Pit Road Post

Rain Delay TV Ratings Rank High

Wow, what a sport!  Even a rained out race scores the top TV ratings!

SCENE Daily reports that Fox Sports officials say Sunday's coverage of the rain delay of the Aaron's 499 from Talladega Speedway still ranked as the top sporting event of the weekend. Fox filled the rain delay slot with 13 driver interviews and a talk with actor Will Ferrell during the two-hour block before the race was officially postponed. According to Nielsen Media Research, Sunday's coverage produced a 4.5/11 national rating, outdrawing the NFL draft, the PGA and the NHL playoffs, among other things.

John Roberts Loves Woodworking

For all of you John Roberts fans out there, this one is for you. The "NASCAR RaceDay" and "NASCAR Victory Lane"  hearthrob and host is featured in an article courtesy of ARA discussing how he used to be a starving TV personality and had to support his TV gig with other work. He then got the Speed TV gig and as they say in the TV business "the rest is history." (Ok so now u don't really need to read the article as I just told you  99% of it)

Unfortunately, because John is so busy traveling with the Nascar gig he can't work on his woodworking as much as he would like. To keep him occupied, John constructs the cedar deck SPEED stage prior to each broadcast.

For more on John, watch him weekends on Speed or read the full article here.

Time For A Commercial Break

Carl Edwards Life in Danger?

Carl Edwards is starring in the April 3rd episode of the Fox Network show '24'. I'm a big fan of Carl Edwards and the show (and Elisha Cuthbert, who probably has nothing to do with Carl Edwards on the show, but she deserves a big picture on Pit Road Post anyway) and am concerned that, given the show's history of killing off it's cast members, Carl may be in trouble.

Run well in Martinsville, Carl.  It may be your last race!

Watch Darrell and Jeff Drive Around The Track This Sunday

Fox Sports is introducing a new pre race feature this Sunday on their first NASCAR broadcast of the year of the Auto Club 500. This pre-race feature entitled "DW Drive and Ride" features Darrel Waltrip and Jeff Hammond driving around the track each week in a 2 seat Cup Car discussing a different topic each week.

Wow, now that sounds exciting and very original. In a story also quietly announced, Fox also said they are introducing a new feature which places a blue streak behind the race car as it accelerates on the track. This is to help all of the viewers who complain in Canada they can't follow the race.

Full Story NASCAR.COM

DAYTONA 500 Live BLOG

1:07pm

Hey Everyone welcome to the first Pit Road Post Live Blog of the Daytona 500. No, i am not there but am in front of my high definition Television and enjoying the broadcast on NBC. Note - all times in CST

I don't know what this is going to turn into as it is our first one, but lets give 'er a whirl and see what happens. Comments are welcome

Looks like Ageless Rockers Bon Jovi have just taken the stage and are kicking off with Live my life at Daytona.

1:12pm
Looks like some country singer just joined Bon Jovi on stage

1:17pm
Bon Jovi just wrapped up the pre-race ceremonies. - Gillette Fusion commercial is on right now with Ryan Newman, Dale Jr and Jimmie Johnson. HILLARIOUS

1:20pm
Greg Biffle is on right now talking about how is car is set up, he just admited his car is not set up for this type of race due to the weather

Hey there is Mark Martin again...Kyle Petty is on right now doing an interview - very cool glasses for sure!     Petty Enterprises are back

1:22pm
National Anthem is being sung by Fergie from Black Eyed Peas - sounding ugh..not bad I guess. At least she is singing it live. So I wonder if when the original members of the Black Eyes Peas brought Fergie into the group they realized at some point her own success would eventually surpass that of the group? Why isn't the Black Eyes Peas at the race performing the Anthem?

1:30pm
Wally Dallenbach is on right now yapping about Drafting and showing some very cool graphics

1:31pm
James Cann is Saying the most famous words in Motorsports Gentleman Start Your Engines ....OH THERE IS THAT SOUND!!! WHOOOO RACING IS BACK!

1:34pm
Cars on the track following the 2006 Corvette Z06 Pace Car being driven by Jay Leno. That is an Awesome Car!

1:35pm
Wallys World is Back on with Olympic Athlete Gretchen Bleier. She is making some wierd noises and screaming some stuff I can't understand.

1:43pm
Green Flag is delayed cuz Harvick has a bag on the camera on the top of the car.

1:45pm
Green Flag is out and the race has begun! The 2006 Daytona 500 is officially underway. Who will lead the first lap? I'm saying its going to be lead by a Jeff.

1:46pm
First lap at Daytona lead by Jeff Burton / Jeff Green has just lost a left rear tire

1:48pm
Ooh the sound of racing is back in my living room and it is myusic to my ears. Burton is still leading 5 laps in.

1:53pm
If Trouble Breaks out we'l Break in - off to commercial

1:54pm
The first Dale Jarret and UPS Race the truck commercial just aired. It was awesome

1:57pm
15 laps in and Burton is still leading. No overly aggressive driving - yet.  Gordon and Sadler are following Burton wih Johnson and Dale Jr battling for fourth

2:01pm
Caution on Lap 18, Martin Truex hit the wall. Pitstops have begun

2:12pm
Lap 28 Tony Just took the lead.

2:14 pm
Denny Hamlin Fed Ex commercial just aired. Does Nascar know how to market their drivers or What?

2:22pm
Tony Stewart continues to Lead after 43 laps with Jamie McMurry right behind him with Kenseth, Gordon and Johnson wrapping up the top 5

2:28Pm
Stewart and Gordon are on the wall. Caution is out

2:34pm
Lap 34 Restart with Ryan Newman in the Lead. Stewart restarted 38th. Gordon 41st

2:39pm
Looks like it's raining. They keep saying its mist but with these overcast skys as bad as they look, it wouldn't surprise me if we get a rain delay.

2:57pm
First Big Crash in this years Daytona - Jeff Greene, Kyle Petty, Carl Edwards - looks like Jeff Greene caused it

3:08pm
Carl Edwards was just on aplogizing to Kyle Petty for destroying his car.
Lap 87 - Junior has taken the lead

3:13pm
Jeff Greene is blaming Dale Jarrett for the big wreck.

3:20pm
Allan Bestwick is talking about the new Fan View Service offered by Nascar at the Track. You can rent one for $50 for the race. They look pretty cool. We blogged about it here

3:25pm
Halfway point of the race - Junior is leading

3:31pm
Lap 108 - Kenseth Crashed by Tony Stewart

3:40pm
Stewart and Kenseth in a pissing match. Both got black flagged.

3:45pm
Kenseth is now not getting any points for the last lap because they never responded to the black flag. Kenseth and Robbie Reiser are pissed

4:07pm
63 laps to go and we have a great race going on. Mark Martin is currently leading with Jr hot on his tail.

4:28pm
39 to go an Jr is out front with Newman running second

4:42pm
Caution out with 25 laps to go. The debate begins, 2 tires or 4? Looks like we have a shoot out to finish the race. The Pits are open.

4:56pm
Caution - 13 Laps to go - Kurt Busch involved in an incident. I can't tell what happened yet

5:03pm
10 to go..will it be Vickers or will it be Jimmie Johnson?

5:07pm
5 Laps to go - Black Flag Kyle Busch

5:08pm
Jamie McMurray is into the wall - Looks like it could be a Green, White, Checkered.

5:19pm
The 2006 Daytona 500 Champion is Jimmie Johnson. Chad Knaus gets redemption

Pit Road Post to Live Blog Daytona 500

This weekend the Pit Road Post, will attempt our first television Live Blogging event of the Daytona 500. It will be the inaugural live blogging event for the Post of what we hope is the fist of many live racing events.

While we will be blogging from the (un)comfort of our home and not the track, we are inviting anybody who is going to be at Daytona and is going to have a Blackberry or other mobile email device to blog along with us LIVE from race. Please contact me to get set up.

If you are watching from the comfort of your home, I invite you to log into the Post and join in on the live blogging event and watch with me and offer your comments throughout the race.

Who is going to win?