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Musings
During the Off-Season in NASCAR 07/13/2016
Vivian Simons |
Authors
Note: My articles are based on my thoughts and observations only. Normally
there are no statistics offered. Please enjoy and feel free to comment
afterwards.
During the NASCAR off season, a lot of us look for other sports
or activities to entertain us during the times we normally would be watching
racing or racing shows. We count the days until the date in February when what
we call "our sport" returns. Some of us wait with anticipation while
some of us just wait because it is a tradition for us. All of this waiting
seems to make our minds wander - and then all of us begin to wonder about what
we can expect in the New Year. We think about the past and contemplate how, if at all, things will change in the future. We are always
speculating about what changes will be on the horizon for NASCAR during the
next season.
Looking back on the 2016 season, there was a lot of excitement
and a lot of disappointment for fans. Whether we are dedicated fans of a
specific driver, a certain brand of car or whether we just have a love and need
for speed - these are the things that seem to dictate our feelings. Many race
fans were very grateful that they were able to watch the races in person and/or
on television. Even though most were grateful, they were not without complaint
about different aspects of how the sport was presented by the NASCAR
sanctioning body and by the media.
Fans who attended some of the races in person always reported
back to others who had stayed home about how exciting the races were. This was
because they could watch the whole track and all the cars as they competed to
be the best that day and win the race. Those who did attend enjoyed the
surroundings and the activity and took in almost every aspect of what was
offered and available at the track. While at the track, they made memories that
they will pass down to future generations. In the future, they will talk about
the "Good Old Days" of racing and how great it was. In their mind, it
was great because they were there and experienced it in person. A lot of us
older and longtime fans have actually done the same thing. It is not unusual to
hear and older fan start a sentence with "Back in the day..." and
sometimes even we longtime fans get tired of hearing that when the announcers
use it. Even so, most of us feel the times we were able to be at the track were
the best "Good Old Days". We seem to have a mind set about that. Each
generation, because of what they experience and see, will always think theirs
was the best of the best. And each of us is right in our own way because we
only know what we experienced at the time. Casual fans come and go now, and if
they were never exposed to any other way the sport was, then they have no way
to compare which was truly the best.
Some of the fans that weren't able to attend the races in person
had positive attitudes and did not really mind what Network or Channel the race
was on as long as they could watch it. Others preferred certain channels and
announcers. The one common core was that it did not matter who was broadcasting
the races, the biggest and most major complaint was that there were always too
many commercials during the broadcast.
Let's talk about commercials. Some of us consider them a necessary
evil. Others consider them an intrusion into their enjoyment of a program. Some resent the interruptions and often complain very loudly about
them. Do they ever stop to think that if there were no commercials, would they
still be able to enjoy NASCAR or any other racing programs? Possibly, but being
human seems to make the "my satisfaction and me first attitude" take
over. Some of us seem to want instant gratification and anything that gets in
the way is usually a very big annoyance. We don't take time to realize that we
need the commercials because at the time we only think about what we want. The
truth is that we must endure them to have the luxury of watching a race on
television. Until the races are shown on commercial free channels or until they
are on pay per view without interruption, we will be inundated with many
commercials. Personally, I don't look for either of those things to happen as
NASCAR and teams will always need sponsors, who in turn need exposure fairly
often during a broadcast. This results in the need for many commercials during
any broadcast.
Now, let's talk about the competitors for a bit. To me, as I
have often expressed, there are two groups of competitors on the track. Some of
them I call racers while others are what I call drivers. After each race, we
see and hear varied reactions from the ones who competed in the race. Most of
us can predict the reactions of each competitor the media chooses to interview.
The interviews are normally the same questions from the media regardless of who
presented the broadcast. Some competitors are congenial and friendly and
present themselves in a very positive manner. Some come across as upset because
they didn't win and others who did not win may just walk away and refuse to do
an interview. We are all familiar with the ones that react in each of those
ways. I think we all recognize the fact that they have been conditioned by the
sanctioning body and their sponsors to be congenial, represent both their
sponsors and NASCAR to the best of their ability and always in a good, positive
manner.
There are times on the track or on pit road that some drivers
refuse to follow the rules set forth by the sanctioning body. If they are not
representing the sport correctly, they will be called to "The NASCAR
Truck" for a discussion or a reprimand. Although I do not have any
statistics or records to present, I often wonder if there has ever been a
competitor who was never called at one time or another to report to NASCAR
after the race. They also tend to call crew chiefs to the truck at times.
Sometimes it is both driver and crew chief and sometimes it is just one or the
other, depending on the perceived infraction or action. Depending on what rule
was broken or whether the driver or crew chief in question, they may or may not
be penalized. Each of us fans have our own theory as to why some do and some
don't get a penalty.
These are just a few of the things I think about during the time
when there is no racing in NASCAR. Do you have thoughts or perspectives that
come to mind during the off season? Please feel free to share them by
commenting below, or you can email me if you wish. Thank you.