Adios Eagle

The 2010 Eagle Raceway schedule was announced yesterday. The schedule features a two-day ASCS Sprints Car Dirt Series (ASCS National) stop on June 11-12. Add to that the re-energized Nebraska Cup on September 12, running under an ASCS Midwest/Northern Plains banner, and you have three solid nights of racing.

Unfortunately, aside from those three nights Eagle’s schedule is completely forgettable.

The weekly line up in 2010 will consist of 360 sprint cars, IMCA modifieds, IMCA hobby stocks, IMCA sport compacts and the newly added IMCA sport-modifieds. That’s FIVE classes of cars.

For me, it’s about four too many, but I’ll be generous. Eagle’s IMCA modified program has been very entertaining over the last couple of seasons. Let’s say it’s about three classes too many.

I don’t relish the thought of arriving at the track at 6:30 to watch 15 minutes of sprint car heats, then waiting for three hours for all the other classes to run their heats. Another 15 minutes of action for a sprint B main (assuming enough cars show up to necessitate running a semi-event) and another forty five minute wait until the A.

Really, you’d be lucky to see an hours worth of actual sprint car racing out of a five hour program.

I know back-gate promoting is en vogue, and requires little effort or thought from promoters. Wanna make more money? Just add another class. Hell, keep adding enough classes and eventually it won’t matter if the fans even show up. All your bills have been paid with all that luscious back-gate revenue.

Eagle has done well the last couple seasons under Roger Hadan’s guidance. The weekly shows have solid crowds and the special events (minus the World of Outlaws) have had spectacular turnouts.

However, if you were going to take someone to the race that has never been to one before, ask yourself if they can handle a five hour marathon of racing. People can barely sit still through a two hour movie these days, and yet tracks ask for three to four hours at a minimum. And speaking of movies, you could drive into Lincoln and catch a flick in the gap between the sprint heats and feature. Yeah, I’m not letting that go.

Another question that I have is what exactly do sport mods add? They’re as ugly as their big brothers, but run slower.

If Eagle were a mod only track, I could see it. Hey, that model works for Knoxville with their 410 and 360 sprint divisions. But we’re talking about Eagle.

The final straw in this equation is the 360 sprint class itself. I certainly don’t see it getting stronger next year. This isn’t the same weekly series as it was five years ago, when we’d see good car counts, and seven teams that could win on a given night. Now, it’s a dwindling car count that’s being dominated by one team.

Sorry, but I’m not suffering through four hours of support shows to watch Mike Boston lap the field in the sprint feature.

Say it’s sour grapes. Say I’m a spoiled, elitist sprint car fan. Say what you want, but I’m saying adios to Eagle Raceway in 2010.