Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

I have been talking to the former president of SPEED Channel, Jim Liberatore, and he is in the process of creating a new motorsports television network to cover all the areas that SPEED is lacking (and more). Jim wants to be able to cater to the grass roots racing market as well as cover worldwide motorsports events. We talked specifically about sprint car racing and other forms of dirt track racing and how it is a huge untapped market. He is interested in this type of programming and needs our help. He has to sell the major network carriers on the idea that there are people out here in the world who would add the channel to their cable package or switch to another provider who carries the channel. Jim is located in the Cleveland area and currently heads up the SportsTime Ohio network. Please go to The Racing Networks web site and sign the online petition and go to the message board and show your support. He will use this info to take to the cable and dish companies as proof that the racing public wants to see more non-NASCAR programming on TV.

http://www.theracingnetwork.com

Former Owner/President of FAST and Black Swamp Media
Group. Currently just another fan in the stands.

At the risk of sounding skeptical.....I have heard this story before, and it isnt long until you get eve of destruction super figure 8 schoolbus monster truck demo hill climb replayed 19 times a week and no live sprints

Worth a shot though, what have we got to lose? I currently don't have Speed on my channel line up, and I don't lose any sleep over it, so I'd love to see someone put a network together that airs motorsports events I'm genuinely interested in.

Like Chasing, I'm not trying to be negative, but I used to get a channel very much like the one described (sans much sprint car racing)......... It was called SpeedVision!!!

In fact, it was the reason I paid BIG bucks for DirecTV when it first came out (and you actually had to pay for your equipment)

Jim is an awesome guy ,, his vision of the NAPCAR network whoops called Speed is not what you see today ,, he had a board of Directors to answer to and when FOX and NAPCAR came calling with their checkbooks what do you think the board did? Exactly ,,, WRG or whatever the hell they are calling themselves are spening millions to be on ESPN 2 and NAPCAR network and guess what they are getting no more viewers than they had on OUTDOOR,,, so folks if Jim is getting into this again we need to help him ,,, to he** with ESPN 2 and Napcar Network which the WRG wants the Outlaws to be ,,, let's get a grass roots network to cover the heart and soul of motorsports and the reason these guys do what they do ,,,

That's great news if it actually happens. I believe all of us are disappointed at Speed's programming these days. How can Lucas Oil sponser tractor pulls, combine demo derbys and bus races, but not show any real racing? How many times can they show Unique Whips, Pinks, and whatever other latest fad shows are out there today?

Speaking for most of us I think, just give us no-frills dirt track Sprint Car, Silver Crown and Midget racing. Tape delay is fine, wings, no wings, 410s-360s, Midgets, doesn't matter. I submitted my vote but I am also skeptical, it seems no potential sponser wants to be associated with racing that doesn't have NASCAR ties.

Here's to hoping for the best.

I voted (even though I probably should not have being in Aussie).

I must say though, I would much rather it was a dedicated (dirt) speedway channel. By trying to cover too many miscelaneous codes of motorsport it kinda feels like a collection of loser sports that don't make it on the main channels.

By focussing on the main dirt codes, eg sprints, midgets, late models plus a few more the channel would stand a much better chance of gaining a foothold. With some 500 dirt-tracks around the USA plus racing in Australia and New Zealand in the winter months there are heaps of potential events for live or canned broadcast.

www.sprintcardaily.com

What would be neat would be a TV channel that devoted itself to covering LOCAL and REGIONAL grass roots short track open wheel dirt racing with no frills. Give me a Kris Krohn from Knoxville and his style of videography...one camera coverage, maybe an interview or two, graphics with name, car, lineups, finishes. Half hour shows from tracks around the country and a news wrap-up show with highlights a couple days a week. Low production costs, local and regional sponsorship packages and cooperation from local racetracks. Before someone televises sprint car racing on a regular basis, someone must find a way to do so profitably and independently. Maybe have a talk show centering on sprint car and midget racing like Despain's deal once a week. When cable TV started over 30 years ago, this was the plan...to bring alternative programming to the masses...all we got was more and more garbage throughout the TV industry. as big corporations like FOX and Disney and Time-Warner and ComCast and everybody else kept finding ways to give as little as possible for the investment from their subscribers. Maybe what TV needs to do is return to its local roots throughout the industry.

When I was in college and worked in radio and TV, my emplyers were local business people. Stoner Broadcasting owned KSO, KGGO and KIOA, WHO radio and TV was owned by Palmer Broadcasting, Cowles Communication owned KRNT and KRNT-TV. Local people who had invested in the community. The first cable TV company in Des Moines was Hawkeye Cablevision, which was doing a pretty good job of covering local sports and events. I even put together a sprint car racing package from the Iowa State Fair Speedway. Televised the races with one camera and didn't miss a thing. Good production for the late '70s. Produced it for less than $500 a show. Bottom line was that these people HAD to provide good programming if they wanted subscribers. Then, they sold their investments to big companies from far away places and quality went away, as did local coverage of the community. Until that reverses itself, you will have hours of poker and stupid people on "reality" shows "entertaining" us because its cheap programming. It's going to get worse before it gets better.