Are standardized start times fading into the sunset?

[TheOldProgrammer]

What's next? This is from Yahoo! Sports... :smoke


Some potentially frustrating news from Pete Pistone over at CBS Sports: NASCAR may be doing away with the standardized 1 p.m./3 p.m./7 p.m. start times due to poor ratings and heavy competition. Start times haven't been released beyond Daytona's 1:19 p.m. ET, but there's a possibility that the decision on times could revert to track operators and networks, which would ensure a total patchwork of times based on individual need rather than greater harmony.

Look, I'm not going to even try to gold-plate this particular trashcan: doing away with standardized start times is an unforgivably stupid move. NASCAR may think it's easy enough for fans to follow where and when the green flag drops, but when you're changing networks four times in a season, you're already losing people in the switchover. Add to that a nonstandardized start time, and come on -- you're going to have people tuning in too early, too late, and eventually, not at all.

I get the reason for changing the start times. You start at 1 p.m. Eastern, you're losing a huge chunk of your West Coast viewership all season, and you'll get killed during NFL season. (Plus, let's not forget the church factor.) So push the start times 90 minutes later for the early races, set the West Coast races to finish leading into prime time, leave the Saturday night races alone.

But no more of this 1:18, 2:43, 3:38, 2:17 start-time nonsense. Pick three times — standard, West Coast races, Saturday night races — and stick with 'em. Let people plan their weekends knowing when the races will start and, roughly, end. It's really not that hard.

Help me out here. What are your thoughts on standardized start times? Big deal, or not so much?

[Spartan]

Start times for all entertainment venues ought to be standardized at on the hour/half-hour. They should also end on time.

[kantwin]

Bring all the races back to ESPN, when they actually could call a good race. Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons (RIP) were awesome.

[TheOldProgrammer]

Start times for all entertainment venues ought to be standardized at on the hour/half-hour. They should also end on time.

Answer this: how do you determine just how long a NA$CAR race will/should last? The same question applies to all sports... :smoke


Bring all the races back to ESPN, when they actually could call a good race. Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons (RIP) were awesome.

All that would do is cost NA$CAR more viewers... :smoke

[kantwin]

ESPN is what brought all the viewers to NASCAR. Before ESPN, only a handful of races would even be shown on TV.

[Spartan]

TheOldProgrammer;120608]Answer this: how do you determine just how long a NA$CAR race will/should last? The same question applies to all sports... :smoke

Where there is a will, there is a way. A possible scenario:
The event begins whenever it begins and the cameras roll.
The camera captured event is edited to delete all "dead" time, e.g. huddles, times-out for chain movement... all events have such dead time.
The the essential commercial messages are plugged in.
The event is aired as per the transmission schedule.

There is nothing magic about seeing an even on real-time (as they say "live") since in many cases it's not so anyway.