What are your thoughts on paying for reserved seats at the track?

[Travis Stone]

One of the most tired arguments I hear people make is that you pay $50 to sit at a ballgame, so sitting at the track for $20 is quite the deal. Well, when they start offering gambling at the ballpark, let me know, otherwise that argument is super weak.

Most racetracks make about ~20% off a dollar wagered on-track on the live product. Without factoring in contributions to purses, taxes etc., a $20 seat given away for free would need $100 worth of wagering action to offset its worth, provided it's on the live product.

Would random visitor, if given a $20 seat for free, wager $100? If they were not given the $20 seat for free, and had to pay for it, would they wager $80? That's assuming that visitors when attending the races have an average spend of $100.

At Lone Star, the per-capita wagering is not $100... people go to the track and enjoy racing, but don't really bet. So, offsetting their lack of action with a seat cost makes sense.

The question is... what is a fair price for a seat?