Random thoughts on how to replace "grid girls"

Kinja'd!!! "themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles" (themanwithsauce)
08/07/2015 at 15:43 • Filed to: None

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So an idea struck me this afternoon while bored at work. In almost all forms of motorsports, “grid girls” are on their way out. The cheesy, fake smiling, static displays of culturally enforced femininity are being phased out. But maybe we should replace them.....with college students and SAE teams!

Okay here’s the thought behind this - Around the world, colleges and universities probably have somewhere between 5 and 10% of a country’s population attending them, and possibly as much as 20% of the first world counts themselves as alumni or students of these places of education. So why not have some of these schools send out teams of students to act as the grid “cheerleaders” if you will for these teams? They get a chance to display their school colors and spirit while supporting some of the racers and give some energy to the grid. You can then get bonus viewership and attendance from their friends, family, and fellow students and alumni. You can’t tell me that those school papers would like nothing more than to say something like “University of Michigan’s SAE team went down to texas’ COTA track, providing support for the Ferrari F1 team after they won the SAE _______ challenge......Ohio state wasn’t invited! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Of course, this isn’t going to single handedly save motorsports coverage and race attendance, but I think the momentum it could build should not be dismissed and it will help bring motorsport forward to future generations of gearheads. Oh sure, the old farts that run the show hate the youths with their instabook and facetube. But when they snaptweet themselves all over the world with the statuscloudtags “%ROCKIN THE SCHOOL AT THE NURBURGRING! $HONDA $TYPERRRRRRRRR $N24” they’ll see the light.

This idea isn’t perfect by any means, but I think it’s something that could even end up bringing in more money and fan support for these racing series as a whole. Oh sure, the Porsche supercup races might not be easily televised, but you’d be surprised how dedicated some people can be to their friends and family and yo unever know when you might cnvert a one time curious watcher into a regular viewer. All because you let some college students act like doofuses and have a blast around the things they love.

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DISCUSSION (8)


Kinja'd!!! bob and john > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
08/07/2015 at 15:47

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btw, dont think I casn make it out this weekend. need to do some shit at home D:


Kinja'd!!! ChooChooMotherFudger > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
08/07/2015 at 15:58

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As a current FSAE team member, I would love this, but I doubt we could afford to go if we ever got the chance.


Kinja'd!!! Captain of the Enterprise > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
08/07/2015 at 16:07

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Like we have the time and money to go, would love it though


Kinja'd!!! themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > Captain of the Enterprise
08/07/2015 at 16:14

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Well “grid girls” got paid, correct? Use that money to fly some people down. Or go local for some and only shuttle half or something. That is hardly a barrier for a sport that makes Billions like F1. Smaller series would likely have to stick to more local schools. Not as big of a hurdle though, driving 100ish miles in two vans vs. having to fly across the country.


Kinja'd!!! themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > ChooChooMotherFudger
08/07/2015 at 16:14

Kinja'd!!!0

Well “grid girls” got paid, correct? Use that money to fly some people down. Or go local for some and only shuttle half or something. That is hardly a barrier for a sport that makes Billions like F1. Smaller series would likely have to stick to more local schools. Not as big of a hurdle though, driving 100ish miles in two vans vs. having to fly across the country.


Kinja'd!!! themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > bob and john
08/07/2015 at 16:14

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FAIL. But woodward is next weekend anyways.


Kinja'd!!! bob and john > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
08/07/2015 at 18:52

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I need a tire, rear brakes, a chain and my exhaust to come in DX


Kinja'd!!! themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > bob and john
08/07/2015 at 19:47

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Gonna pray to the moto gods that the powersports place I’m test riding a scrambler at also has some honda oil, a filter, and shock oil for my nighthawk. If not, gonna ride around until I find it. I’m basically gonna ride like 400 miles tomorrow on a quest for necessary maintenance parts and test riding used bikes along the way. What could possibly go wrong?