With the race weekend rained-out Friday and Saturday in Richmond, NASCAR has moved both the Sprint Cup and the Nationwide Series races to Sunday.
The Cup race will be run at 1PM Eastern Time on ESPN live. We are checking on the pre-race programming schedules for ESPN, SPEED and ESPN2 for that day and will have updates shortly.
The Nationwide Series race will be run at 7PM Sunday on ESPN2. Normally, this series has a pre-race show but no support programming from SPEED.
Craftsman Truck Series schedule remains the same as the Trucks are at Gateway for a Saturday afternoon race.
We are sorting through all the email and the media coverage and will be posting new TV schedules for all the NASCAR programs shortly. Neither the ESPN or the SPEEDtv website had been changed to reflect the new schedules as of 8PM Friday.
Please feel free to offer your opinion of NASCAR's decision on this post. Some feel the TV equipment and all the Transporters should never have made the trip with the weather forecast well in advance that this rain event was going to happen on these days. What is your opinion?
(photo courtesy of Mike Serota/Getty Images)
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52 comments:
This is probably the best thing they could do. Having 100,000 people out there during a tropical storm isn't to safe.
Hello John
I was wondering about a comment they made in a nascar.com article about the NW race that it will be run at 7 after the sprint cup race and after the stands have been cleared?? Are they racing in front of an empty track??
I am still trying to figure out what Hunter meant by that.
If anyone has a clue, let us know.
JD
I'm sure that just means that everyone has to leave, and have their tickets re-scanned back in, since it will be different tickets for the two races.
skip,
If they try to do that it is going to be one huge disaster. As if there is going to be a big crowd of other folks waiting to come in for the Nationwide race....
This is going to be interesting!
JD
Couple of folks emailing in to say RaceDay is going to be 11AM Sunday, but I am still waiting on the new SPEED schedule.
JD
I'm almost confused though as to one particular statement made about the race schedule.
After the Cup race, they are going to wait until the stands are cleared to start the Nationwide race afterwards.
Ah... I see you guys are already chatting about it here...
It is going to be a disaster. Moving that many people probably won't work and they'll probably just relinquish at some point to get the race going.
Can't wait to see how that all boils down!
from what i heard on dialed in, they are going to clear the stands and have everyone that has nationwide tickets go through the gates again...
According to J.H., the cup race length average 3:05 at richmond, so he is figuring around 4:30 the race will be done and they will clear the speedway and then have folks re-enter...
If you are a stick and ball person, it will be the same concept as a day night double header. fTictet only good for current event.
Bruce, now that you mention it, this should be quite a logistical feat...100K is quite a bit different from 25 or 30 k at a baseball game.
I don't know how bad it will be - I'm not sure how many fans that only have a ticket for one of the races will be for the nationwide race. I would think it would be the other way around.
Of course, I know people who only buy tickets to the truck races for Texas, but that makes sense, because those are the best races.
haus,
The difference is that a facility this size will not be able to do that for hours, even in the most orderly fashion.
I have no idea what message Hunter was trying to send.
Anybody got any idea?
JD
do they do that for double headers? I had no idea...not being a stick & ball person...
Richmond always runs separate tickets. I gotta say it--they are usually exceptionally organized--it may sound crazy, but I bet they can pull it off. Whether they *ought* to or not is another question....you don't have to buy a NW ticket to get a Cup ticket like some tracks, but you have access to better seats & renewable packages that way. There *are*, believe it or not, a number of people, particularly locals, who go to the NW race & not the Cup. Sometimes you see companies with events there (where they're all wearing their company T shirts, etc.) Also, people who already have their tickets; they are reserved in certain sections, but those will be different seats than Cup.
Personally, I think I'd say all rules are off and not bother, but...this IS the ISC we're talking about, greed is their middle name....
Any news on the TSN status for us Canadians? I'd imagine TSN2 would show the cup race now, assuming they weren't already committed to something Sunday at 1pm.
As a veteran of hurricanes, tornadoes & grass fires - I'm pleased that NASCAR made the decision to put the race off till Sunday. The "locals" are gonna have enough problems without cars trying to get to a closed track & getting caught out on the highways in the event the storms cause tornadoes & flooding. The roads need to be kept clear for people who choose to move far inland & 1st responders.
As to some people saying that the trucks & equipment shouldn't have been put in place, well, those same people would have been screaming if Hanna fizzled or made a turn towards somewhere else and the race could have been run on time.
So - they made the choice to go on with getting things in place. What else could the networks & NASCAR do?
Got my answer straight from the source (oddly enough...) from TSN.ca
"The Chevy Rock & Roll 400 Sprint Cup Series race is rescheduled for 1 p.m. ET Sunday, while the Emerson Radio 250 Nationwide Series event is slated for later in the evening at 7 p.m. Both races will be broadcast on TSN2."
well, this ought to be one hot mess. good luck to all those nascar VOLUNTEERS who take tickets and monitor the stands: i suspect they're in for a face full on sunday.
I have no idea what message Hunter was trying to send.
Anybody got any idea?
JD
September 5, 2008 8:11 PM
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Neither does he, JD -
this is the same guy who said the meeting was about keeping the fans happy in a bad economy & all The Drivers came out of the meeting saying they were told to shut up (about the CoT, tires etc) & drive. LOL
you could probably empty in less than an hour. There are a lot of exits. Getting them far enough away to stage and then letting them *back* in--that would be the hard part. I'm guessing they have some kind of plan....if they every had to evacuate for a terrorist threat or something, I bet they've thought about this. BTW, in recent years the NW race population is about 50,000, but no doubt this will be less as people have to go to work in the AM.
I'm not sure why you don't understand about why they would need to clear the stands and let NW ticket holders in. If I've bought a ticket to the NW race for a certain seat, how else am I going to be able to use it? Particularly if the cup race is sold out?
It's not like it hasn't been done before. I remember a weekend in Dover that had the Busch race run early on Sunday morning before the cup race.
glen,
I don't know if you are thinking stick-and-ball, but this is not a stadium.
Just getting a full house to walk out is going to be wild. You know how many fans hang around after the race? Especially after a couple of cocktails?
The track has all the concessions and souvenir stands and drink stations inside the facility after the gates.
I just wondered if Hunter was saying that for a reason. Otherwise, why not just let anyone stay for the Nationwide Series race that wants to do so.
The other big problem is that there is no way to clean the place. If they let the fans go home, there is going to be some wonderful debris making its way down to the track.
I really just don't get this one.
JD
Hooray!!!! Finally, a race that will start shortly after 1:00 PM.
I hope that the Nielson numbers come back with a major increase over previous races. Maybe if there is such an increase, a message may get delivered by a source that ESPN, and NASCAR respect. Whatever they care, or don't care, about as far as racing is concerned, they do care about the number of "eyes" that are captured during a race.
I would sure like to see a return to 1:00 PM race starts for at least some of the schedule. I am sympathetic to the "left coast", and their seemingly second class citizen status as far as afternoon sporting events starting times. I can't imagine trying to get geared up, and in the mood for a 10:00 AM football game or race start.
Let the Pacific time zone races start at a reasonable time for the people that live in that zone. Let's just get the "right coast" races back to their historically most popular starting times. In addition to ESPN & NASCAR capturing more eyes, maybe tracks will also fill more seats????
Allison,
That is right, the minor event before the major full house event.
That is why this is so different. It is the minor event after the Cup race. So if you have tickets to both you have to wait in line to leave, go outside and then scan your new ticket and then go back inside? That is going to be fun.
JD
I think it will be really interesting to see if Jim Hunter clarifies his statement to see what it really meant. I think that NASCAR was wise for postponing the races until Sunday.
But like I said, what about the NW only ticket holders? Their right to the seat they bought their ticket for has to be protected. It's not like the only people who bought tickets to the NW race also have cup tickets. If I'm making my way up to Row 23 Seat whatever, I don't want to find Joe six-pack and his buddies camped there wanting to just hang out and watch the next race.
Well, I"m here, and it's already a mess. I kept calling the RIR number that was supposed to be updated, and it kept saying (even after the alleged 6 p.m. update) that the races were still on at the regular time. The only way we found out was a cop at a gate told us today was off around 6:30. Didn't find out until after 7 that the weekend had been pushed to Sunday.
We have ticket to both races, but can't stay for the NW. Too late - and I love the NW racing. More than Cup to be honest.
RVs are parked all over the tiny yards around here. Big wind, and it won't get pretty. Already all kinds of wrecks on Laburnum. Why didn't they call this when they knew Hannah was coming days ago?
allisong,
You were right. The RIR guys say they are going to clear the track crowd and then start the Nationwide Series race.
They anticipate a 4:40PM end to the Cup race and say they are going to empty the track and clear the grandstands.
So, that is the plan. Nationwide ticker holders will be let in as soon as the grandstands are clear.
Did I mention that should be fun to watch?
JD
I've been going to Richmond for nearly 10 years. Some years, both spring and fall, sometimes just one of them, but always did both races (haven't been in a couple years due to rising hotel prices...) It vacates remarkably fast, and that's without them really trying. And then you're all stuck in the traffic, lol. And the parking lot is not all paved, so that will be tricky and muddy.
Some fans 'hang out' but their numbers are not great. Most of them want to go to VL and watch all the photos, usually the die-hards. The SPEED set is outside the track. I've never seen a lot of drunks just hanging out.
But what I'm saying is, every stadium and arena in the US probably now has plans in place for situations that might arise--what if you had a bomb threat and had to vacate, search and let people back in? I'm just saying that I bet they have a plan (whether it will work or not...we shall see.) Another thing is, a lot of the inside workers are released with 10 laps to go to help with other things, they just wouldn't do that this time.
Personally, I think it's foolish and I wouldn't try. But like I said, ISC=greed.
I'm going to love seeing Nascar clear the track, then watch as the NW ticket holders line up to have their tickets scanned and are let in. Talk about direction!
OK Guys, this is not that complicated.
First, the reason for emptying the stands is that not everyone that attends the Cup Race has a ticket for the NW Race. If you let non-paid Cup Race viewers to stay for free, how do you decide who sits in the seat the NW ticket holder holds? How do you justify to the NW ticket holder they had to pay and the Cup viewer doesn't? Hence you have to empty the stands, Kabish?
Now they could have the Cup Race ticket holders that have a NW Race immediately reenter after passing through the exit. Then allow the NW Race Only Ticket holders enter after, as all seats are assigned.
If RaceDay is 2 hours that means Wendy can do our favorite part- Walking the grid. JD do you know if there is any type of contract issue preventing her for doing this if ESPN has no pre-race show?
Tracy stay safe and dry!
scanned? Vicki, they weren't that high tech last time I was there, unless they've upgraded. I know they don't at Dover and the Glen, also ISC tracks. They just tear your stub, the old fashioned way!
NASCAR really didn't have a choice in postponing the races. I don't think the tv ratings will improve since they are competing with both baseball and some football. I was also wondering if Speed will change the time of viewing the ARCA race on Sunday; maybe showing it on another day,like they do with replays of Sprint races. I wish they would replay the Nationwide races.
anon 9:07, just an FYI, only the front stretch/sides are assigned, the rest in General admission, but I don't think it changes the scenario much. I wouldn't call it uncomplicated though...
Boy, this is going to be a cluster ..... I hope someone will be taping the mass exodus so we TV viewers can watch the action. Where is everyone going to park if both series are running on the same day?
I read on another site that the bathroom situation there leaves alot to be desired. Post race drunks vs pre race drunks, otta be fun. Bring your Depends race fans.
@ Rockin Rich, I am glad the race is starting early, just like the good ol' days. I'm ready to race at 10am, because I'm a true blue fan, not a casual viewer.
@Glenc1, LVMS scans their tix, don't know if all SMI tracks do. At least Bruton is in the 21st century.
dot, they have lots of restrooms just outside the track area, and a lot inside--not an issue any more than any arena. Well, except the doors stick sometimes, lol, I almost got trapped in there once. *Outside* the track where everyone parks, yes, and it can be disgusting; I won't even go there, lol.
it doesn't surprise me that SMI is ahead in a technical way...I don't even think ISC's tickets have bar codes on them.
I am 99% sure that my tickets were scanned at Charlotte last year.
Still working on the SPEED and ESPN stuff. Looks like RaceDay at 11AM, no pre-race and straight into the Cup event at 1PM and then 6:30PM for Countdown and then the Nationwide Series at 7PM.
SPEED's Sunday night stuff stays the same.
JD
about the parking...while there are not a ton of people going to the NW race only, it will be something they'll have to plan. If you don't get there by noonish on a regular race day, you're out in the fairgrounds with a shuttle. The convention center parking I think you can get with a shuttle for $5, so if you don't care about the tailgating, it's not a big deal. But just *getting* the cars parked on a normal day is kinda nightmarish...especially after they added seats (there was talk of paving it all, don't think they ever did...). But this time hopefully the fans won't be as concerned about the tailgating since it's not a night race (people argue with the troopers trying to get more space for their little kingdoms...) Did you know you can rent your own porta-potty for about $100, lol? The stuff you learn...
Anyways, I know we've gotten a bit 'off track' from broadcasting...appreciate JD's indulgence. I do hope they show us some of the transition on TV. I have friends there but I don't know if they're staying for NW.
No way ESPN moves NFL Sunday Countdown on the opening weekend for a NASCAR race.
For a NASCAR pre-race show that is...
Doing what Nascar has proposed will be a logistical nightmare. Once, during a race at Michigan a number of years ago, they had to clear the stands because of severe weather. It seemed to take forever. With these events, what does one do about parking? Where do they park the people coming in for the Nationwide race, seeing as probably all the parking will be taken by the Cup ticket holders. This will be a nightmare for the local law enforcement, hoping they will be available seeing how these storms could reek havoc on the area and their services might be needed elsewhere.
OK, here goes...
No pre-race show for the Cup race. Event coverage starts at 1PM. Can you say NFL Countdown?
Still waiting on RaceDay confirmation, lots of logistics going on right now.
Tradin' Paint, NASCAR Performance and NASCAR in a Hurry airing as scheduled on Saturday from 12:30 - 2PM.
Trackside on Sat at 11:30PM in place of Victory Lane. That show will air on Sunday at 8PM as usual.
More to follow...
JD
Disney should be forced to air the Cup race on ABC whenever it runs. It is a slap in the face to NASCAR fans to have a WNBA "game" keeping the race from millions of viewers without cable. If it was a real sport, then maybe, but this is the WNBA. Come on....
I think anon is right--I can't see racing over football happening, how ever repetitive all the pregame shows are...
my team already won this week so I'm good...lol.
darbar, not sure if our posts crossed...but it is an issue. I'm thinking maybe 75% of NW fans will be at the Cup race first--wild guess.
They do get cops from all over the area--hadn't really thought about that. It will depend on how bad the rain slams them. But everyone understands how much this race means to the local economy.
WNBA is a sport - like it or not.
They have a contract to air a game on Sunday. Besides a NBA game is only two hours vs NASCAR at four hours.
There are two issues with the crowd exiting the track.
First of all where are they going to go? I suspect that a good majority of the people watching the Cup race have nationwide tickets as well so it isn't as if the crowd will be actually leaving the track premesis.
Secondly, with that being established, people have a tendency to congregate near the entrance/exit so the first people out will have to be almost herded away from the exit/entrance in order to make room for the remaining crowd inside to exit as well.
Fortunately they have 2.5 hours to figure this out.
wouldn't a NNS ticket-holder want to get to the track early - perhaps hours early to take in the flavor, buy souveniers and have a hot dog and a beer. With this scenario that seems impossible. Interesting.
haus, I think most will go to their cars--the parking lot will be chaos, but that's normal, lol. The shuttle people--I'm *assuming* (however dangerously...) that they are going to tell people to go to area X Y or Z. There are some places--the souvie trailers (outside the track if they're not already headed out...) and the vendor areas, the amplitheater, there are also the clubs--air conditioned, and they're only used for paid events so after the Cup race they may be available.
anon 10:30...These areas are all outside the ticketed area of the track, so if they really want to they can hang out there while they're waiting for the Cup people to exit.
they are along the frontstretch, but outside the fence.
New TV schedules for Saturday and Sunday are up on the right side of the main page.
Thanks for your patience. More info when it becomes available.
JD
thx jd...this is kind of fun talking about possible logistic issues...who would've imagined that on a friday evening!
thanks for the schedule JD. If I were ABC, I might use that extra time to preview some of their new shows, since it's the beginning of the season. But it'll probably be reruns.
Hopefully this is okay, but if anyone wants to get the gist of the facility, go to rir.com and look for seating charts, facility map. You can get the lay of the land.
Hey all, there is a new post will the new TV line-ups (some changed) for Saturday and Sunday.
Refresh your browser or click on the Daly Planet logo at the top of the main page.
Thanks for hangin in there with me!
JD
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