The Announcers Thread

Good for Jamie. However, the threat has been bumped,.so I need to make my obligatory "Rick Allen sucks" post.

Rick Allen sucks.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
PxP: Allen Bestwick, Ralph Sheheen, Eli Gold, Bob Varsha, Bill Weber, Marty Reid, anyone but Rick Allen........
Click to expand...
thanks, I put all of those in there. They probably will black list me after I gave them my opinions. I'm a guy that the Waltrip's didn't bother me that much, really liked the older guys, Benny, Buddy etc. but the gerbils IMO have to be the worst bunch they have put behind the mic than I can remember.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
PxP: Allen Bestwick, Ralph Sheheen, Eli Gold, Bob Varsha, Bill Weber, Marty Reid, anyone but Rick Allen........
Click to expand...
Marty Reid? You've got to be kidding. He was so bad he finally got fired by ABC because he thought a race was over one lap too early and called a winner with one lap yet to go. He is kind of like broadcasting's version of Mark Martin. He had also been having trouble remembering IRL driver's names during races and others in the booth kept having to step in and help him.

Bill Weber is terrible also. He got suspended then permanently retired by TNT after a blowup and abusive behavior in a hotel lobby at a NH race. He has been considered an ******* in general by many.

en.wikipedia.org

Bill Weber - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

>>He currently is working as an illusionist in St. Petersburg, Florida.[1]<<

Bestwick is good though. I wouldn't mind having him back. His only problem was that he kept cheerleading for a big one to happen ("the big one could happen any moment", etc.) whenever there was a race at Dega or Daytona. If that is his biggest problem, that is mild compared to many other announcers. The others on that list would be great also.
 
I think the problem with NBC is the director who determines the tone of those announcers. We all know that Junior in real life is nothing like what he sounds on the broadcast when anywhere with in 10 miles of Burton. The problem with NBC are the people who are in charge and that is why nothing gets done. They keep the same guy on sound who runs the in-car camera sound when others are talking.
 
I think they had more announcers than cameras. I don't know how many incidents they missed this year but it was a lot.
 
StandOnIt said:
Here is one of the questions I am having problems with. I don't want to recommenced announcers that already work for FOX. Any suggestions?

"Who, if anyone, would be a good addition to the NBC broadcast team?"
Click to expand...
I should ask the question are we axing anybody from the current booth or are we just adding to the party?
 
Snappy D said:
I should ask the question are we axing anybody from the current booth or are we just adding to the party?
Click to expand...
No adding to the party. They asked who would YOU pick for announcers. This would be after they found proper homes for the gerbils. I think NBC is reading their mail so to speak. Hope so, it's a mess the way it is.
 
StandOnIt said:
No adding to the party. They asked who would YOU pick for announcers. This would be after they found proper homes for the gerbils. I think NBC is reading their mail so to speak. Hope so, it's a mess the way it is.
Click to expand...
Ah didnt see the full scope of it. Well I personally would clean house but keep Jr of course. I'd actually try to get Eli Gold for Play By Play if hes up for it. Then Jr as the racing analyst and crew chief analyst well not sure on that one since Chad is going to the Hendrick shop management side. But I would like a Play By Play guy, ex driver and then ex crew chief, I think that would play well. Gosh someone said Schrader up above, such a good choice. The Pre- Race would stay the same with Petty and Jarrett with a roving reporter to get storylines before the race ( NO. Not a Grid Walk) I hope NBC is listening, Allen seriously has to go he's such a cartoon character.
 
Formerjackman said:
In the case of NASCAR media, it only seems to destroy the careers of those who are actually good at their job, while the hacks continue on...........
Click to expand...

I guess I'll wait until the story comes out before I form an option on this one. It possible, although probably unlikely, that he's leaving FOX on his own to do something else
 
is Matt leaving because of the Covid, wasnt renewed by Fox or just decided he had enough? He is probably the best right now in terms of pit road coverage, has been for a while. Meanwhile Rick Allen still has a job.
 
AdoubleU24 said:
Why do Michael Waltrip and Rutledge Wood still have jobs when we're seeing quality hosts and reporters that contribute a great deal dropping like flies?
Click to expand...
This is my biggest complaint of the sport right now and one I Feel thats the easiest to change, the people on camera that bring us the content are well..... theres no nice to say it...... just absolutely awful. Especially on the NBC side, Fox I feel is still pretty okay but Mike Joy is getting up there and Jeff I'm still not sure about but I do feel he's vastly improved.
 
Tumbleweed said:
Bill Weber is terrible also. He got suspended then permanently retired by TNT after a blowup and abusive behavior in a hotel lobby at a NH race. He has been considered an ******* in general by many.
Click to expand...

Bill Weber was not as bad as people remember. Not saying he's great, and Wally Dallenbach definitely carried NBC in 2006 and TNT in the years after, but Weber is better than you remember. Regardless of whether he was a pompous ass or not.

My list was facetious though. I'm really not a fan of NBC's current product, which is a shame because their coverage from 2001-2006 was really good and their coverage early on in their return was pretty damn good and their IndyCar coverage is the gold standard of motorsports coverage, IMO.

Unfortunately, when the racing sucks, there's not much you can do. When the racing is garbage, like it is most weeks in the NASCAR Cup Series, you're relying so much on narrating a story or something to keep people engaged - as Bill Weber often did and Rick Allen often does.

I've been announcing at racetracks for the better part of the last decade. It ain't easy. Getting a name wrong, as Marty Reid, or making a mental slip up is REALLY easy to do. You can have all the notes and stats and everything you want in front of you but, ultimately, you're relying so much on what's at the top of your head right this second. It's a VERY stressful job, especially when you have TV in the equation, which I've done a few where TV cameras were involved at three different racetracks.

It's so easy for people to get on Twitter and on forums like this and that ****hole Reddit and criticize the announcers for a mistake here or there, or even for multiple mistakes, but you just don't know how hard it is until you're there. That's why Mike Joy, Bob Jenkins, Allen Bestwick and Bob Varsha are elite, they don't make many mistakes like Marty Reid, who was otherwise very eccentric and entertaining, and they aren't scripted like Bill Weber was and Rick Allen seems to be.

Even the greatest of all time, Ken Squier, was skipping a few beats in his final years - especially on those atrocious TBS broadcasts in the mid to late-90s.



As for NBC now, IMO they have a deep pool they could draw from. Ralph Sheheen has done PxP for TNT and those races were a blast to watch with him in the booth. Dave Burns has called races for NBCSN, USA and ESPN. Brian Till has called races in multiple disciplines for NBC and Fox. Leigh Diffey is just the man. And Allen Bestwick is shamefully not in any NASCAR broadcast booth right now. ESPN realized their mistake five years in and promoted him to the booth and their coverage improved exponentially as a result.

Any one of these would be an improvement, but I'm not sure Rick Allen is the problem. The racing sucks and that's the biggest problem, and they're trying to overcompensate for that in the booth, IMO.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
Bill Weber was not as bad as people remember.
Click to expand...
Yes. Yes he was. To me at least. IMO he just came off as a pompous ass like you said and his delivery felt stiff, very heavily scripted and it just seemed like at times he felt like he was the reason we were tuning in to watch a race. He’s the GOAT as far as worst announcers ever.
 
Last edited:
AndyMarquisLive said:
Bill Weber was not as bad as people remember. Not saying he's great, and Wally Dallenbach definitely carried NBC in 2006 and TNT in the years after, but Weber is better than you remember. Regardless of whether he was a pompous ass or not.

My list was facetious though. I'm really not a fan of NBC's current product, which is a shame because their coverage from 2001-2006 was really good and their coverage early on in their return was pretty damn good and their IndyCar coverage is the gold standard of motorsports coverage, IMO.

Unfortunately, when the racing sucks, there's not much you can do. When the racing is garbage, like it is most weeks in the NASCAR Cup Series, you're relying so much on narrating a story or something to keep people engaged - as Bill Weber often did and Rick Allen often does.

I've been announcing at racetracks for the better part of the last decade. It ain't easy. Getting a name wrong, as Marty Reid, or making a mental slip up is REALLY easy to do. You can have all the notes and stats and everything you want in front of you but, ultimately, you're relying so much on what's at the top of your head right this second. It's a VERY stressful job, especially when you have TV in the equation, which I've done a few where TV cameras were involved at three different racetracks.

It's so easy for people to get on Twitter and on forums like this and that ****hole Reddit and criticize the announcers for a mistake here or there, or even for multiple mistakes, but you just don't know how hard it is until you're there. That's why Mike Joy, Bob Jenkins, Allen Bestwick and Bob Varsha are elite, they don't make many mistakes like Marty Reid, who was otherwise very eccentric and entertaining, and they aren't scripted like Bill Weber was and Rick Allen seems to be.

Even the greatest of all time, Ken Squier, was skipping a few beats in his final years - especially on those atrocious TBS broadcasts in the mid to late-90s.



As for NBC now, IMO they have a deep pool they could draw from. Ralph Sheheen has done PxP for TNT and those races were a blast to watch with him in the booth. Dave Burns has called races for NBCSN, USA and ESPN. Brian Till has called races in multiple disciplines for NBC and Fox. Leigh Diffey is just the man. And Allen Bestwick is shamefully not in any NASCAR broadcast booth right now. ESPN realized their mistake five years in and promoted him to the booth and their coverage improved exponentially as a result.

Any one of these would be an improvement, but I'm not sure Rick Allen is the problem. The racing sucks and that's the biggest problem, and they're trying to overcompensate for that in the booth, IMO.
Click to expand...
On the whole, I agree with your announcers comments. I agree that Weber wasn't terrible, and that I honestly think half of Rick Allen's problems aren't even his fault. I would try a different director before I canned him, even though there are others I would rather have in that slot. I will also say that while I love the man, I NEVER thought Ken Squier was a particularly good play by play announcer. His value and strengths in my mind are all of the other things he brought to the table, AND the fact that he is a first class guy, and basically invented NASCAR electronic media. (Get well, Ken) Where I will STRONGLY disagree with you is the racing itself. While it may not always be what we WANT it to be, I'll take what we've had lately over a few years ago ANY day. At least I have stopped dozing off during the races........
 
It's not that I think the NBC guys are bad but that group together just doesn't do it for me.

I hate to say it but I think Burton needs to go he just doesn't bring much to the broadcast.

I think Steve Letarte does a decent job and is no doubt incredibly knowledgeable. I just dont think him with that group of guys works well. IMO the current lineup just doesn't play well off each other.

I think a guy that could help that broadcast out a ton would be Chad Knaus he's got a ton of technical knowledge, but I think could also bring a certain level of humor as well. With that said I also think it would be a great waste of talent to take Chad away from HMS and put him in the booth at this time.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
Bill Weber was not as bad as people remember. Not saying he's great, and Wally Dallenbach definitely carried NBC in 2006 and TNT in the years after, but Weber is better than you remember. Regardless of whether he was a pompous ass or not.

My list was facetious though. I'm really not a fan of NBC's current product, which is a shame because their coverage from 2001-2006 was really good and their coverage early on in their return was pretty damn good and their IndyCar coverage is the gold standard of motorsports coverage, IMO.

Unfortunately, when the racing sucks, there's not much you can do. When the racing is garbage, like it is most weeks in the NASCAR Cup Series, you're relying so much on narrating a story or something to keep people engaged - as Bill Weber often did and Rick Allen often does.

I've been announcing at racetracks for the better part of the last decade. It ain't easy. Getting a name wrong, as Marty Reid, or making a mental slip up is REALLY easy to do. You can have all the notes and stats and everything you want in front of you but, ultimately, you're relying so much on what's at the top of your head right this second. It's a VERY stressful job, especially when you have TV in the equation, which I've done a few where TV cameras were involved at three different racetracks.

It's so easy for people to get on Twitter and on forums like this and that ****hole Reddit and criticize the announcers for a mistake here or there, or even for multiple mistakes, but you just don't know how hard it is until you're there. That's why Mike Joy, Bob Jenkins, Allen Bestwick and Bob Varsha are elite, they don't make many mistakes like Marty Reid, who was otherwise very eccentric and entertaining, and they aren't scripted like Bill Weber was and Rick Allen seems to be.

Even the greatest of all time, Ken Squier, was skipping a few beats in his final years - especially on those atrocious TBS broadcasts in the mid to late-90s.



As for NBC now, IMO they have a deep pool they could draw from. Ralph Sheheen has done PxP for TNT and those races were a blast to watch with him in the booth. Dave Burns has called races for NBCSN, USA and ESPN. Brian Till has called races in multiple disciplines for NBC and Fox. Leigh Diffey is just the man. And Allen Bestwick is shamefully not in any NASCAR broadcast booth right now. ESPN realized their mistake five years in and promoted him to the booth and their coverage improved exponentially as a result.

Any one of these would be an improvement, but I'm not sure Rick Allen is the problem. The racing sucks and that's the biggest problem, and they're trying to overcompensate for that in the booth, IMO.
Click to expand...
I’d honestly go with Ralph since Bestwick probably has an ESPN contract.
 
AuzGrams said:
I’d honestly go with Ralph since Bestwick probably has an ESPN contract.
Click to expand...
Ralph Sheheen was great when he did commentary on TNT. Any time I think back on that finish at Daytona where Stewart destroyed Kyle Busch I hear his voice
 
Man just got done watching a couple of races from 2013 that was ABC/ESPN coverage. I'll take that broadcast team over anything that's on now. I believe it was bestwick, DJ and Andy petree in the booth

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom