Easily the biggest topic in the alcohol racing world is the possibility of going to a regional series instead of divisions. Basically instead of the 7 divisions, there will be two or three regions; West, Midwest (in the 3-region format) and East. The hope is that with the consolidation of the divisions, there will be higher car counts at regional events. Another goal of the new format is to take alcohol racing away from tracks that either do not want to host the alcohol cars or do not have safe facilities to do so.
These changes are being made because no one is truly happy with the current situation. There are several contributing problems that ultimately have a domino effect. One that I like to focus on is the promotion side of it. Specifically, the promotion that one track does for their divisional race.
Aside from my hometrack, Norwalk, none of the tracks that host divisional races promote said races. They go out of their way to make their divisional race, known as the Cavalcade of Stars, one of the biggest and most successful events in a) the track's history, b) the division's history, and c) the NHRA Divisional history. The 2010 Cavalcade of Stars marked the first time that they actually had to refuse spectators from entering the gates. I don't remember the stat, but it was one of the most attended divisional races in NHRA history, if not THE most attended. The stands were absolutely packed, which is something that you never see it a divisional race.
Racer attendance is also high for the Cavalcade. There have always been full fields at the race, with at least a couple cars not making the field. D3 does have a large amount of alcohol racers compared to other divisions, but the features of the event must be a contributing factor of the event's alcohol car counts. After all, the track treats the alcohol teams like pros, compared to how other divisional tracks treat alky teams. I mean, how many times will you see an autograph session where the alcohol racers are the stars? Only at Cavalcade...
Track co-owner Bill Bader Jr. and his staff do bring in "talent" acts like wheelstanders and jets, along with fireworks, but that's part of putting on an event that will bring fans back year after year. They also provide a facility that racers, fans and their families feel comfortable going to. I've been to several tracks in the eastern U.S. and none of them even come close to Norwalk's grounds. The same has not been said about the actual track surface at times, but that has nothing to do with fan attendance.
I live within 30 minutes of the track, so I see their promotional efforts in the local community firsthand. Whether its radio and TV ads or stories in the local papers, the race is promoted in a way that such an event should be. Fans come from as far as Michigan and Pennsylvania to go to the Cavalcade, but many of them are local fans. That could partially be because there is simply nothing to do in northern Ohio (I'm allowed to say that, I live here), but the efforts of the Bader team are the #1 reason that fans come out in droves.
Ticket distribution is the last contributing factor that I'm going to go over. Tickets to the Cavalcade of Stars are passed out to attendees of prior races at SMP and to those that order tickets to the track's national event or Night Under Fire. Local radio stations, auto parts stores, gas stations, and other business receive free tickets to give away to listeners and customers. They end up making that money back in concessions and souvenir sales.
If you think about all the touches that they put in to the Cavalcade of Stars, its no surprise that the race is attended by so many fans and racers. NHRA, it's divisions, and it's tracks can't expect piles of fans if they don't promote the events. Until drag racing has the prominence that NASCAR and other major sports have, we have to do more to bring fans out to the races. Let's kick the title of "Best kept secret in sports".
