Track Smack: Cup's new contender Smoking field (cont'd)

2. We've seen plenty of empty seats this season in places like Atlanta, California and Dover. How bad might it be this weekend in Michigan, the state hardest-hit by the economic recession?

David Caraviello: If it's anything like Dover, it may not be good. I don't know what the attendance was like in Pocono -- the track is so big, it's hard to get a feel for it on TV -- but Dover was shocking. More empty seats there than I've seen in a long time. And Michigan is struggling worse than that region of the Mid-Atlantic.

Joe Menzer: The thing about Michigan is that it's so big, it can hold a decent crowd by virtually anyone else's standards and still look fairly empty. And while we're talking crowds, we need to mention that at Pocono, the grandstands were pretty packed. I was impressed by that.

Motor City effects

Detroit is struggling. But officials at Michigan remain positive for this weekend's events, which are a short drive from the nation's hardest hit area during the recession.

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Raygan Swan: Well, track officials are expecting a decline in attendance, but they aren't putting their heads in the sand like some others tend to do. They aren't letting it affect the show they put on for fans.

David Caraviello: As well they shouldn't, Raygan. But we do have a lot of track presidents these days who are trying to redefine "good crowd." I guess that's understandable, given the situation. I guess 60-70 percent of capacity is now a good crowd. How times have changed.

Joe Menzer: At Pocono, I really thought the crowd was going to be off after driving in -- and hitting no traffic. But the crowd turned out to be impressive, although I guess by past standards the infield was a bit barren.

David Caraviello: Here's the thing -- nobody is wishing ill upon Roger Curtis and the folks at MIS. Everybody is pulling for them, especially in this environment. But they're going to be under the microscope a little, just because of where they are, and how much that region has been hammered economically.

Raygan Swan: Pocono is ideally located to pull in from big markets, right? That's why they always have decent numbers. But I fear the auto towns in Michigan won't feel much like spending hundreds of dollars to make the race this weekend, not with looming plant closings in the region. Too close to home

Joe Menzer: The thing you have to remember, David, is that 60-70 percent of a place that seats 132,000 -- like Michigan -- is still a pretty decent crowd by sporting standards. If my math is correct, 70 percent of that -- plus whatever they get in the infield -- would put Michigan at well over 100,000.

Raygan Swan: True, Joe. If MIS sells what, like 75,000 to 80,000 seats, it will still be the largest sporting event in the state, maybe.

David Caraviello: Joe, you're right. Again, this is all being redefined. NASCAR has historically set the bar so high in terms of attendance, and some of these tracks have so many seats, they're almost setting themselves up to look bad. And Raygan, I think that little football stadium over in Ann Arbor still draws well over 100,000.

Joe Menzer: But the atmosphere there -- and lately, the quality of play -- is nowhere close to what it is down the road in Columbus, Ohio!

David Caraviello: Oh goodness, here we go with this again. Can you tell Joe isn't going to Michigan? With comments like that, he'd never get out of the airport.

Raygan Swan: You took the words right out of my mouth. Soon he'll start talking about Skyline Chili.

Joe Menzer: Hey, I had the guts to wear my Ohio State golf shirt there last year. Actually was surprised to get several positive comments from OSU brethren in attendance! Even though the lady who served me breakfast at the hotel made some snide comment and tried to dump a bowl of hot oatmeal in my lap! Or at least on my shirt.

Raygan Swan: He's a mouthy one, that Joe, but he's been working out and lifting weights so maybe he could hold his own.

David Caraviello: The issue we're talking about here -- and it has nothing to do with overrated chili or college football programs -- isn't unique to MIS. Tracks all over the country are dealing with it. And as I've written before, I don't know if the capacity crowds we saw during the boom years are ever coming back. It's gonna be tough to fill a 180,000-seat venue for a long time to come. Which is why I think we need some contraction in terms of seating capacity at some places.

Joe Menzer: Overrated chili? Them's fightin' words, Caraviello! All I will say further on this subject is that in the Cincinnati area, there are more chili joints than there are McDonald's. And the chili guys have overbuilt less than the NASCAR track operators! (Continued)