I'm not sure which is more drawn out, the NASCAR season or the NCAA Football "playoffs" I gotta say I do enjoy Speedweeks, even though I largely ignore most of the rest of the season now (road courses, Richmond, Phoenix, Iowa being the exceptions).
I asked Joe Gibbs if he was excited for 1015, he said it was the most excited he'd ever been going into a season. He thinks he has the pieces in place, and is extremely happy to have 4 cars and Carl Edwards. So he's going into it with high hopes in addition to NBC. ^^
... straight from the horse's mouth, apparently, going on right under our noses wholly unbeknownst to us, NASCAR is a hotbed of spies, mercenaries, assassins, and international intrigue: NASCAR driver accused of abuse says ex is trained assassin - Yahoo News "Yeeeeeeeh, daugie! Comin' soon, to a town near you!" -- asj.
Thank heavens, finally someone has instituted monitoring all pit stops with video cameras to catch infractions. Not sure if this means our favorite white fire-suited pit stop inspectors get to keep their jobs or not. Some day, maybe soon, all racing will be this way... NASCAR to use pit road video recording system to monitor violations - NASCAR news - AUTOSPORT.com BHW
sounds like they're keeping the patrol officers and adding red light cameras for extra revenue sources...I mean compliance enforcement
if she was, she wouldn't be dating a NASCAR driver, doing reality show pilots, or generally being a media whore.
NASCAR eliminates team and driver souvenir haulers from tracksides. The top teams and drivers make literally tens of millions of dollars per year selling their t-shirts and trinkets. NASCAR restructures track-side shopping, eliminates souvenir haulers - SBNation.com BHW
the continued trend of NASCAR trying to monopolize revenues for themselves. the brilliance of NASCAR from the Big Bill France era was that everyone got rich...NASCAR, tracks, teams, etc. now the third generation is trying to make themselves even richer by capturing revenue/profits for NASCAR wherever it can, even if that means taking from tracks and teams. I'll let you figure out how that ends in the long run...
I think NASCAR, instead of making their own brand, is looking at what is successful elseware and simply copying it. Its a bit frustrating as they had something great. They keep changing the championship to be more and more like the NFL.
exactly...except their business model isn't the same as the NFL. so they're trying to put a square peg in a round hole with stuff like this. now, I do understand reducing clutter and optimising space at a track...I've always thought the "vendor row" was a giant clusterf***...but it was the best way for teams, aka "independent contractors" and not franchisees, to monetize their own IP. now NASCAR wants to take that away from them. we'll see if it works out long term...
On moving from Florida to New York (what was I thinking?) in 1990 just after the Daytona 500 weekend, I traveled I-95 along with caravans of team merchandise trailers which were heading for the next race in Virginia. It was unbelievable how many trailers were among these caravans, each team and driver had/have multiple trailers evidently as the caravans would be well into the dozens, it seemed like I passed hundreds of them. So, the teams and drivers be damned, NASCAR want all of it for themselves. A friend responded by Email that they're taking the experience under one tent from the pages of Walmart. So, what we may expect (is) the cheesy fluorescent lighting and feeding oxygen into the tents so people can really go nuts (and) the fans and their cash are easily separated. When a guy like Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jr, Jr, clears $20M/year selling his various trinkets from trackside trailers, their PR people are going to be rather alarmed by this development. It won't be too far fetched that NASCAR will put an entry charge into these tents eventually. Charge fans $2.00/head just to gain access to the vendors, yep that am a solid business plan. BHW
in actual racing news, Jeff Gordon announced that this will be his last full season in Cup. I remember when he debuted in '93 as the "boy wonder" damn I'm old.
He's probably pissed that he's going to have to give up a bigger percentage of his t-shirt and trinket sales to NASCAR. BHW
It would seem that they are stealing a page from Bernie Ecclestone's book titled "How To Kill The Goose That Laid The Golden Eggs"
Looks like the new boy wonder, Chase Elliot, will be getting his seat. Think you're old? I remember watching the partial race broadcasts on ABC's wide world of sports back in 'mid 60's.
Since NASCAR has made a complete mockery of their own championship, they decide to stick to the formula because it was so gull durn popular among the fans and media last year. Classic NASCAR double speak. "And given that it always changes, we have to change, too, and circumstances change". - Brian France So, they'll stick with it unless or until one of the popular drivers is on the outs and they let him/her in because "we like him". Can't wait to see how they cock it up again this year. NASCAR chairman confirms no changes to the Chase for 2015 | News | Motorsport.com BHW