SpeedCouch.com The view from my couch USAR - Behind the TV Cameras! By Cheryl and Lou LauerHave you ever wondered how things go from the racetrack to the camera to your television set every Thursday night? Naturally the writers at SpeedCouch.com do! Recently we were offered a unique opportunity to see the magic while attending the USAR race at Ace Speedway on Easter weekend. We got to watch part of the race from the Speed Channel (or Crosscreek Productions) TV truck. Thanks to Executive Producer, Chris Larson (Hallbrook Productions), for giving us a wonderful experience. We don't know if this article can convey the intensity of what happens in a production trailer while producing a race broadcast, but we'll try. We had corresponded with Richard Campbell (pit road cameraman) ![]() Because the race was rained out on Friday and postponed until Saturday night, we had a lot of time to ask even more questions and meet some other members of the production team. This included Donna, the technical director, who is in charge of switching camera views according the director's instructions, Jeff, the engineer-in-charge, who makes sure all the equipment and the truck are running smoothly, and Mark Magin, whose is chief cook and bottle washer for his company, Onboard Images, which provides the in-car cameras for the USAR races. We also met driver, Scott Sutherland, who works as a commentator on the USAR Northern Division races. This weekend, he and his crew were fielding a car in the Southern Division race. We already knew Gene Crane, who does double duty as track announcer for USAR and as a commentator on the Southern Division TV broadcasts. On Saturday afternoon, the rest of the production team arrived at the track with the semi-truck that comprises the mobile production studio for the USAR broadcasts. Throughout the afternoon, the small, but energetic crew worked setting up camera platforms around the track and pulling miles and miles of cable to provide power/video/audio to everything. We were amazed at what the production crew accomplishes with the limited budget and small crew alloted to them. Around 6:30 we made our way to the TV truck and Chris showed us around the various sections, the audio room, the tape room, and the main production room. As the starting time for the race approached, Chris showed us into the main production area and where we could sit in the back "row" of three sets of consoles. A few minutes before the start of the race, Chris left the trailer and headed up to the "tower" to oversee the broadcast from there. From the tower Chris is able to see the entire track and it enables him to do his job of Producer better. He relays the feel, the look of the race that he thinks will make the best product down to the trailer and the team takes if from there. Everyone was getting ready for the "show" to begin! As 7:00 approached, the activity in the production trailer intensified, yet Hippy and Donna worked together to keep things light by cracking a few jokes to relieve the tension. As they started rolling tape, Hippy called for some "beauty shots" and one of the cameramen zoomed out to show the countryside of Altamahaw, North Carolina surrounding Ace Speedway. They found a beautiful church steeple among the blossoming trees in the area. Next Chris or Hippy reminded the cameramen to keep their eyes on the middle of the pack where a lot of rookies had qualified. We had planned to just stay in the trailer for just a few laps, but were hooked by the dynamics going on between the director, technical director, producer, cameramen, and the tape room. During the first 50 laps of the race, there were two yellow flags and a red flag. During each break in the action, Hippy quickly queued up replays of the incidents, selected the best views and designated those for the final tape. All the time, directing the cameramen to follow the cars involved in the wrecks, pit stops, and the drivers involved as well. They got some very good shots of the frustration of one driver who was running well, only to be caught up in the wreck because of someone else's mechanical problem. During the early caution, Hippy was also quick to point out "HOOTERS GIRLS IN THE STANDS!" so the cameramen could get some shots of visiting Hooters girls handing out stickers and Hooters newspapers to the fans in the stands. At the beginning of the race, someone on the production team down at the track also told everyone "We have moisture" since it started misting rain as soon as the cars got on the track. This continued throughout the entire race, but thankfully, there was never enough rain to stop the race. During the red flag, everyone in the booth, including us, got to relax for a bit. We couldn't help but be caught up in the excitement in the room. Hippy sent a couple of their "utility" workers out to the track to wipe the condensation off the cameras. (And, no, Chris, Cheryl was just kidding when she said she wanted that job). As the tension eased back just a bit during the red flag and everyone had a chance to catch their breath for a moment, Hippy told the technician in the tape room to stop the tape for a bit and everyone got a short reprieve from the intensity of covering the race. We cannot imagine how they stay focused and on their toes through the entire two hours of the race! It must take nerves of steel and obviously a strong ability to multi-task in such a dynamic environment. We could feel the tension and we were only observers! But Hippy and Donna did a great job mixing jokes in where they could to keep the atmosphere upbeat and cut down on the potential stress. Here we were both sure we'd just stay a couple of minutes and then join some friends in the grandstands to watch the rest of the race. But we were so fascinated with the production process that we couldn't drag ourselves away until the third caution. It was a really hard choice because we'd have loved to stay and watch the production team at work for the entire race. Even though we had a great view of all the action from every angle, nothing replaces the smells, sounds and sights of watching the race from the grandstands. Reluctantly, we agreed it was time to go and quietly slipped out of the trailer so as not to disturb Hippy and Donna at work.
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