Anti Hobby Laws are helping kill the Industry

We have all heard the story about someone getting pulled over for a loud muffler, or window tint that is too dark. Maybe a truck that is lifted too high, or sitting too low. Day after day we are seeing more ridiculous laws that are slowly eroding our motorsports industry. 

Before I even begin to discuss this, I want to say that I have no issues with those that enforce the laws, and I stand behind them, but at some point, BS is BS plain and simple. It is the local, state, and federal lawmakers making laws that truly are job killers, along with killing off slowly an entire industry. 

Whether you are 8 or 88, chances are you have memories of a car, an event, or something to do with cars. So why is it that we continue to elect persons that do everything in their power to destroy what we in the industry have spent 100 years building. These officials do everything to make car modifications illegal, they do everything to shut down dragstrips, circle tracks, cruise nights, etc. Yet these idiots keep getting elected year after year. 

Let's take a look at the motorsports industry for a moment. First of all you have the manufactures of parts, which include factories, foundries, etc. Then there is the company selling the parts, the consumer buying the parts, and the shops installing the parts. Then there are the shops tuning once the parts are installed.  You see the domino affect from the government doing what they are trying to do? Added regulations have proven in the past to be a job killer in all industries. 

Imagine for a moment if you will, a mid December weekend in Indianapolis where instead of going to see all your friends after the season is done and attending parties or dinners, you are sitting at home doing nothing racing related. All those manufactures having no reason to show off new products or talk with distributors and end users. If we allow this path to continue, that is exactly what we will see happen. 

Have you been to a mall lately? What do you see? It's a flashback to a past time that no longer exists. It wasn't because of regulations though, it was because of the lack in getting people into their stores. It's because they no longer knew how to sell to a new demographic of people. So now, we have to deal with another hurdle in the industry. If the government keeps limiting our idea of what personal expression is, it will turn more and more youth off and away from the industry we love. 

What do I am a consumer and hobbyist need to be on the look out for. One of the biggest issues is the amount of overreach the EPA and the state of California place on our industry. The inability to modify your car in the way that you way to express your personality is absolutely ridiculous. If I want to put a cold air intake or an exhaust system on my truck, there should not be a law, whether local, state, or federal that prohibits me from doing so. How about lighting laws that most states have. It might be neons or any other lighting. They create laws calling the lighting a distraction, yet a semi can be lit up more than a busy airport.  You might think these are all so minor that it doesn't matter, but I can assure you that they all make a difference. 

So, now that you have read paragraphs of complaints, you might actually be wondering what can be done to reverse this trend. First and foremost is to get off your ass and go to the race track. Doesn't matter if it's drag racing. circle track, dirt track, drift, etc. Just get out there and support the events. Take your kids, offer to take other kids, make it an outing. Do your homework when it comes to our elected officials as well. Don't be afraid to contact them and talk to them. They are your employee. They work for you, which means they need to have your interests in mind too. Supporting the industry is simple sometimes. Take a moment to thank sponsors, vendors, racers, manufactures, media, and everyone else that is trying to move the industry forward. And never forget about SEMA. You can reach their site via THIS LINK and you can follow what they are doing to make the industry thrive. 

Next time you  spend $100 to go see some artist that doesn't care about you or your family, think about that 2 hours of entertainment, versus a whole weekend of family entertainment with people that actually care about you being there and appreciate you being there.  Whether or not it's NASCAR, NHRA, PDRA, NMCA, NMRA, or anything else, you just need to get off your ass, get in the car, and go support motorsports!! You won't regret it, I promise ya.