Local track doomed by local ignorance

It has no chance, sadly. A fish would have better luck living in a desert. A comb would have better luck getting through Troy Polamalu's hair.

Big-time auto racing won't be coming to Washington because we aren't ready for it. Come on, we aren't even ready to fight hard to keep the Sonics, who've only been around 40 years. Too much rhetoric and grandstanding and high-brow philosophizing gets in the way of contemplating sports economics around here.

And in the case of racin', there's too much ignorance as well.

Motorsports, NASCAR in particular, are hot. Those of us who were born in the South might say they're hotter than two goats in a pepper patch. The sport has taken its Southern roots, celebrated them and grown with incredible business savvy.

NASCAR considers itself second only to the NFL in popularity and thinks it might one day overtake football, our great American passion. It also wonders what the success of Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya will do to attract more Hispanic fans.

The sport is a force and wants to be recognized accordingly. But trying to venture into this market has proved that, no matter how powerful, auto racing still must fight a perception battle.

The more the International Speedway Corporation progresses — or rather, runs in place in talks to build a track in Kitsap County — the more painful that reality becomes.

The ISC is offering Washington a good deal. It vows private money would pay half of the estimated $368 million to build this track. It wants taxpayers to put up the rest. Bonds would be issued for the state's share, and the ISC believes sales taxes on money spent by the fans visiting the track ultimately would cover that expense.

By sports' normal business standard on buildings — the Gimme Model — this is an honest effort to share financial responsibility. Of course, high-quality auto racing would be new to this area, a luxury, not a mainstay we should be fighting to keep, such as a certain NBA team. If nothing else, this is worth taking seriously.

But in recent weeks, a few of our elected officials have been too busy making insensitive remarks and then trying to do damage control.

In a true cover-your-ears-kids stretch last month, House Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, and Rep. Larry Seaquist, D-Gig Harbor, embarrassed themselves while trying to shoo away the auto racing folks.

Before some NASCAR stars, the great Richard Petty among them, visited Olympia to push for support, Chopp went overboard while jesting about how little he cared they were coming. He wound up sounding like an idiot.

"I was going to make a bad joke about, 'Who is he?' " Chopp said, referring to Petty. "But then I decided, 'You mean the guy who got picked up for DUI, that guy?' "

Seconds after saying that, Chopp added, "By the way, on that last point? I was told that, so I'm not sure."

Sorry, savvy public officials know better than to try to backtrack like that. Chopp had falsely accused a sporting legend of a most terrible thing. All Petty has is his integrity behind the wheel.

Crazy enough, Seaquist traveled higher on the insult-o-meter soon thereafter. He called the ISC a "terrible corporate citizen." Then he seemed to rip racing fans.

"These are not the kind of people you would want living next door to you," said Seaquist. "They'd be the ones with the junky cars in the front yard and would try to slip around the law."

Chopp and Seaquist have spent time explaining themselves recently. Seaquist went on a national NASCAR radio show last week to clarify his stance. The damage is irreversible, however.

Remember when "no" was the worst thing you could hear if you asked for something?

Well, now it must be, "No, you stupid, drunk-driving — I think — hick."

There's an old Southern saying about snobs. We use the phrase "above your raisin' " to talk about how they act. Which is to assume snobs were raised to be real but then developed Nose In The Air Syndrome on their own.

So Chopp and Seaquist are above their raisin'.

It's sad. It's unfortunate. And it's quite difficult to do big business without mutual respect.

"There have been some unfortunate comments, and that's frustrating," said Grant Lynch, ISC vice president. "But we've also met some tremendous people."

Lynch's group has agreed to a public vote on this project. He thinks it could pass. He also must think Elvis is on an island somewhere flirting with Anna Nicole.

"We've tried real hard," Lynch said of this project.

Then he sighed and expressed bewilderment that few elected officials will believe in this plan.

You must understand before you can believe. And if the legislators are truly mouthpieces for us, then they're saying Washington still thinks NASCAR stands for New Auto Sport Centered Around Rednecks.

It's terribly insensitive and dishonest.

Motorsports are growing, and the fan base is acquiring regional and ethnic diversity. But let my fellow Southerners, who raised auto racing right, have the final say on this matter. Their words to any ignorant types would be simple yet forceful.

My cow died last night, so I don't need your bull.

Jerry Brewer: 206-464-2277 or jbrewer@seattletimes.com