NASCAR Lives On Twitter

There was a time when the only way to enjoy a NASCAR race was either to attend in person or listen to the MRN radio broadcast. Later that week, the glossy NASCAR magazines and National Speed Sport News would arrive in the mail to fill-in the details of the races and show pictures of the action. My, how times have changed.

The hottest destination right now for NASCAR information is the Twitter.com messaging system. I would highly suggest that fans who get their NASCAR information online jump right in the deep end of this pool. Don't be scared, it's simple and free to sign-up and use. If I can do it, anyone can.

Twitter allows folks to follow the updates (called Tweets) provided by anyone from fan bloggers to the NASCAR TV networks. Jeff Hammond even blogs during the NASCAR on Fox races from the Hollywood Hotel.

Each Tweet is 140 characters long, or about three sentences. Folks like Jayksi update breaking news while reporters like Marty Smith offer previews of new stories and information fans have not yet heard online.

Twitter was suggested to me by an executive of the International Speedway Corporation who thought that updating the topics of my columns each day would benefit my website. It certainly did. Thanks to Lenny Santiago, who is also on Twitter.

Simply by typing NASCAR into the "find people" heading, fans get a good overview of many top NASCAR Twitter contributors to follow. By typing "NASCAR Twitter List" into the Google search page, fans can find various sites that have already done the work of combing through Twitter to find those NASCAR connections.

The benefit of Twitter is that you can easily view it anywhere. Desktops, laptops, Blackberrys, iPhones and even your inexpensive Sprint cell phone can keep you updated with NASCAR or any other sport or entertainment category you wish.

One feature I have enjoyed is the ability to easily add or delete people who I am following from my list. There are no hassles, so when the list gets too big or some organization sends out just a little too much information, they can go away with the click of a single key.

The list of stories on Jayski has always been a great starting place for fans, but Jay and many other popular sites including The NASCAR Insiders, Rowdy, Catchfence and that's racin' provide wonderful updates throughout the day.

So, if you are game to take the plunge, let us know what you think about this unique form of information updating. If you are a veteran Tweeter, let us know how it has been working for you and what you might want new fans to know.

TDP welcomes comments from readers. Just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting.

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NASCAR TV Better With Danica?

Whenever the New York Times takes a moment to talk auto racing, it gets the attention of fans nationwide. Click here for the paper's most recent story.

In discussing how NASCAR can attract new TV viewers, the name of Danica Patrick usually surfaces sooner or later. The NYT story was written because Patrick is now in the final year of her IRL contract with Andretti Green Racing.

Fans of the NASCAR Now program on ESPN may remember Patrick making a brief appearance last season. She was asked about someday possibly moving over to NASCAR. Patrick turned the tables on the panel and asked them to name some reasons why she should leave a solid contract with a good team. They had none.

Now, some circumstances have changed and one of the biggest involves the TV coverage of the IRL. As TDP reported last year, ESPN basically washed its hands of the IRL in a bold power play. The media company only wanted the Indy 500 for ABC and a mere handful of races for ESPN. If the IRL said no to the new deal, they would lose the national broadcast TV for their biggest event of the season. Needless to say, they caved.

Enter the Comcast-owned Versus cable TV network. The former Outdoor Life Channel had some cash in the bank and was looking for a new sport to add to its line-up. The resulting deal with the IRL put lots of races on TV and added some quality support programming as well. For the IRL, it was a relief. For Patrick, it was a significant loss in the national exposure that helps her drive revenue away from the track.

When asked by the NYT recently about a potential move from the IRL, Patrick's tune had changed. "It’s interesting to me as well," she said. "Do I stay where I am? Do I try to change? It’s all about evaluating options, and I think that’s something any good businessperson does."

When Patrick looks at the Sprint Cup Series, she sees every race televised on Fox, TNT, ESPN or ABC. Every lap of practice and qualifying is shown on national TV and there are endless preview and review shows on both ESPN2 and SPEED. Where TV is concerned, NASCAR's exposure makes the IRL TV deal pale in comparison.

So, what would Danica bring to Sprint Cup land? Humpy Wheeler says her presence would have a huge impact on the sport. Marketing maven Max Muhleman describes her as a "ticket selling machine." It seems rather ironic that NASCAR is currently searching for new storylines and also needs to sell more tickets to the races.

We all remember the open-wheel set from the 2008 invasion. Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti is back in the IRL. Formula One veteran Jacque Villeneuve never really got his effort off the ground. Sam Hornish continues to soldier on and Scott Speed has already missed one race this season. He is 38th in points.

The big difference is that Patrick might not have to win, or even contend, to grab the NASCAR limelight and use it for her marketing and sponsor campaigns. The 5 foot 2 inch Patrick weighs in at 100 pounds and has not been shy in using her looks to her advantage. The fact that she was born in Wisconsin, raised in Illinois and has a feisty temper to boot might play well with the NASCAR crowd.

There is absolutely no doubt that the TV networks would take full advantage of as much of Patrick's time as she would give. Danica on NASCAR Now, Danica on RaceDay, Danica on Trackside. The list goes on and on. So does the media exposure.

So, take a deep breath because this topic is going to continue to be talked about until Patrick makes a decision. On one hand, maybe coming to NASCAR in 2010 for a high-profile team would be a marketing dream for all concerned. On the other hand, the lack of success of the recent open-wheel invaders should cause any driver to carefully consider how tough it is to make the transition to stock car racing.

What is your opinion? Would you be more inclined to watch Sprint Cup races live next season if Patrick was in the field? Do you think it would give both the sport and the TV coverage a spark if she took the gamble and made the move?

TDP welcomes comments from readers. Just click on the comments button below to add your opinion on this topic. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting.

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TV Ratings Continue To Deliver A Message

There is a wake-up call being delivered by NASCAR fans nationwide. The only question is, will it result in change?

Here are the latest NASCAR TV ratings from Jayski.com:

NASCAR on Fox posted a record-low 3.3/6 Saturday night for racing from Phoenix. Saturday's 3.3/8 is an -18% drop compared to last year's 4.0/7. FOX's rating at the green flag was just a 3.1/6, down -18% compared to last year's 3.8/7 when a long-running Yankees-Red Sox game drove some viewers straight into the first lap of the race. For the season-to-date, NASCAR On FOX is averaging a 4.9/10 in the metered markets, down -14% compared to last year's 5.7/11.(4-20-2009)

There was a time when the NASCAR on Fox franchise was the face of the sport. That network basically revived NASCAR at a time when the sport was in need of a steady TV partner.

The original development of the Hollywood Hotel and the introduction of the admittedly "West Coast kind of guy" Chris Myers added a new wrinkle to the sport. Myers antics on the air were an interesting contrast to the homespun Darrell Waltrip and the rodeo riding Jeff Hammond.

Topping off the team was the professionalism of Mike Joy and the intensity of Larry McReynolds. With a long history in the sport, Joy has a racing resume that is hard to top. For many fans, Joy is the voice of NASCAR on TV.

Fox is loaded with all the technical toys, a top-notch TV crew and a veteran production team. So, what's the problem?

If Phoenix is any indication, the coverage has shifted from the original priority of showing the racing to the new priority of paying the bills. The Saturday night race telecast was drowned in an embarrassing level of sponsor plugs and commercial elements that were forced into the telecast.

From the Subway sandwiches in the pre-race show through the Monster Moment toward the end, the NASCAR on Fox announcers never had a fighting chance to make this race interesting for the TV viewers. The announcers had been firmly handcuffed by the most powerful group in sports TV, the Ad Sales Department.

Over the years, the cast of the NASCAR on Fox team have become characters unto themselves. None of them are bigger than Waltrip. "Ole DW" has expanded his personal franchise, but it has come at a cost.

Waltrip steps back and forth between Fox and SPEED during these racing weekends, sometimes offering great commentary on the sport. Sometimes, however, he appears as nothing more than a shill for causes like Digger merchandise or the Toyota brand. Working both sides of the street may have finally caught up with him.

While some may try to point to the COT as a big problem where TV is concerned, the issue is deeper. Listening to the races on the radio and following the action on Trackpass offers a very different perspective. While the Fox TV coverage is driven by who is leading the race and the location of the high profile drivers, what is actually happening on the track may be much different. Sometimes, very different.

There are only five races remaining in the Fox portion of the Sprint Cup Series TV package this season. After the news of the continued decline in ratings, it should be interesting to see if the Fox team shakes things up for the remaining events.

Looking for the best racing on the track vs. following the leaders is a fundamental issue that TV has wrestled with for a long time. While the new dynamic of the COT and the rather different style of racing has been mastered by the teams, it certainly has not translated into substantive changes in the way racing is shown on TV by Fox. There has been a lot of the same old thing and it is not working.

This weekend at Talladega, Friday brings an ARCA race on SPEED. Saturday brings a Nationwide Series race on ABC and then a Camping World Truck Series race on SPEED from Kansas. Many fans will have seen three events by Sunday afternoon.

Incredibly, once again this season SPEED and Fox will actually overlap live on the air for thirty minutes as both Fox-owned networks air pre-race shows. NASCAR fans will be forced to choose between two NASCAR TV networks both trying to interview the same drivers live from the same track. Perhaps, not the best way to start the NASCAR on Fox coverage.

Talladega does offer the opportunity to change the momentum of this TV season and get things back on track. Clusters of cars and long caution laps should make the commercial elements a lot less painful than the Phoenix debacle. Great HD pictures and fantastic audio should keep viewers interested.

The only thing missing from this scenario of success is the Fox commitment to stay with the stories of the race and keep viewers updated on the non-superteams. Interview all the drivers who fall out of the race. Show us the rookies, the independents and the teams working to stay in the top 35.

The build-up to the TV coverage of the Talladega Sprint Cup race is going to be huge once again this season. Looking at the TV ratings, however, one thing is very clear. Fans do not and will not take the time to watch the same old coverage. The challenge of pulling fans from the DVR's and TiVo's to get them to watch the race live can only be met by one group. The NASCAR on Fox team.

Live coverage begins Sunday at 1PM on Fox with the green flag waving at 2:19PM ET.

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