Is NASCAR Still Fan Friendly?

I just spent the last few days (and a lot of money), at Chicagoland Speedway for the Nationwide Dollar General 300 & Sprint Cup Lifelock.com 400. Now this is my home track (I live 15 minutes from the speedway), but this is an International Speedway Corporation (ISC), owned track, which owns 12 tracks (Auto Club, Chicagoland, Darlington, Daytona, Homestead, Kansas, Martinsville, Michigan, Phoenix, Richmond, Talledega and Watkins Glen) that host a Sprint Cup race.

At Chicagoland you cannot buy a individual ticket for one race, you must purchase a "Track Pass", which is a season ticket. That includes this past weekend's Nationwide and Sprint Cup race and then a second weekend of racing in late August which includes a Camping World Truck race, an ARCA race and then an IRL race & an IRL Indy Lights race.

The problem with this package is most people don't want to go to all of the races (I actually do), but the ticket is expensive (the Sprint Cup race alone is $100 and the Nationwide ticket is $ 50), now granted parking is free but you can only bring in one bottle of water (and no coolers), into the stadium.

The food is very expensive, sandwiches and beer are $7 each, a bottle of water was $4 & a cup of Italian Ice and a box of popcorn was $5 each.

Now as expected, most people tailgate and there's plenty of room and time for that but the other frustrating thing is the trailers with merchandise for sale of each driver. Its hard to find anything (outside of a trinket), for $10 or less. I found a Kevin Harvick long sleeved T shirt for $ 10 & a hat for $ 8 and thought I got a deal.

Most shirts are $ 20 to $ 25 dollars, that included T-shirts and polos are over $ 40.

Needless to say in this economy there were a lot of empty seats at the race and the Sprint Cup race used to sell out. Now the attendance is the same for the Nationwide race & the Sprint Cup race.

Also I noticed that driver appearances & show cars were less visible than in previous years. Joey Logano came to the local Home Depot but was not there long (an hour or so), and they handed out bracelets to see him but it was in the early afternoon when most people can't get off work.

Kevin Harvick made a signing visit to a local Jimmy Johns sandwich shop but again it was at lunch time for a short amount of time (again around an hour), and that was it.

Also I went to my local Wal Mart for a show car appearance & driver simulator and got there 5 minutes before it was scheduled to end (I came right after work at 5 P.M.), and neither the show car nor the simulator or the hauler that brought them, was anywhere to be found.

It just felt like this year (more than in years past), you paid more for the race (and food), and got less and outside of the track in the week leading up to the race and there were less opportunities to see drivers & show cars.

It makes you wonder where the priorities are in Nascar and if they take the fans for granted and simply assume we will support this sport (and its high prices), regardless of the economy & the quality of racing on the track.

But already many fans have spoken by being absent and next year I will join them.