Comments on: Rambling Thoughts On The BCG Report

By: Ballyhoo

Ballyhoo — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 23:09:19 +0000

Wish we could translate your comments.

By: Ballyhoo

Ballyhoo — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 23:08:41 +0000

I wish ESPN was a viable option for IndyCar. Their numerous channels are standard on most cable/satellite vendors. I had to go with DirecTV, so I could have Speed and Versus at a reasonable rate. I am concerned wtih IndyCar becoming the impoverished stepchild on NBCsports, now that they are carrying F1 (and a lot of it). With the demise of Speed by Fox in August, there are not a lot of options. Has anyone read or heard about the future of Wind Tunnel? I am not happy with its very limited time slot and duration this year, but am glad that WT has returned for another season.

Oh, I too would vote a very loud NO on having a playoff. Last year and several before have gone down to the last race. Couldn’t ask for better entertainment.

By: billytheskink

billytheskink — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 16:30:56 +0000

The $35,000 prize money number Miller throws out is a bit disingenuous, because it fails to acknowledge the Leaders Circle payouts as prize money and the fact that non-Leaders Circle entries also earn prize money.
Last year’s $1.1-1.2 million Leaders Circle payment (I read conflicting reports) works out to $68,750 to $80,000 per race (I don’t recall if money was reduced due to China’s cancellation). The top-finishing non-Leaders Circle entry earned $80,000 per race. These figures are comparable to what a start-and-park NASCAR Cup entry would receive at every race but the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400. A non-500 Indycar race winner earns well over $100,000 for a victory due to the $35,000 winners bonus. This is not to say that increasing prize money should not be a goal for Indycar as even the stingiest NASCAR Cup race still pays over $200,000 to the winner.

In Miller’s SpeedTV.com piece on the BCG study, he again mentions the $35,000 figure and states that the 43rd place driver in NASCAR’s Cup series earned more than Indycar Champion Ryan Hunter-Reay last year.
Taking the conservative $1.1 million figure and adding it to Hunter-Reay’s $546,680 in prize money earned from the 500 and from top 5 finish bonuses gives Ryan over $1.6 million in total prize money prior to the $1 million series champion bonus.
NASCAR Cup’s 43rd place driver in 2012’s final standings was Michael Waltrip, who earned $429,362 for 4 starts. Even so, 41 NASCAR Cup drivers earned more than $1.6 million in 2012 (some were listed behind Waltrip in the standings, not scoring points because they were full-time in another NASCAR series). 33 earned more than the $2.6 million Hunter-Reay was tabbed to receive after his champion bonus. 18 Cup drivers earned more than $5 million, something I don’t believe any American open-wheel driver has done in a single season.

By: Simon Garfunkel

Simon Garfunkel — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 16:05:25 +0000

They probably just did that so they could have their peace of mind. No one could tell them to don’t look back.

By: billytheskink

billytheskink — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 15:35:41 +0000

Could we really expect the Boston Consulting Group to NOT suggest adding a race in Boston?
I just hope the idea was based on more than a feeling.

By: Tsong

Tsong — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 14:34:36 +0000

提高门票价格吗？我将不得不提高自助餐的价格。采取特别关闭菜单。

By: redcar

redcar — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 14:09:07 +0000

Indycar would already run more races if they could find a venue willing to pay the fee. And Indycar would be with a better network if a better network wanted them. I do like bigger purse/lower team money. A playoff in Indycar is not necessary–their schedule is already about the length of the Nascar “playoffs.” They could just call the whole season a playoff.

By: Mike Silver

Mike Silver — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:43:07 +0000

Many of the groups suggestions are naive at best. If the season ends in Indy, I think a race at the fairgrounds on dirt is the way to go, That would draw acrowd and add to the series’ diversity.

By: JoeyT.

JoeyT. — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:36:46 +0000

I think I understand why you put the word “Rambling” in your title. All over the place?

By: SkipinSC

SkipinSC — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:30:18 +0000

The one place you and I disagree is the seat pricing, and there only in the implementation. First, I have a problem with raising ANY ticket price by $60 when you’re trying to build attendance back to where it was is pure silliness. That is not to say that the Hulman George family isn’t entitled to some increase in pricing, but I would rather pass that on to the vistas and Penthouse on a gradual basis rather than charging $150 for a Paddock seat whose sightlines are significantly less appealing than before the F-1 construction. If you jump those lower deck Paddock seats to $150, you’re surely going to see a lot of fans cleverly disguided as empty seats on the main straightaway. In an email “mini-blog” I sent to Kevin Lee, I also suggested upping the price for Carb Day by $5, since that is now the primary ancillary event at IMS.

Like you, I wish that NBCSN could get ratings to match the production values of their race telecasts. So far, the ratings have been bad and getting worse, and that’s before you add F-1 into the mix. My fear is that with ABC/ESPN how do you guarantee their performance in promoting IndyCar when they have a substantial investment in NASCAR, (both Cup and Nationwide.)

One more thing: I get that we need the Leaders’ Circle program to keep some teams around for the full schedule. I would like to see it more performance – based however. (THe whole program reminds me of the attitude many take with kids today, the “Everyone Gets a Trophy” kind of thing.) Still, it’s better than the “Start and Park” fiasco that is prevalent in NASCAR.