Opinions: No more SPORTSCAR magazine??

I can't figure out how to make this thread into a Poll - so please y'all post your reaction.
I, for one, do not like the idea of the mag being eliminated. I don't know how many times over the years I have given my copy to someone who expressed an interest in automobile competition....or shown them an article that had something to either help them or find a supplier or a part. Sure, sure.....axing it probably saves the SCCA money.....but does everything have to be about money? I'm certain someone thinks it saves the planet...or a tree...or something. ...and sure there's a lot of on-line stuff (including this!) .....but what's next? ......to have Timing and Scoring no longer print race results on paper. Having one's name in print may be so 20th Century but ya gotta admit, it feels pretty good too.

I know this won't change its elimination...but let's see if a significant number of people will express their distaste for it happening

I can't see myself reading the online version. I sit in front of a computer screen most of the day. The last thing I want to do when I get home and relax is look at a computer screen. I generally read it while eating breakfast, not plans to turn on a computer while eating.

Rest in peace Sports Car as I have read my last issue.

Ed

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by EYERACE

Sure, sure.....axing it probably saves the SCCA money.....but does everything have to be about money?

---

My thoughts: (I haven't read mine in-depth in years; a glance, then straight in the recycle...)

However, I'll bet scca actually makes money on it from advertising sales, given that seemingly 2/3 of the print space is advertising or articles about companies selling something. (Same with the PRI mag, maybe even more so).

Glad you're finding enthusiasts to give it to, none in my orbit sadly.

In decades gone by - Race entry forms were snail mailed to competitors, Region newsletters were snail mailed to members and Sports car were snail mailed to all SCCA members. I have no idea what postage for all this actually cost, however, everything got done and the Membership dues and Entry Fees to events were significantly cheaper than they are today.

Now - the printing and mailing expenses of all those things have been eliminated and the fees for EVERYTHING just skyrocket.

YEP and the cost of membership stays the same. The situation plain sucks.

Personally I have about issue of Sports Car from my 46+ years of membership.

It once was a fantastic magazine!!!

RIP thanks to penny pinching

I also would read it at breakfast or sitting on the deck in the summer.
Then pass it on to a close friend and he would send it off to his son to
read. That's three race fans that won't see Sportscar any longer.

Good riddance!

When they first floated the idea of SportsCar going online or making it optional, I voted against it. I would save (and still cherish) the issues containing my race results. Now that results have been gone for years, I can't remember the last time I even cracked the cover. I won't miss it at all.

I find this sad.

Not a member, so haven’t seen one for years — but absolutely loved it as a kid and far beyond.

I have a theory that New School is getting old for us who’re sick to death of staring at pixels, and Old School might have a chance still, just as LPs are coming back. As might directed, and proper, paper marketing in many areas.

My old, late chum Tom Schultz covered the Runoffs for years, mostly out of endless passion, and would be heartbroken with this news. His coverage, and the “Who Will Win the Runoffs?” articles were Pure Gold.

RIP, Sports Car. And Tom.

I will not miss it in the slightest and it has eliminated an unnecessary cost to the club. I get FAR more relevant information from regional publications

I'll miss it. I have bookreaders, but I still prefer a hardbound book for reading. And I doubt I'll ever look at the online magazine.

It's a print magazine full of ads and huge swaths of it are about cone-chasing, which I don't care about. It may once have been great, but I haven't been impressed with what I've seen in the past couple years - print periodicals are dead.

Use that money to produce good web coverage and a social media team that actually generates enough attention for our races that we attract eyeballs and sponsorships.

They need to save money so they can hire more staff for the bloated bureaucracy that infests the home office.

I don't think I've actually opened a Sportscar Magazine in almost 15 years.
I Stack them up a foot high on my shop desk and my father takes them home with him after he pays a visit to bust my balls for a while.

If this Forum got shut down I would be extremely sad. Cannot say the same for Sportscar in print or online form even though there was a time decades ago I would have missed the hell out of no Sportscar in my mailbox.

Steve

I just want the calendar. No time to read it so no loss here.

My interpretation of opinion so far............
7 - will miss it / would not have discontinued it
6 - say it's Ok with them that it's gone
3 - noncommittal

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by EYERACE

My interpretation of opinion so far............
7 - will miss it / would not have discontinued it
6 - say it's Ok with them that it's gone
3 - noncommittal

---

Don't make the mistake of trying to interpolate that sample onto the entire club.

+1 on the events calendar consolidating all regions. Unless I missed it, they dont post that view anywhere online and it's very resourceful.

Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk

As a paid up member I feel I can express a view from the swamp:

I could care less about the printed magazine, even though I bought my first race car from an ad in the back of said magazine. That said, the web site needs to step up and provide the information we desire as expressed in posts above. It's almost like you need a secret decoder ring to find stuff on the website (spoken from a person with over 50 years of IT experience).

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Easy to agree with Peter Olivola due to extremely small sample size and ApexSpeed not read by many in the SCCA that drive tin tops etc.
I was just curious as to the 'score' so far.
Also easy to agree with His Purpleness about SCCA.com

I can't believe with all the ad in it that the Club was losing Money on it. If they think they are going to get ad revenue from the web version they are dreaming. No one reads ads on web sites.

When SportsCar was print OR online, I selected "online" and it took 8 months plus three phone calls to Topeka to stop the print version from being mailed to me.
Now...I havent seen the online version for...how many years???
Am I out-of-touch? Or did SCCA stop doing the online version of SportsCar?
As a non-active driver, what exactly is my membership paying for? (rhetorical question...I know it's all "administrative")
Glenn

I agree 110%
5 with Purple: The SCCA website is like a rat navigating a maze. Very clunky and almost impossible to find what you are looking for

I would not miss it any more, I scan thru it but find little of importance since I am reducing my racing exposure. I thought it was pretty good when i started 20 years ago and good info for a newbie. Maybe they could just roll some of the stuff into Grass roots magazine, between the two could have a valuable magazine. Then if anyone wanted it just add 5 buck to annual membership to get the magazine or opt out.

Merge with GrassRoots...............great idea.......of course not considered by SCCA

I had them take me off their mailing list years ago, so no loss to me.

For things I do subscribe to, electric is far better. It's more sustainable. I can archive them and easily search them. They don't take up space on the shelf. I can access them from anywhere, anytime.

I liked it OK. Usually didn't read it all but some of the articles were interesting and as mentioned the calendar. I feel like there was a culture associated with it that might be a loss to the sport too.

That said, I am really happy to see the club stepping up with the video coverage. The Youtube live truckling down the last couple years is something really nice for me to share with fans/friends who can watch the race. Keep on growing/improving that and I'll say it as more than a fair trade.

At most, I'd fan through it and see it's mostly adds and autocross, and a story about some 15 year old rich kid who's "going to make it" and starting in SCCA. I used to look at the classified adds and see what's for sale but the last one I looked at had two cars listed. If it's digital, I still wouldn't spend much time looking at it.

Could Apexapeed possibly pick up some of the advertisers left out in the cold???