NASCAR hopes "Changing Lanes'' show on BET can change perceptions; other shows coming

"Changing Lanes'' debuted Wednesday night on the BET network, detailing the sport's Drive for Diversity program. Yet it is just part of a change NASCAR is undergoing in marketing the sport to those who might not be fans.

 

A documentary on Wendell Scott, the only African-American to win a race in what is now the Sprint Cup Series is scheduled for February 2011 to coincide with Black History Month. Also, NASCAR is working on a program with Versus Network on a five-part series called "Next Generation.'' That show will look at who the up-and-coming stars of the sport are. The plan is to tap into the younger crowd, one NASCAR has struggled to maintain recently. More such programs are expected to be on the way.

 

"We will be creating more and more content (with) the diversity initiative and the next thing, really for us, is the youth area,'' said Jay Abraham, NASCAR Media Group's chief operating officer. The NASCAR Media Group produces various shows seen on numerous networks about NASCAR.

 

"This ("Changing Lanes'') is really about a major strategic industry initiative to expose our sport to a whole new group of fans, a diverse audience,'' Abraham said at a party for the show's premiere in Charlotte, N.C. on Wednesday night.

 

"Changing Lanes'' is a racing reality show. It features minority drivers (from African-American and Latinos to females) that are a part of Revolution Racing, which runs the sport's Drive for Diversity program.

 

Wednesday's first episode followed some of the 30 drivers who competed in the combine last fall that determined the 10 drivers for the program. It told the stories of some of those individuals so fans could better know them and, possibly, connect with and care about to see how they perform in the combine and (if they make the cut) in the eight-episode series.

 

Max Siegel, who used to be an executive at Dale Earnhardt Inc., is the CEO of Revolution Racing and has made it an acdaemy-style training facility. The drivers relocated to the Charlotte, N.C. They spend about 20 hours a week working on their cars in the shop. They do physical training and they race. The goal is to have the drivers, some still in high school, for about two years, giving them the chance to move up the ranks in the NASCAR world.

 

Wednesday's first episode began by discussing Wendell Scott. The rapper Ludacris provides the program's voice over and speaks words Siegel said in a short version of the show played at Daytona in February. In the February version, Siegel noted how Scott had been the only African-American to win a Cup race. But also in that version shown to a group was a clip from Scott's daughter, who said: "Racial barriers were a sign of the times. There were people who did not accept him. I feared for my Dad's life, but the man was an inspiration and he still inspires today.''  That clip was not in Wednesday's first episode. Instead, it was replaced by some of the driving candidates talking about what Scott meant to them. Of course, the comments from Scott's daughter could be included in a later episode (the drivers were taken to see members of Scott's family to get a better appreciation for the man).

 

Siegel, who is African-American, said the show would not shy away from the historical context or even present-day situations his drivers experience at tracks.

 

"When people deal with cultural differences, oftentimes we view them from our own perspective and if you haven't experienced some of the things that other people haven't, it's hard to be empathetic even if you can be sympathetic,'' Siegel said. "I think one important moment is Blair Addis (who is white and oversees the Late Model drivers in the driver diversity program) talks about what he and (African-American driver) Michael Cherry experienced at Greenville-Pickens. Blair, being as much Michael's big brother as he is his competition direction, finally got an understanding of how hurtful some of this stuff is that people deal with, and I think it gave him an appreciation for some of the added pressures and challenges that women and people of color face on a daily basis.''

 

How will this show do? It will depend on if the audience connects with the drivers and want to follow them for the next couple of months to see them progress. Certainly, some of the drivers who make the cut have had success, winning poles and races this season. Maybe one or some will make up NASCAR's ladder to the Cup Series. 

 

"Once  a few of us make it to (Cup),'' said African-American driver Ryan Gifford, who is in the show, "the next generation of kids are going to be able to look up to us and say, "Hey, we can do it.''

 

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