NASCAR (partially found uncut footage of stock car races; 1960-present)
NASCAR Winston Cup Series logo used from 1989-1999.
Status: Partially Found
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is a sports organisation primarily known for its sanctioning of stock car races, including the three national series Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Camping World Truck Series. Since 1960, when prelude races to the Daytona 500 were broadcast by CBS, most of the major NASCAR races have been televised to a wide audience. However, for reasons ranging from needing to fit a strict television schedule, to broadcasting of commercials, not all footage of races captured by television companies is aired.
Background
Prior to 1970, when companies like ABC and CBS televised a race, they often only showcased limited highlights for its Wide World of Sports and CBS Sports Spectacular programs respectively.[1] Further, they would also showcase other events in-between the race with only as many laps shown.[2][1][3] For instance, when it televised the 1961 Firecracker 250 on 16th July 1961, only one hour of footage was showcased, while also having to contend with transmitting the water skiing championships.[3] In 1970, ABC did start televising some races live, beginning with the 1970 Alabama 500.[4][5] Even here, the race would not be shown in-full, as ABC refused to showcase flag-to-flag coverage and allocated only 90 minutes for the broadcast.[4][5] In this instance, while ABC showed the last hour of racing live, the rest would be recorded, with only 30 minutes of highlights being shown.[4][5] Considering that NASCAR events could last for four hours or more, the race had to be significantly condensed to fit ABC's schedule.[4]
Starting with CBS' coverage of the 1979 Daytona 500,[6] the majority of national NASCAR events would be shown live. Even then, races are interrupted by frequent commercial breaks that limit how much of the events are televised.[7] For example, analysis of the 2018 GEICO 500 indicated that of the 224 minute race duration, 177 were broadcast, with 47 dedicated to showcasing traditional commercials.[7]
Availability
Nevertheless, some races in their uncut forms are publicly available. Some viewers who purchased satellite dishes back in the day were able to modify their analogue receiver units and descramblers, thus accessing frequencies that otherwise could not be reached.[8] This included being able to view full races without commercial interruptions, but also even listen to the commentators talking in-between commercial breaks.[8] For NASCAR TV broadcast collectors like SMIFF TV, raw feeds are among the most coveted pieces of NASCAR media, with priority on gaining these broadcasts when buying and trading videos.[9] As of the present day, 218 of these raw feeds can be found on YouTube, with the oldest of these being the 1979 World 600 and 1979 NAPA National 500. The status of other uncut race footage remains unknown.
Gallery
Videos
See Also
- 1960-1961 NASCAR Grand National Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1960-1961)
- 1962-1963 NASCAR Grand National Series (partially found footage of NASCAR qualifying sessions and races; 1962-1963)
- 1964 NASCAR Grand National Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1964)
- 1965-1966 NASCAR Grand National Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1965-1966)
- 1967-1968 NASCAR Grand National Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1967-1968)
- 1970 NASCAR Grand National Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1970)
- 1971 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (partially found footage and official documents of NASCAR races; 1971)
- 1972 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1972)
- 1973-1974 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1973-1974)
- 1975 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1975)
- 1976 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1976)
- 1978-1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1978-1979)
- 1980-present NASCAR Cup Series (partially found footage of NASCAR races; 1980-present)
- Jeff Gordon's 2008 UAW-Dodge 400 crash (lost on-board footage of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race crash; 2008)
External Link
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 NASCAR Off the Record detailing the ABC and CBS broadcasts and their limitations back then. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ Bleacher Report noting the limitations of ABC's Wide World of Sports broadcasts. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 NASCAR on TV detailing the ABC broadcast of the 1961 Firecracker 400. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Archived Stock Car Racing History detailing ABC's live broadcasts in 1970, and how they would not be flag-to-flag. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 NASCAR on TV detailing the ABC broadcast of the 1970 Alabama 500. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ Autoweek detailing CBS' live coverage of the 1970 Daytona 500. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Awful Announcing analysing time allocated for commercials as opposed to races. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 r/NASCAR discussing raw satellite feeds. Retrieved 26 Apr '22
- ↑ r/NASCAR where SMIFF TV discusses prioritising raw satellites feed when buying NASCAR TV broadcast videos. Retrieved 26 Apr '22