17 replies to this topic

[MG Brown]

I remember (way) back in the day that many of the Slot Car Tracks that we frequented had coin-op games also, usually pinball or video games or both. This is less often seen in my observation these days. Lucky Bob's had two pinball games in a "back room" area the last time that I visited there.

 

 

Buzz-A-Rama in Brooklyn still has both pinball and video games according to a recent interview with Buzz.

 

 

IIRC Joel's Race Place had Pool Tables too; I remember Bob Rule getting up on one of the tables and doing a Yo-Yo demonstration during a break at one of the major slot car races.

 

A certain number of early lap counters used pinball score counter mechanisms for lap counting. Including the American Raceways automatic race director system (see below).

 

 

To me, slot car racing and coin-op gaming seem to be a natural combination and might just be a draw to bring people into a shop. At the very least they could bring some additional revenue to the raceway owner.

 

The question is this- does your local raceway have coin-operated games in addition to the tracks? If so what do they have?

[Tex]

Jim Honeycutt in San Antonio (Magnatech Raceways) has video games, not sure about pinball.

 

The few times I was there, those games were in constant use ($$!).

[MG Brown]

Jim Honeycutt in San Antonio (Magnatech Raceways) has video games, not sure about pinball.

 

I had hoped to visit Jim when I was recently in Central Texas, but my plans just didn't work out. Hopefully next time.... and the Petroleum Museum, and Rattlesnake Raceway and NASA H.Q. and... and....

[Half Fast]

The Race Place in New Jersey has a variety of coin-op game machines.

 

Cheers

[Racer36]

Fantasy Raceway in Rochester NY had so many pinball machines at one time that you couldn’t access the drag strip and there was almost zero pit space. That coupled with the ridiculous beeping, bopping and chiming of the machines made it an unbearable place to race. Now, under new ownership, it is quite a bit more tolerable.

[tonyp]

None in Florida.


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[Jesse Gonzales]

In the late 60's my brother Joe and I managed G&L Raceway for the new owner Dave Downer, the pinball machines and pool table made more money than the track. Stewart Sandwiches and coffee bar did a fair amount of business too. There was a following of teenage girls that used to walk off with the chalk so I gave each of them their very own chalk cube, the pinball business went up as a result of their loyalty to a facility that cared about their eyes:-)

 

The tracks were nothing special but they were slot car tracks that demanded your respect.

 

Jesse Gonzales

[Richard G With]

Stewart's infra red sandwiches! I lived on those at Rogers Hobbyland (Wichita) in the 60s.

[MSwiss]

Jerry Kulich had a coin operated pool table in his Hanover Park location, in the mid 90's.

We were racing there, on a Saturday night, when a guy who was playing pool with his girlfriend, with a football letterman jacket, and a physique to match, asked if he could get quarters.

Jerry replied "you're going to have to wait, we're racing", in his less than perfect English.

The guy replied "are you saying you're a racist"?

Jerry snapped back "yeah, yeah, we're racing".

The guy again asked him "are you really saying you're a racist"?

It went back and forth, 5 or 6 times, each time louder, with the pool player approaching Jerry, until myself and Rich Demondo stepped in between them and explained what Jerry was really saying.

[elvis44102]

for a while james bendes me and Jan Limpach would just go to a gaming center across town in the early 70s..we spent hours "winning" free games on the style pinball that you could whack around...foosball was another big thing then as well

[Phil Hackett]

Video games, pinball machines and foosball tables increase the atmosphere of fun.

[DOCinCanton]

Back in the day, my home raceway in Canton, Ohio, DJ's Raceway, had two pin ball machines. Actually, one was a target shooting device. Time frame is about 1963 to 1970. I don't believe that there are any pictures. Shirley told me one day that the pin ball machines paid the rent.

[Shiggy]

What about tracks that were in bowling alleys?

[Dave Crevie]

I know that in the sixties most tracks had something else going on. I think mostly the tracks were added after the other type

of business. There were tracks in laudermats, surf shops, wherever there was room for a small track. In my area it was bike

shops. I believe that in this day and age, slot racers are too serious to abide some other, noisy activity. Kids that are in the

shop are expected to behave responsibly, not something they are prone to do. I still say, as Jerry Kulich often told me, that

tracks need to do more to promote a junior league. Make slot racing their fun activity, not gaming and social media. 

[MG Brown]

I still say, as Jerry Kulich often told me, that tracks need to do more to promote a junior league. Make slot racing their fun activity, not gaming and social media. 

 

I don't disagree, but many parents have told me that they need a firm starting time for the event and an ending time that is within 10-15 mins of the expected ending. Kids these days are very "scheduled" and slot car racing in most cases is show up early in the day and stay as late as necessary. From what I have observed- the majority of kids or parents (unless they have slot racing parents) will not have the needed time commitment.

[Dave Crevie]

That's why I say it has to be an organized series. Jerry's game plan was for the track to supply a spec car, and at the end of the

series, the kids that have attended 75% of the races get to keep the cars. The advantage is two-fold. There is a reward for attending

all the events. Plus the kid now has a car to enter into an open, weekly series, and race against the more experienced racers. Slot

racing, for all it's simplicity, is not something you just jump into and become a pro. You learn as you go. You get a bit of satisfaction

each advancement you make. That is the core of the hobby.   

[jimht]

"Plus the kid now has a car to enter into an open, weekly series, and race against the more experienced racers."

 

Done that, bunches of cars released into the wild.

Sounds good in theory, participation after just doesn't happen.

 

"You get a bit of satisfaction each advancement you make. That is the core of the hobby." 

 

Kids play with toys. Getting them to do a "Hobby" for more than 2 or 3 weeks is almost impossible.

 

Every Raceway owner that has a regular group of kids with their own cars filling up the track please raise your hand...

[MG Brown]

I have to agree with Jim- most kids have no idea what "hobbies" are and have no to little emotional attachment to them. Having said that- there is the occasional young person who does like to work with their hands and does like to create things. The challenge is to find and then reach out to these people.