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Originally Posted by Purist
It wouldn't surprise me if the percentage of the population in central and western Europe that is aware of F1 is higher than the percentage of the US population that is aware of NASCAR.
As for marshals, I'd be willing to bet that European marshals find the atmosphere of the tracks and the experience of marshaling here to be more pleasant, especially when compared to events like F1 or the WEC.
The SCCA does an awful lot of the total marshal training over here, but the entity has a long history of regionalism, so participants often don't like to go very far afield. And frankly, given the default proximity of other countries, languages, and cultures in Europe relative to the US, Americans, in general, can tend to be more insular in their thinking.
Having said all that, the closest IMSA race to me is Road America, and that's nearly 800 miles away. That distance would just about cover going from the far north of Scotland to the far south of England, wouldn't it?
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Totally get the size thing, and your comparison is about right for sure. I just think it's a bizarre situation where American can't get enough of its own marshalls (from lets say, 1000 mile radius), and relies on people from 5000 miles away in a different country.
That's a bizarre situation to be in. Although, to be blunt, I don't think IMSA needs to care what anyone outside of IndyCar and NASCAR are doing. As harsh as it sounds, WEC doesn't move dates to suit BTCC (they move dates to suit Fernando...
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