Out of Place
If you're like me you didn't see much if any of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards Banquet last Friday night. While I'm at the point where I really have no problem with NASCAR holding its annual year-end dog and pony show in the Big Apple, I also have about as much interest in watching it as I did Rosie O'Donnell's recent NBC variety show.

The banquet wasn't even carried live, although ESPN Classic would have you believe otherwise. The network ran a "Live" graphic during the show, even though it was about an hour behind what was actually happening at the Waldorf Astoria.

And if the event is such a big deal, why did NASCAR's "television partner" relegate it to ESPN Classic? Apparently the Dodge Ball finals were already on "The Ocho."

What I did see - in bits and pieces of my Friday night channel surfing - looked like the usual bore, with the exception of Cale Yarborough's unexpected appearance to share the stage with Jimmie Johnson as the only two drivers to win three straight titles. NASCAR talked all about its "Back to Basics" theme at the beginning of the year but it took until the final event of the season for it to really happen when today's royalty met one of the sport's legends on stage.

The pathetic pleas by drivers and team owners for the government to bail out the automotive industry was an uncomfortable thing to watch and I found it to be classless. As much as the manufacturers might mean to the sport, begging the public to write their congressman to support the bail out package during the banquet telecast was out of place.

But given the fact the ratings were probably the lowest in the history of the banquet since it was buried on ESPN Classic, there's a good chance not too many others were bothered by the begging.
Posted: 12/8/2008 7:54:11 PM
Comments:
The banquet has not been live since i have been watching NASCAR racing. i used to listen to it on MRN on my way home from work and then watch it "live" on tv. since when is a banquet ever supposed to be entertaining? your talk about the the usual "bore" shows your lack of respect for the sport in general. maybe if you understood that its a drivers night to give thanks and not entertain you, you would be better off. Last what did you expect the teams and drivers to do? this sport is founded on Detroit and there support. common sense will tell you that they are going to plead on the manufactures behalf because it a huge chunk of money that they loose. you support those that support you. its loyalty at its best and thats what this sport was built on.
Posted On: 12/14/2008 5:21:35 PM

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