Is it just me, or has it become the Nascar network?

What's with the new name Speedchannel?

And what about TNN has it become the wrasslin network?

M4-AK

As re [i]Speedvision[/i]:  NASCAR central?  Every time I tune in, they're showing World Ralley or Formula 1, classic cars, or motorcycle racing.  They just ran the 24 Hours of Daytona.  NASCAR is just starting up for this year - I assume that's why the coverage is so heavy right now.

As to TNN, they're trying to be [i]popular[/i], rather than a niche cable network.  And failing.

You pegged it.  NASCAR bought it, so now it be even more NECKCAR, as if there isn't enough coverage of "Pro Rasslin' on Wheels", rigged races, etc.  There was no complete coverage of the Rolex24 as in the past.  I think that within two years there will be NO coverage of Sebring and LeMans with minimal coverage of the Rolex.  Bill France will have TV coverage back to what it was several years ago with no coverage of sports car racing and no F1 TV in the US except the US Grand Prix for his buddy, Tony George.  France feels threatened by the American LeMans Series and is trying to damage any way he can.  That is why the Rolex24 is a Grand Am series race, which he owns.  He is being like Tony George.  Once he has destroyed the ALMS (which he will fail to do), then he will disband Grand Am and the Rolex will be an invitation race for European teams and be the only major sports car race in the US.  That is his plan, anyway, in MHO.

I'm wondering what happened to "The Lost Drive-In", which used to air on Saturday nights. I hope they get their sh*t together.

They didn't even show the full Rolex 24 like in past years. I also hear that they are not going to follow F1 as they did in past years, going for more tech shows on the Sunday NASCAR races.

I just hope Benny Parsons doesn't become their mascot.

Just wait.  They are just getting started.  The Rolex was not flag to flag as in the past.  They had some special on Dodge trucks, one of the competitors in the alleged "truck" series.  Read my other post.  It will come to pass.  The ad on the change to Speed Channel reeks of NASCAR.

Finally I will have a reason to watch that channel.

I'm paying for the Top 150 plan with Dish Network just for Speedvision. It looks like I will go down one level and save some money because I fucking hate NASCAR!

NASCAR is like Bud and Marboro's,  common fair for the common man.

I guess I won't be watching SpeedChannel.

Ahhhhem!

or since September a Ronco, or Dura guard, or Dodge Truck, or Abflex  or whatever one hour commercial...


M4-AK

How can a NASCAR race be rigged?? That's like saying that a war is rigged and the winner is predetermined. And it's stupid.
You have 40 people driving cars that can have mechanical failures. So If the "predertmined winner" has a problem or is in a werck, what happens?
D oyou think that Dale Ernhardt was SUPPOSED to wreck on the last lap at Daytona last year? Or that Tony Stewart was SUPPOSED to fly upside down on the back strech? Ya, it's about as fixed as a shooting match. F1 is in my opinion BORING. Same with ARCA and Bush GN. I like to watch the BIG BOYS run at 190, not some bunch of foreginers. NASCAR is an American sport. F1 and LM are european/japanese.

[smoke]

I agree that NASCAR blows and if SpeedVison has changed to the point that's all they show, I don't need to pay for Speed Vision any longer. Have they done away with two wheeled Tuesdays, where they had all the motorcycle programing?

7th

They rig it to the point that they cannot control mechanical failures and wrecks.  They can't control every aspect, but as much as they can, they do.  A lot of guys here believe that everything the government does is a conspiracy, so why is it so hard to believe that NASCAR rigs races?  The Rolex24 has the prototypes running 215 on the bankings, so NASCAR  is not the BIG BOYS.  We have clocked prototypes with a radar gun at 215 under the starters stand at Daytona after coming out of the chicane on the back straight and then having to brake down to 60 for the turn into the road course at the end of the pits.  Now, that's driving.  I am not so closed minded that it has to be Americans in cars labeled something they are not.  Sports car racing has Americans  and others from all over the world.

So, the Prototypes get up to 215, but spend MOST of their time below 180, have driver changes every few hours, change out gearboxes ect... big deal. They don't have the foot to the floor for 3 hours straight. They don't have to worry about losing the race if an enging blows, because they can just change it out.
Now don't get me wrong, the drivers in the endurance races are good drivers, but they just don't cut if for me. And when was the last time YOU went down and looked at a prototype car for your daily driver?
NASCAR is an American sport. endurance racing is europen, and F1 is a euorpanese sport.
And the Monty's from the '80's CAN be built into street legal racers. As can the t-birds.

And by your logic, F-1, CART, endurance races can all be fixed to the same degree. So goes the circular arguement.
[smoke]

First, the engine cannot be changed.  Second, changes in speed are harder on the engine than flat out all the time.  Prototypes don't claim to be a daily driver as do the purpose built fakes that NASCAR uses.  Endurance racing is just as American as NASCAR.  It has been here longer than NASCAR.  The fact that 80's NASCAR racers were modified street cars is irrelevant.  They haven't been so for more than 15 years.  As far as endurance drivers not cutting it for you, they are far better drivers than NASCAR drivers and sports car racing is more about the cars than the drivers from a fan perspective.  Kyle Petty said that last year when he co-drove a Porsche in the Rolex24.  Sports car fans are into high tech, not outdated carberated, push rod technology and don't worship the drivers as NASCAR fans seem to do.

Fox Buys Speedvision. Now What?
by dean adams
[url]http://www.amasuperbike.com/foxbuysspeedvision1.htm[/url]
As of last weekend, Speedvision is now wholly owned by previous part-owner Fox. According to printed reports dated last weekend, the sale is complete and a full take-over will be completed by early August.

Speedvison CEO Roger Werner Jr and his crew are gone; Werner started Speedvison in 1994 as the first all-motorsports/motor vehicle network.

Suffice to say that now that Fox is in charge, things will most certainly change at Speedvision, with, at the very least, more NASCAR programming on Speedvision.

There have been rumors in motorsports television circles for months that Fox, which in part owns the television rights to NASCAR, would turn Speedvision into a Nascar-only channel or at least a network with heavy NASCAR programming on it. The fear is that Fox will dump all non-Nascar programming or poorly rated programming and replace it with NASCAR archive programming, magazine shows and the like.

Speaking at the Road Atlanta Superbike national, Speedvison Production's Dan Murphy said that he felt nothing would change with the onset of Fox in charge of all things Speedvison, and that a Nascar only channel was looked at by Fox and NASCAR but it was "doubtful" it might reach fruition, as the costs to bring it on-line would be great.

Murphy's Speedvison Productions sells ad space for Speedvision's motorcycle programming.

What is the future of motorcycle programming on Speedvison? Those in the business say that no huge changes will take place, and that motorcycle programming is a good fit and decent revenue generator for the network.

Outside the motorcycle television industry, the term "NASCAR network" in regards to Fox's plans for Speedvision pops up an alarming number of times. According to a report in the June 22 report of the Charlotte Business Journal, Fox Sports has been scouting the Charlotte area for it's "proposed NASCAR cable network headquarters". Presumably Fox would need a specific and separate NASCAR cable network in order to be in need of a cable network headquarters. In addition they do own interests in other networks, including FX, which could become more Nascar oriented.

Mike McCarthy, who writes news reports on motorsports programming and about NASCAR programming for his motorsportsTV.com web site, says about the future of motorcycle programming on Speedvision, "Over the short-term (1-2 years), I think it's pretty strong. Longer than that is a real question."


Chet Burkes produces television programming for Speedvision, including the AMA Superbike races and several motorcycle magazine shows including Bike Week. He said this morning about the future of motorcycle programming on Speedvision, "I think you'll begin to see more NASCAR programming on Speedvision now, but Fox and NASCAR know that everybody isn't a NASCAR fan and that they'll need other things on Speedvision. Motorcycle programming is really popular on Speedvison and it's been supported by the manufacturers pretty well."

Bullsh!t !!!!

Why do they give the cars the model names of street cars, when not one part from the street car would fit into a Nascar?

It is a fraud to fool the public that the car they root for on the track has some relation to the peice of crap that fans drive to the cow pie factory every day for work.  There was a time when manufactures would make a better street car, so racers would have something that could win at the track.  

Are you kidding!!! With GP mo'sickle 4 strokes coming online this year, they [i]better[/i] be serious about motorcycle race coverage. I've considered ponying up for the service, but I won't bite if its going to be nothing but NASCAH' central.

A similar problem exists on 'MotoWorld', which (to me) seems to focus primarily on dirtbike-related events, with only scant roadrace coverage. DB's are fine and all, and the races are definitely ewntertaining, but it's not the only game in town. Roadracing is slick, and the bikes are based on the production units you can actualy buy at the shop. Now [i]that's[/t] worth tuning in to watch, IMO.

We fiiinnaaalllyyy get Speed Vision here in SE Pennsyltucky and now it's going Nastycar. Le Mans, American Le Mans(the RETURN of IMSA!!), WRC,and motorcycle roadracing are the true driving arenas. Nasty car is WWF for cars. F1 vs. Nastycar, (space shuttle vs. chuckwagon)[rolleyes]

Thanks for all the info guys, like many I paid extra to get [b]SpeedVision[/b] and was extremely P.O.d to find the ads this year w/ the name change. While unaware of what was happening, you fellers have enlightened me.

While a long time NASCAR fan, the Shoot-out yesterday was one boring race and one look at the qualifying speed tells me cars are slower and racing will suffer more so this year than last. As if last year wasn't bad enough.

SpeedVision was my favorite channel, thanks for the heads up, I feel a nasty letter welling up and now I know where to send it.

Mike

This is hilarious.

Ever since the 60s, NASCAR cars were built from sheet metal parts and custom tube frames.  It used to be a saying that the only factory parts were the hood, the roof and the tail light lenses.  This WAS in the 60s.  If anyone wants to buy a Monte Carlo or T-bird and make it into a NASCAR car, cut off the outer skin of the hood , etch it to half thickness and throw away everything else.  Everything else.

There is nothing on the race cars that has anything to do with anybody's daily driver.  Except maybe the advertising.

I too pay a premium to get SpeedVision and am afraid it may be going downhill with the name/fomat change.

I like the road racing and motorcycle events, but really like the, Hot Rod, Sport Aviation and Boating shows.  There really isn't any where else to see that stuff.

If they drop that stuff in favor of NASCAR, I'll likely drop the sports package I pay for to get SpeedVision.

I'm always amazed that no matter how many channels you get, they keep comming up with ways to make sure there's nothing worth watching on any of them.

Actually, to be accurate, the "skin" cars didn't come about until the mid 1970's. I know someone who owns a couple of restored original 1960's NASCAR cars and one 1970 Plymouth Superbird, and they all have factory fenders, floorpans, etc. The roll cages were built into factory "bodies in white". Not many other parts were original production, though!!

I like all forms of racing. NASCAR cannot possibly be "rigged" to pre-determine a winning team, but can be biased toward one manufacturer or another, like they did for GM from the early 1970's through the mid 1990's. Hell, they virtually BANNED Chrysler in the 1970's, simply by enacting rules that made GM have all the advantages. Look at ANY race before 1972 and tell me how many GM's were running up front. Not many. This was due to the fact that GM did not have a factory engine package that was comparable to what Ford or Chrysler had. GM ponies up big advertising and sponsoring bux, and bingo! They start winning.
Same thing happened to NHRA Pro-Stock in 1972.

Right on Hydguy !

I'm so f###ing sick of hearing people say NASCAR is fixed. It would be one of the hardest posible sports to "fix." You got 43 drivers that want to win. Even if you got say 10 drivers to conspire together to fix the race, how could they control what the other 33 drivers are gonna do ?

I like Nascar becuase it is [b]Americans[/b] driving [b]American V-8s[/b].

Hell everyone knows that Nascar cars have no "stock" parts in them and no one pretends that they do.  But the V-8 engines in them have basically the same blocks that the V-8 in my Chevelle has.

Another thing about Nascar cars is how simple they are compared to other race cars. The fact that they still use pushrods, carburaters, no computers, no turbo chargers, etc and still produce 700 hp appeals to me.  And as far as comparing the cars to other types of race cars rember that Nascar cars are mostly using technology that is 30+ years old when they go around the track at 190 mph.

Now that it's officially the "speedchannel", Every time I turn it on, it seems to be on Nascar.

I especially liked how they took the valvoline runoffs in October, split each race and milked it for hours and hours of filler from then until now Feb 2002.

Arrrrgh
M4-AK  [:X*]