Short for "GeologicalScienceBlog", subjects will include Geology, Climatology, Environmental Science, NASCAR, Beer, Property Rights, Politics from a Christian Conservative/Libertarian viewpoint, and random thoughts. My background is two degrees in Geology (BS, MS), 8 years of geology/environmental employment and almost 8 years of teaching Geology and Environmental Science on a Junior College level. <68>

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Note to San Franciso News Media...

keep your damn perversions to yourselves. NASCAR fans ain't interested.

The source of this rant is from NewsBusters, wherein L. N. Smithee reports on the talkinghead "news chatter" from a San Franciso TV station and a news anchor's sick attempt at humor.

For those of you who are not NASCAR fans, this is detailed and will take some "'splaining".

You are probably vaguely aware of the fact that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. is leaving the family racing team, Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) to become a teammate to Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson (Hendrick Motorsports), next season. You may also be aware that since his NASCAR Winston Cup debut in 2000, Dale, Jr. has driven the red Budweiser #8 Chevy.

The number "8" was used by his grandfather, Ralph Earnhardt and by his father, Dale, Sr. in Busch Series races. [To recall the words of another "Jr." - Hank Williams, Jr. - it's a family tradition.]

In NASCAR, the "rights" to car numbers are licenced to the teams, not to the drivers. So, as closely associated as Dale, Jr. is to the number "8", the number "belongs" to the team. DEI "owns" #1, #8, & #15. Richard Childress Racing (RCR) "owns" #07, #3, #29, & #31. The #3 is being held in Memoriam to Dale Earnhardt, Sr..

[In a separate post, I will relate the "numbers game" associated with Dale Earnhardt, Sr.. He didn't always drive #3 and he wasn't the first to win multiple races in #3).]

Because of frustrations over current events and differences in management style and future plans, Dale, Jr. attempted to buy a controlling stake in DEI (owned by his stepmom, Teresa Earnhardt - widow, of course, of Dale, Sr.). Teresa resisted the buyout offer, so Dale, Jr. decided it was better to leave and preserve family civility. Dale, Jr. wanted to take #8 with him and he entered into negotiations with DEI. Both entities recognize the marketing value of #8 and negotiations fell through.

For you "outsiders", this is a sports business issue. There is no "bad guy". Teresa Earnhardt is not "the evil stepmother". A few weeks ago, Dale, Jr. asked fans and the media to "lay off" on the criticism of Teresa and I believe he was sincere.

When Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was killed in the 2001 Daytona 500 ( few hundred yards from the finish-line, on the last lap) - Teresa was not ready to deal with being the widow of a legend and being thrust into majority ownership of an "A-list" racing team with 3 cars and a multi-million dollar budget - at the same time.

So - in short - Dale, Jr. needed a change and the least damaging change to all is moving to Hendrick and getting the number #88, along with new sponsors - Mountain Dew Amp and the National Guard. The fans will adapt. Most will not have a Barry Manilow-type hissy fit.

The #8 t-shirts and jerseys will now become hallowed collectors' items and will not have a stench about them - in contrast to Michael Vick's #7 Atlanta Falcons NFL t-shirts and jerseys.

So returning to the scene of "the crime" - San Francisco. From the NewsBusters post:

"A popular San Francisco news anchor inexplicably made a joke on a Wednesday evening newscast suggesting NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt Jr. “should marry his stepmother.”... [Emphasis added.]

..."Preceding the quip by KPIX news anchor Dana King was a flawed report from sports anchor Dennis O’Donnell about the unveiling of the stock car Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be racing with his new team next season."...

The Smithee post continues, with information as provided above:

"...Dale Jr. and Teresa have been publicly at odds about the direction and management of DEI.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is NASCAR’s most popular driver, and his millions of fans have purchased merchandise emblazoned with his #8, which is the property of DEI. Negotiations with Teresa to allow Dale Jr. to race under #8 on his new team broke down, forcing him to choose a new number."...

Smithee continues:

..."O’Donnell, who as the sports guy really should have known as much about the matter than, say, me [Smithee], suggested that the sole reason why Earnhardt Jr. switched numbers was so more Dale Jr. merchandise could be sold. As O’Donnell concluded, news anchor Ken Bastida -- who apparently knew more about the story -- chimed in, saying “I thought it was about his stepmother.” [Emphasis added.]

At that point, co-anchor Dana King said “I think he should marry his stepmother.” Nervous laughter from the rest of the team resulted, to which I believe King responded, “Well, isn’t that what…” leaving her follow-up comment a fragment. [Emphasis added.]

[Suggesting that changing the number to sell more merchandise is indicative of the ignorance of the speaker. When you have a strong driver or team-sponsor connection with popular fan support, you don't want to make any radical changes. It disturbs the feng shui, the karma. Since 2000, Budweiser, #8, Chevrolet, and NASCAR means Dale Earnhardt, Jr.. It would probably have remained that way for the foreseeable future, had these changes not taken place. In 2008, it will be Budweiser, #9, Dodge, and Kasey Kahne, who has his own fan following, but it won't be the same.

For more than 50 years, the Petty team has used various numbers from #40 - #45, but #43 is "the number" and #45 is their secondary number. The Petty team has fielded Chrysler, General Motors, and Ford race cars over the years. Fans grumble when manufacturers change, but they settle down. If a big-money sponsor wanted to change #43 to something else for marketing reasons, Greensboro and Raleigh, NC might look like Detroit after an NBA Championship, with police cars overturned and businesses torched. (I am kidding, but there would be a mass uproar.) The Wood Brothers of Stuart, VA are in pretty much the same position with #21, however, they have always run Fords. If the Wood Bros. switched to Chevrolet, the fans would sound like Code Pink at a Congressional hearing.]

As for the San Francisco market, there is a NASCAR Nextel Cup race in the greater San Francisco area - at Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, CA, it might help the local TV ratings to be cognizant of this fact.

"We" (as Smithee points out) are annoyed at the continued stereotyping of NASCAR fans as being inbred hayseeds. Aside from the sports announcer getting the reason for the number change wrong, the quip added nothing to the story. If Dana King had been a co-anchor in Omaha, Nebraska, would she have made the same ditzy remark?

Didn't one of the Rolling Stones divorce his wife and marry his mother-in-law? Make jokes about that, instead. The folks in the San Franciso market will find that reminder amusing.

Labels: , , ,

Posted by: on-the-rocks / 10:15 AM
Comments:
In San Francisco he couldn't marry his stepmother -- wrong gender.
# posted by Blogger Panhandle Poet : 3:30 PM
 
Yeah, but any other arrangement would probably not be news-worthy in SF.
# posted by Blogger joe-6-pack : 10:37 AM
 
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