High U.S. gas prices pinch NASCAR fans
By Ben Klayman
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Many NASCAR fans think nothing of jumping in their recreational vehicles or pickup trucks and driving 300 miles or more to watch races in places like Talladega, Alabama; Bristol, Tennessee; and Las Vegas.
But rising gasoline prices are forcing them to make tough choices.
"The higher fuel prices have hit them hard," said Roger VanDerSnick of International Speedway Corp, one of two major publicly owned race track companies. "We pull from such a huge geographical area."
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) has been one of the fastest growing sports in the United States, boasting a fan base of about 75 million, second only to the National Football League. It has the biggest stable of corporate sponsors of any U.S. sports league and TV deals worth $4.48 billion that run through 2014.
But its largely blue-collar fan base is feeling the pinch. While several tracks still sell out, others have seen crowds shrink.
VanDerSnick said the average percentage drop in ticket sales at ISC's tracks was in the mid-single digit range, and fan spending on merchandise and concessions has declined similarly.
ISC, which operates race tracks in several states including the home of the Daytona 500 in Florida, competes with Speedway Motorsports. The France family owns 67 percent of ISC's voting stock and also owns NASCAR.
Bad news for tracks is a June government report that showed Americans reduced the number of miles they drove for the sixth straight month in April, resulting in the biggest six-month decline since the oil shock of the 1979-80 Iranian revolution. Continued...
http://www.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idUSN24354705...&feedName=sportsNews
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