Quote:
Originally Posted by Bryan Worner
They would rather show the Alcohol cars do their entire burnout and staging procedures and talk about worthless stats than show a couple of rounds of s/ss! Not to mention filling in with interviews about how these cars operate, or clutch setups or whatever.....stuff that makes no sense to the fans!
Showing S/SS from the quarter finals on would be an "enhancement" some people would actually enjoy!
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This is something I have griped about for years... the media coverage for the pros gives personal interviews, info on the SPONSORS, and explanations of how the systems in the cars work, crew members, etc. This helps the fans CONNECT to the John Force/Greg Anderson/Don Schumachers, etc. I think fans would connect to the Sportsman racer just as well, and even in a more intimate way thru car identification. This would bring more exposure to sponsors and Sportsman racers, making the contingency dollar more of a value to the companies paying them.
The coverage continually hypes on the amazing power levels, performance and sophistication and construction of the pro cars (rightfully so, I might add), so that the average fan can have an insight into all that's happening... not so for the Sportsman racer. In my experience, every casual spectator that has had an opportunity to see how the S/SS car is modified, constructed and tuned to perform at the level that they do, and how drastically different the level of performance is from the stock vehicles they start out from, they never fail to be impressed, and more interested in following the classes.
How many media fans know that most SS cars and many Stk cars have a crewchief?? Or what he does?? How a racer prepares for the next round of competition?? What affects their setups and performance?? Do they even know how the class a car fits into is determined?? What the handicap system/index system is in place for?? (Don't give me that crap that the average spectator doesn't understand handicap racing... how many of them understood a slipper clutch, or tire shake?? These things have been explained to the fans on behalf of the pros, to the point that they have become part of the experience, instead fans of asking "why do half the cars just smoke the tires and not go fast??") And what about introducing fans to Sportsman blogs and websites like they do for the pros??
NHRA just needs to recognize the untapped potential in today's Sportsman ranks and capitalize on it, to the benefit of racers, fans and NHRA...... "enhancements" that could solve many of these contingency problems as well as grow the eliminator.....