I didn't make it down to california speedway just this past weekend. anyway, for those of you that have attended (or the recent east coast one), what is your opinion? is it very different from a regular NASA day? how is the crowd it draw? ie, demographics, attitude...? we're getting hyperfest up here in ncal at sears point soon. just wondering if it lives up to the hype.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by George Knighton &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
I guess there's always something to complain about. LOL... Having the rap DJ aimed right at my car at full volume was a little irritating, and having the break dancing contest in front of Corey's Prelude was amusing.
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Let it die George, you know you liked it.

 

I really enjoyed the lowes hyperfest I went to last year, I assume they've only gotten better. I never really left the paddock/pit area untill the end of the night for the drift comp so I didn't see anything that didn't interest me. Hyperfest was also my first time on track ever with their hyperdrives and I'm pretty sure I still wouldn't have been on track to this day had I not been exposed to it then.

Hyperfest

 

Anyone know the approximate H-fest attendance numbers so far? You know, so those of us who might be trying to lure sponsors can give them some bait?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by George Knighton &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Having the rap DJ aimed right at my car at full volume was a little irritating, and having the break dancing contest in front of Corey's Prelude was amusing.</TD></TR></TABLE>

If you had just taken out your hearing aid, you wouldnt have even known they were there

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by whitney &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Anyone know the approximate H-fest attendance numbers so far? You know, so those of us who might be trying to lure sponsors can give them some bait? </TD></TR></TABLE>

Georgie said 6100 on Saturday. I think you could safely say 6500 since I know I was never counted.

 

i was only at fontana on sunday, and i think it was fairly lame, especially if you weren't there for the races. it was no where near the turnout of these other events i'm hearing, 6000+? no way - not even 600. i showed up at noon on sunday and parked easily within 50 feet of the gate. the paddock was buzzing of course, with all the cars preparing to race, but other than that it was weak. the few vendors there were more for show stuff than racing stuff, the 'dj' was broadcasting a rock radio station i think, and i didn't see more than 4 'show' girls, and they sure as hell weren't wearin no bikinis!

i was one of maybe 25 people watching the hc/ustcc race from the stands, and was maybe one of even fewer watching the spec miata.

i personally had a great time, but overall i'd give the event a 3 of 10.
at least everything started on time. and they could've rented some shade...

maybe saturday was better? da driftin prolly woulda been phat, yo.

 

Looks good from here.

 

Well, it may not have been 6000 people. I know for sure there were a lot more people on Saturday than there were on Sunday. Personally I was quite satisfied with the bikini girls
After the races a group of dehydrated drivers headed into the stands with some beer to watch the drifting and I’ll tell you we had a great time. The rest of the crowd looked like they were having a good time but I can’t speak for the spectators. However as a driver I can say that the California Speedway Hyperfest was the best road racing event that I’ve ever participated in. Racing around the track I could see people scattered all around in different corners. I could see people pointing and fists pumping. It was awesome. The grandstands weren’t packed, but there were people up there watching. I’d say we had at least as many spectators as ALMS got there a couple months ago.
Fans aside there was media all over the place. There was what 3 or 4 different video magazines, plus I know there were people from at least one magazine in Japan, HC&I sponsored the event, and the guys from Sport Compact Car make up half the SE-R Cup field. So for drivers who want to go faster, for less money, by getting exposure, and getting sponsored, this was a very good event to be at. That publicity will also expose our sport to potential future competitors. And at least out here we need racers more than anything.
The WCHC H1 field was as good as it’s ever been. On Saturday the USTCC race was just a practice so most of the Hondas jumped into H1 which was for points. The field was thick with good looking fast cars. Sadly, most of the So Cal H1 guys had problems all weekend and the USTCC guys made us look bad. But I really hope that we can see a rematch up at Sears/Infineon so people can see what the So Cal H1 field can do.
The event may not have had the numbers that we had hoped for, but for the drivers it was well worth attending. We are the ones who benefit from these events and I would encourage as many people as possible to attend future spectator events. And bring as many people as you can. The organizers will only be able to loose money so many times before they’ll quit and we’ll be back to racing in front of empty grandstands.

 

I know at least 6000 bees showed up for the drift competition. Or it could've been 3000 if it was the same swarm that buzzed (pun intended) the grandstands on Saturday.

Seriously, this was my first Hyperfest. The way I saw it, if you were a competitor, it might've been hard for them to enjoy the other races since they were too busy taking care of their cars, etc. However, a fan might enjoy more since there was a variety of racing and vendors. I did think the turnout could've been more. Maybe have a combination car show and race/driving events.

 

The East Coast Hyperfests started out with low spectator numbers, a lot of "car show" draw is the name. I wonder what NOPI's first event turn out was?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Jason W &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Looks good from here.

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Please tell her to eat something.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Willard &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Please tell her to eat something. </TD></TR></TABLE>

I think I can find something for her...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by AndyHope &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Racing around the track I could see people scattered all around in different corners. I could see people pointing and fists pumping. It was awesome.
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First of all, congratulations on your win! Sounds like you'd enjoy driving in one of the Spec Miata races that run with CART or ALMS/World Challenge. It is great fun racing in front of people other than crew members. Our next event is at Road America with CART and then back to Laguna Seca for the ALMS.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by AndyHope &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The grandstands weren’t packed, but there were people up there watching. I’d say we had at least as many spectators as ALMS got there a couple months ago.
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It was Grand-Am at CA Speedway in June, as opposed to ALMS (big difference in the number of spectators at most tracks), but you're right that it looked like hundreds, not thousands of people that weekend. Of course the Grand-Am race was televised live and the Grand-Am Cup with a tape delay.

I was planning to drive in the SM race at Hyperfest, but my car is still in pieces after a crash at Portland a few weeks ago. I agree with Andy that anything we can do to draw more attention and fans to road racing is a good thing, and I applaud NASA/Hyperfest for giving it a try. Maybe I'll make it to Sears Point later in the year to show my support for the concept.

CEC has put on a more upscale version of HyperFest at Willow Springs for two years called EuroTunerFest, although without the drifting and bikini contest. They even bring in pro drivers like Paul Tracy and Cort Wagner to this event.

BTW, anyone remember Autopalooza at Buttonwillow a few years ago? Similar concept, and if I'm not mistaken, Chris Contreras has been involved in all of the events I've mentioned.