Day Two: How Are Your NASCAR Vital Signs?

While we normally use television and media as the theme of these columns, this week things are different. The vast majority of feedback after this weekend was not only about ESPN, but NASCAR in general.

From the starting line issues with the Nationwide Series through the single-car dominance of the Sprint Cup Series race, this was a weekend that started a passionate fan conversation about the sport that is still in progress.

On Saturday, a bizarre dance played-out for those watching on television. In a event moved from nearby Lucas Oil Raceway, the Nationwide Series played to a virtually empty house at the big track. Instead of the racing stories, ESPN flew in Katie Couric to conduct a featured pre-race interview with driver/celebrity Danica Patrick.

ESPN and NASCAR combined to present Patrick once again as the Great White Hope, focusing squarely on her role as a woman in NASCAR. All of this happened on national television despite the reality surrounding both Patrick and the race.

In the real world, Patrick had been out-qualified in the event by 18 year-old Johanna Long, a female Florida resident with a long history of racing success. But in the very strange world of ESPN and NASCAR, Long simply did not exist.

Despite six months of racing this season, Couric's questions to Patrick were themed around her struggles as a woman in NASCAR rather than her Nationwide Series results. The supposed theme for the interview was the statement that Patrick had almost won the Indy 500. This set the tone for the comparison between the IndyCar tradition of the speedway and this NASCAR racing weekend.

The entire pre-race show was run as if there was a standing room only audience. The TV theme was that the Nationwide Series was making history, that all the actions on the track were historic. No references were made to the wildly successful history of the Nationwide Series racing at Lucas Oil Raceway or that the Brickyard was empty even after one year of promotion for this inaugural race.

The start reflected the pre-race show in that questions immediately arose about why the pole sitter did not cross the starting line first. No NASCAR officials made themselves available for comment and the race continued. The reality of what actually happened was never officially addressed.

Patrick's subsequent accident continued the tone as the TV announcers were reluctant to call out the experienced driver for actions her crew chief later called "stupid driving." Patrick's television interview was an exercise in marketing, which seemed to fit the tone.

Ultimately, the day would be dominated by the penalty given to Elliott Sadler on a late restart. Once again, no NASCAR official appeared on-camera as the TV team floundered for an explanation of a ruling that made little sense. Things got worse once the race was over.

ESPN left the air without an explanation of the penalty or even an interview with Sadler. Nothing was said on ESPNEWS and TV viewers were left in the dark. It was amazing to see ESPN sign-off after the hype and promotion of the event. This was not the kind of history that NASCAR wanted to create.

On Sunday the familiar pattern of past Brickyard races continued. After an outstanding TV pre-race show, the action on the track again was limited to restarts and pit road. Adding to this frustration was ESPN continuing to use in-car cameras and tight shots during those restarts. The only actual passing for position was lost on TV as the ESPN director tried to "make TV" instead of just showing the race.

Time and time again veteran announcer Allen Bestwick's call of exciting racing and key passes did not match the action seen on the screen. In no other professional sport would this type of television production be tolerated. TV follows the puck in hockey and the ball in other sports as a golden rule. In NASCAR, the choice of what pictures to show is subjective.

The Sprint Cup Series has been racing since February. Despite the hype, the Brickyard 400 is just race twenty of thirty-six. The key for fans is that the countdown to the Chase is in full swing. In the relatively new Sprint Cup Series points system, every single place is important. Ultimately, it's all about the finish.

In ESPN's reality, it's all about the event. From top to bottom, the Brickyard 400 was presented like ABC handles the Indy 500. This was never more evident than the during the finish of the race. The winner's car crossed the line, the camera zoomed to the checkered flag and in the minds of ESPN, the race was over.

Meanwhile on the track names like Earnhardt, Gordon, Hamlin and Stewart were still racing. Despite Bestwick's best efforts to break the production team from the script, most NASCAR fans who had been watching their favorite driver for three hours never saw his last lap or the run to the checkers.

With time remaining on the TV clock, an extended post-race show then talked to those very same drivers about their race and finish. Many of the issues discussed by the drivers had never made it into the ESPN broadcast. It was a fitting end to a very strange weekend.

So how is your NASCAR pulse? Is it still beating strongly, fading slowly or pounding with anger for what the sport has become? This is a good time to check-in on where you stand with the sport in general as we go down the stretch. We appreciate you taking the time to add your comments.

Special: How Are Your NASCAR Vital Signs?

While we normally use television and media as the theme of these columns, this week things are different. The vast majority of feedback after this weekend was not only about ESPN, but NASCAR in general.

From the starting line issues with the Nationwide Series through the single-car dominance of the Sprint Cup Series race, this was a weekend that started a passionate fan conversation about the sport that is still in progress.

On Saturday, a bizarre dance played-out for those watching on television. In a event moved from nearby Lucas Oil Raceway, the Nationwide Series played to a virtually empty house at the big track. Instead of the racing stories, ESPN flew in Katie Couric to conduct a featured pre-race interview with driver/celebrity Danica Patrick.

ESPN and NASCAR combined to present Patrick once again as the Great White Hope, focusing squarely on her role as a woman in NASCAR. All of this happened on national television despite the reality surrounding both Patrick and the race.

In the real world, Patrick had been out-qualified in the event by 18 year-old Johanna Long, a female Florida resident with a long history of racing success. But in the very strange world of ESPN and NASCAR, Long simply did not exist.

Despite six months of racing this season, Couric's questions to Patrick were themed around her struggles as a woman in NASCAR rather than her Nationwide Series results. The supposed theme for the interview was the statement that Patrick had almost won the Indy 500. This set the tone for the comparison between the IndyCar tradition of the speedway and this NASCAR racing weekend.

The entire pre-race show was run as if there was a standing room only audience. The TV theme was that the Nationwide Series was making history, that all the actions on the track were historic. No references were made to the wildly successful history of the Nationwide Series racing at Lucas Oil Raceway or that the Brickyard was empty even after one year of promotion for this inaugural race.

The start reflected the pre-race show in that questions immediately arose about why the pole sitter did not cross the starting line first. No NASCAR officials made themselves available for comment and the race continued. The reality of what actually happened was never officially addressed.

Patrick's subsequent accident continued the tone as the TV announcers were reluctant to call out the experienced driver for actions her crew chief later called "stupid driving." Patrick's television interview was an exercise in marketing, which seemed to fit the tone.

Ultimately, the day would be dominated by the penalty given to Elliott Sadler on a late restart. Once again, no NASCAR official appeared on-camera as the TV team floundered for an explanation of a ruling that made little sense. Things got worse once the race was over.

ESPN left the air without an explanation of the penalty or even an interview with Sadler. Nothing was said on ESPNEWS and TV viewers were left in the dark. It was amazing to see ESPN sign-off after the hype and promotion of the event. This was not the kind of history that NASCAR wanted to create.

On Sunday the familiar pattern of past Brickyard races continued. After an outstanding TV pre-race show, the action on the track again was limited to restarts and pit road. Adding to this frustration was ESPN continuing to use in-car cameras and tight shots during those restarts. The only actual passing for position was lost on TV as the ESPN director tried to "make TV" instead of just showing the race.

Time and time again veteran announcer Allen Bestwick's call of exciting racing and key passes did not match the action seen on the screen. In no other professional sport would this type of television production be tolerated. TV follows the puck in hockey and the ball in other sports as a golden rule. In NASCAR, the choice of what pictures to show is subjective.

The Sprint Cup Series has been racing since February. Despite the hype, the Brickyard 400 is just race twenty of thirty-six. The key for fans is that the countdown to the Chase is in full swing. In the relatively new Sprint Cup Series points system, every single place is important. Ultimately, it's all about the finish.

In ESPN's reality, it's all about the event. From top to bottom, the Brickyard 400 was presented like ABC handles the Indy 500. This was never more evident than the during the finish of the race. The winner's car crossed the line, the camera zoomed to the checkered flag and in the minds of ESPN, the race was over.

Meanwhile on the track names like Earnhardt, Gordon, Hamlin and Stewart were still racing. Despite Bestwick's best efforts to break the production team from the script, most NASCAR fans who had been watching their favorite driver for three hours never saw his last lap or the run to the checkers.

With time remaining on the TV clock, an extended post-race show then talked to those very same drivers about their race and finish. Many of the issues discussed by the drivers had never made it into the ESPN broadcast. It was a fitting end to a very strange weekend.

So how is your NASCAR pulse? Is it still beating strongly, fading slowly or pounding with anger for what the sport has become? This is a good time to check-in on where you stand with the sport in general as we go down the stretch. We appreciate you taking the time to add your comments.

Race Wrap: Brickyard 400 on ESPN

ESPN started season six of Sprint Cup Series race coverage with the Brickyard 400. The race was called several different names depending on the sponsorship deals in place. The picture above was sent from a reader at the race.

The pre-race show featured Ray Evernham, Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty. Nicole Briscoe hosted from an outside terrace of the infield Pagoda. The topic of the Elliot Sadler penalty was handled less than four minutes into the telecast. The issue was completely updated and set the tone for a well-produced hour of pre-race programming.

Allen Bestwick called the race with Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree in the TV booth. Dr. Jerry Punch, Vince Welch, Dave Burns and Mike Massaro were the pit road reporters. This group is very familiar with having few racing moments to work with on this track. That was the case again on Sunday.

While the announcers relayed solid information, the familiar ESPN coverage returned. Instead of stepping back and covering the race, ESPN likes to "make TV." The network director constantly went to in-car cameras and tight shots during key restarts. This resulted in TV viewers seeing even less of the actual racing for position and that was a shame.

The toys that ESPN brings to this race were in use, including the slo-mo replay and the bat-cam on pit road. Unfortunately, with the coverage philosophy in use things got rough to watch once the field settled down after restarts. Instead of the wide coverage the network uses for IndyCars, this was once again the "telescope" world of jumping from one car to another.

A final restart with 20 laps to go had the director using in-car cameras once again and missing the final pass for second place. The announcer commentary pushed the pictures wider, but the disconnect continued until the finish line. In the final 15 laps, the cameras zoomed-in over and over again.

As we have seen for years with this coverage, only the winning car was shown finishing the race. The ESPN teams is simply imitating a move they do on the Indy 500 coverage. This series and this race have absolutely nothing to do with one IndyCar event. It's the perfect cap for this disrespectful coverage.

ESPN has all the manpower, technology and solid announcers in place. Despite the lack of fans in the stands and compelling racing, the problem with this telecast rests squarely with the producer and director. If this is once again the way the network is going to handle the Sprint Cup Series, it does not bode well for a strong stretch run.

We welcome your opinions on the ESPN coverage of the Brickyard 400. Comments may be moderated prior to posting.

Live Blog Special: Brickyard 400 At A Crossroads

This is the ESPN pre-race show position for the Brickyard 400. The faces represent the talent assigned to the chairs and the ESPN employees are doing what is called "camera blocking." They are allowing the lighting techs, cameramen and the director to run through the pre-race script.

The Saturday script was Danica Patick. The pre-race show featured Katie Couric interviewing Danica. In the race, Danica started in the back of the pack and eventually crashed out in a self-induced moment that her crew chief Tony Eury Jr. called stupid driving. So much for the script.

The Sunday script is yet to be revealed, but it is believed to rotate around the prestige of the race. There is no Danica and no clear-cut favorite or emerging storyline this season. Former Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish Jr. is in the race, former Brickyard 400 winner Jeff Gordon needs a win and ESPN TV darling Carl Edwards is having a terrible season. Those are likely candidates for mentions.

Nicole Briscoe gets Ray Evernham, Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty on the pre-race show. Allen Bestwick has Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree up in the TV booth. Jamie Little is off, so Mike Massaro will be joining Dr. Jerry Punch, Vince Welch and Dave Burns on pit road. There is no more Tim Brewer or his Tech Garage.

TV coverage can be wide and inclusive at this big track or it can be myopic to the point of madness. Focusing on individual car battles to the exclusion of the bigger picture can lose TV viewers any perspective of what is happening on-track very quickly. The TV cameras can make beautiful pictures of the long backstretch and the scenic run into Turn 1. The question is will the director use them?

ESPN has been harsh in trying to make this race into NASCAR's version of the Indy 500. For these drivers, it is all about making the Chase for the Championship. This is only one in a long string of races that can put them in position to accomplish that goal. Taking a risk at Indy can only result in an accident that will end the day, affect the Chase and rile the sponsor.

The pit reporters are going to be key if this race settles into long green flag runs. Updating strategy may be the only storyline in progress unless there is an incident. The season to this point has featured conservative racing and battles that involve track position being decided on pit road.

ESPN will highlight a super slo-mo handheld camera on pit road to try and get some fresh replay angles. The "bat-cam" returns on a wire above the pits and will be zooming along at 80mph as it follows cars down the frontstretch and out of pit road. Once again the in-car camera technology will feature two different camera angles from the same car on the screen.

Bestwick is great at directing traffic and keeping things in perspective, but he does not pick the images being shown to fans or integrate the commercials and features. The ESPN Non-Stop commercial format does not start until the Chase, so the telecast today will have full-screen commercials from start to finish.

This season there will once again be a SportsCenter scheduled right after the race to allow for an extended post-race show. This has been a positive step, but often the SportsCenter anchors chosen to fill this slot have a low regard for NASCAR and have been happy to let it show on the air.

The real story of this race may be the fans in the stands. Reporters going to the track this morning were amazed that there was little or no race traffic. The Nationwide Series race yesterday drew a very small crowd as did the Friday sportscar event. Keep an ear out for how TV deals with the attendance issue.

The weather is good, the field is full and there have been no tire issues. NASCAR clearly explained the restart issues in the AM driver's meeting, so the only thing left to do is race. We will take your TV comments here today as well as on our Twitter live stream using the #TDP1 hashtag.

Thanks again for taking the time to stop by, there will be a new post up for your "Race Wrap" comments after the Brickyard 400 today.
 

Live Blog: TV Ratings Rest With Danica Patrick

In order to prop-up sluggish ticket sales for the Brickyard 400 on Sunday, NASCAR moved the Saturday Nationwide Series race from the Lucas Oil Raceway short-track over to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Everything that is done today in the Nationwide Series is being promoted as "historic."

The bottom line is that the sport is in a crisis, despite the lack of media coverage on that topic. Nationwide Series qualifying just ended as this post is being created and it literally looked as if there was no one in the stands except the relatives of the drivers.

The myriad of issues that the Sprint Cup Series has encountered at the speedway runs from shredding tires to bad weather. As most fans know, the vast majority of the passing is done on pit road and the track is known for long green flag runs as drivers try to manage their cars until the closing fuel run.

In today's Nationwide Series race, the focus of attention will be on the seven Sprint Cup Series drivers that crossed-over to race on Saturday and one female driver who manipulates the media like no other. That is ABC journalist Katie Couric shown standing with Danica Patrick on the yard of bricks. Couric shot a feature that will be the centerpiece of the ESPN pre-race show.

The script that would most interest NASCAR, ESPN and the speedway is for Danica Patrick to get her first NASCAR win in the inaugural Nationwide Series race at the track. Patrick qualified 20th, three spots behind 18 year-old driver Johanna Long, who is also in her rookie year in the Nationwide Series.

Marty Reid will call the race with Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree. Reid will call all the Nationwide Series races for ESPN again this season. Jamie Little is off, so Mike Massaro will be joining Dr. Jerry Punch, Dave Burns and Vince Welch on pit road.

As we mentioned several weeks ago, ESPN has dropped Tim Brewer and parked the Tech Garage. Although disputing that he is gone for good, the network has no plans for us to see Brewer pointing at car parts this season during the Chase. Brewer is a colorful personality, but there was just no room for him in the telecasts down the stretch.

Nicole Briscoe has Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty with her from the Infield Pit Studio. This trio has a short pre-race show of thirty minutes and then may be left with little to do if the race settles into long green flag runs. Briscoe has proven to be very capable of dealing with a wide variety of circumstances in a live setting.

The Nationwide Series race is a calculated gamble for NASCAR. The series is not very deep and is normally dominated by the Sprint Cup Series drivers in the field during companion events. That was one of the best parts of having the race at Lucas Oil Raceway. It limited the number of drivers who wanted to do both events.

We are going to open comments on the TV presentation of the race today and live blog during the event. There has been lots of feedback that with the Olympics in progress and the small amount of tickets pre-sold for the race it could be a rough outing. The flipside is Danica could win, the sport would get a ton of buzz and the powers that be could be smiling from ear to ear. Pre-race at 4 and racing at 4:30PM on ESPN.

Day Two: The Silent Tears Of IRP

Update: Leaving this up as the lead story on Friday, got some great comments and feedback. There seems to be a lot of emotion about IRP and also about what NASCAR is currently doing at the Brickyard.

Built in 1960 on farmland seven miles down the road from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the motorsports complex known to veteran fans as Indianapolis Raceway Park (IRP) is legendary. The facility contains a drag strip, a road course and a flat oval track with the famous length of .686 of a mile.

On Labor Day weekend, the NHRA holds a celebration of speed known as "The Big Go." Just before the IndyCars race at the Brickyard, the USAC midgets stage "The Night Before The 500" race. When NASCAR comes to town in late July, the Kroger Speedfest gets underway with three nights of racing.

Designed as a companion event to the Brickyard 400, Speedfest became a mandatory destination for fans. Three classes of USAC and the ARCA series raced on Thursday. The Camping World Trucks raced on Friday and the Nationwide Series was the star of the show racing on Saturday night. It truly was short-track heaven.

The grandstands were full, the drivers loved it and watching the trucks and Nationwide Series battle it out at the bull-ring made for great TV. It was the perfect lead-in to the Brickyard 400 and the spectacle of the Sprint Cup Series teams racing on a track made famous by the IndyCars.

One year ago, ESPN.com's open-wheel reporter John Oreovicz reported news of a change in plans. Click here to read his story. In order to deal with sluggish ticket sales at the Brickyard, NASCAR and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) were expanding the racing being offered on that weekend.

Two of NASCAR's in-house properties, the Rolex Grand-Am and Nationwide Series, would start racing on the Brickyard 400 weekend at the big track. In order to make sure the fans focused on IMS, NASCAR also cancelled the Camping World Truck Series race that weekend. Just like that, it was over for IRP.

"It was a complete shock and obviously we're pretty disappointed by it," IRP general manager Wes Collier told Oreovicz. "This was pretty much NASCAR's decision and there wasn't a thing we could do about it. We were willing to do whatever it took to keep the event here. But it was a business decision between NASCAR and IMS that left us on the outside looking in."

The new pitch for the Brickyard 400 weekend is three races for fans to see. The Grand-Am cars race on the infield road course Friday, the Nationwide Series on Saturday and the Sprint Cup Series on Sunday. What is left of Speedfest at IRP is the ARCA series and three classes of USAC open-wheelers.

The current title sponsor at IRP is Lucas Oil. Company founder Forrest Lucas is not happy about the change. "They're going to give up a really good race where the fans love the racing," Lucas told CompetitionPlus.com. "It's good television and the fans can watch it. There are some races that are better to watch on a short track. They might make that weekend bigger to have all three classes there, but I can't see 'em having any fans."

"I hate to see it move," ESPN NASCAR analyst Dale Jarrett told Oreovicz. "Races like that one that are separate from Cup races helped give the series its own identity and I think they need more of those." There are currently seven Sprint Cup Series drivers who will cross-over and race on Saturday at the Brickyard.

NASCAR's goal is to elevate the relocated Nationwide Series race to high-profile status. The race gets ESPN exposure on Saturday with the network using all the special TV equipment brought in for the Sunday event. It's also important for ESPN to pull-out all the stops for another reason.

During the Nationwide Series pre-race show, ABC journalist Katie Couric will interview Danica Patrick in a pre-produced feature as the centerpiece of the program. The ability to promote a media star like Patrick on a big stage is what ESPN does best. The ultimate script for NASCAR, IMS and ESPN would be for Patrick to finally get her Indy win in the inaugural Nationwide Series race at the Brickyard.

Meanwhile, over at the small track the beat goes on. The loss of the two NASCAR races will not sink the facility. In fact, Lucas Oil is staying on as title sponsor and there will be over one hundred events on the calendar this year alone.

Change is certainly a constant in life, but after 30 years of NASCAR racing with more than 15 in support of the Brickyard 400, the silent tears of IRP are easy to understand.

We invite your opinion on this topic. Comments may be moderated prior to posting.

AJ Allmendinger "B" Sample Fails: Updated

Tuesday evening just prior to 9PM ET a press release was forwarded to the media from NASCAR. Here is the copy:

"AJ Allmendinger, driver of the No. 22 car in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has been suspended indefinitely from NASCAR for violating the sanctioning body's substance abuse policy."

On July 24,Allmendinger was found to have violated Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing) and 19 (NASCAR's substance abuse policy) of the 2012 NASCAR rule book.

As outlined in the rule book, NASCAR next will provide Allmendinger a letter outlining a process for reinstatement. By agreeing to the letter, he will be allowed to participate in the Road to Recovery Program.

The surprise in this announcement was that both Allmendinger's spokespeople and many media members had been relating that the results of this test would not be available until late Wednesday or early Thursday. The timing of this announcement, long after regular business hours on the East Coast, is just as awkward as the original notice of a substance abuse policy violation only hours before a Sprint Cup Series race.
 
At 9:45PM, ESPN's Marty Smith passed this along on Twitter: Allmendinger's agent stated the sample was "within nanograms" of accepted tolerance. (That) they're unsure whether to fight or do NASCAR recovery program.

Minutes later a full statement was released at 10PM ET from Tara Ragan, AJ's longtime business manager. It reads:

"Aegis Analytical Laboratories in Nashville has delivered the results of the 'B' sample test for Penske Racing driver AJ Allmendinger, which confirmed the results of the 'A" test"

"This was not the news we wanted to hear and we will work to get to the source of what may have caused this. To that end, we have secured the services of an independent lab to conduct thorough testing on every product within AJ's home and motor coach to find what might collaborate with his test, which created results that were within nanograms of accepted standards. We are working closely with NASCAR and Penske Racing to identify the next action steps in this process."

"We continue to be extremely grateful by the breadth and scope of support for AJ from his fans and partners. We would like to again thank NASCAR, Penske Racing and all our sponsor partners for the open communication, and for helping us at every step in this process. We expect to have further updates in the upcoming days."

The next stop for Ragan was the SiriusXM Radio NASCAR channel. She repeated the content of her statement but then answered the question most fans and media have been asking.

SiriusXM radio: Do you have any plays to reveal what the substance is?

Ragan: It's a good question. I don't have the answer to that right now. I agree with you. It matters to us. It matters to him. I think, for sure, you're right, there are things that have various connotations to them. We want to get to the bottom of it. I believe that will be the case. Until I get the secondary report and we do that with the lab, which is going to start first thing in the morning. again it's kind of like a needle in the haystack, so I don't really know what it is we're looking for what it is that we've got.''

The paragraph above was transcribed and made available by reporter Dustin Long of SI.com and Athlon Sports. Thanks to him for the content.

Wednesday brings a 3PM version of the NASCAR Now program on ESPN2 and a 6PM live Race Hub program over on SPEED. It should be interesting to watch how these two very different networks approach the issue.

Ms. Ragan has been a public relations professional throughout this ordeal and often allows facts to emerge by simply disclosing others. In saying Allmendinger was slightly over the limit for a stimulant, she pushes aside the issue of illegal drugs and alcohol. By controlling the information flow and not allowing Allmendinger to speak with the media she removes the potential for his words to take on different meaning. That potential was on display with the Jeremy Mayfield suspension and subsequent media mayhem.

Update: Early Wednesday morning Allmendinger took to Twitter for some messages. Here they are:

"I just want to say thank you first and foremost for all of u sticking by me. Please dont think me being (silent) means i havent been reading all ur support."

"And man, it means more than u will ever know. Im sorry we even have to have this going on. But i promise ..i will do whatever it Takes to get to the bottom of this and get back our there no matter what. Thanks guys."
This post will continue to be updated on Wednesday with whatever information becomes available. In the meantime, we invite your opinion on this topic. Comments may be moderated prior to posting.