Real Talladega Danger Makes TV Networks Nervous

There are few tracks left on the NASCAR circuit that force the TV networks to review their policies about the replay of accidents during an event. Over the years, Talladega has been one of the biggest headaches for Producers in terms of keeping the broadcast, and the announcers, inside the "network policy" box.

This weekend, SPEED will host two races at the track, and ABC will televise just one. While the danger level during an open practice at Talladega is significant, the danger level during an actual race is absolutely on the top end of the scale.

The ARCA race on Friday will hold a special challenge, because instead of a field where maybe ten cars dominate the race, this time it will be different. There are several NASCAR teams that will be bringing their own drivers to the ARCA race for a wide variety of reasons. Mixed with the ARCA "regulars," these young R&D drivers and their celebrity open-wheel counterparts are about to meet the reality of Talladega.

How SPEED responds to accidents on the track Friday will be interesting to watch, and will probably set the tone for the weekend as a whole. This network has been very good at treating the ARCA competitors with respect, and keeping things in perspective. These are the same drivers that regularly run small pavement ovals and even some annual dirt track events. This race normally has viewers on the edge of their seats.

Fans want to be assured that drivers are OK before they take a "TV peek" in their cars. The David Reutimann incident earlier this year left fans with a creepy feeling. The network showed Reutimann in-car before establishing his injuries. Its the responsibility of the network to treat potential injuries to drivers with the same respect and dignity they would give to an injured New York Yankee or a Pittsburgh Steeler player.

The ARCA race is renowned for big and hard crashes that have resulted in injuries in the past. The NASCAR Truck Series is renowned for big crashes that have resulted in tempers boiling over and lots of action behind the pit wall. This anger management issue will be a big challenge for SPEED on Saturday when the trucks take to the Track.

Better equipped for safety than the ARCA cars, the big trucks put on quite a show, but have certainly have had moments where things after an accident took a while to sort out. With Ray Dunlap on the sidelines this weekend, Bob Dillner and Adam Alexander may well find themselves in the middle of some hot tempers as a result of the action on the track. This is the time of the year where things said and done in anger can result in an off-season of bad memories and hard feelings.

SPEED can either play the antagonist or simply the observer on Saturday, as the championship chase for the Trucks comes down to the time of the year where no quarter is given on the track, and very little patience exists off it.

ABC has perhaps the biggest challenge when it comes to the unknown with the NEXTEL Cup event. What happens when a COT car gets backwards at speed could be disastrous. Wind tunnels aside, until it happens on the track itself, there is no assurance that this first COT event might be more memorable for the incidents, and not the racing.

This past week, NHRA champion John Force blew a tire on his Top Fuel Funny Car during a run. His car broke in half, and his legs and arms flopped around as the remains of his roll cage tumbled down the track at three hundred miles per hour. He lived, and is still incredulous that he survived. NASCAR fans need to remember this moment. It can happen just that quickly at Talladega, and with very different results.

Sometimes, the fun of watching the sport we love is ruined by the reality of conflict, be it mechanical or man-made. At Martinsville, we shake our heads at the fender-benders. At Kansas, we look carefully at how just one bump with the wall can result in that much damage. This weekend at Talladega, we may be covering our eyes as the reality of what is unfolding on the track is beamed into our home.

What we all are counting on is that the networks providing the broadcasts are also fans of the sport. It is only under adverse circumstances that this is put to the test. Let us hope that everyone who walked into Talladega to race this weekend walks away to race again. We can also hope that the TV announcers and Producers have already planned their actions if this scenario does not happen. As those of us who have been around for a while know, excitement can turn to tragedy in the blink of an eye.

SPEED Confirms Ray Dunlap Suspended Again

A SPEED Channel spokesperson has confirmed to The Daly Planet that veteran SPEED personality and current pit reporter for the Craftsman Truck Series Ray Dunlap has been suspended from his network duties.

Earlier in his career, Dunlap was suspended for one week and apologized for his remarks during a live SPEED Channel program. This time, Dunlap has been suspended for three races and will not return to the SPEED team until the Truck Series moves to the Texas Motor Speedway on November 2nd. This means he will work the final two Truck Series races of the 2007 season. The last Truck Series race Dunlap worked was in Las Vegas on September 22nd.

SPEED will not comment on the reason for the suspension, and indicated that they do not comment on what is termed "personnel matters." The network has not indicated who will replace Dunlap for those three events on pit road.

UPDATE: Bob Dillner has just been named by SPEED as the pit road and pre-race reporter for the next three Craftsman Truck Series races replacing Dunlap.

The Most Interesting Racing TV Weekend in History

Things have come a long way since Chris Economaki and ABC's Wide World of Sports first began to show clips of NASCAR races in the south. While the sport is bigger, television still plays a key role. This weekend, the potential for TV viewers to "consume" the racing at Talladega is incredible. Between SPEED and the ESPN/ABC gang, there are more than twenty-four hours of live coverage scheduled over the three days of racing.

There have never been more big names in worldwide racing gathered in one spot for an oval racing weekend. Never. Hang-on to your recliners, and whatever you do...put the Friday ARCA race on your DVR or TiVo.

That's right, not the Trucks, not even the Cup boys out "chasing" the big money. Record the ARCA race for posterity and you will thank me on Monday. Here's the scoop.

ESPN will present a one hour NASCAR Countdown show and then the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race on Sunday beginning at 1PM Eastern Daylight Time. Once again, the race will be produced by ESPN's crew and appear on the ABC broadcast network as an "ESPN on ABC" presentation. This is the first COT race at Talladega.

This week, there is no Brent Musburger, so Suzy Kolber will handle the NASCAR Countdown duties without a "show host." She will have alongside the "voice of the fans" Brad Daugherty and a possible guest. The ESPN crew of Dr. Jerry Punch, Rusty Wallace, and Andy Petree will be up in the broadcast booth. On pit road will be Allen Bestwick, Mike Massaro, Jamie Little, and Dave Burns. Tim Brewer will be in the Tech Center, and the dreaded Draft Tracker will also be ready to go. Sunday should be an "Aero push" kind of day.

The big switch this weekend is that SPEED once again steps-up to the plate and surrounds the weekend with eighteen hours of programming from the track. The network takes over practice and qualifying for the NEXTEL Cup Series, as well as the Craftsman Trucks. Then, they handle the ARCA race on Friday and the Truck race on Saturday.

Beginning Friday, the SPEED presence is big. The network takes to the air at noon, and plans to be live non-stop for nine hours. This encompasses five straight hours of NASCAR, and then the live ARCA race featuring a truly mind-blowing field. To end the day, there is going to be a one hour Trackside show, which should be wild.

Imagine tuning into an ARCA race and seeing Dario Franchitti and Jacques Villeneuve going wheel-to-wheel with Frank Kimmel and Norm Benning. This might be the most diverse stock car racing field in history. Youngsters like Josh Wise can turn their heads and see former Red Bull Formula-1 driver Scott Speed staring back. The field also includes Kerry Earnhardt and Erin Crocker, which certainly should add some spice to the mix. This is truly going to be a culture clash of the highest order. The racing starts at 5PM on Friday, with SPEED's normal ARCA gang on-hand.

For NASCAR practice and qualifying, SPEED is going with their on-track combo of Steve Byrnes on play-by-play, Larry McReynolds and Jeff Hammond as analysts, and Wendy Venturini and Bob Dillner on pit road reporting. John Roberts will host the NASCAR Live segments from the SPEED Stage.

In Craftsman Truck land, Krista Voda will host The Set-Up pre-race show. Rick Allen and Phil Parsons will call the race with Ray Dunlap and Adam Alexander on pit road. The Trucks roll at 4PM Eastern Time on Saturday.

Once again, ABC and SPEED go head-to-head with pre-race shows for the Sunday Cup race. RaceDay on SPEED kicks-off at noon, and NASCAR Countdown begins at 1PM.

Between the three races at Talladega this weekend, there is an incredible driver mix of American and foreign, young and old, experienced and rookie. There are drivers hunting a season championship, and others desperate to just win one race and save their careers.

Here at The Daly Planet, we are adding a new feature. Friday, there will be in-progress comments hosted for the noon to 5PM NASCAR on SPEED programming, then another post for the ARCA race (since there are so many NASCAR connections). Friday will end with a comments page available for Trackside Live, which we understand may be very interesting, to say the least. You never know who might just show-up on that program.

Saturday, there will be a live comments page for NEXTEL Cup qualifying, as well as the Truck race on SPEED.

Sunday, by popular demand, there will be a live RaceDay comments page, along with our usual Cup race TV coverage.

To say the least, it should be interesting. From The Daly Planet standpoint, it should make for an incredible three days of sports television. Get your keyboards ready.

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