SpeedTV (STILL) sucks

[Kidder]

Well, the AMA races that are occurring this weekend (October 9-10) will NOT be shown by NASCARTV, I mean SpeedTV. There are a few class championships that are coming down to this final weekend including Superbike and Supersport. So, I looked at SpeedTV's schedule and they're replaying the Superbike Races 1 and 2 on Tuesday, October 19th at 11am and 12pm, respectively. The Supersport race that is being contested by the Hayden boys is being replayed on Tuesday, October 25th at 11am.

THIS SUCKS. :angryfir:

[sbaker33]

Grrr...will they at least be showing the MotoGP races this weekend? (I am at work and Speedtv is blocked)

Do you have an email address we can send our complaints to? We could post it here and on HSN etc and at least let the speed folks know there are a few of us out here who prefer something other than Nascrap. (Will I get fined for that?)

[wczimmerman]

I agree: it sucks.

My solution: TiVo. It is programmed to record any instance of MotoGP (not the 250's), WorldSuperbike, AMA Superbike and AMA Supersport/Superstock. It's really nice to sit down in the evening, pull up the "What's playing" list and say, "Oh! A Race, COOL!"

Not to mention, you can fast forward through the fillers and commercials for all the Nascrap. I once heard a comedian say if you ever wonder how anyone can watch a bunch of cars go around in circles relentlessly and call it fun, just look at your average NASCAR fan. 'Nuff said. :lol:

[Kidder]

Tivo? Screw that. I'm not going to wait two weeks to see who won the championship in the three classes (Superbike, Superstock, Supersport). If they show the races on Sunday, then I won't look at the results. I'll wait and watch the races. But, having to wait and watch the races two to three weeks later? Come on. Also, I'd rather they put the AMA Superbike races in place of the MotoGP races. They still have three races to go. It's not like the championship is being decided THAT DAY.

SpeedTV sucks. :angryfir:

[wczimmerman]

Tivo? Screw that. I'm not going to wait two weeks to see who won the championship in the three classes

Uh...just so I can understand...you don't want to wait on SpeedTV, right? Don't really understand the comment about TiVo.

:-?

[Kidder]

Sorry, I guess the Tivo comment had no place. In fact, I don't even have one...yet. :-(

My only point/complaint is that NascarTV is showing championship-stakes motorcycle racing three weeks after it happened! :angryfir:

[wczimmerman]

I agree wholeheartedly. :chug:

Anyone know why NASCAR is popular these days?

[scratch]

Anyone know why NASCAR is popular these days?

It's a mystery to me - looks a lot like driving around Loop 610 in Houston, and that ain't much fun! :mrgreen:

[kurt]

NASCAR:

http://www.funnypop.com/pictures/data/504/114nascarbackhair-med.jpg

Moto GP:

http://www.dreamgate.ne.jp/nsr/Gallery/03_gp_07.jpg

[Chirpy]

MotoGP is same weekend, as it's scheduled.

Problem is that AMA racing is supposed to be over, so they have to slot it where they can. Blame the AMA, they screwed up the contract so they couldn't get the track the following week, which was the Speed fall back.

At least be pissed at the right people. Once again, AMA ProRacing drops the ball. Of course all you have to do is look at the class structure and you know they have no business being a sanctioning body.

As for TiVos, they absolutely rock.

I've got a Series 1 for sale, $299. The price of the lifetime subscription that it has... Even has the last episode of Farscape on it :mrgreen:

Bought one with a DVD-R in it :chug:

[Kidder]

MotoGP is same weekend, as it's scheduled.

Problem is that AMA racing is supposed to be over, so they have to slot it where they can. Blame the AMA, they screwed up the contract so they couldn't get the track the following week, which was the Speed fall back.

At least be pissed at the right people. Once again, AMA ProRacing drops the ball. Of course all you have to do is look at the class structure and you know they have no business being a sanctioning body.

As for TiVos, they absolutely rock.

I've got a Series 1 for sale, $299. The price of the lifetime subscription that it has... Even has the last episode of Farscape on it :mrgreen:

Bought one with a DVD-R in it :chug:

Sorry, but I still blame SpeedTV. I don't think AMA had one iota of control for Hurricane Ivan. So, okay, it's over. Fine, it's been rescheduled. Why do I want to watch MotoGP over AMA? It's not like they've stopped down for it. How can AMA drop the ball when it's weather related. If you ask me, Speed dropped the ball and it's only going left (yeah, another left turn). :angryfir:

AMA has no right being a sanctioning body? Huh? :-?

[Chirpy]

You can blame who you want, but Speed's contingency is to broadcast same day (or live as they can if they run on weekdays) the weekend after on weather delays, as that's the USUAL plan for a rain out.

The AMA screwed up and DIDN'T have a contingency clause in the contract with VIR for the season finale. Wow, aren't they professional? So club racing was going on, and the AMA didn't have the contractual clout to bump the event. If they had signed the normal contract and had the track the following week, you would have seen same day coverage from Speed. So the AMA had to find an open date in the VIR calendar and run whenever they could. Which left Speed with trying to find time to run WAAAAY after the season was scheduled to be over.

Being in a job where scheduling is everything, I'd imagine the most frustrated folks are the ones at Speed. This is the second major jerkaround the AMA has done to them in two years. The easiest thing would be for Speed to say "Chuck you Farley" and not even send crews. Instead they are sending crews and broadcasting when they can. This is to cater to a fan base that let's face it, is a fraction of Nastycar. More people attend a Nextel race in DFW than almost the entire AMA Superbike series combined...do you think the TV viewership is that much different?

From personal experience, motorcyclists are also a bunch of cheap *******s that don't spend much money and grind you out of every penny when they do. There's little easy money in the business, and advertisers know it.

As to the AMA being unfit to run a race series, they are. SuperCross and all the dirt stuff that actually draws an audience is farmed out to Pace Promotions - and they do a wonderful job. That's why kids run around with a Fox logo'd jersey and have no idea what it means. The rules make sense, the classes haven't changed in years, and when they do they usually are in line with world sanctioning body rules so manufacturers can save some money.

Then there's roadracing. They run that themselves. First, the AMA admitted wrongdoing when they paid a $6 million dollar judgement to the guy they wrested the program away from. They then proceeded to put a class structure in place that no one but a truly dedicated fan can understand, that splits factory participation and leaves a supposed top class Superbike grid with only six real entries? AMA rules have little in common with WSKB or other national championships. Does that sound like a sanctioning body with a clue?

Those class decisions were made late in season, effective next season, over howls of protest from everyone except Honda. Same thing this year with the 200. It's now a Formula Extreme race, and Honda is the only one of the Big 4 who seriously ran Formula Extreme this year. Who do you think will win the 200 in '05?

With factories now running in what previously were support classes, how does a privateer or small team make an impact? AMA attendence and veiwership was at it's highest when the classes mimic'd the WSBK classes along with "run what you brung" Formula Extreme and the spec Sportster class. The Sportster class was where the Brothers Bostrum came from and was where they came to national prominence. Very few changes allowed and low horsepower means rider skill is at a premium - and that means great racing. It also mean HOG chapters came to races. Say what you want, but it swelled interest. I think it bruised the AMA's ego that half the crowd left after the "support class" Sportster race was over.

Much better than just watching Miguel lap club racers in FX.

So yes, the AMA is clueless as a promoting body. Worse than clueless, they are now actually dismantling it from a struture that worked and was understood to one that has almost everyone pretty disgruntled, and they are digging in to protect it. Great move guys.

And they aren't even smart enough to put a weather clause in their track rental contracts. Sheesh.

We're lucky Speed bothers with us actually, they could probably get more viewers running WRC reruns and they wouldn't have to deal with AMA incompetance.

My not-so-humble-opinion

[wczimmerman]

As someone that just got into motorcycle racing this year, I'd like to add my perspective (I enjoy the AMA road races, WSB, and MotoGP):

1. I agree that motorcyclists can be frugal, but I also know that we spend a great deal of money on parts, accessories, and apparel when we want it. Along those lines, if the AMA wants to improve attendance at the races, they'll need to make it more accessible to the population. We need more advertising (on par with NASCRAP) to get a high profile then race at more tracks around the country so more folks can see it. As it stands, we Texans are out of the loop for ANYTHING nearby. So, too, are the folks in most of the South and MidWest (NASCAR's birth).

2. I also agree that some work needs to be done to clarify the differences between the classes. I've had to read the rules more than once to understand what the differences were. I think the Sportster class would be a good idea to bring back, too (not that I would watch it).

3. Change the names: Superbike1000 (1000cc's and nearly anything goes), then Factory1000 (1000cc stock bikes), Factory600(600cc stock bikes), and maybe a Superbike600 (600cc and anything goes) if there was interest.

Just my thoughts.

[Chirpy]

As someone that just got into motorcycle racing this year, I'd like to add my perspective (I enjoy the AMA road races, WSB, and MotoGP):

1. I agree that motorcyclists can be frugal, but I also know that we spend a great deal of money on parts, accessories, and apparel when we want it. Along those lines, if the AMA wants to improve attendance at the races, they'll need to make it more accessible to the population. We need more advertising (on par with NASCRAP)

But there's the problem, frugal spenders don't enrich advertisers to the point where they have massive ad budgets. That takes high margins, and those aren't left in what has now become a commodity business. Besides the Big4, maybe Ducati, and Teknic and Joe Rocket, who do you go for? Chevy trucks was a big win, as that's outside money.

The real problem is that all the money in the motorcycle industry is in crusiers. Those guys spend money like it's going out of style. So if your rate of return is triple or quadruple, do you advertise during a race or during American Thunder? If you're smart and have the product, American Thunder. Lockhart Philips has the most extensive sponsorship program in club racing as well as a huge product line for sportbikes, and they don't advertise on TV at all.

The AMA needs to make it more attractive, agreed. But first they need to clean up their act...

3. Change the names: Superbike1000 (1000cc's and nearly anything goes), then Factory1000 (1000cc stock bikes), Factory600(600cc stock bikes), and maybe a Superbike600 (600cc and anything goes) if there was interest.


Changing the names would have been less confusing, but the core issue is that they used to have a structure that made sense and they kept the names to obfuscate how badly they were torqueing the classes.

Superbike had displacement limits and a production base requirement. Suspension was limited only by money, and some motor mods allowed. This pretty much matched the world and other national champioinships.

FormulaExtreme was "run what cha brung". No production requirments, and this class brought out the Tularis (snowmobile 2 stroke in custom frame) and a winged 'Busa that wanted to be first to 200mph in AMA competition.

SuperSport was relatively stock 600cc fours. Less mods than the World SS rules, this is where the manufacturers used to play hard to win races and sell 600s.

SuperStock was the same, but for 750cc. Since no one but Suzuki has built a competitive 750 for years, this effectively became a spec class for privateers and up and comers to get noticed.

Then 250GP, the last "real" race bikes in America. This is what the AMA wanted to kill, because other than 250 racers, no body really cared anymore. Rich Oliver only won like 25 titles in a row or something, and I agree, it was getting boring. In Europe, people still ride two-strokes, so there's more interest. I agree that it probably had to go, but the way the AMA did it was stupid.

That setup made sense. The current one doesn't, and lets the manufacturers pick between classes to run, and his killed the privateers.

My vote for a new structure...

Superbike - Basically World SBK rules for 1000cc fours, to make it easy for manufacturers to compete.

SuperSport - Again, World SS rule for 600 fours.

SuperStock - stock 600cc fours (or 749 twins or 1000cc pushrod twins). Rear shock, fork valving and maybe a pipe and remapping. This is where privateers could shine, and this is where money wouldn't matter as much. Again.

Formula Extreme - old rules

Spec Class - don't care what, although for commecial reasons Firebolt XB9s would be an awesome choice.

If the AMA just wants four classes, I'd actually kill SuperSport, or maybe SuperStock. The Spec Class needs to come back, that's where talent is really showcased.

There's also a chance you can get Harley money and marketing behind it if it's Buells. It's obvious Harley can market far better than the AMA.

[old paul]

This has been an interesting thread, with some very well thought out and presented diaglogue. Thanks to you'all for that.

As to the issue, it is frustrating at the sofa level to not see a favorite race live, for whatever the reason. But, coming as I do from the depths of history, allow me to suggest that the worst today is incredibly good. There was the day when the best one could hope for would be to find out who won a Formula One race sometime within the month, and we not only didn't get news of, but never even heard of things like the Isle of Man.

[kurt]

I once heard a comedian say if you ever wonder how anyone can watch a bunch of cars go around in circles relentlessly and call it fun, just look at your average NASCAR fan. 'Nuff said. :lol:

Well, with the decline in WWF ratings, it only stands to reason that NASCAR ratings would go up. :mrgreen:

[Texas T]

I once heard a comedian say if you ever wonder how anyone can watch a bunch of cars go around in circles relentlessly and call it fun, just look at your average NASCAR fan. 'Nuff said. :lol:

Well, with the decline in WWF ratings, it only stands to reason that NASCAR ratings would go up. :mrgreen:

:angryfir: :angryfir: :angryfir:

Now, do I REALLY look like some toothless, wife-beating-tshirt wearing, cousin-loving, inbred hillbilly with a jug of moonshine in my pocket?
Be nice... :angel: :mrgreen:
NASCAR1 (http://www.thorn.org/images/nascar/Brickyard98/Irwin-Brian-Yates.jpg)

You meet the nicest people at a NASCAR dinner (http://www.thorn.org/images/nascar/Brickyard98/Andretti-Brian-Indy98.jpg)

[kurt]

:-D I haven't watched NASCAR for years because of what it became. When they raced real production cars, I liked to watch occasionally, but I lose interest after about a couple of left turns.

I've found it much more entertaining to taunt the NASCAR fathful because they get so indignant about it. :chug:

[Rocket_Cowboy]

There was the day when the best one could hope for would be to find out who won a Formula One race sometime within the month

Hehe ... now we KNOW who's going to win F1 even before the race starts. It's always the red car ... Forza Ferrari!

Sorry ... had to jump in there.

[Tourmeister]

Who was that funny looking tall guy with Mario? :scratch :-P

Adios,

[Texas T]

Who was that funny looking tall guy with Mario? :scratch :-P

Adios,
Hey! I said be nice!
:mrgreen:

[vfer]

I would also like to see better coverage of the races,but it's hard to complain when I doubt anybody else would air them at all.The AMA for sure has its problems running races,but its all we got.