TNT Ends Another Summer Adventure

It certainly was a summer to remember for the NASCAR on TNT team. They lost their veteran play-by-play announcer after an internal dust-up at a hotel in New Hampshire. Then, the network got a tremendous present from NASCAR to spice up the traditionally boring TNT events. The new restart rules changed everything.

One trademark of the TNT broadcasts has been the simple and straightforward pre-race shows. Marc Fein has done a good job of letting Kyle Petty and Larry McReynolds have the spotlight this summer. Both Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon stopped by for interviews this week.

TNT has paid tribute this year to NASCAR's history with the Pride of NASCAR series. This week, former driver Fred Lorenzen showed that his passion for the sport had not diminished over the years of his retirement. Matt Yocum handled this assignment with just the right touch.

Ralph Sheheen took a tough situation and made the best of it with his play-by-play ability. Replacing veteran Bill Weber was not easy and Sheheen pulled it off with class and dignity. From expecting to be one of four pit reporters to suddenly being the face of NASCAR on TNT, Sheheen certainly deserves a lot of credit.

The personality of the Chicagoland track was quickly on display once the race started. The TNT team kept the camera shots wide so that viewers could see groups of cars racing and eventually who the leader was about to lap. There was no real strategy involved early in the event, effectively muting Larry McReynolds.

It was up to Kyle Petty and Wally Dallenbach to keep the conversation going. Luckily, the production team continually peeled back through the field to tell the stories of those teams struggling and those on the move. TNT has also been very careful to treat Dale Earnhardt Jr. as just another driver this summer. That has been noticed and appreciated.

Now, after six TNT races it is hard to even remember the Fox hype and single-minded focus on Earnhardt and Kyle Busch. Even more amazing is the fact that the same TV producer handled both the Fox and TNT races. That certainly says a little something about the influence of the Fox Sports executives in what is shown on TV.

There were some tough moments in this telecast. From the beginning, the commercials inserted by the TNT Master Control were much louder than the audio from the track. TV viewers had to ride the remote every time a commercial break aired until just before the halfway point of the race.

When NASCAR waved the caution flag several times, TNT was unable to deliver the debris. That might not be a big issue, but certainly with the complexion of this event the famous mystery caution was going to be alleged. Once again, TV allowed the debate to continue.

Great pictures from the track only got better when the sun went down, but it appeared that TNT's announcers treated the Sam Hornish wreck rather casually. On TV, smoke seemed to be filling the driver's compartment and putting Hornish in danger. Simply by reassuring viewers that it was only tire smoke from the spin, a lot of fans would have relaxed.

The pit reporters meshed on this event and simply provided information whenever needed. The pit producer worked to integrate the reporters through pit stops both under caution and green flag racing. This was an outstanding feature of the telecast and continued with focused and timely interviews after the event.

NASCAR's restart present to TNT eventually paid off with some excitement in the closing stages of the race. This has been the best improvement of the season and took viewers minds off the sheer boredom of this gas mileage track. No fuel strategies came into play and the race was decided with some drama.

Mark Martin continues to be a popular winner, but Tony Stewart is the talk of the season. Stewart has been wonderful with both Fox and TNT so far this year. It should be very interesting to see how he reacts when the ESPN team comes calling in two weeks at The Brickyard 400.

TNT came into the sport this year at a time when fans desperately needed a change of pace from Digger, DW and the Fox attitude. Boy, did they deliver. Suddenly, boring races like Pocono and Sonoma were fun again and this TV team is a big part of the reason why. Petty is the star and his outspoken and technology-driven approach to announcing is going to be missed.

As TNT departs, please take a moment to add your thoughts on the Chicagoland race and the overall TNT coverage this season. To add your opinion, 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 to stop by The Daly Planet.

Live Blogging The Sprint Cup Series On TNT From Chicagoland

The final chapter in the six race story of NASCAR on TNT is about to play out. As you can see from the picture above, what TNT has brought to the past five races has simply been fun.

Marc Fein leads Kyle Petty and Larry McReynolds on the air at 6:30PM with the NASCAR on TNT Live show. Guests on the TNT infield stage will include Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards. The outstanding Pride of NASCAR feature continues with a profile of Fred Lorenzen. TNT's commitment to spending the time and effort on producing these features has been welcome in the current NASCAR TV environment.

At long last, Ralph Sheheen will present his sneak peek inside the amazing car collection of veteran NASCAR owner Jack Roush. Many fans still do not know the extensive racing history of this man that includes NHRA and sports car racing championships.

The Countdown to Green show is up next, where Fein speaks with the TNT race analysts Wally Dallenbach and Petty. In this program, Marty Snider gets a tour of downtown Chicago from Kurt Busch, who knows the city very well. Also, the final edition of Wally's World airs featuring a review of this wide and fast racetrack.

Once 8PM rolls around, it will be Sheheen teaming up with Petty and Dallenbach to call the race. McReynolds stays in the infield to offer strategy advice. On pit road will be Lindsay Czarniak, Matt Yocum, Adam Alexander and Snider. This group has worked quite well together, including the versatile Czarniak who only appears on the NASCAR circuit for the six TNT events.

Green flag is at 8:15PM and look for NBC's Jimmy Fallon to be a part of the opening festivities. He has been touring the garages and talking on Twitter about the excitement of being at his first NASCAR race.

TNT has been welcomed by fans because of the relaxed style of coverage that has several features. Director Mike Wells keeps the cameras wide and always lets viewers keep a perspective of where a car is on the track. The caution flag pitstops are always followed with a clear view of the cars racing off pit road and a pop-up graphic that lets viewers know who came out where in the order.

Sheheen lets Petty and Dallenbach have the spotlight while the pit reporters offer information without hype or exaggeration. It is a combination of announcers that simply works on the air. This season will be remembered for Sheheen's willingness to step-in and take the play-by-play role when TNT and Bill Weber parted ways during the telecast schedule.

This post will serve to host your comments about the final Sprint Cup Series race on TNT for 2009. To add your TV-related opinion, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting.

Thank you for taking time from your weekend to stop by The Daly Planet.

"This Week In NASCAR" Facing Cancellation?

Update: Friday afternoon we posted this item after being informed of a Tweet sent directly to fans by Michael Waltrip about This Week in NASCAR on SPEED.

We provided a location on this NASCAR TV blog where fans could express their opinions on this topic. The support for this show was overwhelming. Now, we are getting hateful email after another comment from Waltrip on Twitter:

i tweet cause i love my fans. i dont even know what the daily planet is nor do i care. dont yall let uninformed third parties make u mad

Let me get this straight. TDP offered fans a location to voice their support for this program after a heads-up on potential trouble from Waltrip himself and now we are the problem?

Here is the original column, judge for yourself:

The TV island that is This Week In NASCAR on Monday nights may soon be abandoned. After losing all the other NASCAR programming on Monday nights, SPEED is reportedly considering cancelling this TV series that has run for over a decade.

Here is the information Michael Waltrip offered on Twitter Friday afternoon:

TWIN is a question next year. Speed says the rating aren't good. I asked to dress up like the caveman for ratings week but I haven't heard.

This certainly will grab the attention of hardcore fans who have enjoyed this program for a very long time. Originally titled Inside Winston Cup Racing, this series is burned into the memories of TV viewers for a classic line-up of personalities.

Michael Waltrip, Johnny Benson and Kenny Shcrader were a trio that brought NASCAR into the homes of many SPEED viewers. Hosted by TV veteran Allen Bestwick, the show featured a quirky mix of personalities that worked on several levels. Kenny Wallace, pictures above, was a guest panelist on the series.

Many classic TV moments occurred on this program. Schrader would annually ask NASCAR President Mike Helton how much money he made...just for the record. Waltrip was once handed the replay controller and chaos ensued for months until the producers wisely hit it. Benson and Bestwick were the perfect straight men for the antics of Waltrip and Schrader.

TDP will have more on this issue as the information becomes available. To offer your opinions on this topic, just click the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thanks for stopping by.