I have also had to adjust
my idea of what it costs to run a race team. When we were involved with the Goody's Dash Series, we operated on a shoe-string
budget and even then, you had to understand that whatever the purse was for the race, it was never nearly enough to cover
the expenses involved in just getting to the track.
For the larger teams in
the NASCAR’s top series, the cost is nearly unimaginable. You have to transport at least two cars for each team to each
track, hundreds or thousands of miles from their shops. You have 10-20 people per team needing hotel rooms, rental cars
and food for at least 3 days at the track and maybe two more days of travel. You buy uniforms for the driver and each crew
member. All of this is added to the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent to get the cars built and on the track. You have
personnel at the shop that have to be paid and the salaries for the upper level staff, crew chiefs, engineers, etc. have gone
up tremendously in the last few years.
There was a time that you
could run a race car from the garage in your backyard. You may have had your family; friends and neighbors pitch in to support
your effort, working into the wee hours of the morning. All they wanted in return was to be able to attend the race to cheer
you on. The pride of being part of the experience seemed like compensation enough. Those days are gone forever.
I am proud that
our sport has seen the growth in popularity that has allowed our stars to become superstars. I am also proud that many of
our stars came up in a time where their fathers, grandfathers, uncles or older brothers raced on a tight budget. I believe
that their understanding of how blessed they are is a huge part of why they are who they are. They have sat in the infield
and ate bologna sandwiches, rode across country in dad's station-wagon, slept in tents and sleeping bags.
2006 StockCar Review.
