RaceDayCT Poll: Do You Plan On Attending Either Of The Cleetus McFarland Shows At Stafford

Comments

1. Marshall says

   July 12, 2024 at 9:39 am

   I’m somewhat interested, but I spend the weekends with my son and we have other plans that weekend. I’ll be at Stafford’s Wednesday modified show though.
2. P. T. Barnum says

   July 12, 2024 at 7:53 pm

   Racing needs more promoters like Cleetus McFarland.
3. Barry says

   July 13, 2024 at 7:41 am

   It’s interesting, but this is traditionally IMSA weekend at Lime Rock. While IMSA won’t be here this year, I still have my campsites reserved and there will be a TA2 and “new” IROC action, so camping it is…

   The Cleetus event does look a lot more interesting to me than SRX was. I hope it does well for all involved.
4. Doug says

   July 18, 2024 at 3:00 pm

   Doing a little reading and watching the Cleetus McFarland experience you can’t help but be intrigued about how this will play out locally even if the circle track faithful feel tepid about it.

   Obviously Lawrence Garrett Mitchell aka Cleetus McFarland is a master showman. Starting around 2009 in search of money making people pleasers experimented with all kinds of things culminating in the purchase of an abandoned track in January 2020. Not perfect timing just before the pandemic the guy adjusted like so many did streaming events. He survived, evolved and now seems to have something with real staying power.

   The Crown Vics his top act among a few people pleasing displays of driving prowess by swashbucklers and daredevil amateurs. As I understand it all Crown Vics he purchased and modified only by adding nitrous, new tires and safety features. He’s on video saying it originally cost him $600. That was a while back the cost going up as he’s been adding more protection for drivers including more sophisticated roll bars. He’s shipping them all up here, it’s his guys driving including himself with a kind of points system that go at it for whatever distance he decides based on the track.

   I’d say this was a risk for Stafford. Bumping a prime summer Friday night for something new but may be more like catching fish in a barrel. Sold out apparently. Probably a lot of young folks with pockets full of money wanting to drink, eat and have a good time. Believe this to be a pure track rental play seeing as how Stafford tends to control risk. After all they haven’t allowed a production based car for a long time excepting the pace car. The Crown Vics probably fairly safe but stuff can happen on a big track. Those vans that race and go off a ramp from time to time are a little scary. Or exciting and that’s what folks will be there for. Excitement and the unexpected maybe like stock car racing when it first became so popular.

   As an old Street Stocker did have my car jumped over in one of the thrill shows Stafford used to incorporate in the Friday night events, a special memory in front of a big audience. Street Stockers lucky to be included in this show they’ll have a blast is my guess. Racing in front of a packed house, the paddock full of different people and different experiences and they are after all young this right up their alley.

   Looking down the road what does this mean if anything? Stafford tends not to do things as a one off just to do something new. It’s still an experiment in spite of the sell out it has to go smoothly. Would Stafford learn from this and consider their own brand of show similar but not exactly the same? Try other new things that may take the space of former circle track events either regular shows or opens?

   Back in 2018 it was Stafford that introduced the dedicated track open or at least reinvigorated it the original Sizzler after all was an open. It grew slowly, more tracks and sanctioning groups introduced their own versions and we see now the space is too crowded with negative consequences more evident. Is this Cleetus McFarland deal a sign of things to come or just a one off meant to replace SRX with the potential to generate risk free income. Not exactly CBS or ESPN but they do offer streaming for the curious.