This is the final TNT race of 2010 and the six race package has been an interesting mix of television moments. As usual, there are positives and negatives in every large scale TV production.
Chicagoland Speedway yielded an awful race on the Nationwide Series side Friday night. NASCAR manipulated the outcome with several questionable debris caution flags that ultimately wrecked a lot of cars and handed the win to Kyle Busch in a confusing final restart. If that is the sport NASCAR wants to present, TNT is going to have a long night.
The Sprint Cup drivers are now divided into three camps. First, the teams already positioned squarely in the Chase. Second, the teams on the bubble and finally those teams with nothing to lose who will take any chance to win. This is a familiar scenario in the new points format.
Lindsay Czarniak will host the pre-race Countdown to Green show and she will set the tone. Either TNT will continue to look at the season as a whole or simply concentrate its time and effort on this final race. That should be an interesting decision.
Kyle Petty and Larry McReynolds have been solid together on the pre-race show. They respect each other on the air and McReynolds seems to finally have awakened from his self-imposed ban on saying anything perceived to be negative about the sport. Petty brings out opinions in whomever he works with and that is a wonderful trait.
TNT's pre-race features have been a hit. Pride of NASCAR has been so much more than the garbage offered by FOX and Wally's World is a humorous way of getting fans familiar with the various tracks. Having one Cup driver as a guest live before the race has also been a simple but effective tool for TNT.
Adam Alexander has been solid in his information and his comments, but he has not shown the natural spark of excitement that veteran TV play-by-play announcers need. This has put Petty and Wally Dallenbach Jr. in the position of trying to add emotion and excitement to the telecasts.
While Daytona put Alexander in the position of directing traffic for the Wide Open coverage, this Saturday in Chicagoland the telecast will return to full-screen commercials and the regular format. If the Nationwide Series race is any indication, Alexander is going to have his work cut-out for him where excitement is concerned.
TNT's Ralph Sheheen filled-in last season after the departure of Bill Weber. Many thought that Sheheen would again be the choice in the TV booth for his natural excitement and enthusiasm. Instead, he has been having a super summer on pit road.
Sheheen's interview with an angry Kyle Busch should serve as an example of exactly how to handle the high-profile and volatile Sprint Cup Series drivers. So often, they are allowed to make angry or sarcastic comments without being called out on the spot. Sheheen showed how that should be handled live on national TV.
Marty Snider and Matt Yocum have flown under the radar for TNT. They have been in the right spot at the right time and provided the right information. The glaring problem on this team is Phil Parsons. From his floundering interview with Kevin Harvick in Pocono to his constantly congratulating drivers on the air, Parsons was simply the wrong choice for this assignment.
Chicagoland should give TNT an opportunity to follow several storylines and use the content presented in the pre-race show as a theme. The long periods of green flag racing at this track can leave a TV team flat-footed without stories to follow that were presented earlier to viewers.
Luckily, the track makes great TV pictures, especially after sunset. It will be up to the director to keep the camera wide and show packs of cars racing. Otherwise, racing on this track winds-up looking like a Goodyear tire test or practice session.
RaceBuddy will be offered for the final time on NASCAR.com without charge. This online addition has been a big positive for the coverage. The Turner Sports folks are still at an impasse with FOX and ESPN. There are currently no plans to offer any online applications of this type for the rest of the Sprint Cup season.
The "extended" post-race shows on NASCAR.com have just not worked out. By the time fans who are viewing on TV got to the computer, powered it up and logged on the program was basically over. There was also no ability to rewind and view it again.
There is little doubt that to solve the problem of attracting and keeping the younger fans NASCAR must move in an online direction immediately. How and when this will be done is still a mystery now four years into the current TV contract.
This post will serve to host your comments before, during and after the Sprint Cup Series race from Chicagoland. To add your TV or media-related comment, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting.
Thanks for taking the time out of your weekend to drop by The Daly Planet.
440 comments:
1 – 200 of 440 Newer› Newest»I guess 'Ole DW didn't do his due diligence in even thinking about throwing his latest "what if" out there. Ray Evernham is under a no-compete clause with RPM and still owns a stake of that team. He has been trying to get out of it for the last year or so but as far as I still know, he is stuck.
SPEED really throwing that "what if" about moving the #5 around really goes to show someone is puppeteering this whole story.
Did I mention RD is too long?
I dont understand why nascar thinks that manipulating the outcomes of races makes everything better and pleases the fans. I guess they are only concerned about making Michael Waltrip happy since he seems to like the WWE-ification of nascar
You have a personal axe to grind with Phill Parsons or something? I think he pretty good!
Anon-I don't think JD has a thing against Phil. Alot of us think he's waaay over his head on pit road & has no business being there, because of being an owner. JMO, of course.
I have been a big fan of Phil on the CWTS for the last four years. I hope you read some of those columns on TDP.
TNT selecting Phil for this assignment was the worst conflict of interest in recent TV memory.
The owner of start and park Cup teams doing live interviews on Cup races.
IMHO, Parsons and TNT have both taken a big shot to their credibility for this move.
Think of how many other hard working NASCAR TV folks could have filled this position.
Parsons should have been let go after his Pocono interview with Kevin Harvick. That was a moment that TNT wishes it could take back.
Sometimes in life things work out well and sometimes they don't. In my opinion, this experiment has not.
JD
I sure hope Vince McMahon stays out of the tower tonight.
Happy Race Day Planeteers <3
@anon 5:39--like Pammmmmm said he's in over his head. He's not an effective interviewer. The JoLo/Happy incident at Pocono proves that. He's out of his element. If he were doing the Kyle interview last week instead of Ralph, Phil would have let Kyle get away with his smart a$$ answer and left it alone. Ralph pushed to get a REAL answer. Phil isn't capable of doing that. And Kurt also made a shot against TNT in the post-race and Ralph turned the interview around. Phil can't do that. He's interviews since have shown that all he does are softball questions, nothing real or substantial. He hasn't done anything to attempt to redeem himself after screwing up the Happy interview after Pocono. Not that a redemption would change a lot of thngs but at least it would show he learned from it and has learned to ask REAL questions. Even if he weren't a car "owner" I'd feel the same. He's great doing the Pick 'em Ups broadcast but doesn't belong playing Reporter Boy for TNT or any other network.
Yep, JD, that's what I figured. You had someone else in mind for the pit job and now take it upon yourself to blast Phil. nice
Lord helps us, it must be tough to be a conspiracy theory person all the time.
Phil Parsons owning a team has nothing to do with his broadcast abilities good or not so good. You have blurred the line on this issue.
Announcers need to be a part of the sport to have knowledge and respect.
People respect Phil, and all the teams that have a hard time in an expensive sport dominated by BIG money teams with BIG sponsors.
NASCAR condones it because without the poor teams there would not be 43 race cars starting the event, as a "full field" as outlined in TV contracts, thus no TV if you only had 20 cars out there. AND who would watch. Be thankful these teams with low dollars show up and try.
There are a lot of ball players that never start in football and baseball and basketball as they just sit on the bench.
There is no difference.
I can't wait for tonight. TNT has been doing a fantastic job and Chicago offers up some of the best racing on the Cup circuit.
Racing Fool,
I didn't blur the line. My column was titled "The line in the sand" because we were discussing where that was in NASCAR TV.
Phil's teams are not there to race, as The NASCAR Insiders blog has said time and time again, he is only there for profit and that is his business.
As I said, he has been an great help to the truck series but I feel having an active owner as a pit reporter in a race where his cars are starting and parking is too much.
That my opinion.
JD-what I especially liked was anon TOTALLY skipped what Gymmie & I said-I just adore being ignored! ;)
Yes there is. This is NOT a stick and ball sport. The analogy fails right then and there.
Parsons has not been good this year on pit road and it has nothing to do with him being a team owner or not. Phil is a much better booth personality, pit road is too hectic and crazy for him to be down there trying to manage it IMO.
Secondly, he IS a Cup team owner, he needs to worry about running his race team instead of doubling up on the paychecks.
oops, "that's my opinion."
If you are currently posting as Anon, it only takes a minute to get a blue blogspot name.
That way folks can reference the comments as the posting continues.
Thanks!
JD
After the pointed remarks by Matt Kenseth today that played on RaceDay, Dave Moody is reporting that indeed Robbie Reiser may return to the crew chief role for the #17 car this season.
Guess when Matt speaks, Jack listens!
JD, look at the time stamp on Moody's report...
That came out before Matt ever said anything to the press.
Those were strong remarks though.
JD I do respect your opinion but----OK, then let's stop running the bus over a good guy and a good announcer for having another business in racing and showing up and making the field.
I wish I could do that and so would a lot of others.
K Conway finished in the top 20 last week after running a S and P for years.
We need race cars on the track to keep viewers interested, Besides it has been going on since NASCAR began, Bill France ran a whole field of poor teams once in Talladega.
It is not a new concept.
Hasn't Robbie Reiser been in charge of overall competition at Rousch? Wouldn't that mean he is, to a great extent, responsible for the cars they are fielding? Is this really the guy to change things for Matt?
I agree! There are two kinds of S&P teams. That's what rubs the Cup guys the wrong way. Parsons has no intention of racing, only taking the cash and running.
When this was first announced, there was a lot of media questions about why Parsons. I am told he was suggested by the SPEED guys.
Like I said, he is great for the trucks and has been for years!
JD
Sally, he is the head honcho! That is why it was surprising.
I think TNT did a great job. Cmon, we are talking about pleasing a whole helluva lot of people here across the US and abroad with coverage. Every single person isn't going to be satisfied with something on ANY show (including myself). In retrospect, they had a very pretty and SMART lead reporter, championship crew chief and a former driver with good people skills and experience (Kyle knows what it is to win a race). I thought it all worked really well this time around for TNT. If you aren't convinced, then consider this at least: Kenny Wallace on Raceday is yelling his head off at you week after week. He also wears funny hats. Seems like a no-brainer to me.
The whole Phil Parsons thing is sorta over my head as far as conflict of interest. Please consider also that some viewers don't really care either. I watch Phil in the truck series, so, I already thought his reporting was good. As for the rest of it, I'll leave the others to debate it.
The conspiracy theories of rigging races is not even worth talking about it. In fact, it's so sad for the sport each time those people get the attention for what they say.
Oh, by the way Ray Evernham said he is going to be on Wind Tunnel Sunday.
Already DW and Chad Knaus on that show, so perhaps Ray is going to be talking about the Hendrick Motorsports rumors!
Ray and Kasey in 2011? That would be interesting.
Rita,
Did you watch the NNS race last night?
Wishing everyone a great race tonight!
I will be sorry to see TNT leave. I will miss their coverage.
Anyone watching on DISH? Sound off sync again?
Interesting yes. Likely though?
Excited to see the Kulwicki piece!
just wondering where u get ur info. happen to know parsons and his partner thru the business and he is busting it trying to find sponsorship and has raced everytime they have had a sponsor. i think it's smart of those guys to try not to go broke while trying to build a team.
If the "conspiracy theory person" comment was directed at me, my Vince McMahon post was made in jest.
But think about it. There's not much difference in the way NASCAR manipulated last night's Nationwide race and the way Vince scripts his storylines.
Again, just saying with a smile on my face, and I hope tonight's race doesn't have the same kind of ending.
Watching on Dish-it looks good!
I'm sorry to ask, but I missed the Harvick/Parsons interview at Pocono. Can someone please tell me briefly what happened?
THANKS
No robbie, not at you. Last night's race really shook up some folks.
If they pull that tonight it can only hurt the sport.
It also cost some owners a lot of money.
JD
Anon 6:43PM,
You can skip over to the NASCAR Insiders blog and search for Parsons. They have the answer for you straight from the crew perspective.
Nice AK piece, remember the "Underbird?" That was awesome.
Learned alot about Alan in Humpy's book too. Found out who came up with the victory lap idea ;)
I was lucky enough to go to the victory party that night at the hotel in Atlanta.
It was a blast, but he was a very different kind of guy. Driven is an understatement.
That must have been one unforgettable night JD.
I read the same kind of stuff your talking about
DW suggested JJ name the baby Victoria Lane Johnson? LOL! That's hilarious.
At least Lindsay didn't call Kyle a dumb*** LOL
ESPN saying RPM plans for Allmendiger and Menard to return next season.
That was pretty funny last night.
Do we have a clue who might have said that? I couldn't tell..
Not me! I listened to it and could not tell. Really almost had to be Rusty or Andy though.
I remember when DW joked about naming his firstborn Victoria Lane about 22 years ago!!!
Interesting Tweet from SBNation's Jeff Gluck:
"That Kyle Busch interview was a load of crap. How does anyone watch these pre-race shows?"
Good moves by RPM to keep them both. Now to keep sponsors and Kenny Francis!
Kyle Petty, LOL!!!!
I can't believe I missed that ESPN remark though
Seriously! That is funny.
Gluck part 2: Why was it crap? B/c they go sooo far out of their way to not ruffle his feathers. "Oh, please don't be mad at us, Kyle. We are kissing up!"
Yeah DW said that on SPEED last night, he has been pushing every driver that has a daughter to call them that.
I gotta say 1 thing about Gluck, he sure ain't boring!
He reminds me of Marty Smith 5 years ago....remember "Agree with Marty"? lol
Kevin couldn't have won at CL in 2000, he wasn't in Cup then. Lindsay is wrong..
I think you and Jeff Gluck both have agenda's and could stand to take it down a notch to be crediable
two words: spell check
Gluck has done a good job with that blog. I don't agree with him a lot, but he has sure worked it hard this season.
robbie, see who I was talking about now? :)
Yeah, credit to him for being honest.
I rarely agree with him too, his Cassey Mears rants are funny though
Start and Park predictions early:
#36, 87, 71, 32. MV will have to update on the 13.
JD's favorite team DNQ'ed so no worries about them! LOL
Jim Noble working very hard on RaceBuddy. Talk about an unsung hero.
Sorry that this is TNT's last race. They've done a good job. I really like the Pride of Nascar segment - so nice to see some of the history of the sport portrayed in a good way.
Larry Mac is so annoying with "how smart NASCAR is with everything" talking about the chase.
Personally I hate the chase and wish they would ditch the whole thing.
Nice piece on Mr. Kulwicki! I wasn't watching when he won but I still tear up when I see the footage of his hauler leaving :(. It must have been the longest drive home ever for Peter Rabbit :(.
@Pammmmmmm---yes I noticed how we were ignored as well
@anon 6:45--Phil asked Happy to "tell us about the contact with the 20 car" and Happy gave his answer. Then INSTEAD of following up on this answer about the contact, Phil goes something like "so it was a pretty good points day". If you go to YouTube and type in Joey Logano Kevin Harvick Pocono the videos will come up. JD's picky about links otherwise I'd link it for you.The shorter timed ones 2 ish minutes has JoLo's interview first and then follows into Happy's. The longer ones have the confrontation first and then the interviews.
RaceBuddy pictures are awesome!
Thanks Gymmmmmie, I totally missed that question.
Great googly moogly. 25 minutes before green and the stands are 2/3 empty. Every time they do a shot over Kyle's shoulder, you can see huge stretches of unoccupied seats. Are they all still tailgating?
With regards to Larry and Kyle's discussion about Chase changes, I think the easiest change that gives more drivers a chance is to have a separate CHASE points system that enables the Chase drivers to compete against themselves.
Give the highest-finishing driver 100 points, next highest 90, so on down. If a Chase driver actually wins the race, you give him 125 points or something. I know that having two points systems gets complicated, but if you're going to have Chase drivers and non-Chase drivers, you may as well have two points systems in play.
Perhaps the points system needs to be changed in general, but that's a discussion for another time...
Did people who wanted tickets to the Cup race still have to buy Indy car/truck tickets this year?
RB showing rain bands in distance...that's comforting =\
BK, I try to stick to TV and media topics....but I was told they are asking about elimination formats.
That would probably mean that one car is out after every race in terms of being in the Chase.
Everyone would still race, but it would come down to only two or three cars being able to win the Chase in the finale.
Not a fav concept of mine!
The whole playoff thing is so ridiculous when every car runs every race. What a dorky idea!
I would like to see Ray and Jeff in 2011!
I don't like Phil on pit road - he doesn't do a good job. Didn't mind him in the booth in the trucks
Wish I knew what they wanted to accomplish with the Chase changes. Not very clear to me right now.
yw JD <3
Yes I agree Jim has done a great job & tries to update us on Twitter when he's inbetween working RB. He's really nice! I like him :).
Wow, listen to that anthem!
Kyle Petty was a great choice for the AK piece. Kyle gave a very touching tribute to Alan at the memorial service in 1993.
Nice anthem!!!
Wow! That's an anthem!
WOW - did that fire up the fans or what ??
Okay, that anthem rocks!!! I don't think he even needed the mike. Well paced, and he didn't try to 'personalize' it too much. He did drag out 'wave' and 'free' a bit much, but 9.8 out of 10.
Man that crowd was JACKED for that anthem!
Chip's face was priceless!
Palmetto, I think he was waiting for the flyover. See...even the crowd at the track appreciates a rousing version of the anthem!!
WOW. That guy has a solid set of pipes.
There will be NO negative comments on that Anthem on Sirius come Monday.
JD, they want to "manufacture" more excitement - the same way they did last night and it bites them in the butt each and every time.
The "impact" comment in BZF's intereview really got me -- I want to watch races with a legitimate finish and a full season champion at the end of the season, not the farce that NASCAR has made it.
Yeah JD, basically they want to recreate 1992, 1996, 1997 and 2004 every single season. Its just not possible IMO without changing the entire format year after year.
Growing sick of it personally.
Sorry, but that was not the "best there ever is" ... And the guy missed some of the notes and held some too long / short ... and changed speed ...
Dustin Long, NASCAR reporter:
In my 12 years of covering #NASCAR, that might have been the best Anthem I've heard & the flyover arrived perfectly. What a sight.
Sally
@nateryan on twitter said you had to buy weekend tickets to see today's race and he has heard that next year they will sell individual tickets to the races next year.
Told that is the guy who sings at the Blackhawks game and the crowd cheers all the way through.
I know when I contacted them about tickets for the Cup race a few years ago and they told me I had to buy tickets to races I didn't want, I told them they were crazy, and they would never get my business. Has anyone noticed that Bristol is advertising tickets for the August race?
I think we are too picky about the anthem sometimes, was it perfect? probably not but it was good enough who cares?! The people loved it, most of us here loved it!
beats american idol tryout day! lol
The best ever? Including the kids at Bristol? :-)
Looks like the seats filled in. Glad to see it; looking at empty grandstands is depressing.
David, me, too. For me, the chase has made all the fun go out of the races.
Tia, it may not have been perfect but its a darn sight better than a lot of the so called singers we've been subjected to in the past couple of years. No idol contestants please!
No single race tickets sold? Wow...
David, did you catch that 'Real Housewife' that butchered the song a few weeks ago? Right up there with Roseanne Barr's memorable performance. One of the worst of all time.
Of course, it was an awesome anthem. He sang it 50+ times this year before Chicago Blackhawk games. That would be the Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks. Not as good as at the Madhouse on Madison but leave it to the NHL to do the anthem right. ;)
Gina, who was the guy who forgot the words?
Gina, there were lots of years of blowouts but that is part of the business I felt. It made the epic battles that much better!
Plus in a blowout season at least you knew other guys would still get discussion, the battle for the top 10 and guys just racing for wins made it interesting. Now you know when the Chase starts, 12 guys will get 80% of the coverage
The best this season was at Richmond ... with the USMC's Commandant's Own ...
Palmetto, yeah. Those are the ones I think we can blast lol
Nice touch on the roof of the #1 "Big Mac"
"And now, national recording artist..."
Guarantees a bad anthem every time.
Great anthem! Loved it
BK - I agree with your thoughts about the chase -- stop tinkering with it and just have the chasers have their own point system.
If they keep expanding the field to make sure someone Nascar WANTS in it, it just makes them look stupid - in that case, go back to everyone races for the championship and decide it after the full season - no CHASE required
Kenny Wallace just said this on twitter -
I am a Positive Person!..BUT i have just witnessed a very very disturbing sight!..The Grandstands here at Chicago are real empty..WHY?
Charlie, lots of the media reporters are saying Chicagoland made folks buy two days tickets.
So, you could not just take Saturday and go to the race. Looks like a pretty big goof right now.
JD, Richmond did that for a while too -- you had to buy a package that included IRL and WoO tickets. A lot of $ for races I didn't want.
Best anthem ever? No. Best Nascar prerace anthem in years? No competition. Most of the time, Nascar anthems are to singing as S&P is to racing.
Face it...all the changes trying to make racing like football haven't helped things. With the COT and a less than compelling track, why go?
Gina - I'm more critical because I'm a classically trained singer ... and one of the songs we HAD to learn was the National Anthem ...
I unfollowed Kenny Wallace on twitter he was driving me crazy with his tweets. I think this race will be a lot like the NW last night boring. I wonder who the S&P's will be. Like Ralph on pit road. Hope my favs do well too. Just walked in the house with the end of the anthem so missed it. Didn't read any complaints.
Shoot, JD, I remember which one you mean, but I don't know if I even knew who he was. And it was so forgettable that I have blanked it out.
David, yes, I agree, its just like some years the superbowl is awful - usually the NFC/AFC games are far better.
NASCAR is so determined to manipulate it that they are making the actual championship irrelevant. It isn't WHY I watch racing.
You know, I'm still relieved at the start of these races when I don't have to turn down the sound to miss the 'B-B-B' from DW! ;-)
Jesse! Man, talk about a deer in the headlights.
Kenny Wallace treated such sacrilege? Isn't he afraid that NASCAR will pull his hard card for saying something like that? (snark)
7 laps in ... Can we see cars outside of the top 5 ?!?!?!?
I thought NASCAR was on the right track and making progress with the changes made. But another change to the chase system will alienate fans even more. AND if they were to take a race from Martinsville to Kansas they have a real PR nightmare.
People are getting bored already? ARCA at 9 with Schrader in the booth *hint hint*
Tia - LOL - sorry - then the folks who do even worse than that must really hurt your ears. They hurt MINE and I can't carry a tune in a bucket.
Someone w/the last name Montgomery was drunk when he did the anthem a few yrs ago. Had 3 names, like a serial killer..;)
So how many laps of follow the leader racing do you think we'll see tonight?
Will it end in a crapshoot again?
As the wheel turns
Hearing Cali and Atlanta are on the chopping block for going down to one race!
I think Denny Hamlin and Jeff Gluck need to have a twitter war while Denny is racing. That'd spice things up for the fans! lol
New Hampshire too
RB doesn't seem to have leaderboard up and running or I can't access it. What a disappointment.
Did Kyle Petty just flub the name of the pre-race show he's a part of?
Gina - Yeppers ... Sadly, too many times it feels like my ears are bleeding when I hear that song ...
Pamm - John Michael Montgomery ... and he was whacked out on pain pills ... not booze ...
;-)
I heard Cali as well to be replaced by Kansas. Would Vegas get a second date if Atlanta lost one?
Anon - you bet and I will be one of them. We have had tickets for both races at M'ville for years now.
I had my own personal boycott of watching the races at Fontona after they took the Southern 500 from Darlington, so if they take a race from Martinsville, I will add whichever race it gets moved to to my list of "dont watch".
And it should have been Kenny Wallace "tweeted". darn glasses
New Hampshire too - Las Vegas will be the opening race for the Chase in 2011.
Problems with leaderboard on RB. I have rebooted 3 times and still nothing.
Hmmm, thanks for the reminder about the race on Speed -- I'm sure it will be a lot more fun to watch than this one if it is anything like the N'wide race last night.
tia-TY!
I would rather see the season wind up in Las Vegas than Homestead, but the Vegas weather in Nov is tricky.
California >> Kansas
Atlanta >> Kentucky
New Hampshire >> Las Vegas
BET ON IT !!
JD, Nascar has neveer let weather influence their decision on giving race dates.
I'm guessing there's only about half a dozen guys in the race tonight ...
How about letting us know about the other guys?? Like someone who's fallen at least 7 spots in 17 laps ...
I'm thinking I should've cut my losses and watched the Scooby Doo marathon ... :-(
I vote for Cali - the racing at Atlanta is really good. We went to the labor day race last year and it was great.
Adam Alexander saying that Johnson is out for a Saturday evening drive does NOT make me want to stay tuned
Ohhhh the ARCA race on SPEED could pull a few viewers over there.
JD I agree lol, I live in Phoenix so I'd go to Vegas if it was the last race.
I hear it all hinges around the Ford naming rights on the race in Homestead though
Nemecheck, off
ISC is not going to give up the season ending race at Homestead in favor of an SMI track.
tia - ruh-row
I think it's pathetic that KC will get another race date because they are building a casino.
I thought that Ford had bought the naming rights at Homestead for something like 10 years?
ISC is the one talking about it!
They want the final race weekend in Vegas, then the banquet all in one big swoosh!
Homestead would certainly be in the Chase and keep a second date.
I think finally leaving NYC for the banquet was a really smart deal.
Gina, good one! Told that is the key issue.
They are getting it cause the France family runs both ISC and NASCAR. No conflict there.
Sally, I agree. Why should that be the determining factor? that means that people aren't really going to the race, they are going to the casino - how's that good for the sport?
Oh wait, that track is owned by the FRANCE family so of course, $$$$$ talks - never mind people in the seats watching a race
Vegas is not an ISC track.
Told that what ISC is building across from DIS is a monster.
This is a snoozer thus far.
Did you guys get RaceBuddy leaderboards back yet? I am not on that at the moment.
Typical race from a track that is NOT a cookie cutter... according to Nascar and all the booth monkeys.
Building ? Nothing but their "Crystal Palace" offices. The rest fell through.
No leaderboard..and RB is freezing up frequently for me tonight.
That's when you know just how bad things really are. When NASCAR will entertain finishing the season at a Bruton track!
JD, we went to Homestead a couple of times for the final race and had a really good time, but from NJ, it is one expensive trip, Vegas would be fun
Caution
Did she wind up buying the entire mall?
26 car in the wall
Perfecr scenario would be final race at Daytona. They need a date change from July 4th. But the glitch is the restrictor plate racing.
I like Hotlanta, Cali can lose a date
I am so glad TNT has that "Pit Out" graphic because otherwise I would have no idea where pit road ended.
If FOX did that they would get raked over the coals.
Did they not show those pitstops live?
The mall ? That is a longstanding rumor in Daytona. No truth to it.
holy mackeral - pirahna 3D! be still my heart
the stops were live
I like Fontana ...
Martinsville can lose a race ... the October race to be exact ...
I don't like Kansas or Vegas ...
I don't want the final race at a restrictor plate track - I don't think Dega should even be in the chase. Too much random chance on that to use to determine things.
tia - you don't like short tracks?
AHA! Leaderboard is up on RB. Video still frozen.
Wally, that would be the 56 car
Anon 8:11PM,
Give it a rest. We killed TNT for that since 2007 and they took almost every bit of it away.
Hope it all goes next season.
Hey Sally, are you on the edge of your seat yet? I am SOOOO bored by this race
Leaderboard is up and running on RB finally but my guy is in 27th I'm concerned.
26, 13, 32 off.
Kyle Busch extremely unhappy with his car
Gina...I'm considering taking time to make dinner soon. Have to keep moving to stay awake!
Last night was brutal. Marty Reid pulled out all the stops and he and Bestwick could not even make it exciting.
Fans are saying that there were no "Saturday only" tickets. The two day tickets were $300!
Wow. I paid not much more than that for primo seats at Bristol!
LOL - Sally - you probably have time to make a 5 course meal before it gets interesting.
So Chicago has only one race. There are lots of empty seats. When Kansas gets a second date it will dilute that fan base. Bad move.
I say strip the NW Chicago race, let this race stand alone or if you must package it with IRL. Run Iowa twice with NW having them there this weekend.
How many people are going to space that truck race out tomorrow with SPEED having it on the backburner?
Mears off
That's what i'm thinking, Gina! I can just tune back in for the caution with 20 to go!
Wow, $300 for 2 days with no one day choice.
I guess we know why Jonathan went for the weekend now
I have a feeling we are really going to see some changes for next season. They can't have another year like this one.
Absolutely Sally - I predict we will have at least one GWC attempt tonight.
NASCAR has to make people forget that 95% of the race was a bore if it has an exciting end.
Battle for the lead, lets go to commercial! Brilliant I tell you!!!
JD, as long as nascar makes decision on race dates based on 'demographics' rather than which track are capable of producing close races, they are doomed.
Let's blame it all on the economy.
Well, Adam isn't as good at PXP as Marty and Allen are, so tonight with an even longer race, it isn't going to be pretty
can we all agree, please lets reduce the length of these races?
Aren't they somewhat limited on what races can move where due to TV contract? I would assume each network has certain races it is promised, so the brickyard for instance couldn't move to this week because espn wants it..
Bozo brings up a good point. How will schedule changes affect TV contracts that exist?
NASCAR doesn't know how to make a good decision regarding the schedule.
LOL on the economy comment. Yeah, how many times did we hear that one?
JD - I have a whole list of things I would change if I were in charge of NASCAR - starting with the TV partners.
Im good with the race length. Pocono could drop 100 miles though ;)
I think the overall schedule is too long across the board and tracks that cannot produce a good turnout need to have dates stripped.
I would mandate all new dates be required to sell out within first 2 seasons or risk having date removed. Regardless ownership group. That way it would take the "France bias" out of the equation. Granted for that to happen alot of egos would have to be swallowed.
Too many of these tracks have too many seats too =\
Things tend to be a little more flexible in TV land when the ratings are lower and it's not going well. Should be interesting.
So, we don't really get a ''thru the field', we get a 'thru the front of the field we want to bother to show you?
Chicagoland has been selling tickets in packages for years. They say they're going to change every year but they never do.
Foolish.
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