Putting Stock in Fans

Formula One teams are starting to realize that it pays to keep your fans happy.

The Formula One Teams Association announced today that they wanted to see changes in Formula One in order to whether the recent economic downturn and keep it as a viable sport for many more years.

The group surveyed fans of all types to determine what would be a good direction from the sport and, as a result, have decided to make the sport more fan friendly.

One move that I think is brilliant is to make the drivers participate in autograph sessions. Sure part of the draw of the sport is the elite nature of it, but that doesn't mean that the drivers have to be removed from its biggest shareholders - their fan base.

I think that this simple move will make the race experience 100 times more enjoyable for fans. More driver access has seemed to help NASCAR in the U.S.

Something as simple as an autograph can turn the slightest fan into a fan for life and will only increase the value of the sport for its fans.
Posted: 3/5/2009 4:15:21 PM
Comments:
Schmoog,

You got that right about the driver's in NASCAR are not fan available. I attended a few races at thedrag-strip & hey were happy to see us!!

hiwaystar
Posted On: 3/13/2009 1:26:33 PM
Come to think of it, you can't even wave to a driver from the 85th row anymore because when they're doing that pre-race lap around the track in the back of a pickup truck, there's usually a camera and microphone in their face!!! That lap is supposed to be for the fans, not the (bleep)in' media!! Don't they get enough of the driver interviews with their hour-long pre-race shows?? Oh, and that pit pass you just dropped $$$ for happens to be a "cold" pit pass. You need a "hot" one to get in around the haulers and inside the garages. Good luck with that.

Posted On: 3/10/2009 9:20:28 AM
Sorry RWest but Schmoog is right, meeting one of your favorite NASCAR drivers (unless he's far down there in popularity) is next to impossible unless you have a pit pass and are in the right place at the right time. If anyone wants to experience something fan friendly they should go to a NHRA event. Every ticket is a pit pass, drivers are always signing autographs, taking pictures, and sometimes even handing out broken car parts! I've actually had NHRA drivers ask ME if I was having fun! Say what?!
Posted On: 3/8/2009 1:38:50 AM
"More driver access has seemed to help NASCAR in the U.S."

So what track/race can we go to, and with the price of our seat tickets, get to have "access" to Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr, or Jimmie Johnson?? Even with paying more $$$$$ for the infield pass, you might catch a glimpse of a driver through the window at the Neon Garage in Vegas, or get a pic through the chain link fence in Phoenix. I haven't seen NASCAR put on autograph sessions like the Grand Am Rolex series has with their drivers, and every ticket isn't a pit pass like the NHRA.
Posted On: 3/7/2009 9:01:46 PM

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