Trevor Bayne/Daytona 500: Cheering in the Press Box

Comfort the afflicted.

Afflict the France family.

 

Was there that day, too. In fact I was standing by the window and watched Hornish make his final pass. That was the loudest collective gasp I ever heard. With that being said, I don't recall a lot of cheering in the downstairs press room when Hornish and Penske came in to answer questions.

 

Intersting observation by Ed Hinton.

longtimeracefan (Kentucky)

Ed, care to opine on the cheering in the Daytona press box/media center debate?
Ed Hinton (2:24 PM)

Didn't know there was one. I was in the upstairs press box, and there was no cheering. Can't speak for the infield. Heard there was cheering there, but can't prove it. I will say this: as far as general noise, shouting, laughter, cheering mock or real, the NASCAR infield media centers have become the most unprofessional in sports, in my opinion. AP, Charlotte Observer and even NASCAR PR staff guffaw and holler at their leisure.

 

Doesn't Ed had a long-running feud with someone at the Charlotte paper?

 

OK, I'll give this one more try. It's clear I have a different perspective on this, and it's also clear that in a post-to-post forum it's difficult to get one's point across. Nevertheless, I'd like to give it a try.

Perhaps I read the initial criticisms a bit too carelessly, because I was focusing on the (reported) fact that press box observers broke into applause as Bayne turned toward and crossed the finish line. My reaction was, and still is, no big deal. Cheering and whooping it up during the post-race, that's a different matter, because then one is interacting with "the news." When one is simplying observing the news, though, comportment's a non-issue so long as you're not disrupting anyone else's work. And I find it hard to fathom 10 seconds of applause at a particular instance in a three- to four-hour event being significantly disruptive.

 

I have been in the infield press box at Daytona. And I have to agree with Ed.

And, boy howdy, I think they also set media records on scarfing up freebies.

Anything that looks functional, valuable or edible better be nailed down, or it's gone in 60 seconds.

 

What did they give away this year?

 

No cheering in the press box. Period.

 

Didn't make it this year.

 

This made me giggle.

 

Do you applaud the president (no matter what party he/she is in) at the end of the State of the Union? It's a big event too. If you can't show the same decorum at a NASCAR race, Super Bowl, or even the state junior varsity swimming championships (which you got assigned to because they try hard, too) that you would there, start doing so. You only embarrass the rest of us, and yourself.

 

The only time I've even considered applauding while covering a race (I mostly cover sprint cars) is after a driver walks away from a particularly bad crash. Somehow, I don't think that a gesture saying "glad you weren't killed/maimed" is betraying bias or unprofessional; it isn't the issue here as well.

As some one with some auto racing coverage experience but far less than many other writers here on the board, I'm curious to hear people think the nature of the sports and its coverage plays into a level of acceptance about applauding that would otherwise be taboo while covering other sports. A NASCAR race weekend gives writers ample opportunity to spend time with drivers in a way you might not get with other sports. I'm wondering if this access also breeds a familiarity that some writers feel makes it "OK" to applaud if a guy they like does well.

There are definitely drivers whom I've developed stronger relationships with while covering the regional circuit for the paper I write for - that's the nature of the beast. But I would never think of doing more than cracking a slight smile if someone I like personally wins. That's just ridiculous.