Erica pulls out of Sonoma & Seattle

[FireSale]

Originally Posted by deuces wild

Read a pro stock thread the other day and a few of the pro stock guys posted on it saying it cost 70,000.00 plus per race to field a car. That's why car counts are down and teams are skipping races. I'm sure that's why Greg Stanfield has missed so many races this year. That's insane how much it costs. I don't know how anyone does it.

At 16 races per year that's 1.2 million per season, which is about right. That's a tax write off to some degree for a sponsor.

Dale

[ALMACK]

I think she is doing a fine job of driving.

And the whole team right now has the right chemistry.

Congrats to that whole team on their accomplishments !

I feel certain that pulling out of 2 races is purely a business decision, not a blow against her fans.
I would imagine she really wants to race.

[Bill Koski]

Blaming EE puts you out in left field somewhere.
It is apparent it has not been her decision!

[Nick Heath]

Originally Posted by Ed Wright

Maybe you would want ton pick up the tab for them running those races? Or, maybe finding them a big sponsor to fund it? Elite Motorsports is not their sponsor. That is the Freeman's, the owners. Working stiffs racing on their own dime, doing their own engines, etc. Am I the only one impressed by that?

Nailed it, Ed. And no, you're not the only one impressed!

[Ed Wright]

Originally Posted by FireSail

At 16 races per year that's 1.2 million per season, which is about right. That's a tax write off to some degree for a sponsor.

Dale

IF you have a sponsor who can "write it off". All a "write off" does is lower your taxable income, you are taxed on that much less. It's not like you get that amount back in your pocket somehow.

If your racing on your own dime......

And, since the Freeman family pretty much races out of their own pockets, they do not "owe" it to anybody to show up for a race.

[Lee Valentine]

Firesail, as a former P/S crew chief all I can say is you don't have a clue.Try running a competitive stoker and multiply it by 20 times and stay on the road 30 weeks a year. Lee.

[novassdude]

Originally Posted by FireSail

Maybe she should continue to race because she's a professional and has a responsibility to her fans to show up and run?

She hasn't run the NorthWest Nationals since she won the race a few years ago. I just can't respect a "Pro" class driver who picks and chooses races to run.

A true Pro racer will campaign an out classed car that qualifies in the bottom of the pack and draws a killer first round matchup but still show for every race on the circuit. Talkin' about Larry Morgan, but you should have guessed that.

We need more ladies in PS. EE can't be the only female gear banger out there. Angie Smith in a door slammer? How about that Swedish gal from PSM?

Dale

Ok so who is supposed to pony up the $140,000 for them to show up and make you
happy?
Maybe NHRA needs a rule say that if you can't afford to make every race you are not allowed to start the season. Don't want to disappoint any fans. As all races should have all the same drivers so all fans get the same opportunity to see all the same drivers.

I am not necessarily a EE fan But that team is doing a lot with out a huge budget. If this is what they have to do to keep competing so be it.

[FireSale]

Just to clarify, I don't have anything against Erica as a driver. She is obviously quick on the tree and her crew knows what they are doing. I'm also not trying to slight anyone who tries to run a program like this. It's obviously a daunting task.

I'm a spectator building a race car and I'm looking at $166 in tickets here for all three days to the race at Pacific. I'm a race fan, not a driver fan, so her not running won't bother me. If I were a driver fan, it might. I'm just trying to make the point that these drivers aren't Sportsman racers anymore and have a responsibility to the fan base that shouldn't be ignored.

I'll back out with that.

EDIT: Racing the Championship circuit costs all the Pro class drivers a big chunk of income because they aren't available for match races. NHRA should find a way to compensate teams that forgo this to race at National events week after week.

Dale

[Ed Wright]

They don't have a responsibility to show so you can see them. Only if they have a big sponsor that requires it. That is all.

[gumbalaya]

I think Erica can't get/keep a sponsor is because she is unprofessional & has the personality of a 2 year old. She runs her yap when she wins and pouts when she looses. She's butted heads with a lot of the drivers on the tour, and she seemingly can't figure out why they can't stand her.

She thinks that Connolly screwed her at Indy a little while back, when he cut a light & she didn't, and they've been enemies ever since.

She drives well most of the time, but it seems as though potential sponsors prefer drivers/people/adults with a personality, and she doens't have one.