Last Thursday was a tough day, because it marked the end of
my full-time post at RACER, but not
the end of my relationship with the company. I was still very fortunate to have
a full season and a half in covering several different series, many on site,
and it almost comes at a point that frees my mind and my work status going
forward.
The way this calendar year unfolded for me really came down
to three parts. There was a busy start through the month of May, the unofficial
summer vacation of no travel (only the Milwaukee IndyCar race in June, the same
weekend as Le Mans, was spent on the road) but still following every series,
religiously, on weekends, and finally, the crescendo to the season finales in
IndyCar and sports car that brought an amazing period of six weekends in seven
on the road.
That last stretch took me to Sonoma, Baltimore and Fontana
for IndyCar, San Diego for SCCA and Barber for Porsche, not to mention another
trip back to Milwaukee but for another reason entirely that will also coincide
with the date of this writing – October 26 (it would have been my grandpa’s
100th birthday, but we lost him in August).
In the last week, I was able to return to Petit Le Mans at
Road Atlanta, produce what felt like an endless amount of material, and come
back to the office and wrapped it all up. Thursday was when it changed. I can’t
say I didn’t see it coming entirely, and my initial reaction is a mix of both frustration
and relief. I didn’t want this to happen. Neither did my co-workers.
On the whole, I feel racing has now once again entered a
cyclical period of uncertainty for maybe the first time in about a decade or so.
In 2002 and ’03, CART teams began defecting to the IRL, while Winston ended its
NASCAR sponsorship and sports car racing (Grand-Am) was about to introduce
Daytona Prototypes.
With that uncertainty, entering the daunting off season
winter months of 2012 into 2013, are four major areas of unrest within the entire
racing industry, which all feature change.
The first is what will happen to SPEED. Nothing’s official
but the question is how the channel and its associated properties will evolve
as rumors have swirled all summer that it will morph into another ESPN wanna-be
as FOX Sports Media Group’s “jack-of-all-trades multi-sport network,” rather
than the niche TV network for car and racing enthusiasts it has been for most
of its existence. That’s one domino.
Along the same lines, now that Formula 1 is off SPEED at the
end of the year, onto NBC next year, is what will happen to its staff of quality crew that has made
that the most redeemable motorsports viewing on TV? The booth trio of Bob
Varsha, David Hobbs and Steve Matchett could make a snail parade race
entertaining, and since they’ve first taken the mics, they’ve had to perform
similar miracles in several utterly dull GPs (Sunday’s Indian GP was the
latest). On-site pit lane reporter Will Buxton brings an infectious enthusiasm
and true passion for the sport, which plays to generally positive reviews.
Both of these networks plan to implement streaming into
their visual packages for 2013 and beyond (FSMG and NASCAR have a new deal in
place too, with that as a big part of it) which leads to the third area of
unrest – IndyCar. Look, I have loved the sport and it’s what got me hooked (OK,
it was CART, but there are still some survivors from that late ‘90s era) on car
racing.
After a seemingly endless barrage of negativity and rumors
surrounding Randy Bernard’s future that was both amateurish and deplorable at
the same time, he’s now been let go. For the first time in my years of
watching, I felt the series had a CEO unafraid to make big changes to attempt to spice up the
product, who didn’t hold prior grudges or agendas, made himself available to
fans, was eternally available to the media, and yet was ridiculed by some people
or inside sources who’d rather see his (and, to a degree, the series’) demise. He
made mistakes and he wasn’t perfect, but he was far from a critical failure.
Lastly, there is the impending sports car merger for 2014 of
Grand-Am and the American Le Mans Series. Some say privately it will be a
NASCAR/Grand-Am takeover while the general, overriding public perceptions – and
comments – seem to portray a championship that will truly take best assets of
both series, blended together, and retaining a link to Le Mans and the ACO. It’s
the only way for it to succeed; arrogance and egos from either side will kill a
combined championship faster than whatever the class structure winds up being
when it gets announced.
As my own personal news emerged regarding my future, I have
to clear up a couple things. First, the ties aren’t cut between me and RACER – they’re now elastic. You have
not seen the last of me there. It’s great thanks to everyone there to even take a flier on me to begin with, and were confident enough to attempt to fit me into
the culture. For that, I’m eternally grateful.
Second, I’m now at a point where it would not throw me off
my game one iota if I emerged from this news without being in racing full-time. I’d like
to think playing the freelance and/or PR game next year could work. Basically,
not being locked down to any one position frees me up to be able to pick and
choose. At least that’s the plan at this stage.
Do I know what my future holds for 2013 and beyond? No. Does
it faze me that I don’t know what I’m doing for the first time in ages, and
that it may not be motorsports full-time, as I started a fan, then followed
closer as a hobby, then found job(s) in it? A little bit.
But I do I feel this experience, at times challenging and
frustrating, has been worth it? Abso-freaking-lutely. In the last 15 months, I’ve
been able to learn and grow in a professional environment all while building,
fostering and maintaining relationships with those in the industry. I can feel
at ease in knowing I gave my best effort every single day, and the reason for
the change did not come down to anything I did.
Most importantly, I can feel thankful for the people – those
around me directly in the office, those I met at the races, those I exchanged
140-character bits on Twitter with (and some who have become close friends) –
who have made this experience memorable, eye-opening and altogether rewarding,
in ways I can’t even begin to describe.
Here’s to the future, and whatever the next change may be.
