managerial--a far cry from the pickup-truck-and-overalls crowd of the sport's earliest days. Increasingly plush speedway facilities--air-conditioned VIP boxes and gourmet food, anyone?--have helped pull in this more upscale crowd...
Predictably, there is something of a pork-rind backlash. Some fans grumble that the modern speedways, charging more than $100 for the best tickets, are driving out the down-home folks who helped build NASCAR in the first place. But driver Darrell Waltrip, a three-time Winston Cup winner and a 24-year veteran of the sport, insists there is still room for all kinds of fans. "You can sit in the infields and be rowdy, or you can sit up in the stands and be a gentleman," says Waltrip. And either way, revel in the noise...