Backseat Drivers Fan Council dishes on road courses & what races need to be shortened

After a week off, the Backseat Drivers Fan Council is back at it, discussing and debating various topics within the sport. The Fan Council discusses road course racing and which races need to be shorter, in light of Pocono reducing its race lengths. Here’s what the Fan Council had to say on various topics:

WHERE DOES ROAD COURSE RACING RANK?

It wasn’t that long ago that many fans detested road course racing, but now there’s a feeling among some that the road courses have become this era’s version of short track racing with all the bumping and beating. So, Fan Council members were asked where does road course racing rank to them in NASCAR:

65.4 percent rank it as Middle of the Road

23.5 percent rank it as the best type of racing NASCAR has

11.1 percent rank it as the worst type of racing NASCAR has

What Fan Council members said:

# Road courses are getting better but short tracks still rank up there. Mile-and-a-halves are the worst.

# Hate road course racing. The thought of one being valued enough to be in the chase makes me laugh.

# There is a need for road courses, if you're going to be a champion, you need to be able to navigate all types of tracks that NASCAR has to offer.

# 10 years ago I never would have said this, but the road courses, along with Richmond/Bristol/Martinsville/Phoenix/Loudon are the best racing the Cup series has (aka any track that isn't a cookie cutter)

# We see so little of it, I think we tend to romanticize it somewhat. Granted both road course races have been phenomenal this year, but in 2009, both were somewhat lackluster. They have their cycles. Just happens to be on an upswing. However, if there were 4-6 races per year on road courses, it would likely even out and we'd have a dud or two in the mix. Just like the 1.5 milers, sometimes it turns out to be a great show (Coke 600 this year), sometimes someone stinks up the joint (KY race this year).

# I don't mind 2 road courses but no more than that & keep them out of chase.

# NASCAR should only be on ovals!!! If they are trying to reduce costs, how about eliminating the need for a completely different car and setup for road courses!!!

# Short tracks are still my favorite. It's more wheel to wheel. The road courses are exciting but they are more about pit strategy, track position and sensational wrecks. Give me a fall afternoon at Martinsville any day.

# Now that we only have the 2 car tango in the restrictor plate races, road course racing is quickly becoming my favorite - action (on and off the track), side by side racing, on the edge of your seat to see who can execute the turns. Still love short tracks the best, but as long as I can watch them on TV, I am starting to rank road courses up towards the top.

# I used to hate road courses. I'm still not fond of them but I have to admit that the last couple has been pretty good. I even watched the Nationwide race on Saturday and I never would have done that before.

# With the destruction of good racing at Daytona, Talladega, and Bristol all sandwiched in between tons of cookie-cutter tracks, Sonoma and Watkins Glen are about the most fun there is now all year.

# It really has become the best. Great strategy, great racing. None of this clean air, aeropush or whatever. Just driving skill.

IS THE WILDCARD MAKING SEASON MORE EXCITING?

With the wildcard seemingly changing from week to week, Fan Council members were asked if this new element was making the Cup season more interesting to them this season:

76.4 percent said Yes

23.6 percent said No

What Fan Council member said:

# As much as I hate the Chase, the wild card does at least bring a little interest to it. Especially since I would like to see Brad Keselowski in the Chase.

# I thought the idea was to have the best and most consistent drivers in the Chase. The wildcard element allows access to the lucky, more so than the previous format. The season champion should be more than lucky, more than consistent, and more than sneaky.

# New drivers are in the mix. I love it!

# I hated the idea of the changes at the start of the season. But I can see at this point of the season, that it’s going to make for much more excitement in the weeks coming up to Richmond.

# I thought the wildcard was a great idea from the start - and it's exceeded my every expectation.

# I think it is ridiculous!!! Too many races have been won on fuel mileage and strategy this year. Just take the top 12 in points - the cream rises to the top!

# Whoever gets the wild card entry will not win championship so why bother? This wildcard idea was result of Jr having problems making the chase.

# It is doing what NASCAR wanted it to do and YES it’s very exciting and unnerving especially if you’re a Smoke fan......like me

# Finally NASCAR has made the importance of wins a priority. I know they always want to win but now there is a large group of drivers that HAVE to win.

# Who's in ??? Who's scared ??? Who's laughing ??? Who's crying ??? Will it be your man, will it be mine ??? Or will we both be singing the blues ??? Awesome, ain't it !!!

# It seems like inconsistency is being rewarded. At first it seemed like great, someone who won races but had some bad ones will get in, but now I see it for what it is. Drivers who are more consistent will miss the chase for drivers that weren't. Even worse, one or more of those could be someone who won one of the toss up races (Daytona, Talladega) where you don't have to have the best car or strategy. You just have to be at the front late to win.

# A nice surprise. Could be just a fluke, but 15 winners in 22 races tells me that NASCAR finally did something right.

# The wild card is interesting, but its borderline nerve-racking and atrociously annoying to see that drivers who don't deserve to be in the chase luck into it with a win.

# Keselowski would have had no shot of making the Chase under the old system, but watching him these past few weeks he looks like the kind of guy that can really upset the apple cart in the Chase, which is just what the Chase needs.

# I still hate the Chase with a passion, but the wild card thing was a good move if they insist on keeping the Chase.

# I never thought I’d agree with anything Brian France does, but this has been a great move.

# As if the chase doesn't cheapen the championship enough, let's dilute it some more & maybe let some really undeserving guy win the championship.

# This is a BIG YES! Before, we'd just be glued to who was in 10th-14th to see who could make the Top-12. But this new format has changed everything. It is so exciting to see who's going to win the most races and steal a wild card spot. I'm impressed so much by Brad's efforts this season and his two wins should definitely carry him into the "postseason". Racing is all about wins. Finally it shows.

WHICH RACES NEED TO BE SHORTENED?

With the announcement last week that Pocono’s races would be shortened to 400 miles each starting next year, Fan Council members were asked what tracks should have their races shortened. Those owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) were at the top of the list to have their events shortened (NOTE: members could select more than one track to be shortened):

46.0 percent said Texas (500 miles) should be shortened

39.8 percent said Atlanta (500 miles) should be shortened

35.5 percent said Charlotte’s fall race (500 miles) should be shortened

29.4 percent said the Coca-Cola 600 should be shortened

22.3 percent said Other

20.4 percent said Talladega (500 miles) should be shortened

13.3 percent said Phoenix (500 kilometers) should be shortened

10.9 percent said Martinsville (500 laps) should be shortened

10.4 percent said Bristol (500 laps) should be shortened

7.1 percent said the Southern 500 should be shortened

6.2 percent said the Daytona 500 should be shortened

What Fan Council members said:

# I understand that the Coke 600 is supposed to be a "special" race, but do we really need any 600 mile races?

# Don't shorten any race unless there is a reduction in price of ticket.

# Martinsville is just too long at 500 laps, cut it down to 400 and it will still be an exciting race and still get some time in during the day to do something else. California and Michigan are just too boring to be as long as they are. If it wasn't tradition, I'd say cut the Coca-Cola 600 down, but it is unique in that it is that long. Hate to mess with tradition, there isn't much left from the old days and I'd like to keep the Coca-Cola 600 (although rename it the World 600 presented by Coca-Cola)

# Don't touch the Daytona 500's length. Feel free to change the "racing" though.

# CALIFORNIA! Michigan! Kansas! The cookie cutter tracks. NEVER touch Darlington, Martinsville, or Bristol--that would alienate EVERYBODY!

# Talladega is such a crapshoot that 500 miles isn't necessary.

# None. I'm tired of NASCAR catering to the new generation of ADD fans. If you want to watch a 2 hour event, got to the movies.

# Other than Atlanta & Charlotte, I'd have all the cookie cutter 1.5 mile tracks run no more than 400 miles. Atlanta & Charlotte need to keep their 500 & 600 miles races.

# I think other than the Coke-Cola 600, The Daytona 500, and the Southern 500 which are the 3 remaining classics of NASCAR all races should be 400 miles max. This makes the racing better because it gives the drivers less time to get the job done and time-wise 3 hrs is perfect.

# NONE!!!! I still do not get the less is more thing in NASCAR. I think most is driven by those in the industry / media who live this every week, and not those of us spending our precious vacation days on a race or two a year. I didn't want to see less laps this week, I didn't want to see 100 less miles last week at Pocono, don't want to see a 100 miles less of Michigan this week, even if it's normal long green run race. I look forward to the race every week, don't want less to look forward to.

# Attend every race in Charlotte except the 600. It's just too long.

# Shortening the 600 would be a sin, but the fall race along with the other mile-and-a-halves should trim some fat

# I'm good with all the others, I just wanted Pocono shortened

# NONE! Shortening these races is awful! We already have a series with shorter races - it's called Nationwide for those who like shorter races, go watch those. The only people who I ever hear looking for shorter races are the people in the business, We fans want to see the racing.

# One of the Texas races can be shortened to 400 or 350 miles. Gossage can put up some crazy bonus or whatever as the best PR guy in NASCAR and INDYCAR at the moment.

HOW DID YOU VIEW MONDAY’S WATKINS GLEN RACE?

With the Watkins Glen pushed back by rain to Monday when many had to work, how did fans keep up with the race? Here’s what they did (they could choose more than one answer):

59.7 percent watched ESPN’s broadcast

58.7 percent monitored Twitter

29.3 percent monitored it on NASCAR.com

12 percent listened to MRN’s broadcast

12 percent Other

10.3 percent listened to Sirius Satellite Radio

9.0 percent monitored it on a website OTHER THAN NASCAR.com

6.0 percent monitored it via their Sprint phone

What Fan Council members said

# Feed showing the ESPN broadcast on the internet. I know it's not "the right thing" but with no other online options how am I supposed to watch it at work?

# I watched the ESPN broadcast on Hot Pass on DirecTV and Chatted with friends on the Jeff Gordon Network and The Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Pitboard and followed the race on Nascar.com PitCommand....though the scanner was not working for this race.

# Friends kept me updated on my favorite drivers and I followed twitter for race updates.

# I didn't have to go to work til well after the race was over. I multi-task when it comes to raceday. TV for a base, Twitter for real-time with driver issues, cautions during commercials, and other stories besides what's being showed on TV, and Nascar.com for scanner audio, Fantasy team, and leaderboard.

# I used Justin.tv online streaming from my iPhone while sitting at an airport during a 2 hour flight layover

# NASCAR app on Droid, text messages from sister and friends--it was tricky to do in a large open room (mandatory workshop for my office!). Wish there had been live video streaming or Race Buddy given the circumstances.

# I went in to work late & I told my boss the truth. In return I work Saturday which he likes. I like keeping up on Twitter during all races. Great way to connect with other fans.

# Thank God for the NASCAR APP on my Sprint Phone! I got to listen to almost all the race except for when the boss kept interrupting me!

# Started off by watching at home. Then I had to head to work. Since I work for myself, I was able to use my Sprint phone & see where my favorite driver was. Also checking my twitter timeline helped fill in the details as to where each driver was & what was also going on.

# While I was at work I checked Twitter when I could. Since it sounded like an exciting race I watched it on my DVR when I got home.

# I had to work so I depended on people's tweets on twitter. Let me tell you it was torture not being able to watch lol

# TV primarily, MRN during commercials and NASCAR Race View for in car audio, position and officials channel.

GRADE THE WATKINS GLEN CUP RACE

49.6 percent said it was Good

38.4 percent said it was Great

8.8 percent said it was Fair

3.2 percent said it was Poor

What Fan Council members said:

# I thought the race was great - racy, competitive and unpredictable. I was thoroughly irritated by Boris Said's personal attack and threat to go to Biffle's house. That crossed the line and overshadowed a fantastic win by Marcos Ambrose. Boris Said should be ashamed of himself.

# Finish may have been spectacular, but the racing was pretty much fair.

# Exciting racing, tempers flaring, unbelievable crashes that everyone walked away from, and a great broadcast on ESPN's part

# It was great to finally see Marcos Ambrose finally get the win, and the racing overall was nothing like I thought would ever come out of Watkins Glen. I'm glad it was Monday rather than battling the weather on Sunday.

# It was one of the best races I've seen this year.

# It's a road course. Not my favorite style of track, but given all the action that happened today, it was good.

# Good, hard racing throughout the event with a ton of drama and spectacular wrecks. I am glad to see Hamlin, Reutimann and Ragan all able to walk away though.

# I never felt like the race slowed or got mundane, there was good action throughout the race.

# So many stories unfolding, the race was just PACKED with them. Probably my fav road course race that I can remember.

# How can you say anything good about a road-course race? They stink.

# How more exciting could it get!

# It was a pretty good race. It took me about an hour to finally stop shaking after that last lap crash. I am VERY glad that David and David are ok, along with Denny, Kurt, and Paul who all took hard hits. Seeing Marcos win was also awesome, I was secretly cheering him on there at the end, because well....the man has earned it.

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