Feb 5, 2006

Junior Takes Racing Fans Back

By JR Nerad

My love for auto racing dates back to filmed coverage of drivers like Fireball Roberts zipping around the part asphalt/part sand oval at Daytona in the Fifties, so I expect to be a fan of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s latest enterprise. Through his newly formed production company, Hammerhead Entertainment, he has reached a deal with SPEED (formerly SPEED Channel) to deliver up to 13 30-minute episodes of a new series titled "Back in the Day," a modern adaptation of the vintage race program "Car and Track with Bud Lindemann." The new series will make its primetime premiere during Daytona Speedweeks on February 13 at 9:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

"Car and Track," a collection of American racing footage from the 1960s and early 1970s, ran on SPEED from 1996-2000 and was amazingly addicting, because it showed an era when racing was much more down home and significantly less corporate than it is today. Earnhardt Jr., a longtime fan of the series, will host the updated version, which will revisit NASCAR in its infancy, touching on not only what was going on at the race track, but what was going on in America at the same time.
 
"I've always been a big fan of 'Car and Track,'" Earnhardt said. "Bud Lindemann had the vision to bring auto racing to television over 30 years ago. I watched every episode as a kid and still watch them today. We're going to show everyone the grassroots of our sport and bring the past to the present in a fun and entertaining way."
 
We expect the new series won't be fun to watch just for its classic racing footage, but also for the behind-the-scenes looks at what racing was like before cable TV and big sponsorships changed its demeanor.  In fact, just the clothing and hairstyles are worth a half-hour look.

"What makes this program not just historically relevant but also immensely entertaining are the personal reflections and pop culture content that will be key components of 'Back in the Day,'" said Robert Ecker, SPEED VP of Programming. "Central to the concept and what really makes this stand out is the decidedly modern approach to the vintage footage. In filtering the storied past of the sport through the prism of the high-tech present, two key elements clearly emerge -- Dale Jr.'s unabashed enthusiasm and respect for this era and the sheer magnitude of the changes that have occurred over time."

Oddly, my haircut isn't much different than the way it was in 1966.  But a lot of other stuff has really changed.

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