Fast Times
A NASCAR BLOG BY Kris Johnson
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Airing it out in the Sprint Cup race
Oct
12
Denny Hamlin hits the wall at Charlotte. Rusty Wallace says someone just wrecked in Turn 11. Geez, you think, what a dope.
Nope.
That's live TV, and it ain't easy.
Wallace, of course, was thinking about the 11 on Hamlin's car and what came out of his mouth didn't reflect that.
Hey, to err is human, especially when you're on the air.
While writers and editors operate with a back button - one that doesn't always save us, unfortunately - the people calling America's fastest spectator sport in person do so without a safety net. I split this evening‚s race into four quarters - sorry, it is football season as much as NASCAR probably wishes it wasn't during the Chase - watching the first quarter in ESPN/ABC's booth.
The second quarter, as it were, was spent in the network's production truck. Radio took me through the third quarter and the fourth is playing out now as I write this - as a fan, in the comfort of home with a cat at my feet and dog riding shotgun on the couch. They're both sleeping, but that's not a reflection on the race or coverage. That's just what they do, and they do it well.
When it comes to TV types, they can do it well and still be subject to derision for an innocent miscue like the one referenced above by Wallace. But when you see the coordination of efforts - and the challenge of putting on this fast-paced production lap to lap - it makes you enjoy the show that much more.
Nope.
That's live TV, and it ain't easy.
Wallace, of course, was thinking about the 11 on Hamlin's car and what came out of his mouth didn't reflect that.
Hey, to err is human, especially when you're on the air.
While writers and editors operate with a back button - one that doesn't always save us, unfortunately - the people calling America's fastest spectator sport in person do so without a safety net. I split this evening‚s race into four quarters - sorry, it is football season as much as NASCAR probably wishes it wasn't during the Chase - watching the first quarter in ESPN/ABC's booth.
The second quarter, as it were, was spent in the network's production truck. Radio took me through the third quarter and the fourth is playing out now as I write this - as a fan, in the comfort of home with a cat at my feet and dog riding shotgun on the couch. They're both sleeping, but that's not a reflection on the race or coverage. That's just what they do, and they do it well.
When it comes to TV types, they can do it well and still be subject to derision for an innocent miscue like the one referenced above by Wallace. But when you see the coordination of efforts - and the challenge of putting on this fast-paced production lap to lap - it makes you enjoy the show that much more.
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Comments
1 response to "Airing it out in the Sprint Cup race"
del brown said:
Oct 13, 2008 at 9:14 AMMiscues can and do happen. But for some of the ESPN presenters it seems as though rvery second of air time is a miscue.
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