View Full Version : Racer magazine to produce "Indycar Series" magazine?!
formulaben
11-23-03, 12:06 AM
Uh yeah, as long as they remove all IRL related content from RACER, I'll be compelled to maintain my subscription, but otherwise, I'll be getting a refund...
:shakehead
Yes. There's a season review in with this month's Racer. First "real issue" is supposed to be out in May.
If it makes you feel any better, their goal is 10,000 paid subscribers. :eek:
WWpantz
11-23-03, 01:53 AM
Gee, only 10,000 copies every other month to create the illusion of mainstream acceptance? How many Toyota employees are there, anyway? I'm sure they'll enjoy it with their paystubs.
Just an observation: I could rewrite the text of the initial issue on Al Unser Jr.'s cocktail napkin. It was long on looks but a bit short on content. Kind of like a cheerleader. Think they'll add those next as part of the NFL-ing of loopracing?
At least RACER looks nice and has something to say.
Lizzerd
11-23-03, 03:06 AM
I'm a RACER subscriber too. I emailed them and said that if the new mag means that the irl crap is taken out of RACER, I'm all for it.
Jonezzy_33
11-23-03, 04:00 AM
:saywhat: This is silly. What are they going to have in it a bunch of blank pages?
Thumbed through it at the bookstore yesterday. In it, was an article on Mears with a picture from the 1991 MIS race, the stands were packed.....enough said. I swear each page should have had "advertising supplement" stamped on it.
Racer tried this concept with ChampCar. It just didn't sell enough. I can't imagine this mag being any different, unless they put both IRL and CART material in there. But that'd be like writing a magazine for both the Anglicans and Catholics in Northern Ireland.
nissan gtp
11-23-03, 11:25 AM
I understand it will come with a selection of crayons so subscribers will have something to do during earl races.
Originally posted by nissan gtp
I understand it will come with a selection of crayons so subscribers will have something to do during earl races.
Each subscription should come with a piece of official irl debri. The longer your subscription, the bigger the piece of debri. signing up for 3 years you could get a gear box.
Accipiter
11-23-03, 11:49 AM
Originally posted by Chaos
Racer tried this concept with ChampCar. It just didn't sell enough.
Selling isn't the point. At least not from the publisher's side of the equaison, advertising space is. The reason ChampCar went down was that Mercedes pulled out of CART and the magazine couldn't make up the lost ad revenue from other sources. So it's likely, this new mag is also bought and paid for by the sponsors, most notably Honda, Toyota, and Chevy. If any of them leave the series, this mag could quickly go kaput too unless it is also propped up by another reveue source. I.E. The traditional IRL funding ground: Tony George's checkbook.
Railbird
11-23-03, 12:31 PM
Yep, the buyer just pays the delivery costs, it's all about the advertisers. I just paged through the thing down at Borders, just another frill and shill rag, much like the ChampCar version.
Originally posted by RTKar
.....enough said. I swear each page should have had "advertising supplement" stamped on it.
That's all it is. I've seen an ad rate sheet pimping this thing and they're asking advertisers to buy a package that contains not only advertising space, but also editorial space.
This is purely a means for Racer to extract advertising revenue from Toyota, Honda and the sponsors that they've collared and dragged along. To sweeten the pot the IRL is using Racer to try and pimp new sponsorships.
They'll be untouched stacks of this rag in every Honda and Toyota hospitality suite next year.
http://www.racer.com/admin/uploaded/banners/5.jpg
Not intended to be a flame... but just as CART's big selling word is "diversity" and F1's is "pinnacle" ...the IRL's big selling word is "speed" ...which obviously is what formula cars on ovals is all about!
(Notice how much the word "speed" gets mentioned during IRL broadcasts")
So, you print a glossy cover, insert 83 ads for Yoda and Honduh, and fill the rest with a jazzy red page, and in silver lettering are the italizied words.......
......"still there" turn the page and....
......"still there" turn the page and....
......"still there" turn the page and....
......"still there" turn the page and....
......"still there" turn the page and....
:D
TKGAngel
11-23-03, 03:19 PM
That's all it is. I've seen an ad rate sheet pimping this thing and they're asking advertisers to buy a package that contains not only advertising space, but also editorial space.
Well, speaking from the POV of someone who works in advertising, many times advertorials are offered to advertisers as part of the complete package. Usually they are labeled "advertorial" or "paid advertising" or have some other clue that says "hey dumbass, there is no journalistic value to what you are reading." This is usually not a problem, but when you include too much of these things, you cross the line from magazine and journalism into brainwashing territory.
Now speaking from the point of view of a race fan, this just completely sucks. If I wanted to read about how great Honda and Toyota are, I'll go to my local neighborhood dealership ad pick up some material. The usual Gomer won't care however, as long as it has bright, shiny pictures and a shrine to St. Tony, patron of short track racers everywhere.
racer2c
11-23-03, 03:26 PM
You guys just don't understand! Now I, the fan, will get to see what the real Sarah is all about. You know, what music she likes, her favorite foods, what her cats name is etc. Things I, the fan, care about and it all just brings me closer to the sport. OK!!!
just please, no special "women of the IRL" edition...
PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! :(
fourrunner
11-23-03, 07:29 PM
Hope they have an article on how Sarah Fisher gets up in the morning, looks in the mirror, and realizes she's going to look like Madeline Albright in a few years!
Racewriter
11-23-03, 09:13 PM
Originally posted by JoeBob
Yes. There's a season review in with this month's Racer. First "real issue" is supposed to be out in May.
If it makes you feel any better, their goal is 10,000 paid subscribers. :eek:
For perspective: I write for a mag called "Dirt Late Model" magazine, which exclusively covers late model stock cars that race on short dirt tracks across the country - no Indy 500, Honda, Toyota, etc.
It has about 20,000 paid subscribers for a monthly mag.
And no, I don't think the IRL mag will approach its 10K goal.:laugh: :laugh:
RaceGrrl
11-23-03, 09:20 PM
Originally posted by Ankf00
just please, no special "women of the IRL" edition...
PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! :(
Why not, Ank? You don't WANT to see Gaylio in a dress? Hmmm, I wonder if he shaves his legs? :D
RaceGrrl
11-23-03, 09:22 PM
Originally posted by nrc
They'll be untouched stacks of this rag in every Honda and Toyota hospitality suite next year.
Maybe they can save money on toilet paper by stocking the porta-johns with them.
Originally posted by RaceGrrl
Maybe they can save money on toilet paper by stocking the porta-johns with them.
Slick page stock makes lousy TP. Let's hope Tony's subsidy is small enough to make them go with a more newsprint like paper. ;)
Originally posted by ChrisB
(Notice how much the word "speed" gets mentioned during IRL broadcasts")
That's a nice little irony. I remember when CART was "too fast" on ovals and the IRL faithful learned in neo-natal lemming care that ultimate speed was unimportant in oval racing and that you couldn't see the difference between 230+ and 210+ from the stands, let alone on TV.
Racewriter
11-25-03, 10:29 AM
Originally posted by pchall
That's a nice little irony. I remember when CART was "too fast" on ovals and the IRL faithful learned in neo-natal lemming care that ultimate speed was unimportant in oval racing and that you couldn't see the difference between 230+ and 210+ from the stands, let alone on TV.
Yep. But the '220mph side by side' has become the mantra.
Even when they're talking about Nazareth.:rolleyes: :laugh: :laugh:
JLMannin
11-25-03, 11:41 AM
Two other racing magazines died while Racer called the IRL out to be the farce that it was (Ontrack and IndyCar).
The new owners of Racer (Haymarket group) need to be aware of this. I subscribed to it initially because the IRL coverage was virtually non-existent and brutally honest. If the IRL content goes any higher, I will be cancelling and requesting a refund.
Just got mine last night along with RACER and the "THIS IS YOUR LAST ISSUE" cover.
Looks like typical marketing schtick similar to Carts inserts the last couple years.
Note: I find it impossible to take this mag seriously at all when they start the old "Is Hornish the next Mears?" line. :rolleyes:
Roger Mears maybe. :gomer:
Originally posted by cart7
Note: I find it impossible to take this mag seriously at all when they start the old "Is Hornish the next Mears?" line. :rolleyes:
Roger Mears maybe. :gomer:
Nope, Mears didn't go Cup Racing. That's where I expect Sam to wind up. If he shows well at Penske, he'll move across the street. It's too lucrative not too if the opportunity knocks.
JLMannin
11-26-03, 12:12 PM
Originally posted by cart7
Just got mine last night along with RACER and the "THIS IS YOUR LAST ISSUE" cover.
Looks like typical marketing schtick similar to Carts inserts the last couple years.
Note: I find it impossible to take this mag seriously at all when they start the old "Is Hornish the next Mears?" line. :rolleyes:
Roger Mears maybe. :gomer:
I read an interview article several years back with Rick Mears. Rick actually said that he thought Roger was the better of the two, but he never had the fortune of landing a ride good enough to showcase his talent.
I found that statement somewhat incredulous them, and it still does not seem right to me now. But why would Rick say it? Maybe it was the "humble hero" personna.
Originally posted by JLMannin
I read an interview article several years back with Rick Mears. Rick actually said that he thought Roger was the better of the two, but he never had the fortune of landing a ride good enough to showcase his talent.
I found that statement somewhat incredulous them, and it still does not seem right to me now. But why would Rick say it? Maybe it was the "humble hero" personna.
You know, Mario said the same thing about Aldo in his Beyond the Glory special a couple years ago. A few lucky breaks along with Aldo's bad sprint crash into the fence is what put him in the rides that took him to the top.
Originally posted by JLMannin
I read an interview article several years back with Rick Mears. Rick actually said that he thought Roger was the better of the two, but he never had the fortune of landing a ride good enough to showcase his talent. Didn't Mario once say that about his twin brother Aldo?
Oops, I guess cart7 already answered that question. :o
Racewriter
11-26-03, 01:56 PM
Originally posted by RTKar
Nope, Mears didn't go Cup Racing. That's where I expect Sam to wind up. If he shows well at Penske, he'll move across the street. It's too lucrative not too if the opportunity knocks.
And after a couple of 25th place point finishes, he'll be back in the Earl.
Kahauna Dreamer
11-27-03, 05:53 PM
Originally posted by JLMannin
Two other racing magazines died while Racer called the IRL out to be the farce that it was (Ontrack and IndyCar).
The new owners of Racer (Haymarket group) need to be aware of this. I subscribed to it initially because the IRL coverage was virtually non-existent and brutally honest. If the IRL content goes any higher, I will be cancelling and requesting a refund.
On Track died because Street & Smiths didn't care about or even really "get" racing beyond NASCAR. The first post-Oxham issues—with editorials by Whitney Shaw—bore this out. Shaw even admitted as much in one of those early editorials. They did keep the Jonathan Ingram and Tony Dodgins columns in there, though...
formulaben
11-30-03, 10:44 PM
I wrote and griped, but a week later, no reply. Sorry RACER, but I just cancelled my subscription. You won't be getting my dollars.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.