Bye Bye Andrew

[bobdrummond]

I've just read on speedvision.com the dreadful tv ratings for Long Beach. Such a great race being knocked into a hat by the WWF, sorry Nascar, is unacceptable. Andrew Craig must go. I've read in Racer magazine that someone has been appointed as new operations director, alongside Craig. What Cart needs is an owner/promoter a la Ecclestone whose livelihood and fortune is solely dependant on Champ Cars success. I feel too much of CART is staffed by salarymen who are as equally rewarded by mediocrity as by success. Please step forward Chip, Roger, Carl or even D. Letterman.

[Liz]

The guy they hired is a prat. He actually said this in print: "Once he became successful on the track, everybody forgot he was Italian."

They'll never get higher ratings by hiring Yosemite Sam to do their public relations.

P.S. Long Beach probably had crummy ratings in Canada because fifteen minutes after the race should have started, they casually mentioned that they were going to run it an hour late on tape delay. Lots of us went to the timing board to "watch" it instead of hanging arround.

The first thing to do if you want to build ratings is make sure people can see the blasted race!

[Jay]

Liz, I was fuming over that too. They decided to show a baseball game where Toronto was losing 19-7 in the 8th inning. They showed that to completion.

I switched to RDS, the French Network. The French motorsports coverage is 100 times better than the English is. I like the previews they show before every race. They show highlights from all of the past races going back to when they first filmed races. It's really neat.

Their also good if the English station goes to commercial. (even if I don't understand it all)

P.S.

Not David Lettermen, I can't stand him. I would much rather watch Leno.

[bobdrummond]

Can't stand David Letterman? Are you serious? Even if you don't like his TV show, as a Champ Car fan you've got to admit he is a powerful asset. Either through his part-ownership of Team Rahal or the way he has many drivers on his show as guests, Dave has done his part to help the cause.
So, do you REALLY prefer a guy who reckons the Dodge Viper is the best car ever made?

[Unknown Soldier]

CART needs a better TV deal. ABC sees CART as secondary option and shows a few races a year taped - delayed to make room for Hair in a Can Info-mercial.

It's real frustrating when a race is shown three hours after it starts and you already know the results.

Cart could learn something from NASCAR and their TV deal

[Dave S]

From what I read they know it. Unfortunately they're locked into the current deal with ABC/ESPN through next year. That's why they've concentrated on revamping the European coverage & next year will go out for a new US deal.

[Crash Test]

Its easy to say Cart would be a lot better if it had better live coverage, the same could be said about bridge... The thing is, does Cart have something that they can sell to the public? Do the 250 million Americans want to watch Cart or Hair in a can info-mercials? If you were running a TV station, do you want to gain money or lose it?

Not knocking Cart here, but will TV stations show races live to satisfy us hardcore fans, when most of the population want to watch info-mercials?

I know i want live coverage...but i guess i am just a bit envious of your 3 hour delay...down here its an 18 hour one...

[Crash Test]

Tell me about it....by that stage of the day i have already seen the live timimg, race reports, photos and video clips from espn.com.....

To complain a little more our F1 is delayed, and we are very lucky if every we get Lites, Atlantics , Transams etc....i think we are probably still waiting for some of last seasons race...and they aren't even free to air...

[Liz]

Thanks Jay, i will try RDS next time. I used to watch the race at 4:00 p.m. on Radio Canada, but they don't broadcast it any more and I hardly ever go up the high end of the dial except to 53 for Headline Sports. I can understand most of it and I love hearing the French announcers try to say Schumacher.

[Unknown Soldier]

Crash Test,

18 hours? Just have one word - DAMM!!!!!!!!!

Cart second biggest expense is Marketing. What they do with that money is any ones guess.

[Liz]

I can't believe CART is spending anything like they say they are, on marketing, as they are not DOING any marketing.

I think those Toyota commercials for ganassi et al. are lame, lame, lame. Who on earth wants to see some actor pretending to be an announcer and shots of cars that could be computer generated for all we know? WE WANT TO SEE THE PILOTES! Where on earth are the people with the IDEAS? I could write better commercials standing on my head in a bucket of ice water!

Surely they can find SOMEBODY in racing who actually LIKES Champ cars? Who can tell the pilotes apart without looking at their passports? Who has more than five minutes' experience in marketing? WHERE ARE THESE PEOPLE COMING FROM? A journo school in the back of a comic book?

[craigmanning]

...Liz?...where in Toronto can you get RDS?

[Liz]

It's one of those channels up at the top of the dial. I was up there one day watching hockey and didn't know that was where I was. I'll check and see what channel it is next time I've got the TV on.

[Nuvolari]

Agree, Liz -- a stunning lack of creativity.

CART needs to get its message out to the wider public, devise ways to generate real excitement.

Hell, who knows? Maybe from a marketing point of view Stallone's movie will be the best thing that ever happened to the series.

[craigmanning]

...have you heard the war of words between Tom Anderson of Ganassi and Andrew Craig?...