Indy 500 changes...

[John Corn]

Tony George and company are currently considering pushing back the start time of the 500 a couple of hours in order to get better ratings. I'm sure the folks in California aren't getting up at 8 a.m. on a Sunday to watch a race. This seems like an obvious way to build a larger fan base and I'm sure the sponsors would appreciate the extra visability. There is one problem. This would certainly make it near impossible for NASCAR drivers to pull "the double". From what I understand, Tony Stewart wants to come back. Him, Robby Gordon, and potentially others would be shut-out. Kevin Harvick said this past May he would like to race the 500. What if Hornish does one day head down south? That would mean no more Hornish. TG is considering making the change for '04. So what do ya think, is it worth it?

 

[James]

I will say I never see the start of the race except on the TiVo. Its a good change IMO.

 

[IndyMichael]

Nascar should do the right thing, and not race the same day as the Indy 500, no reason they can't race the Coca Cola 600 on the Saturday before the Indy 500.

 

[John Corn]

Several things to remember such as the length of time it used to take to run the race. There is a big difference between running 500 miles at 1911 speeds vs today's speeds.

Also, the early start time gives a bigger window to play with should the track be wet and require a couple of hours drying time before the race can start.

While the race may be run in less time nowadays, moving the start time to accommodate TV sponsors could mean the difference in the race being run on the day scheduled as opposed to the next day.

 

[John W]

Nascar should do the right thing, and not race the same day as the Indy 500, no reason they can't race the Coca Cola 600 on the Saturday before the Indy 500.

I consider that to be one thing that I look forward to. 1100 miles in one day, two different cities which are something like 700 miles apart or so. I love seeing what the guys doing double duty that day can accomplish in each race and what if one of them won the 500.

 

[SatelliteGuys Bot]

Hello John Corn,

We are changing the status of this ticket to closed as we have not heard back from you in 7 days.