2. Iowa capped off a week-long road trip across the Midwest and Plains that started in South Dakota, went down into Nebraska, looped through Wyoming before taking I-80 entirely through Nebraska and into Iowa, with a side-trip into Minnesota.
The one thing that crossed my mind as I was driving to Iowa was the Iowa race weekend is the IndyCar event for a good chunk of the country.
In Lincoln, Nebraska, I stopped in at the Museum of American Speed, which is housing the Unser Racing Museum collection after the Unser family museum closed two years ago. The Museum of American Speed has probably the second-largest IndyCar collection behind the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's museum. There was nothing suggesting IndyCar was in the area, but Iowa is the closest IndyCar race to Lincoln, Nebraska.
Yes, it is over three hours away, but where else would someone from Lincoln, Nebraska go to an IndyCar race? Gateway is about seven hours away. The closest race to the West is either in California or Oregon. Neither are around the corner.
Iowa Speedway isn't right down the road either, but Lincoln, and in turn Omaha, Nebraska, are within the Iowa Speedway bubble. Even if you live in southern Minnesota, Iowa Speedway is closer than Road America and Milwaukee. This race isn't only about Iowa.
That is a large area to promote the race in, and if not enough people are driving from these neighboring states, is it worth the promotion? After this weekend, it couldn't have hurt to promote there too, right?
There may have been 10,000 people combined over Saturday and Sunday. It could not have hurt promoting in Lincoln and Omaha. Those two places have populations of about 300,000 and 500,000 respectively. Throw in the 200,000 for Des Moines and that that is nearly a million people. Go east to Iowa City and Cedar Rapids and that is another 400,000-plus people.
That is covering a lot of ground, but Iowa City is an hour away and the Wisconsin venues are over four hours away. If you are anywhere near the University of Iowa and have interest in seeing IndyCar, you are going to Iowa Speedway.
If you take those four markets and get 15,000 people to show up from Des Moines alone with an additional 3,000 from the other three areas plus an additional 2,000 people coming from greater distances, the grandstands at Iowa Speedway would have at least looks respectable.
3. Outside of some signage on buses, I didn't see much promotion in Des Moines for the races happening less than 45 minutes away. To be fair, there are not as many billboards on I-80 as you would think, and I was in Des Moines for four days. I wasn't watching all the local television and listening to every radio station. For the brief time I was there, the Iowa IndyCar weekend didn't come up.
To be fair, neither did the NASCAR weekend, which happens in less than a month's time.
4. With this being an IndyCar-promoted race, the promotion falls on IndyCar.
With HyVee as the weekend sponsor, it got the word out there. The concerts also likely helped sell tickets, but when you lose such a title sponsor and that was funding the promotional side of the race, you are in big trouble if you cannot match that.
Sukup stepped up to sponsor the weekend, but that was not announced until mid-April, about three months before the race weekend. I don't know how far in advance you need to buy local air time or put up billboards or print promotional material, but I sense Sukup didn't have the same budget as HyVee nor did Sukup have the same amount of time to get the word out.
That is a tough bind for the series to be in.
5. I do want to address Iowa Speedway's contributions to the promotion of the IndyCar weekend, which was none at all.
I understand if this is an IndyCar-promoted event that Iowa Speedway is not paying for local television and radio advertisements and billboards. I understand that. That is fair.
What I do not understand is Iowa Speedway couldn't throw IndyCar a bone and post about the race on social media? That is free. That takes nothing at all to do. One a day during the work days in the few weeks leading up to the event.
I don't understand how the track didn't at least want its client in IndyCar to at least do the best it could. Simply posting about it gets the word out. Why wouldn't Iowa Speedway, even if it was not getting more money for a larger crowd, not want an event on its grounds to do the best it possibly could?
What bothered me the most was on Friday, when there was a tornado warning around the racetrack and the Newton, Iowa-area, Iowa Speedway's social media was dead silent.
There weren't 20,000 people at the track on Friday, but there were still a few hundred people at the track. There could have been more people planning on coming out around 3:00 p.m. It costs nothing at all to post that there is bad weather in the area, those planning on driving to the track should not head to the facility, and those at the facility should find shelter and possibly point them to safer locations.
I think it is abhorrent Iowa Speedway didn't have the decency to at least warn people when a tornado was in the area, and specifically, about a mile-and-a-half from the track. Regardless if IndyCar is promoting the event or the track is promoting the event, if a tornado came through and took out the racetrack, Iowa Speedway would be on the news. Iowa Speedway wouldn't get off the hook because it wasn't promoting the event taking place when a tornado hit.
The track couldn't even do the bare-minimum when it came to public safety. That is worse than not doing anything in terms of race promotion.
6. Going back to IndyCar, when you are the promoter, the lack of attendance falls on you. There is no one else to blame. We can point fingers at Iowa Speedway's lack of help all we want, but from the way things look, this race depended too much on HyVee's support, and if you are not getting close to equal of that from the new partner, it is on you to make up the difference.
What sucks is we know IndyCar can draw at Iowa. It did it for years prior to HyVee's involvement. We know 25,000 to 30,000 people can show up. All those people didn't die in the last five or six years. But despite racing regularly in Iowa since 2007, it is clear the series has not made any roots and developed a nature following in the local area.
For as much as we blame the lack of promotion, if people had a good time and loved the event, they will make sure they will go again. They will mark on their calendars when the race is returning, note when the email comes into their inbox for ticket sales and actively search out the event if they haven't heard anything.
Why hasn't that been the case for IndyCar? You can say last year was bad racing, but that is one year. People can still go to an event. The Miami Grand Prix might not be the greatest racing but there are still people who want to go. That shouldn't be any different for Iowa or any IndyCar event. If the event is worth it, people will attend.
7. If the HyVee budget wasn't there for promotion, IndyCar almost has to treat itself like minor league baseball.
When I was a kid, I remember the local independent league team would have the pocket schedules or posters out everywhere. Pizzerias, car dealerships, banks, barber shops, you name it! That would be the case in four or five surrounding towns.
It would not hurt IndyCar to put itself in public places. If you are IndyCar, a pocket schedule doesn't work, but posters do. Go into the market and find pizzerias and local restaurants willing to put a poster up on the bulletin board. Go into coffeeshops, ice cream parlors, arcades, local karting track, bowling alleys, etc.
This is where it is important to connect to the local market. I know Scott McLaughlin went and threw out the first pitch at an Iowa Cubs game, but that is one singular event. You need something that is almost annoying where people turn there head and always see it. "IndyCar. July 12-13. Iowa Speedway."
It is not some grand promotional push, but it is a small thing that can be done on a limited budget.
8. To reiterate, I was a traveler passing through Des Moines and didn't see the full extent of the promotional effort on local television, but in the New York-area, when Supercross is coming to the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, New Jersey, I see at least one commercial a night during Jeopardy for the Supercross race for at least two if not three weeks.
Is IndyCar doing that? I don't know, but I cannot think of a better spot for a commercial. It doesn't have to be much. One commercial during Jeopardy for ten or 15 days goes a long way. I am not saying that is all IndyCar needs to have 30,000 people at Iowa again, but that is where IndyCar should be targeting. People are going to see it that is for sure.
9. I have been writing for years that we have to stop blaming the IndyCar fans for not supporting IndyCar oval weekends. IndyCar does not have 20,000 affluent people who can attending four-to-six race weekends a season across the country. If IndyCar wants an oval race to succeed, it must find a way to draw from that local market.
At least 85-90% of the attendance should be locals, i.e. people that live within 90 minutes of the track. With how spread out Iowa is, maybe that is within two hours of the track. The remaining 10-15% should be fly-in fans or extended travel fans, and they should be gravy. If IndyCar events are trying to survive on the reverse, the event will fail, and it is stupid to believe the reverse is a winning strategy.
The state of Iowa has a population of around 3.25 million people. About 1% of Iowa's population is 32,500 people. IndyCar couldn't draw 1% of the state for its only visit to the Hawkeye State? Hell, half of a percent would have done IndyCar wonders!
That is a bigger relevance issue for IndyCar. It cannot be relying on 10,000 people from Indiana to go to all the races. When Supercross goes to the Meadowlands, it isn't relying on 40,000 flying across the country from California to make the race a success.
This has been an IndyCar issue almost forever it feels like, but it is pretty basic on what it must do to have healthy events.
10. It doesn't help that oval weekends are rather dead on track.
The rain on Friday basically saved Saturday because Saturday became practice at 9:00 a.m., Indy Lights race at 11:00 a.m. and IndyCar qualifying at 12:30 p.m. There was still nearly three hours between the end of qualifying and the start of the race.
It was better than Sunday when cars ran installation laps at 9:15 a.m. and then nothing happened until noon.
This is an issue as old as time for IndyCar and ovals. For a road course weekend, it can have three or four support series and at most there is 20 minutes of down time on circuit. IndyCar hasn't been able to replicate that on ovals.
USF Pro 2000 and U.S. F2000 aren't going to any oval races beyond Indianapolis Raceway Park on Carb Day. IndyCar has brought USAC Silver Crowns in and that always seems to be done for one year and then not done again for another six years. IndyCar isn't going to pair with ARCA. It isn't going to create another oval series.
Iowa's front straightaway has what I believe is an 1/8th-mile oval. I really wish there was a legends cars series that could have filled the time. I don't care if I don't know any of the drivers or they are all 15 years old. It is at least something to be on track and keep people entertained. Bring out some quarter-midgets or karters for all I care.
I don't know what kind of turmoil Stadium Super Trucks is in that it only runs once a year at Long Beach, but Roger Penske has enough money. Buy it and bring it to all the IndyCar oval weekends. It isn't going to be able to fill the entire three-hour gap, but if it can take up 45 minutes that helps.
It is hard to sell an event when most of it is just people wandering around trying to stave off boredom. There just needs to be more.
11. The in-house production for IndyCar pre-race does not help the experience. If there was more competition on track, that would solve most of the issues, but without it, the PA system is either silent or playing music, but worst of all it is flat in the build up to the race.
We have driver introductions and then it is just music playing. Then the video boards will play a five-minute recap of last year's race...
Then there is another song...
Then the video board is showing Patricio O'Ward in the simulator explaining Iowa Speedway...
Another song...
A tease video...
Invocation and national anthem...
Song...
Order to clear the grid...
Song...
Order of drivers to their cars...
Song...
Command to start engines...
And then we get the radio broadcast.
There must be a dedicated in-house pre-race show. Find a personality to host. Get a former driver or two as analysts. That should take up the 90 minutes prior to green flag. That show should be getting additional driver interviews off of introductions. It should be teasing the race we are about to see. What fuel strategy should be. Who was looking good, who was in trouble, etc.
It must be live and keep the people engaged. You still need to be selling the event to the people at the event. If it is informative, the crowd is at least going to appreciate it if not love it.
It is going to cost money but it goes a long way, and what was provided at Iowa was a disservice to the people attending. I have never been to a Formula One race, but I cannot imagine it is that dull in the full hour before the start of the race. It doesn't have to be the Indianapolis 500 at every race, but it should at least feel like you are building up to the race and keep people on edge. I have been to plenty of baseball, basketball, hockey and football games to know how far IndyCar is from drumming up excitement for its own event.
Unfortunately, I know not to expect that to change.
12. Sidebar, why wasn't Indy Lights a doubleheader?
The Indy Lights race took 28 minutes and five seconds to run on Saturday.
Money is the answer, but are budgets that tight that Indy Lights couldn't run two 75-lap races at Iowa? That would have helped immensely on Sunday. Even if the races are only a half-hour.
13. This next one is an infrastructure fix for Iowa Speedway.
The only way into the garage area is through the tunnel in-between turns one and two. Why in 2006 they didn't build a pedestrian tunnel from under the main grandstand into the infield, I haven't a clue, but it is quite the hike from the grandstands to the garages, and you have to walk along the road that goes down hill outside the circuit.
There were shuttles running between the two areas, but you don't always want to wait for a shuttle.
However, outside of turn one at Iowa Speedway is the activation area where the merchandising tent and trailers were parked as well as some other displays. At the end of that gravel area is the hill that leads down to the infield tunnel to the garage area, but that was fenced off.
Iowa should take that hill and turn it into a staircase with a zig-zagging ramp. It would cut the walking time from the garage area to the grandstands in half, it not shorten it much more.
Again, easier said than done, but I don't know why a racetrack isn't thinking like that. The last thing people want is an inconvenient walk.
14. Speaking of racetracks not thinking, if the biggest gripe against attending a day race at Iowa is the heat, why not construct covering over the grandstand?
It does baffle me that the United States struggles with building covered grandstands. This is at all sports venues, not just racetracks.
This weekend wasn't that bad in terms of the heat. Saturday was rather nice with the wind. Sunday was good but the aluminum seats are baking the entire morning prior to the race. Then the race begins and the grandstands are directly in the sunlight for the entire day. The shadows don't start coming over the grandstands until about 5:00 p.m. local time.
I think about the hillsides at Sepang International Circuit, and I wonder why couldn't Iowa (and most ovals) build awnings over the grandstands?
Iowa is not that big of a grandstand. There is enough space to build it so it can cover the grandstand and some of the concourse level as well.
Again, this is something that will not happen, but it would make the attending experience one million times better. Just spend the money. NASCAR has it!
15. There was a thought that crossed my mind that there is a good chance Iowa Speedway's lower lane was re-paved only for NASCAR to use the track twice and leave for good, which could coincide with IndyCar leaving for good.
Think about NASCAR's schedule for a second. There have been two big rumors in the last month.
A San Diego street course will replace the Chicago street course...
And in turn, Chicagoland Speedway will return to the schedule.
The problem is the math does not add up. If San Diego and Chicago are a straight swap, how does Chicagoland return?
It would have to come from another track. Chicagoland is a NASCAR-owned track. The Chicago street race is a NASCAR-promoted event. The Speedway Motorsports, Inc. tracks (Texas, Charlotte, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Loudon, etc) aren't going to lose a race. It will have to come from a NASCAR assortment of tracks.
What could be in peril?
Darlington? It has two dates but I don't get the sense it will take a second away.
Daytona is keeping two dates.
Homestead is going back to the finale slot with its only race.
Kansas is maybe the most beloved circuit on the Cup schedule. I don't think it would lose either of its dates.
If Martinsville lost a race, people would riot.
Michigan is already down to one race, as is Richmond.
Phoenix is sticking with two, plus NASCAR needs a race early in the season and Phoenix has the best climate for a March race.
Talladega isn't losing either of its races, and Watkins Glen isn't going anywhere.
What does that leave?
The runt of the group is Iowa Speedway. Is it 35,000 people at Iowa Speedway or 50,000 people at Chicagoland Speedway?
I think we know the answer.
How cruel would that be that NASCAR re-paved part of Iowa, when arguable it didn't have to, only for it to be used twice for the NASCAR Cup Series and completely ruin the IndyCar racing held there?
NASCAR didn't do the re-pave to spite IndyCar, but it also didn't really care how IndyCar was doing either.
Prepare yourself for in the next month or two to find out Iowa is off the NASCAR schedule and think about all the changes that were done for basically nothing if the race only lasted two years.
16. A lot of this has been criticism. Solutions have been offered.
I wanted to go to Iowa Speedway because I wanted to go to a different venue and it worked out that it could become a full week to see part of the country I had never visited before.
I liked Iowa Speedway. There really isn't a bad seat in the house. Even in the lower section you can see the entire racetrack in one of the top few rows. I wish to have attended under better circumstances in terms of the race itself and IndyCar's health at the facility, but even without it, I could tell how cool this little place can be.
I said it after Sunday, seeing a bad race at the racetrack is still a day at the racetrack. Both of the races might not have been sensational events, but it is still great to see cars fly by in person. There weren't 1,000 passes in each race, but it was fun to watch someone line one up and make a move. We did see Josef Newgarden run down Álex Palou and David Malukas and re-take control of a race after being caught out by a caution.
The track is different from how it was prior to the re-pave, but it at least got better than last year. Some of that is a year of wear on the surface. Some of it is the adjustments IndyCar made. There are reasons to be hopeful, but there are too many pitfalls to ignore with this event.
I wish it wasn't this way. I wish the support was strong enough to justify working through the rough times. I wish we didn't go into a race weekend already frustrated with how it was going to work out.
If IndyCar leaves Iowa, it did all it could on the racing side, but the series clearly has its shortcomings when it comes to promoting events. That is something that will need to be addressed because I don't think IndyCar-promoted oval races are going anywhere. It already does the Indianapolis 500 and Milwaukee, and racetracks aren't lining up to host IndyCar.
If there is any silver-lining from this weekend for the series it is I hope it can be a learning experience for the future.