Once again Cart takes a back seat to Golf!

[Jay]

Well for the 999th time today's race will be shown tape delayed because ESPN (In Canada TSN) has decided that it would rather show the PGA championship.

And worst of all, guess when it will be on TV in Canada (probably North America). 10:30 pm!!!!!!!!

Yes that's right it will be in competition with the bloody nightly news.

And on TSN they after the golf tournament they will have sports highlights, highlights of the golf earlier that day, and then a tin-top race from a concrete bucket that noone can find in the middle of Michigan0.

If they tried to do the same for an F1 race there would be a riot in Europe. Yet, since Cart is only a semi-pro series I guess its alright if we watch golf instead.

[Jay]

OK, well it looks like it will be on ABC so I rescind my comments about Cart as a whole.

But, still shame on TSN.

[Robin Plummer]

The Elkhart lake race is supposed to be shown at 23:00 tonight on Eurosport and Eurosport GB, BUT when you look on Eurosport's schedules it has been dropped for Spanish football and repeats of Motor Cycling allready shown in the day!!!!

1999 wasnt this bad so what's happening? Please someone tell me it aint true and that it is really on in the UK tonight?

[Liz]

What time is the race on ABC? I was all set to catch it on raceline radio (in fact I may use them for the sound and just watch the ABC feed) - I think it's time for Bobby Rahal to get a flood of mail on this subject.

Anyone who feels the same way, please compose a strongly worded letter but make it polite (WE know they are clueless morons but let's keep it to ourselves) suggesting that perhaps it is time CART thought about doing something serious about its scheduling of races.

[bella]

robin, eurosport don't have the rights to show cart on the same day as the race. british eurosport do, but normal eurosport don't. what happened was cart sold this years rights to individual countries, and british eurosport bought ours.
1999 was a whole different story. who remembers being the only people to see the end of the race...man i was glad, for one.......
ah well. i'll just have to cheer on my boys from the timing screens.
forza ragazzi!

[Scottie]

Liz, ABC is telecasting @ 4:00pm Eastern time. RDS is @ 2:00pm Eastern time.

[Liz]

Thanks!

[Minardi fan]

Makes no difference to me - it'll be on Channel 5 tomorrow night.

If I were you lot however, I'd be bloody FUMING.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!

[Liz]

Thank God for Raceline Radio! I can't believe that ABC delayed the race telecast for ARENA FOOTBALL!!!!!! I don't know anybody who even ever HEARD of Arena football!!!!!!

The race was over before the football game that no one was watching. Now I'm watching the race even though I know how it came out.

UPDATE: TSN, which will be broadcasting this race at 10:30, has just announced who won.
[Edited by Liz on 20th August 2000]

[Jay]

I watched it live on RDS (en Francais) with the sound turned off and the sound of the Cart Radio Network and The Players radio on the computer turned up.

The radio from the internet was about 5-10 sec behind the coverage, but the pit radio was still great. Too bad both Players cars retired. So I switched to the Team Kool Green radio. Interestingly there was no celebration on the radio when Paul won. Fuel was still the concern.

[gomick]

maybe CART need an afro-american winning races consistently - until then go tiger....here in oz we dont see the race until 18 hours later (unless you have pay tv), its pretty hard surfing the web while trying not to find out who won the race...

[Liz]

I don't think TSN ever broadcast the race at all. I turned on the channel at 10:30 and there was a NASCAR race on with 100 laps to go. I went to bed, after writing TSN a strongly worded email and sending a copy to CART.COM.

[AndrettiRULES]

If only CART members were like Liz we'd all be set! CART's broadcasting can really be messed up @ times, but I can't complain a whole lot. At least I get to see all the races, albeit a few hrs. after the finish has already occurred, but you get my point

AR

[Liz]

I also mentioned in my email that ESPN should either sell the entire package or not keep saying "We don't have time to show you...but you can see it on ESPN2" when we do not get ESPN2 and therefore are not getting the whole race package. They've forwarded it to somebody who is going to get back to me, they said. Not a word from TSN.

[Nuvolari]

A new wrinkle from ABC . . . following the race, no interview with Tracy. As closing credits rolled, there was a shot of the podium.

Fade to black.

Time for local news.

[Robin Plummer]

Lets face it CART TV coverage around the world compared to F1 is ****!

Booby Rahal's probably too busy talking to Max Papis and Kenny Brack on the pit radio to worry about it, but worry he should.

This is 1st class racing tarnished by appaling coverage. The best solution would be to sell the rights to a pay per view and terrestial channel one offering better coverege than the other without millions of adverts and priority given to completlly unheard of sports!

And these channels should be broadcast by satalite across the world so anyone with a sutiable digital dish/cable setup could get it LIVE regardless of their time zone.

[AndrettiRULES]

Liz, I'm lucky enough to get ESPN2 where I live and haven't missed a CART race since '94!

But, ironically I don't get Speedvision, so I never get to see an F-1 race anymore...but hey, what's there to watch anyway?!

I just don't understand it sometimes...do they not realize how great their series truly is? Don't they want to get it out to the public, or do they not mind being a 2nd rate open-wheel series to the general public? Something truly needs to be done, and soon! At least the NASCAR coverage for next year is going to suck IMO...so maybe CART can get more spotlight shone on them because of it.......i'm only hoping!!

AR

[Liz]

I think - that they just don't think. Same problem as that fellow they signed to do marketing for CART who started off by insulting his audience (saying charitably that everyone forgot Zanardi was Italian because he was a winner) ... they don't watch the races, so they don't know how bad the coverage is and they for some reason don't listen to their fans who want to see the races the way they are meant to be seen!

Nuvolari we got the post-race interview on our Headline Sports channel - but only with Tracy and only because he's Canadian. OTOH we got the post-race interview with da Matta when he won so maybe they only show the winner's interview? They should buy another hour of time and show the pre-race and the post-race - and ALL of the race. But they don't. And we can't make them.

[Jay]

Just a note. The Michigan race, which was cut into by Golf got the highest TV rating in Cart history. Did this have anything to do with a great race? Well, No. It had to do with Tiger Woods winning the British Open and having such a large carry over.

[Nuvolari]

And more's the pity, Liz.