Sunday afternoon at 1:00PM Eastern Time ABC will begin coverage of the NEXTEL Cup Series in Martinsville, VA.
Coverage will begin with a thirty minute edition of NASCAR Countdown, hosted by Suzy Kolber. Alongside of Kolber on this pre-race show will be Brad Daugherty, ESPN's "voice of the fans." In the past several weeks, Rusty Wallace has also joined the panel in the new ESPN Infield Studio.
At 1:30PM, Dr. Jerry Punch takes over and leads Andy Petree and Wallace through this classic short-track race. Supporting these announcers will be pit road reporters Mike Massaro, Allen Bestwick, Jamie Little, and Dave Burns.
There was no mention of Brent Musburger in the ESPN press materials for this event.
This page will host your comments on the pre-race show and the race itself. You can comment before, during, or after the telecast. Please limit your comments to television related issues, and keep your posts within the rules located on the right side of the main page. Thanks for taking the time to stop-by and visit us at The Daly Planet.
197 comments:
Checking the schedule tomorrow, the chances of this race getting much postrace coverage (immediate or later on SportsCenter and related ESPN networks) is unlikely - unless the race ends early. The chances became even more unlikely now that the Red Sox forced a game 7 tomorrow evening.
And there's Jaguars-Colts to talk about. And if the Dolphins somehow pull off a miracle and beat the undefeated Patriots, well forget it.
Immediately after the scheduled end of the race at 6 PM EST, ESPN2 has ChampCar on tape delay, and ESPNNews will likely focus on the day's pro football and previewing the Red Sox -Indians game that begins tomorrow night. ESPN could show postrace coverage instead of airing a repeat of "the Contender" in the 6 PM EST timeslot. But it may duplicate last week and wait to provide minor coverage on SportsCenter at 7 EST.
NASCAR Now is scheduled to air at midnight EST with poker repeats around it; there's no live sports or Baseball Tonight scheduled near it.
Big wildfires in Malibu, CA. Dorms at Pepperdine have been evacuated and students are in the basketball arena. One home destroyed, others evacuated.
--Fire officials were focused on protecting Piru, a Ventura County town of 1,200 people about 5 miles to the west and across a small lake from the blaze. A condor preserve was also potentially threatened.
"There could be homes threatened by the end of the day Sunday if the fire continues to push to the south and southwest," U.S. Forest Service spokesman Stanton Florea told KNX radio.
The ABC affiliate KABC in LA may be preoccupied with this event instead of the race and rightly so. It's also all over cable news.
Just saw on Jr's Pitboard that the LA stations are covering the fire instead of the race. Can't blame them in this case but it's another week where NASCAR won't be shown in the #2 market.
more friggin aerosmith - ENOUGH ALREADY.
reference Malibu fire
even though NASCAR will not likely be seen neither will NFL and if things go through the afternoon in LA also MLB so its kind of equal all around.
NASCAR coverage continues uninterrupted San Diego.
However, those same strong winds that are in LA (60+ MPH) are expected in to come here. If a fire does occur, there may not be coverage here either.
Looks like everybody is watching F1 and not Countdown...Kimi R. might finally pull this off.
I did flip over to NASCAR for a few seconds and Ray Evernham is in the studio. Also flipped to CNN to watch these fires, which I wasn;t aware of. Looks awful and hope they can get them under control, but it sounds like they are evacuating even more people. A church, an animal hospital and a very pretty building called the Malibu Castle are all burned down so far.
They are showing the "race after the race" feature again? Wow. I guess I should be happy that it's not during green flag racing. Flipping back to F1.
I really cannot believe they are replaying this NASCAR Now feature on the pre-race show with so many different stories on the grid.
How about doing some more interviews with someone not in the 13 instead of showing for the 3rd time the race after the race. Although this is their best "race calling" effort I didn't need my laptop to figure out what was going on.
I feel like I'm watching a re-run. Just about everything on the pre-race so far I've seen all ready.
Bet they show this 'race after the race' during the broadcast of the race. They seem very proud of this video.
Everyone isn't watching F1
I checked out Countdown when it started. Liked the opening, don't know if it is their standard opening. Suzy came on to read to me and I hit the mute button. I'll be doing things around the house and will check back at 1:30 to see if it's race time.
This is horrible. I am watching anything BUT the Nascar prerace show even though I want to get excited for the race. I keep flipping back for two seconds to see old features from earlier in the week and then go right back to either F1, NFL games that I have no interest in, or doing yard work.
There are AT LEAST 43 stories to be told with less than 30 minutes to the race, and none of them can be found on ABC.
Add this to an obvious reason for why ratings continue to slip and will continue to do so for the rest of the season.
had a very nice interview on MRN w/Bobby Labonte while they were showing the airport tape YET AGAIN!! Best thing I've seen so far on re-race was the new Zippy & Smoke Subway commercial..
JD, in 2003 with breaking fire coverage, the local stations used a picture-in-picture format with a football game in 1 box and news in another. Would the ABC station in LA do this with NASCAR?
What a shame. Countdown did not review the Toyota Shoot-out, which was a big feature on NASCAR Now during the week. Joey Lagano and his Grand National stars put on a great show. Ryan Burr featured it during the week, but Countdown did not pay it off.
The interviews of the drivers were poorly prepared, and I think Jamie Little just escaped from Tony Stewart by the skin of her teeth. What a ridiculous question which Tony calmly answered.
For a show that knows RaceDay on SPEED was not on the air, it was a very bad and flat pre-race with very little information. Brad Daugherty was especially off-balance.
I am told that the LA situation is critical right now, with the fire actively burning residential areas and the authorities using KABC as a source of relaying information.
In this type of situation, there is no decision to be made. Local stations first serve the community, and everything else moves to the back burner.
From what I see on CNN, things are a mess there right now.
Looks like us people in So. Cal don't get to see the race. I know the situation in Malibu is very important, and my thoughts and prayers go out to all of them. Breaking News by KABC instead of the race, I miss you FOX!
To Anonymous at 1:35pm...
There are a few points you may be missing. One thing I previously mentioned was that everytime I flipped to the ABC coverage I did NOT see an interview taking place, but rather a taped package from Nascar Now. This needs to pointed out because many people could be doing the same thing; waiting for the latest news, interviews, and prerace strategy and turning it off when they do not see that happening.
It was also mentioned by someone that they could interview drivers not in the Chase...I don't think anyone said they did not do ANY interviews.
that was a good segment with the 15 car tire changer. he would do well in TV.
It will be interesting if ESPN experiences overload with all of the on track action. That has seemed to be a problem on the short tracks this year.
Punch - 5 points for leading a lap and 10 for leading the most laps.
Has Jerry actually been involved in NASCAR all these years. He actually said that. THAT IS obviously WRONG.
Why must this train wreck of a crew happen each week. Only four weeks left,
I wonder why Jamie Little and the ABC crew did not use DJ Copp, who is the DEI pit crew member that appears on NASCAR Now?
It would have been a nice "connect" to tie him in at the track as well as the studio.
I must say Rusty is good for comic relief. I almost died at Dover when he said "Man I've never seen such carnage my entire life." Now today he just said Stewart gets mad at everyone when things don't go his way.
F1 is over (won't ruin the ending)I know because Chad told Jimmie so obviously Nascar fans and F1 overlap. The booth could at least have welcomed the fans who were watching that race instead if ignoring it because it was on speed
As a So Cal person - I'd be nice to see the race temporaily be broadcasted on ESPN Classic. But then again that would be asking too much for its network to collaboratively work together.
Lap traffic how about telling me who he lapped
Rusty also said Stewart is "high strung"
Erik said...
Lives are in danger in So. Cal, and somebody is complaining about missing a race? Good grief!!! Get your priorities strait!
October 21, 2007 1:51 PM
Now hold on. During the 2003 wildfires in San Diego a local station had a football game that did not even include the local team in a box next to the fire coverage. that fire was bigger. 2nd largest ever in California. why cant the ABC station have the race in a box like that?
I was thinking about how to solve that LA problem for those not in the fire area. Either an ESPN Classic airing with the ABC commercials, or NASCAR.com making their coverage free because of this emergency.
Unfortunately, I don't think that anyone really addresses the "big picture" when it comes to this part of the TV package.
If you guys in the LA area would let us know when the coverage comes on, we would appreciate it.
caution out and still showing commercials
at least they tivo'd the pit stops
problems:
1) Remember Kansas race went to ESPN but commercials didnt follow because they weren't in Bristol. Likely commercials wouldn't follow.
s) ABC does not have an outlet other than the ESPN networks like SPEED to Fox, CNBC/MSNBC/Bravo and TNT to NBC and back in the old days TNN to CBS. In other words ABC has no non-sports cable outlet - would NASCAR racing really fit on Lifetime?
KABC just showed channels to send us to to watch the race - KABC affiliates:
Charter - 175/307
Cox - 807
Time Warner - 190/227
The race is on for So Cal now.
For those of you with a HDTV over the air tuner, the race is being broadcast on 7.2 in the Los Angeles area.
digital sub channel
way to go KABC
I watched the end of the F1 race and had the other tv on mute for beginning of the NASCAR race.
PLEASE, somebody tell me WHAT did Jamie ask tony that was dumb or upset him??
I realize the fire is critical but the other night tornadoes were 70 miles away and they PRE EMPTED PRIMETIME for 2 hrs...A crawl WOULD have sufficed...I am glad I as not watching anything.
No offense, but I think a picture in a picture could at LEAST be done for MAJOR NASCAR/NFL, etc fans not affected.
What good does it do to run the fire coverage NON STOP while viewers feel helpless? I know it's the same with other bad stuff happening but honestly, sports lovers should have a choice.
I do not mean any DISRESPECT for those affected but fun distracting things like watching sports can be a huge deal to many.
SOPHIAZ
Im with Erik on this one
Lives are in danger. News takes precedence over sports
And I hate to agree with Erik. YUCK.
Who knew Sauter and Raines were even close to being in 7th
The booth is doing great! They're answering Punch's questions, Rusty isn't talking over people, their giving us pit stop information, their splitting the screen to show different battles on the track, they even put in a JJ interview but also showed the live race (granted it was just his car, but at least they were showing the race).
There's no gunk running across the bottom of my screen.
Too soon to whoop for joy, but so far, I'm SO HAPPY!
Hey they told us who pitted and even gave us who got a penalty (twice poor Casey) but 4 and 84 having problems still no info
They didn't tell us that Labonte stayed out to lead a lap
Did we know R Gordon still off track I didn't realize the car was hurt that bad
It seems to this poster that Crustys dislike for Gordon is SO TOTALLY UNPROFESSIONAL. Leave the ego and bad feelings outside the booth 'DUDE'!
mercy what a jack as$ he is..
I can't stand him...
To bad that rumor wasn't true.
I dont have HD and I have DirecTV with no HotPass. What channel can I watch the RACE??
Kevin in SoCal
Dr. Punch needs to put some inflection in his voice when there is a wreck or caution. I was in the room next to where the TV is and I started hearing (very calmly) name after name of drivers, then I heard "heavy damage". I come back and find Riggs, Sadler, Sorenson, Almirola in a good-size wreck.
This wasn't a replay, this was right as it happened. You'd think he'd change his voice slightly when something happens. Just now he put more enthusiasm and volume into the MNF promo than that caution.
Rusty is really trying hard today. He seems somewhat nervous. He pronounced Almirola correctly. I think someone talked to him or else those rumors got to him.
I haven't heard Kenseth mentioned by Rusty so can't say whether he's practiced that namae or not. I think the broadcast is going ok but wish they would tell us what's going on with the cars in the pits.
Didn't Jerry say Gordon has led all laps so far?
NASCAR.com shows Johnson leading 7 laps and Gordon the rest.
Misspoke again.
did they mention that Johnson took the lead?
They did mention but instead of stopping Jamie Little they let her talk over the live lead change with it in a small box to the right. I don't need to see her when she talks I would have been much happier with her voice in the back and the cars on the track on the screen. Still no interview with R. Gordon
Um, Dr Jerry said Gordon led all the laps, cause up until that point he had led all the laps.
Johnson passed him a bit after that...
did we know alot of cars stayed out this is very important and instead we are talking to Carl
Nice move by KABC. Those guys deserve credit for that flexibility.
Have they even mentioned what cars are getting the free pass?
How many times do we have to watch that stupid commercial with Jeff Gordon and his wife BEGGING for him to get some diapers! Geeesh!
What did they do John? I still cant see the RACE!
Kevin in SoCal.
It's a mess up front and now we are looking every where else. I know more listening to JJ's spotter. So much for listening to our suggestions
Kev,
Scroll-up. The race is on a bunch of cable channels and also on an HDTV sub-channel is you have an over-the-air HD tuner.
JD
Any additional channel info from LA would be appreciated. I am getting a lot of email. Thanks.
See my post at 2:36. I dont have HD and I have DirecTV with no HotPass. Guess I'm out of luck. I'll have to watch Victory Lane and Inside Nextel Cup and catch the replay on ESPN2 later.
Kevin in SoCal
Overall, the guys in the booth are working well together today. Still some problems, but better.
I like the Jeff Gordon commercial, but it is seriously overplayed. Usually Sprint Nextel has three clever driver commercials in rotation at one time - perhaps there's a budget crunch leaving us with one.
The Kasey Kahne commercial with the woman having a dinner date with his cardboard cutout was hilarious. About the creepiest thing I've seen in a while. Allstate makes some good commercials too.
I know he was is a crash but did we know the 19 was off the track...again no interview
Kev,
No Hot Pass! I am thinking about getting DirecTV for next season only for that!
You should call them and plead your case, you might get a freebie!
JD
Kevin in SoCal - go to Nascar.com and "watch" live leaderboard.
Rusty gets more disparaging of the #24 as the chase goes on along. It is clear that he doesn't want Jeff to win - he would have more wins at Martinsville than Rusty. He didn't mention that Jeff was bottled up while the 16 and the 6 were racing each other. Now the 24 is moving forward again.
As Kevin probably posted earlier, due to a terrible wildfire in Malibu, CA, today's race is not being shown on KABC, ABC7 in Los Angeles. This race is now being shown on a digital subchannel called ABC7+.
ABC7, of course, had to prepare itself for this possibility and this is the decision they made. But ABC7+ is available only on digital broadcast and digital cable TV. It is not available via satellite services DirecTV or Dish Network. I receive ABC7 via DirecTV, so I unfortunately have no way to see the race live.
And what of those who do not have digital cable service or any cable/satellite at all? They have the same problem.
Worse, Fox 11 is showing the NFL game as scheduled and CBS2 will air a game at 1 p.m. PT, a little more than an hour from now. No matter the circumstances or mechanics of what ABC7 did, it will simply reinforce the reputation that NASCAR is a second-class sport here in the L.A. area.
Granted, there aren't too many of us, but we love NASCAR just as much as anywhere else. Many of us (though not me) came out the last two nights to Irwindale Speedway for the All-Star Showdown.
I am BITTER! And so are many other fans, I'm sure. At this point, I would even accept it if ABC7 the main channel re-airs the race in late night. It would be better than nothing.
Green flag and JG had to go back into pits for???? and Sports center minute......
I do not need the sports center minutes whent he RACE has restarted!!!!!
CNN is no longer covering the fires.
And showing a tire changer taping fingers FULL screen, instead of racing?? Coverage still tanking, imo. And JP's voice never changes pitch as he reports MW in trouble..
Sorry Desmond with your tv problems - our local ABC channel might go to Texans/Titans football if race goes long (if I heard correctly that it'll be on channel 13 locally). But here in Texas football is king so I wouldn't be surprised.
How about JPM running 3rd and they are barely paying attention to him.
Even with any improvements, the ABC coverage is still bad. The problem is that we have not come anywhere close to seeing how good it could be, so we get excited over anything that is slightly better than the previous weeks.
At the start of the race, they only had one scroll across the top of the screen with the current positions and everything was fine until Lap 14 when he got to the first commercial...14 laps is all we can get before commercials???
Sure enough, the race has gone on with...footage of a tire changer getting a bandage on his finger, a Tech Center update during green flag racing right before it, the Sportscenter minute promoting other sports that are currently showing on rival channels, commercials during green flag racing, and they've added the In The Chase scroll at the top and the SportsTicker on the bottom.
A long way to go for ABC and ESPN.
And right after the restart, another Tech Center update during green flag racing...it's almost like they can't help themselves.
I don't feel as bitter now, because I am following the race on NASCAR.com Leaderboard, as suggested by another poster.
That being said, there's still nothing like seeing the race with your own eyes, either in person or on TV. And ABC7 must take steps to prepare better for these stories in the future.
In related news, the Dew Action Sports Tour has been pre-empted on NBC4. So only the football is still being shown as scheduled on local TV.
Guys, is it just me or are they editing the coverage on HotPass? There are two things that are a little strange with it.
1.) The team audio is "edited" as some of the language is being cut out that Harvick is saying. I bought the package to listen to them the way they race and talk, not to listen to a clean network tv version.
2.) The Live HD ABC version I get from the local station is really delayed. I watch the HD picture with the sound from HotPass and right now it doesn't match.
Any thoughts??
What a difference in Rusty's opinion on Jr. roughing up Juan than it was last week when it was Gordon. Go figure.
ESPN Classic normally re-airs the race in a 3 hour Condensed version for anybody in LA that misses the race. It is better then nothing if you are desperate to see the race at some point. It looks like it is on at 6:00 AM PST tomorrow if your have Tivo or the day off.
Tom B
Man, that's too bad for JPM. Junior is driving like a maniac today - ever since the #11 kept bumping him he's taking it out on everyone else. I wonder if NASCAR will warn him.
Bestwick's story about seeing Montoya and Franchitti at the martinsville pizza place was funny. JPM is semi-famous for using his car's GPS to locate the nearest Pizza Hut at every track.
I just got off the phone with a CSR at DirecTV, with no luck. I cant get East Coast ABC unless I upgrade my service and that takes 45 days. I cant get HotPass unless I buy the rest of the season for $20. As I TiVo the races I wasnt interested. I guess I'm out of here and I will watch the replay on ESPN later.
Kevin in SoCal
Perhaps we'll hear who stayed out who pitted who got the luckey dog. Fat chance I know
Why are they so entralled with the crew cam? That time would be better spent resetting the field.
And the "google earth" shots from the blimp are totally worthless!!
It's almost impossible to find out what is happening on the track. Anytime there is a caution, I find myself waiting and wondering what happened and who it happened to, and I can usually figure it out using FoxTrax and their blog before I do with the TV announcers and cameras.
Then, they are always so quick to rush off to commercial afterwards that you don't know who is really affected, who had to pit as a result, who has serious damage, or who has damage that could worry a race fan but might not be all that bad.
When they come back, I assume they won't reset the field, go through and analyze what will happen as a result...and thus I will start my car and listen to MRN on Sirius from the car (in the garage). Sad.
And instead...they come back and go to Tim Brewer in the Tech Center. Awful.
Do you guys kind of feel like the ESPN crew is almost throwing in the towel and just going through the motions?
No excitement, no on-track updates, no "through the field" recaps, no information about what is actually going on.
They seem to be almost keeping things at arm's length and just looking at the laps left to see when this can be over. Its sad.
missed the restart and no field reset
Ok...with all the complaints I see ABC learned NOTHING. I grabbed out the boombox and took 5 minutes to find MRN (it's on crowded FM station between two other more powerful stations!! Sneeze, and the station changes!)
But ABC lost me with the TECH center during green racing and the other nonsense.
The fires are off CNN. Unless local tv is reporting on an ESCAPE ROUTE for viewers, there is NO reason to CANCEL ALL TV.
Please note? THese are homes of wealthy people? If it were the slums, would folks still make excuses.
Besides, ABC LA could EASILY RUN A CRAWL at the bottom of the race imo.
We have OVER REACTIVE weatherman here for thunderstorms and the other night, the CRYING WOLF weathermans goal, imo??
To have us all huddled under the beds with family pets, a bottle of water and a can of SPAM waiting in fear.
Sorry, I lived 50 years w/o big brother WARNING of everything in the world and local areas. At one point, common sense comes into play...if you see smoke or smell it, turn OFF the tv, grabbed loved ones and valuables and leave.
Sorry...I just don't need big brother breaking into tv all the time. They do it here for TRAFFIC reports of wrecks or single engine plane wrecks in a field.
This BREAKING STORY news is a virus.
YES I know the fires are a big deal in CALIF but it happens every year.
NOT to downplay the problem...
SOPHIA
(computer I am using does NOT remember me today)
Did they miss another restart?????????????
we are watching what slowed up the last restart like it happen during the one we justed missed you have got to be kidding me........
JD
You are exactly right. There has been no excitement coming from the TV. Not to keep the rumor going, but it really seems like one of those situations where guys know they aren't going to be returning to the booth after the season (i.e. the Rusty Wallace story this week). I just get the sense that their heart isn't in the job they are doing right now.
now that tech center was cool but not during a green flag run
It does feel like they are giving up JD. Just writing this year off..I would have NO idea what was happening if I wasn't listening to MRN-pathetic.
JD, I used to have the idea that Weber was waiting for the race to end so he could be the first at the nearest bar to the track.
I think these guys are already at that bar.
what was that! come back from to the duck go back to a commercials
I am in the room again with NO MRN.
JD, I agree they are going thru the motions but question:
Will they do this for the next 7 YEARS???
Nobody seems to care on TV but MRN is like ANOTHER WORLD of racing. Details, excitement and passion for the sport.
For the LOVE of GOD, is BRIAN FRANCE INSANE?? to allow this to continue.
Oh, and for the record, I DO think ABC has the LOOSEST rules for affiliates...many local shows have been FEATURED in PRIME TIME and cancelled top 10 shows. Also things like Billy Graham Crusades OFTEN shown in 8pm time,
THAT STUFF NEVER HAPPENS on local CBS or NBC. Can it vary that much from network to network.
I am still flummoxed over the treatment of NASCAR in the LA area...fires or not.
Soph
JD,
If there are any more fans like me, ESPN can throw in the towel. Even though Sirius Satellite Radio is at least two laps behind tv, listening to them is better than the 3,10, or #? people on ESPN. I basically have given up on the ESPN broadcast for this year. I guess I'm saying they have lost me as a listener for now. We all know they can do a good broadcast, look at all the Busch races, but why they won't for ABC is beyond me.It's so sad when your a fan and the most enjoyment "I" get out of the ESPN broadcast is your wonderful site with all of us fussing about the coverage.
Maybe next year.
Thanks for your hard work.
Glenn
Sophia, you are something else! You'd make a great talk-show host!:)
What I have been doing is answering email about LA. The chief complaint has been that the other network stations had left the live fire coverage and KABC still had it on.
So, being as I am in South Florida, I have to use the LA friends to get a clue to why KABC hung-in there and did not side-by-side of simply go to the race and update out of commercials.
It could be that the KABC decision making process was 100% correct, or it could be more local station hype like we all know so well.
I find Jerry Punch to be totally out-of-gas right now and I think he is going to struggle to the finish of this one. Did I mention this was a shame?
Sorry to Pontificate *blushes* but my NASCAR ANGST brings out the worst. Oh, I could never do talk show..well maybe on radio (been suggested by friends!) but tv talks show, only if it was about RACIN'.
My first dream guest would be to GRILL BRIAN FRANCE. WOuldn't somebody like to see a caring NASCAR person come on over the air with a siren and talk about ESPN being the final nail in the coffin of NASCAR and telling us all to go to our windows (Like in NETWORK) saying I AM MAD AS HELLO and not going to take it anymore?
The DALY PLANET is like that for me...and I bet others!! (With gratitude for this place, JD!)
If not for this place, how many of you with guns would've shot out your tv's by now and the rest of us thrown hammers!!
THANK GOD for MRN but next week, it's the PRN guy, I think...they are better than TV but still, ham it up a bit too much and stammer over the racing facts.
I just can't IMAGINE 7 years of ESPN. These commentators should just stay home literally PHONE IT IN.
Sighing Sophia
Did they not just listen to Letarte???
He said NO ONE CAN MAKE IT FROM HERE..
Why would it be trouble for gordon, if no one can make it from here??
fake drama blows...
What's even sadder JD is the trainwreck in the booth does not mention they are so bad.
I am sad to see Punch so weary but can he NOT see it in himself? And arrogant Rusty.
I do like Andy but feel sorry for the no win situation he is currently in.
Back on my broom and into the next room for MRN. Can't get it in this room
Soph
I think ya'll are WAY to hard on Dr Jerry....
Cause by far the weakness in Crusty in this booth.. When he's been gone, its goes smooth..
When he's there.. its a train wreck...
IMHO...
I have noticed a difference between MRN and PRN in the few races I have heard on both.
One is that PRN sometimes has score updates from other sports events. Another is that there are guests in the booth on some occasions, and some of these conversations are during the green flag.:(
P.S. in response to the very first post: No miracle today. Patriots 49, Dolphins 28.
DESMOND
YEs! I was shocked PRN did an interview on radio during green flag as well???
:(
A speech coach for Rusty? Gilliland pronounced correctly.
Wow they are listening to some things Blaney and Elliot updates and both Gilliland and Amirola pronounced correctly. The diaper changing comments seems a little forced humor to me
Rusty first dropped his "catch phrases" and now he is working hard on his pronunciation since he spent the last race with Eric Amarillo.
Much better today.
They sort of did a thru the field which was helpful.How about a more formal one and don't just include chasers and the cars around them
50 laps to go, last batch of commercials I HOPE
Under 50 laps to go after the restart, Gordon-Johnson-Newman fighting for spots 1-2-3, Johnson to the bumper of Gordon and...
Commercial.
This has been just terrible. At commercial with 48 laps to go and Johnson passes Gordon for what COULD be the most important move of the race, followed by a caution for some damage to Ricky Rudd's car and we missed it all while at commercial.
I am thankful for MRN and FoxTrax that I knew what happened, but I know that other friends of mine who are watching the race wouldn't know what had just happened for at least 2-3 minutes after it happened.
come back to show that there has been a lead change and go right back to commercial.
Typical.
Tough day for commercial timing. These short tracks just scream for the side-by-side on-screen format.
Today, no one wins. The commercials cover the action, the resets and replays drive away the fans.
Johnson & Gordon are really strong here but what's going on with the other cars at the track is a mystery to me (since the broadcast is not showing much else).
I can't believe with less than 30 laps left at a 1/2 mile track they still have commercials left to show. This is sad
23 laps to go and they go to commercial again...and if I see the Jeff Gordon diaper commercial one more time, I am going to scream!
Did I just hear JP say - well Truex's tire is only flat on the bottom?? Surely he didn't say that!
I've got a solution to the lack of diapers in the Gordon household - get a diaper service! Please do not show that commercial again!!!!!!!! PULLLLEASSSE
Spare me with the wife shots.....
Gordon's wife is a prop
Let her hang out with Suzy and play best friends forever bff
Hey they must be out of commercials. How about setting the field alot just happened in the last few cautions. Instead of Brad and Suzie
Breaking News: A big fire in san diego. KGTV the local ABC station has chosen to run ticker under the race and have live coverage after the race.
I scream
You scream
Track screams for side by side, INDEED. These short tracks are notorious but SOMETHING needs to be done. A friend emailed me and said she was sick on the couch and "tried" to see what my NASCAR addiction was about and the commercials drove her away...
How do you explain THAT to a new freind??? ABC just seems worse but I have had the tv mute 90 percent of the time today for the MRN guys.
I just don't understand the CONTINUING ILL PLACED commercials.
What happened to TRYING to show the last 20 minutes of the race commercial free??? THEY did it once or twice earlier in the Chase but don't seem to care how bunched up the ads are now.
Gosh 21 car problems....Sheesh...will we ever see Schrader in the car.
Even the MRN guys are confused with all the cautions to see who is placed where just now. Man, what a day of broadcasting for all. still the MRN guys are a beacon of light in a night of 'blind sailors' in the booth on ABC.
Oh, and I caught the brief diaper comments earlier....forced humor for sure.
back on the laptop and this place knows me. YAY.
Suzy's got her bumper under Pam Ward...two rounds of wedge...please..Gordon owns JJ's car---
at this point there is no one to blame except NASCAR/ BRIAN FRANCE--fans are the losers and HE doesn't care
Commercials...money talks what else can be said. Oh, 5 laps to go and a caution. Commercial for sure!
RATS!!! Labonte wrecked again.&^%$#!$#!%#$%!$#
Ugh
Who cares about what happened at the last race - how about the running order - anybody know what the order is after the first 3?
Putting that replay of the last race on (again) instead of re-setting the field was a bad mistake.
is this the time for a promo for next week?
Well...that reminds me of only one thing. My favorite line from my favorite movie.
"What we have here is a failure to communicate."
That finish was horrible..period.
Well this blows...what a mess.
Sorry, not a jj fan.
:(
What a COMMERCIALIZED MESS
Daly Planet Editor said...
Well...that reminds me of only one thing. My favorite line from my favorite movie.
"What we have here is a failure to communicate."
That finish was horrible..period.
October 21, 2007 5:48 PM
Do you mean on the part of NASCAR or ESPN?
it looks like we should get at least a 10 minute post race show.
Huge JJ fan but finish still horrible. How about showing the rest of the field I know they can't race for position but really....
On the part of ESPN. Did you see Junior off the pace? Did you see a car spun then never used a wideshot to see if it was still on the track? Was there ever a time for the blimp? As the field thundered across the line under green with Punch calling the race he finally noticed the spun car was still there?
This is called "crunch time" in TV, and this was a mess. Did it make any sense to you guys?
tony not talking to the media again?
MRN guys having problems, too, getting all the top 5 guys..isn't this like the 3rd week TONY avoided media???
8 car listed as 23rd How??
I'm getting so close to just saying the hell with it......
I want to watch racing, but every week I'm left watching commercials interupted by single file racing and some of the most poorly produced sporting events in history.
NASCAR, you will have only your greed to blame when you find yourself alongside the NHL in the sphere of America's relevant professional sports.
Amazingly disjointed broadcast by ESPN/ABC - If your not in the chase or Hendrick, you were not even in the race. What about Hamlin coming back, Raines as a lame duck has another great race and it goes on from there. Not a word said ... sad sad sad
Didn't even bother to show a full field rundown what crap!
There are 4 minutes left. DO MORE POST RACE INTERVIEWS
No replay of the last three laps? No replay of the spin that caused the final caution? No Tony interview? No update on why Junior fell off the pace? Wow...excuse me while I go and write a column.
Can't waite to read it I'll just say Ditto now. I was so hopeful after your request for comment it was like we never said anything. Does the contract for ESPN go for ALL the races next year? I may have to get direct TV.
Well, I dont think MRN ever did find Tony or Carl.
WHY are we hearing SUZY and BRad..w.ell my local news just came on.
STINKS!! SO MUCH for "the CHASE" getting any extra air time.
Think Tony and Carl are off fighting someplace?? :-)
This was such a mess..I don't know what to make of this and as somebody else said, what a mess to watch.
COMMERCIALS WERE OVER THE TOP.
Contract with ESPN is 8 years which I think means SEVEN MORE YEARS OF THIS @*@*&@*$&@* CRAP
J said...
I'm getting so close to just saying the hell with it......
My feelings exactly.
ESPN will air all the NATIONWIDE races...NOT all the CUP races. the first half of the CUP season will be on FOX.
NASCAR blew that one by not throwing the caution when they should have and waiting until the white flag was shown. There really should have been a true green white checker finish.
FOX STILL carries first half of the season.
If NASCAR had any spine and CARED ABOUT THE FANS, they would rethink this contract.
sad to say it but---I'm done--been watching nascar on tv since 1959 but NO MORE---no one to blame but nascar/brian france---he surely could do something about this horrible coverage but the $ rules---fans are the losers
Cares about the fans? How about "only cares about the bottom line"
It already was a green white checkered wouldn't have mattered
I'm going to try the nascar.com jack daniel post race show. It is free.
I am just going to have a couple of Jack Daniel's - shoulda done that during the race!
I don't understand why people are wondering about a Tony interview. He finished 13th. If he had finished in the Top 3 and wasn't interviewed, I could see the point.
I can say that I enjoyed the MRN coverage and was able to get some of my work done at the computer without watching on ABC. I used the Internet as a reference when I needed to for current race position and only turned on the TV in order to visually see something that I heard about on the radio...
Does that sound like the best way to follow a race? Probably not, but that more than likely sums up the reason why ratings are going down.
I think this race really should be the death of ESPN/ABC coverage of Nascar...
What a sad, sad mess!
I could just cry! In fact, I still might!
I will have lots of questions for our Q&A this week!
This was horrible! I can't do this any longer. ESPN, you've lost another household off your ratings!
I'm done, call me when FOX is back.
As usual, I was too busy with Race View and scanner to really watch the race on tv. I was talking with some friends during the race too. There were times where I would say, have they come back from commercial yet since there was a caution? The one I remember most was for the Rudd spin. Thankfully I was able to figure out what happened before ABC came back.
I remember other networks (I don't know if it was this year or not) cutting from commercial immediately after a caution came out.
And updates on non-chase drivers. Pathetic. They finally gave an update on Dave Blaney 20 minutes after he left the track and just a few minutes before he came back out.
Anybody who honestly thought that someone other than Jeffy or Jimmie had an actual shot at the win is either fooling themselves or new to nascar ... Nascar wants to turn Martinsville in HMSpeedway ...
The Sprint Diaper commercial was shot in the old Rockwell B-1B assembly hanger in Palmdale, CA ... so it'd take a very long time for Jeffy to get diapers to the lazy Ingrid ...
MRN was ahead of ABC ... Nascar waited too long to throw the caution after the dark with no feathers spun ...
No Nascar RaceDay for me ... I'm not watching that show at 6:30am ...
No Nascar Victory Lane ... I don't watch it when Jeffy & Jimmie "win" ...
No post-race interviews for me when Jeffy & Jimmie win ...
Brian France & Mike Helton need to STOP this HMS faux domination ... Ratings & attendance are dropping ... Conspiracies & resentment are rising ...
Anonymous said...
"I don't understand why people are wondering about a Tony interview. He finished 13th. If he had finished in the Top 3 and wasn't interviewed, I could see the point."
Agreed. Only the top three have to report to the media center to speak to the media and they sign the agreement to that effect on their race entry. Tony wasn't involved in any unusual race incident moreso than anyone else. So Tony doesn't have to talk if he doesn't want to.(They should have talked to Dale Jr. to find out why he was so far off the pace on the restart. But he also does not have to talk if he doesn't want to.) Plus there are others who finished higher than Tony who should be interviewed.
I think some people who want to see him interviewed today are interested in seeing the Tony vs. the media (or vs. ESPN) play out on their TVs. There's really no other reason to see an interview with him for 13th place.
My guess is Tony will continue to test both NASCAR and the NASCAR press to see if he can avoid interviews each week (he's been avoiding everyone, not just ESPN) and say postrace comments the way he wants to say it, on his radio program.
For some reason (sun spots?) I could not get MRN on the transistor but STILL went outside during commercials to feed birds/squirrels and deadhead Marigolds.
I also think this was one of the worst ESPN coverages, and I had tv muted 90% of the time or sometimes on during MRN break.
HONESTLY, if we all repeat the same old questions this week, or even think of new variations of "HOW CAN NASCAR ALLOW ESPN to....fill in the blank"
I am afraid JD's site would implode from the traffic or the poor man may just run away and join the WPP.
HONESTLY, I am not of the lynch mob mentality but it continues to make everyone angry how the ALMIGHTY DOLLAR FEEDS BRIAN FRANCES EGO when CLEARLY, he does not give a rat's rear end about "THE RACIN'"
When you look at the bigger problems in the world, is this criminal??? No.
But I think it's unethical and so insulting, I don't know how to explain it.
If I had the money, I would have the MRN guys call my house to give me play by play so I don't have to listen to the peanut heads at PRN.
But I no gotta that kind of cash.
But yeah, I am kind of depressed...today in tv land was a new low for NASCAR and many are screaming about it.
*SIGH*
My bad, I thought I saw Tony listed 4th and Carl 5th in points and thought (or imagined) that's who MRN was looking for. I need to go and see the finishing order.
I wonder if I was thinking the Chase standings or some an ERROR on ESPN graphics.
According to my unofficial count, only TWO drivers not in the ESPN Dozen (Chasers + Jr.) were actually mentioned and reported on by ESPN's pit reporters. And only TWO others were interviewed after they fell out. That is 17 out of 43. And many drivers like Sauter, Labonte, Raines, Newman all had good runs but we never got more than a passing mention on any of them.
Oh, and Rusty's collection of excuses for EVERY other driver's "bumps" (except Gordon) and his "encouragement" of Newman to "rattle Gordon's cage" made me sick.
Less than 200 comments about today's race.
We have either lost people that don't watch the races anymore or we're getting used to the bad coverage and no longer surprised by it.
No we are just tired of saying the same thing every week
Krista Voda has replace Barbie on Speed report tonight. Yay!!!
Dale Earnhardt Jr is a guest on Wind Tunnel (along with Varsha and Hobbs to talk about the F1 race). Maybe Dave can get the scoop on what happened to his car.
This is off topic but on SPEED REPORT, Krista said (SPOILER WARNING!!!)
what's his name may be the winner and not who we think...something about fuel temperature problems??
Can't wait for WT
Brian France & Mike Helton need to STOP this HMS faux domination ... Ratings & attendance are dropping ... Conspiracies & resentment are rising ...
Yeah, we shouldn't let anyone get too good. Have to manipulate the results so it's more "competitive."
Kyle Busch made a beeline back to the garage or motorhome lot ... I don't know if ABC / MRN found him or not as I turned both off as I didn't want to hear any interviews from J/J/HMS gang ...
I've been a fan since the first time I saw a race on TV in 1979. While I wouldn't want to return to the days of limited, iffy coverage, today's broadcast was a travesty of the first water.
I really cannot add to the excellent complaints voiced here. I can only add my voice to the masses --- "GIVE US THE RACING!
JD, I would like to thank you for this most excellent place that allows frustrated true race fans give vent to their feelings.
Thank God for MRN Radio.
Without it, we'd never be able to tell what's going on during races.
Hearing it was JR's engine that made him the last car on the lead lap. KB was prob not happy that he was scored behind JG I thought he had passed him before the caution. It's amasinh that I had to go thru multiple web sites etc to find out things that I should have been told at the end of the race. There was enough time
My opinion, the guys in the booth are just "mailing it in". They know they're gone next year.
Crusty is making an attempt or at least he actually paid attention to his speech coach this week. Pronounced Gilliland and Almirola correctly. Didn't hear him say Kenseth, so I don't know if he got that one right.
ESPN is still missing a ton of stuff going on at the track. The pit reporters are sleeping or at least they aren't giving us much info on the drivers that wrecked or dropped out. And how about Jr? What happened to him at the end. He slows down right on the front straightaway in front of the guys in the booth and we hear nothing about what happened. Thanks for nothing guys in the booth.
I hate to complain about the coverage, because I'm old enough to remember the 10 minutes of coverage we used to get of the Daytona 500 on Wide World of Sports back in the day. But we have come to expect so much more, especially from ESPN based on what Bob, Ned and Benny gave us the last time ESPN broadcast Nascar. ESPN says they're the world wide leader in sports coverage. Coulda fooled me!
ESPN exec's I'd be embarrassed about the product you are putting out.
Speed Report has Carl and Matt not happy with each other and it looked like Carl almost threw a punch. However BD took the high road and said he wasn't 100% sure they were not kidding around. No audio which would have clarified the situation, just wait to see what happens if ESPN has it on tape too. (prob not, since they bail out asap). It will be billed as a knock down drag out between team mates
I believe at one point in the race, many of the posters were left speechless and either found alternative ways to view the race or just lost the desire to keep piling on with all of the negatives they had seen. Usually when I reload the site, there are 5-10 new posts to get caught up with - many times I check them just to reinforce the things that I found poorly done by ESPN/ABC - but it was becoming the same old stuff throughout this race that had already been said about the coverage.
With two PCs running RaceView and MRN on the radio, I can *almost* completely do without ESPN/ABC. I certainly don't look at the TV screen much during the race anymore.
THAT ought to terrify the suits at teh network.
Sophia, see here (http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2007/10/7023.html) reagarding the F1 fuel temp issue.
This is off subject, but I don't know how many of you saw this on Jayski:
France's to switch jobs? from a Robin Miller article on SPEEDtv.com - Jim France moving into the Big Chair [CEO of NASCAR?] and nephew Brian [France] going to Grand-Am?(SPEEDtv.com)(10-20-2007)
Maybe the powers that be at Nascar have had enough of Brian's inept management.
Oops, screwed that up, the link ends with the "7"
the Edwards and Kenseth thing was odd and I can see why DILNER said it was uncomfortable moment for him to witness.
Before Carl and Kenseth separated, Carl had his fixed sometimes creepy smile on his face as he pulled back his arm as iff to punch Matt, and then walked off instead. MATT did not look happy or to be 'in' on the joke.
I must say when Carl stormed into VL with Jr last year or so, he was able to have this odd smile with teeth showing even though clearly angry.
Something weird about that guy and it was the same thing in the film with no audio on SPEED REPORT. Can't wait for VL to see if THEy are aware of what happened.
HAPPY TO SEE KRISTA on SR and the tra, er, Barbie Babe gone. I notice Krista is not trying to look like she is busting out of her top (rolls eyes)
WILD DAY of racing. WT needs to be TWO HOURS TONIGHT to cover the F1 post inspection problems AND JR and the racin.
They just announced on SPEED REPORT
NO PENALTY IN THE FORMULA 1 results.
WOW, that was fast!!
Thanks Rick for the Link.
I hope nobody mentions the outcome for those who DVR'd it
Vince
saw that blurb on Miller's notebook earlier in the week.
You say NOW it's on Jayski? Hmmm...hope it's got legs and Brian hops over to the Grand am. CERTAINLY the family has to be upset with how things are going. I mean if the whole NASCAR deal has fans leaving in droves or taints the HISTORY ? !
Thanks for the update Vince
:-)
Good ESPN:
- no Brent Musburger... that's about it for "the good", LOL.
Bad ESPN:
- Another case of "multiple missed restarts disease". I guess this shouldn't come as a surprise. ESPN has struggled mightily catching restarts at Watkins Glen and superspeedways so having this happen at Martinsville was no surprise. In fact we even missed a restart thanks to a Sportscenter Minute TAKING UP THE ENTIRE SCREEN!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Another waste of a pre-race show. Only 30 minutes instead of the usual 60 minutes on Sundays, yet they still showed the "race to the airport" video again????
- Another lack of coverage of anyone outside of the ESPN Baker's Dozen of Important Drivers (the 12 chasers and Dale Jr.). Yet again Ward Burton falls out of the race and is never mentioned or shown on TV. How about A.J. Allmendinger? How did he lose all those laps? ESPN must have thought it was simply a case of having a VERY slow car. Was I out of the house when they explained how Jamie McMurray went from running in the top 10 to 4 or 5 laps down? They said very early he was having brake problems, was that the reason he lost those laps later on? We did get a David Stremme interview when he fell out of the race, and a J.J. Yeley interview that caused ESPN to miss the following restart, that's about it.
- The third-to-last commercial break that happened with less than 50 laps to go caused us to miss a caution AND the final lead change of the race. Thanks ESPN! Way too many commercials. Haven't seen this week's commercial summary yet but I'm sure it's ridiculous. Last week at Charlotte ABC had a lot more commercials than NBC did for that race last year and I'm sure this was no different. How much money do you think ABC gets from ABC for all those Cavemen, Samantha, and Desperate Housewives commercial... oh, that's right, NONE!!!!! Can't use the "paying the bills" excuse there Erik, sorry!
- Dale Jr. apparently blew up on that final restart, ESPN apparently is still unaware of the situation. Maybe NASCAR Now will send Shannon Spake to DEI Hadquarters on Monday to file a report confirming this rumor that "something" happened to Junior on the final lap.
- Little post-race coverage. I have no doubt in my mind that Ryan Newman would have never been interviewed if he wasn't having a discussion with Jeff Gordon on pit road after the race. I think that was a case of ESPN smelling blood and hoping there was a controversy with Newman.
- What happened to David Ragan on that last restart? Anybody? I only watched the TV broadcast of the race and they never told me. Anybody?
How many more races until Fox is back?
Stricklinfan, the y did explain about McMurray towards the end of the race. He was in the pits to cap off the right-rear brake line that was causing him trouble.
You probably just blocked it out because it was cRusty that gave the explanation.
Edwards has some SERIOUS 'roid-rage. That's scary.
Rick,
Thanks for the update, I guess I did miss it. I just figured that ESPN didn't deserve the benefit of the doubt based on constant avoidance of non-Chasers falling out of the race without causing caution flags, just like they did with Ward Burton and A.J. Allmendinger earlier in the day.
P.S. Do you know what happened to David Ragan to cause that spin on the last lap? I'm still waiting for ESPN to show some video or it or give us an explanation.
Maybe The Daly Planet should have a countdown clock til the next FOX Nascar race?
I don't know what happened to Ragan, if they said anything on SR or VL I missed it.
interesting fact: due to 2 big fires in san diego that national news does not seem to want to report, the local NBC station interrupted Sunday night football for a press conference. They used a Picture-in-picture format and put the game in a big box next to the news without audio. this is a big fire and they want a state of emergency declared. Also the local FOX station did the same thing with a championship baseball game. why wouldn't KABC do this with NASCAR?
There is a new column up about the race and the ESPN on ABC coverage. Please add your comments. Thanks.
JD
Here is the link to the Edwards-Kenseth video. Does NOT look like a joke. It's 8:15 into the video...
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid340473122/bclid595223643/bctid1263958006
I wanted to follow up on the pre-emption of the NASCAR race on ABC7 in Los Angeles on Sunday.
As the firestorm story has unfolded, ABC7 has moved all of its daytime programs to ABC7+. Even the national Good Morning America program and Oprah have been moved. Other stations have done the same thing, except for Monday's The Price is Right, which was shown on CBS2.
However, all primetime shows have aired as scheduled.
I can only speak for the situation in L.A. I do not know whether primetime shows aired last night in San Diego, where most of the evacuations have happened.
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