Not even Paris Hilton could help this time.
On the Wednesday prior to last Sunday’s race at California Speedway, the track held a glitzy only in Hollywood style party. Jeff Gordon, sporting a three-day growth of beard that’s considered chic among Hollywood’s elite, was doing doughnuts in the parking lot in a Corvette with singer Rihanna in the passenger seat.
Track president Gillian Zucker hired a company that normally stages events such as movie premieres and the Emmy’s to stage the affair, complete with an honest to goodness red carpet. Zucker was hoping to raise awareness among the locals; create a ‘buzz’ as marketers are so fond of saying. ‘Hundreds’ of Hollywood ‘A’ list celebs rubbed elbows with NASCAR’s elite. Juan Pablo Montoya, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin joined Gordon.
Even the ‘A’ list celebrity queen Paris Hilton showed up. Never one to allow the spotlight to shine anywhere else, Hilton made a grand entrance flirted with Hamlin and got her picture taken every time she moved. One memorable photo shows Hilton and a visibly uncomfortable NASCAR president Mike Helton.
Despite the ‘buzz’ however California Speedway had more empty seats this year than last. By some counts, unofficial of course, 40,000 of the 92,000 seats were empty Sunday night. Of course a lot of that had to do with the fact that those empty seats that were hot enough to fry an egg on.
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Bring back the Southern 500!
40,000, that’s BS, I was there, there were alot more than they ever report, I don’t know what it is but lying about the amount there has always been the case.
The racing there was fantastic, ususally again you don’t see that on the tv coverage. I still think it would make a great place to level and make it a short track.
We also need to replace Gillian Zucker!!! She is not helping the venue!!
I agree andrew darlington alot better and cali shouldnt make excuses seats were empty because of heat thats crap,Ive been in southern cal palm springs in summer sure its hot but try darlington labor day weekend its hot and humidity brutal but they never had empty seats for the southern 500!.
Please! I saw the pictures of Mike Helton and Paris Hilton. You can’t tell me he was looking uncomfortable. It looked more like he pleased, b/c if you ask me, he was probably getting a b[0w j0b from her. That’s all I got to say about that.
So. Cal is a hard place for an event like that because there is so much to do there and so much to choose from.
And on any holiday weekend….people just leave town and get away from all the people.
I have been at that track before when it is 105 and it is like being in the desert.
The heat isnt a problem when they race here in Vegas, it sells out here…so that shouldnt be an excuse
For once i agree with Anonymous. ANYONE who was in Socal this last weekend knows how godawful hot it was. at the BEACH, where i live, it 95 degrees. my co-worker was at the track on the safety team, and he said it was 110 at the track, but on the actual racing surface, probably more like 130 or more. you can’t SIT in that. so, while the seats may have been empty, it was mainly the heat that keeps people away.
Lee, you are right, but look at where NASCAR started! and back then you couldn’t watch it on TV, you HAD to go to the track and that was part of the tradition. CA speedway is much better suited for fall and spring races.
Forget how hot it was at the track…isn’t anyone else disgusted with the way NASCAR has been portrayed? This marketing woman or whoever she is that decided the Hollywood gag-me-with-a-straw party was the best way to have NASCAR drivers have fun in Cali. To me, that’s disgusting. Having all of those dirty stars [sexual-wise] around drivers.. that’s fun to them? Maybe i’m going crazy, but this is R A C I N G, not Hollywood Access.
Nothing in So Cal sells out except the Lakers.
Plus, your ging up against the Long Beach Grand Prix for the racing dollarsin So Cal…one of the most succeessful racing events in the USA.
I don’t even need to think about it, my racing money goes to Long Beach.
I agree with Nash, it was been horribely hot in Southern California the last few weeks,its been averaging about 105+ in the inland area where the track is. This year was one of the better crowds we have had and it was a good race.
Also, NASCAR ALMOST got all the stores in part of Hollywood to sign off on allowing them a mini race in the streets… THAT was an awesome marketing idea, except some jackass said no to racing in front of his store and killed it all.
check out Blount’s article on espn.com, he has an interesting idea about the dates in Ca. I’d like to hear what some of you think
either bring back the rock or switch the cali-oval weekends to 2 separate dirt races… that would make them more money than the track will
Fontana track is too long. Mile and a half would be perfect. When cars are on the backstretch, it’s only a rumor regards to who is who.
Thats funny…165,000 show up at Bristol (a track a few 100 miles from a major city and Cali has 14 million people within a 2 hour drive and they have about the same crowd that Eldora had. get real , they took races from Rockingham for not selling out and gave dates to Cali….except for the moviestars , who benifitted from that? just caused hardships on the teams to race in front of 50,000 people. Oh yeah , the Busch race at Bristol had 110,000 people there. I better shut up before I tell what I really think.
California already has enough entertainment….go home Nascar and take your beer can throwing bafoons with you.
As a born and bred Californian and NASCAR fan, Darlington should
have the Southern 500 on Labor Day weekend. Unfortunately, we don’t rate
two races due to low support. I am also to blame, because although
I have season tickets to the Auto Club 500, I don’t want to touch
Fontana in September, nor do I want to be on the freeways on
that weekend. It is embarrassing to fawn over Paris Hilton, Kevin
Costner, Stevie Wonder, and the rest of the leftist Hollywood elite
who consider all of us racist hillbillies with double-digit IQs. Honor
true heroes, like military types, firefighters, police, teachers, etc
and stop sucking up to the celebrities who wouldn’t pee on us if
we were on fire.
well said Michael. I too have season tickets, and go because I love Nascar but I think Darlington should have the Labor Day race. I would love 2 races here but alot needs to be done to the track , the date and it’s not a fan friendly track, that has to change.