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A lot of work goes into making the coverage available on raceday for the fans. And though we often criticize, the hard work by the many folks involved is worthy of a thumbs up.
Steve Stum is the senior technical manager for NBC, which will broadcast today's Winston Cup race from Watkins Glen International. In racing terms, Stum is the network's crew chief.
"I oversee everything -- camera placement, cables, getting equipment on site, even deciding where we park the compound," Stum said amid a hornet's nest of activity in preparation for the weekend. "Even the catering. I have to make sure these people get fed."
"These people" would be between 200 and 225 NBC employees camped out (by day, anyway) at Watkins Glen for the better part of a week. The feeding would be roughly 600 meals a day for 3½ days. After all, to run cable and build camera stations, you need fuel.
Before the on-camera talent even arrives at the Glen, Stum's small army runs 25,000 feet of triax cable and another 40,000 feet of fiber-optic cable. That's the stuff you don't see at home. What you will notice are all the cameras NBC has stashed around the track.
"We'll have 38 out on the course," Stum said. That includes eight robotic cameras, 15 manned cams, four pit cams, other hand-held ones and a handful of POV, or point-of-view, stationary cameras. "Then we also will have 12 in-car cameras this weekend and 12 pit-overhead shots. We can tap into the feed as the teams record their pit stops."
Steve Stum is the senior technical manager for NBC, which will broadcast today's Winston Cup race from Watkins Glen International. In racing terms, Stum is the network's crew chief.
"I oversee everything -- camera placement, cables, getting equipment on site, even deciding where we park the compound," Stum said amid a hornet's nest of activity in preparation for the weekend. "Even the catering. I have to make sure these people get fed."
"These people" would be between 200 and 225 NBC employees camped out (by day, anyway) at Watkins Glen for the better part of a week. The feeding would be roughly 600 meals a day for 3½ days. After all, to run cable and build camera stations, you need fuel.
Before the on-camera talent even arrives at the Glen, Stum's small army runs 25,000 feet of triax cable and another 40,000 feet of fiber-optic cable. That's the stuff you don't see at home. What you will notice are all the cameras NBC has stashed around the track.
"We'll have 38 out on the course," Stum said. That includes eight robotic cameras, 15 manned cams, four pit cams, other hand-held ones and a handful of POV, or point-of-view, stationary cameras. "Then we also will have 12 in-car cameras this weekend and 12 pit-overhead shots. We can tap into the feed as the teams record their pit stops."