Historic Stock Car Racing Series Australia (renamed)

[Dasher]

Originally Posted by Thunder1

The good old days

[Camaroz]

Originally Posted by Falcadore

Would love to get hold of some of the old series point scores. Looking back now at what I can find, many of them appear to be wrapped in mystery.

I was told only recently that Terry Wyhoon had a fair amount of Thunderdome programs and stuff. I will be following up!

[NewsStalker]

Originally Posted by Falcadore

Would love to get hold of some of the old series point scores. Looking back now at what I can find, many of them appear to be wrapped in mystery.

What years?

[William Dale Jr]

Falcadore, I've got all the results from 1988 - the two 500k races plus the Lightning Strikes and AUSCAR races - and the 90/91 season. Auto Action put out a magazine covering the 90/91 season that has complete points tables. I've also got a few programmes from the early-mid '90s that should have some info in them, plus the Auto Actions (or was it Motorsport News) that contained copies of the programmes for the 96/97 series. Anything in particular you want me to find for you?

Thunder1, great photos! I'm guessing they're from the 93/94 season, probably December '93?

[Driver TBA]

Originally Posted by Camaroz

I was told only recently that Terry Wyhoon had a fair amount of Thunderdome programs and stuff. I will be following up!

Here's the front covers from two.

Me and the old boy probably went about 7 ort 8 times to the 'dome' from 88 to about 92. Not bad considering my old man is'nt into motorsport.

I may have more but have moved a fews times since so their locations are unknown.






And NO I don't want to part with them.

[peckstar]

I think i can see myself in the first of those photos, we usally sat in the red seats

[NewsStalker]

DriverTBA - that bottom cover attracted masive criticism from the visiting American officials when it was printed - the words used to describe the female official standing, during a live event, with her back to the traffic were along the lines of 'the most stupid thing ANY official at a NASCAR event can do - she should never be allowed back near the track again'.

I also asked about results and full official results are still help from Oct 94 through to Dec 99. Not immediately available, but can be re-generated if required.

[Thunder1]

Thunder1, great photos! I'm guessing they're from the 93/94 season, probably December '93?[/QUOTE]

You guessed right they're from the 93/94. They were the days one crew servicing Auscar & Nascar at the same time at the same meeting i think i still have some old pit crew credentials around somewhere.

Somehow managed to get into some photos



Some Auscar pic's



Check out the HQ there were some big hits out there.

[kelvin88]

The cars in the AUSCAR class, were they custom built chassis or were they built from a production car bodyshell and parts?

[Thunder1]

Originally Posted by kelvin88

The cars in the AUSCAR class, were they custom built chassis or were they built from a production car bodyshell and parts?

They were built from a production car body shell with a a fair amount of roll bar work including nascar style basket weave in the front door opening of the shell.There were no doors to open just door skins to resemble a door.

Here is a link to some AUSCAR pictures that will show you body and rool cage this car has been set up to run circuit racing.

http://www.my105.com/31482

Cheers

[Driver TBA]

Here's a few pic's from the December 1990 meet.

Taken at a distance. If I tried to get any further back I would have had to leave Calder.

Not a bad crowd.




From memory this was also the last time the Super Trucks ran on the Dome. During the race one hit the wall hard right in front of us, spraying the crowd with concrete. Took along time to repair the wall.

NASCAR entry list for the same meet.




The AUSCAR list looks like Commodore Cup. A full field with only about 5 Falcons.

[NewsStalker]

The truck that hit the wal had a tyre blow out coming out of T4 - took out one of the overhanging TV cameras as well. The Boom!! from the tyre exploding was heard even inside some of the supposed sound-proofed rooms.

[mountainstar]

Any analysis or opinion on why Nascar faded away in Australia?

Seemed like for a few years it was going quite well.

[William Dale Jr]

I've always thought that two things reignited fading interest in NASCAR after its introduction in 1988:
1) Days of Thunder, and
2) the state of touring car racing in the early '90s.

In the late '80s and early '90s, NASCAR and AUSCAR racing were the only category to offer large-capacity V8 motorsport on tarmac - racing which was both close and exciting - and with good national television coverage from the Seven Network. I suspect that support started to fade just after the new V8-only touring car regulations were introduced in '93, not helped by Seven relegating NASCAR coverage to late-night timeslots before dumping them entirely.

SBS's coverage, though from memory quite good, didn't have the reach that Seven's did. If you weren't a regular watcher of NASCAR and AUSCAR then the only time you were exposed to them was in their support races at Surfers, and eventually the V8s bumped them off the programme there.

Also, NASCAR wasn't able to successfully expand beyond the Thunderdome. I don't know what the crowd figures at AIR were like when they raced there, nor how successful they were at Eastern Creek or Oran Park, but they can't have been too big if they could justify dropping them off the schedule. By the time they went to Wanneroo, the category was already in its death throes. And whatever happened to the tarmac oval proposal for Paramatta?

[racer69]

I think you summed it up quite well there William,

For those that saw it though, the Thunderdome could produce some of the best racing in Australia.

Originally Posted by William Dale Jr

And whatever happened to the tarmac oval proposal for Paramatta?

Although given alot of publicity, it never had a hope.

The 'outer ring' of PCR that was proposed to be paved, is used alot for trotting etc... business that would have been lost had it have been paved. It was more a 'pipe dream' being pushed from motor racing circles.

It's a pity NASCAR came along in Australia a few years too late for the paved Liverpool Speedway (and just before the facility, by then back to dirt, closed)

[mite5255]

there was also plans for a oval track at lakeside iirc ,some earth works were started but nothing ever eventuated which was a real shame

[NewsStalker]

There was also another issue that didn't help NASCAR continue - the inevitable bi-annual cull that used to take place at Calder Park resulting in major staff changes.

It could be said that whilst Al Basnight was at the Dome NASCAR thrived and, although crowds did start to drop slightly, a lot of this was also due to a number of races being hit by inclement weather forcing cancellations (how many recall the tunnel being flooded during one meeting and slet falling during a Christmas meeting??)

Once Al departed, a number of bad calls by Race Control (including too many 'Code 76' calls) put a lot of people off side (including SBS) - culminating in a few extremely bad calls that even had people within Race Control arguing and, at one stage, nearly fighting) amongst themselves.

The problem was that there weren't too many people with enough experience, in Australia, that could run a NASCAR meeting and have the authority to control the races. By this time Bob wasn't prepared to bring the Americans out to help boost and control the racing again and, one decision after another, saw some drivers/teams start to question and leave the sport (maybe, one day, the true story of the sudden turmoil and departure of one family that happened with the Legends will be told..)

[Falcadore]

Originally Posted by mite5255

there was also plans for a oval track at lakeside iirc ,some earth works were started but nothing ever eventuated which was a real shame

It would have been a very small oval, even by Speedway standards. Doubt it could have held NASCAR races.

[chavez]

1/4 mile is probably as small as you could go for NASCAR. That's roughly the size of most dirt track speedways in Australia.

Another reason for the demise was the growing attraction of touring car racing. Both Super Touring and what became know as V8 Supercars took a lot of the top competitors away from the AUSCAR / NASCAR ranks.

I was a huge fan and attended every Thunderdome meeting that I could between 1991 and its eventaully demise.

The road course races were also entertaining. The Steven Richards and John Faulkner battle in AUSCARS at Oran Park remains one of my favourite races of all time.

[mite5255]

place mark shows the old earth works for the oval track at lakeside as i remember them

[Camaroz]

Originally Posted by NewsStalker

There was also another issue that didn't help NASCAR continue - the inevitable bi-annual cull that used to take place at Calder Park resulting in major staff changes.

It could be said that whilst Al Basnight was at the Dome NASCAR thrived and, although crowds did start to drop slightly, a lot of this was also due to a number of races being hit by inclement weather forcing cancellations (how many recall the tunnel being flooded during one meeting and slet falling during a Christmas meeting??)

Once Al departed, a number of bad calls by Race Control (including too many 'Code 76' calls) put a lot of people off side (including SBS) - culminating in a few extremely bad calls that even had people within Race Control arguing and, at one stage, nearly fighting) amongst themselves.

The problem was that there weren't too many people with enough experience, in Australia, that could run a NASCAR meeting and have the authority to control the races. By this time Bob wasn't prepared to bring the Americans out to help boost and control the racing again and, one decision after another, saw some drivers/teams start to question and leave the sport (maybe, one day, the true story of the sudden turmoil and departure of one family that happened with the Legends will be told..)

The three main reasons for the demise of the Thunderdome were Management, Management and Management!

The management below BJ were not exactly NASCAR/AUSCAR friendly and were pushing all possible energies into the 400 Mts next to the 'Dome. These efforts comprimised many a "deal" with potential sponsors and TV as anything put up for the 'Dome was rolled into including the 400 Mts and major sponsors and one "huge" TV network were not interested in the straight line stuff so it went wanting.....

[NewsStalker]

The management below BJ eventually turned into family which didn't help either (a FIL younger than the groom is still something I could never get my mind around).

Those within the NASCAR ranks, though, did try to get the best out of the show - until they started fighting amongst themselves that is.

[Driver TBA]

Originally Posted by Camaroz

The three main reasons for the demise of the Thunderdome were Management, Management and Management!

The management below BJ were not exactly NASCAR/AUSCAR friendly and were pushing all possible energies into the 400 Mts next to the 'Dome. These efforts comprimised many a "deal" with potential sponsors and TV as anything put up for the 'Dome was rolled into including the 400 Mts and major sponsors and one "huge" TV network were not interested in the straight line stuff so it went wanting.....

Thing is, the 400 metres next to the dome never had a problem putting bums on seats.

NASCAR was always going to struggle with only one paved speedway in Australia. Run to many road courses and it starts looking like touring cars, especially when the V8's came along.
While NASCAR had the Thunderdome as it's headline act along with visiting Yanks in the early days. The V8's (or ATCC as it was called in 93) had Bathurst and names like Brock, Johnson and Perkins. One was always going to win, unless the other could offer something different. Thing is, one race track was the only difference.

Such a shame about Calder Park. It has everything going for it. A road course, a drag strip, a speedway and it's close to Melbourne. Yet it has nothing. The circuit is comprimised by the lack of pits and the main straight being a drag strip, the dragstrip is comprimised by being a 'main straight' and the pits that all three have to share is shocking.

Remember the motsa they spent on lighting for the dome for night NASCAR racing instead of using the money to repair and upgrade the existing facilities.

I remember a NASCAR meeting (late 90's) where Calder gave away over 2500 free tickets, only to get about 2000 turn up?

[Falcadore]

Originally Posted by mountainstar

Any analysis or opinion on why Nascar faded away in Australia?

Seemed like for a few years it was going quite well.

Many reasons. Geography was a problem. The series was based almost entirely in Melbourne which discouraged interstate competitors from joining the series, also it limited who could attend races, and was a major hindrance to its national television ratings.

Organisers grew less and less competant over time.

Thunderdome racing was always the most generous prize money series in the country, but overtime that prizemoney shrank and one year Jane stopped paying at all. Some of the teams at the top level needed the prizemoney to top up campaign warchests.

The shift of telecasters of Channel 7 to SBS substantially reduced the available TV audience making sponsorship a harder sell.

Some of NASCAR/AUSCARs draw was it drew a certain kind of V8 loving racefan that felt disenfranchised by turbo-cars dominating the Australian Touring Car Championship. The 1993 shift to V8 Touring Car regulations drew those fans back to circuit racing.

Finally the split between competitors and Jane's organisation was the death knell. While NASCAR/AUSCAR had its core group in Melbourne, being locked out of the Thunderdome forced them into becoming a national series running on road coarses to which the cars were obviously compromised. It then, paradoxically become more expensive series because the teams then had to travel like they never had before and also shifted from a summer racing category to a winter racing category. Within two years of being locked out of the Thunderdome the series was dead.

The AMRS series made a half-hearted attempt to revive the series but nobody turned up leaving to the unpalatable situation where AMRS was advertising NASCAR racing when no NASCARs were in attendance, further souring spectator attitudes.

[NewsStalker]

Also add to their 'popularity' was that they were a Sat night event which usually meant families (well, at least dad and the kids) could attend without having to crawl out of bed at Sunrise and spend all day in the sun.