Friday should be a very interesting day in Daytona. NASCAR is talking about trying some new drafting techniques after once again the day closed on Thursday's practice sessions with the two-car "tandem style" drafting going on between teammates.
It will be 9AM ET again for the online portion of the coverage at SPEED.com. There is a link on the webpage specifically for iPhones and iPads, so thank you SPEED. John Roberts hosts the day while Rick Allen and Jeff Hammond will call the early session. Steve Byrnes, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds will handle the afternoon 1PM ET session on SPEED TV.
The difference on Thursday between the online and TV coverage was striking. The casual and less formal online style really seemed to serve NASCAR, while the standard one segment of program and then another commercial style on SPEED TV was solid on information, but tough to take after the non-commercial streaming show.
There is also a link to the live streaming over on NASCAR.com and for those of you on Twitter, the announcers are taking questions and offering behind the scenes pictures and comments before, during and after the sessions.
Friday will be a good day for TV and media-related comments as NASCAR tries to come to grips once again with a possible season of "tandem racing" on the restrictor plate tracks. What NASCAR might change and how the teams may react will be playing out live during this coverage.
Big thanks to SPEED for stepping up and hosting this testing "combo platter" of online and TV coverage once again. The network has a new interim president in FOX veteran Scott Ackerson and he should be making his presence felt in the NASCAR programming and production category this season.
We will use this post for your comments on the Friday coverage and all the media and NASCAR happenings coming from Daytona. To add your comment, just click the comment button below. This blog auto-opens on android and iPhones, no app needed! Thanks for stopping by.
56 comments:
NICE taking off work tonight just so I can get up early for the 8am cdt internet broadcast! Lets do this
Why does NASCAR hate the 2 car tandem? It's infinitely more interesting than the 3 wide pack we have been beaten down with since restrictor plates came along.
During the Tony Stewart / Danica Patrick press conference today a reporter put forth as fact that fans hate the 2 car tandem. Danica asked if the fans did indeed hate it and that she personally found it interesting to watch. There was no answer to her question.
The 2 car tandem has evolved from the bump draft. The only way to stop it is to make contact between cars illegal and nobody wants that.
I say quit messing with the rules and let 'em race however they can get it done.
Definitely nice to hear the roar of American Iron again. The non commercial streaming was great, but, at some point in time they'll have to pay the bills. It's just really opened up a ton for many portable devices. Did not know I could open the blog directly from my Android, even better still.
I wish once and for all Nascar would fix restrictor plate racing the right way, or just don't go there. All this fiddling, re-sizing, circumcising the rules and the cars to make them ill handling and prone to overheating is not going to promote good racing. It stands to reason that if it breaks up the two car tandems, they won't be able to pack race either. Two nose to tail or twenty nose to tail, they're still going to over heat. They obviously haven't figured out the restrictor plate opening yet because it isn't allowing one car to be able to get far away from another. So Daytona will be 3-4 hours of the front 5 cars leap frogging for the race. IMO Nascar is going to orchestrate what was once their crown jewel into a cheap piece of lead crystal.
Here's hoping for some more positive changes in the broadcast teams and presentations. Ol DW doesn't have his "game" on yet and wasn't to terribly annoying. They need to quit over saturating about Danica. Can't wait until they start in on Jr about his girlfriend >:
Thanks Mr Editor for the blog and permitting a few of us to vent on occasion. I was never a big text messenger person either as I have very large hands, don't like the qwerty keyboards, or the virtual ones. If your phone doesn't have a speech to text app, download one. I can out text even the kids now.!
I think NASCAR was surprised by the lack of impact of the changes yesterday. I was! Will be curious to see how TV addresses that.
I hope FOX has noticed the on line stream was very well received by the NASCAR faithful (LONG TERM FAN), the televised coverage, not so much. Ol' DW and his parrot, again displayed their vast knowledge referred to as "COLOR". Larry still lacks the ability to speak American, and OL"DW can not step away from his "iconic" role as a former driver, owner, comedian. It took five minutes to mute them, as they had nothing to add to the pictures.If FOX is going all in on these "clowns", It should not take long for the dumbest of folks to see the error.
I appreciate SPEED re-running the on air segment so I was able to watch it when I got home. The morning streaming did not work for me but that's probably due to our firewall or something. BTW, I never watch local news (I read it online) so the 6pm Racehub is perfect for me.) You're never going to please everyone.
anyways, RPM, I think we may be in a minority but I competely agree on this point. I have long hated the 'freight train' look; at least this is something different. The guys like Jr don't like it because it takes away their ability to plate race as they were used to; which I completely understand. But it also allows some unlikely pairings and interesting moves that are just different.
I still find it very amusing to watch NASCAR struggle SO much to correct something and they fail no matter what they do. It's just funny to me to see the control freaks have no control. I had a feeling that the changes wouldn't change much, but my fear is, as AR said yesterday, that not allowing the drivers to talk, and making the cars more unstable (JJ's on air comments) is only going to make the racing more dangerous and won't stop the tandems anyways.
I noticed DW already backtracking. First day back, and he went on about the 'serious' conference with the JGR guys like they have an issue, and then Larry tells us they're smiling. As others said, I get sick of hearing DW go on about Kyle, but I do think he was right about what he said. Kyle *is* good at understanding the cars.
Funny thing...I had the closed captioning on when it introduced 'John Robertson and Herbie Sadler.' Tough job when you aren't familiar with the names.
Drivers just told they will be pack drafting today in drivers meeting!
Looking good so far!
what NASCAR fan said they did not like the tandem racing? In my NASCAR fan council post I said its much better than follow the leader or pack racing. dont get it.
As far as why they want to get rid of the tandem racing, it's because the vast majority of the fans and drivers do not like it. There was a poll on NASCAR.com a while back where the split was something like 75-25 against the two car tandem. Most of the drivers don't like it either, but they have to do it because it's the fastest way around.
Cant watch the stream and twitter isnt telling me if the overnight changes affected the tandem or not, but I did want to throw out a couple of ideas about how to break them up.
1. Put a vertical protrusion or a ridge of some sort, (maybe a half inch or so, so it wouldnt look god awful), down the centerline of the back bumper. Then put 2 vertical ridge's on the front bumper of the car, halfway between the centerline of the nose and the headlight. That way it makes these side to side movements impossible cause you would just turn the guy (or girl) in front of you. That would mean that in order to get air youd have to back off the bumper of the individual in front of you and then move to the side. It would also mean you could probably only do the tandem down the straightaway.
2. The nose of the car is as low as its going to get. So using suspension travel to move the nose around wouldnt work. So youd have to move the back of the car around. Im not Larry Mac, so I dont know exactly the position of the bumper bar in relation to the bumper cover. But I say lets move that bar up a bunch. So that the nose of the trailing car has nothing to push on.
Just some ideas. Nascar did make some good changes but it wasnt enough.
Roland, Slugger said NASCAR would probably be making more changes before it's all over.
Spotters saying NASCAR will make all the cars line-up and draft in a big pack at 1PM ET.
That should be interesting.
I can only imagine how frustrating this must be for NASCAR seeing these cars still glued together. I think there's definitely some merit to reprofiling the rear of the cars, though. Raise the bumper bar or cut off some of the low-hanging sheet metal they added with the switch to the spoiler. At the very least the cars won't have the side-force to stay in control in the corners, and maybe we can make it so the bumpers no longer line up.
Kurt Busch: "It's the first time with this kind of power under the hood."
Wow, he is starting things off with a bang!
Good morning!
You know what just gets me? As much as we whine and crab and fret we all come schooling back fast as ever we can at the first sound of a racecar.
I laughed when he said that, JD. I was suspicious of the new Kurt Busch yesterday. He's trying a positive attitude, but there is plenty of venom still inside.
JD - I noticed that comment from Kurt as well and could just about hear Roger Penske go ballistic.
Working in a hotel in Arkansas this morning and really enjoying the on-line feed.
Good to see a lot of familiar names here on the blog -- even in the middle of the morning on a "work day".
Weasley did not know first 500? Tell me why I am not surprised.
I bet Voldemort does, but he is the brains of the operation after all.
Enjoying the coverage - enough so that I went "Oh, S***!" about waking up late. This is kickass. Later - I think I'll go find a movie to watch. There is a huge distinction between the online feature and booth and DW and about 950 ads per minute.
return of NASCAR smarts?
internet broadcast is so much more informal than ANY network broadcast.
when does NASCAR buy out Turner?
I wonder if Speed knows they're giving the impression it's ok to twitter and text while driving. Not once have I heard anyone say they're only doing it while in the shop, even though Jim Johnson admitted he's carrying his phone in his car with him.
wth is Jeff Hammond drinking so early in the morn? KuBu firing bad luck? Give me a break ~rolling my eyes~
I like that color combination on Dasnica's car. Number really jumps out
I know it's the latest technology, but they are going to drive this twitter thing straight into the ground. It looks like tweeting is more important to everyone, including some of the drivers, than finding a way to make the racing better at the Superspeedways.
Hmmm...it may be that the bigger plate breaks up the pack by simply reducing the speed difference between running in a pack and running on a tandem. Harvick just ran 204.1 miles per hour in the pack--the fastest speed of the test! It may be fast enough to end the tandem, but it's also scary fast.
...oh jeez, look at Harvick just now, forced onto the apron in turn 3 and then coming back onto the banking almost into the path of the 24. There's going to be a wreck before the end of the day.
10 minutes into the tv coverage and we got DW shouting boogity....
I really enjoyed the Streaming coverage this morning. Would like more of that and less DW.
I guess Chad will keep the 48 nice and safe and let the others take the chance of wrecking theirs. Then he will use their information. I would not share.
The large pack drafting will provide some great test info, and Im hoping they'll make some smart changes. That said, they're gunna tear up some race cars with going 3 wide at 200 mph. Hope it does'nt get too stupid out there!
And Voldemort is afeared of letting Weasley on the track.
205.813 mph! Holy cow!
WOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! THE PACK IS BACK!! That was awesome!!!!
I'm confused, like usual. Is what we're watching on TV live? Or is it live per BSPN's definition? I read on Jayski that they were already on the track this AM. Right now, Jay is showing info on the PM testing.
I'm still happy we get to see it regardless.
@Dot
They were on tracxk this morning. Solos and tandems. Was online at Speed
DW: "Watching one or two cars go around at a time is not too exciting."
Bu...Bu...But that is what they show us on TV during a race, Darrel! Jeepers!
@chadderbox.........nevermind the fact that a FAN requested the bbb from dw
Early two-car tandems seem to be running similar speeds to what the whole pack did earlier. This will be interesting to keep watching.
AR guess DW doesn't have to watch the races on tv so he wouldn't have any idea about the one or two cars seen on television. Amazing he didn't have any idea.
I fail to see what everybody is getting excited about. As of now, it looks to me like nothing is going to change as far as the 2-car tandems go. Junior even admitted that.
Encouraging signs...Kyle Busch ran faster in a pack than anyone's run in a two-car draft, but for consistent high speed, two-car is still the way to go. I bet opening the restrictor plate further will make the pack unquestionably faster than the tandem...but for safety reasons, it'd have to be countered with a larger spoiler or something to keep the speeds down, which might just mitigate the effect of the plate.
Finally, they mention the Shark Fin. I thought it looked bigger.
@Zetona
The spoiler I see from the bit on just now is 3 1/2" at the center and then tapers off toward the sides. I think I'd like to try putting a little loft on the right side of it while leavinf the left side down to allow the air on the fin to escape cleanly. I am not that worried about the speed as I am about the looseness. I think, maybe, if the right side was raise it might help because I think the fin may be creating a small vacuum going (pushing) right
Looks like the 2 car tango is not changing. At least NASCAR tried. Might as well accept it for what it is rather than making things worse.
I didn't watch the PM session yesterday, but I've seen some of it today. The AM online broadcast is MUCH better. There were only 4 voices online compared to 8 right now. In the morning, SPEED.com just covers testing and answers fan questions in an informal and fun way. Now SPEED Channel has pre-taped segments, interruptions from John Roberts, and a lot more commercials.
Tired of DannyKar already.
Danny took her helmet off....
Danny went to the bathroom....
Danny, Danny, Danny....
Puhlease stop already!
Very nice interview with Joe Nemechek. Hope Joe gets to race more than Daytona this season.
I heard a rumor that we'd see more pack racing at 4...will anything happen before the day is out?
To AR, thanks. BTW, your comments make me laugh.
We're still with you JD. Just Twitter has really changed the way we communicate when cars are on the track. Still love this site!
I'm way too happy to have cars on the track and hear the voices that have become so familiar after our short off-season.
If there's racing on i'll not miss any until AFTER Daytona (but maybe mikey being on will make me sick of it sooner) but i look forward to seeing cars on the track all December and just couldn't be happier than to have some to watch. Now all this BS about people hating tandem racing is just Fox putting the corporate line out there. If the racing is good and the stories are interesting i don't really care, we'll see if this is a year a watching more or go the MRN/PRN route for the actual races.
Wow! What a day. Super effort by SPEED today.
Thanks JD!
See yawl tomorrow!
BTW Anybody seen Gina?
I loved it and heck I dont mind hearing DW's voice its all good here! Great test sessions today much better than yesterday! Tomorrow will be interesting to say the least! Thanks Speed
Hello everyone! I dropped in late, so I may have to repeat this question tomorrow:
Larry Mac, why does the engine need to have a carburetor restrictor plate when there's no carburetor? Oh, and Hammond, Brewer, Petree or any current crew chief may answer. Perhaps Kchad Knaus kould answer from kwaaay over there in Kafrica?
PS Loved the online streaming! Ackerson, please tell FOX you like it over there at SPEED, you love Charlotte, and you want to keep your job!
PPS JD, on a personal note, I discovered that we may have been work neighbors a long time ago? I worked in a business park in west Charlotte, and I77 was right out our front door. Our next door neighbor was Sunbelt Video.
Yes it was a great effort. We learned it's more important to tweet than making this product of racing better. Can't wait to see what everyone is tweeting tomorrow.
I see NASCAR is making a bunch of changes given what they saw on Friday. Frankly, I thought Friday's action looked pretty good. Combination of pack and two-car. The pushing car couldn't push for long so the switch, I think, would allow the pack to catch up. Then, have a two-car dash to the finish. Sort of like the Tour de France where a rider will break from the pack towards the end and see if he can get to the finish first before the peloton (pack) overtakes him.
Oh, and would someone please tell Larry Mac (who I quite like) that their is no such word as "heigth". It's "height" with a "t" sound at the end.
Bill - because it's a damn throttle body. Airflow into the motor is paramount. I'm inclined to question - can you change your own oil? Air, air, air. Jeez.
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