Having watched Flo for an entire season and seeing races at so many different tracks I too have been thinking about the announcers at some of these venues so I am glad to see Kevin tossing this out for discussion. First and foremost, those of us that were born and raised at the races in the northeast are spoiled. Not only did we have a full field of 45-50 cars each week (3 heats and a consi), it was a two division show (not 9 like in the south). And we had one of the best announcers in the business calling the action, Bill Singer. No yelling at us. No repeating the same jargon over and over each week. He had his signature lines ("They go in hard...." "Angling out of the corner...") but he was as much a part of the show as the Flemington flips and the winner that night. It wasn't until I moved away from Jersey that I realized how special it really all was. As a kid (OK, and still today) I always wanted to be like Bill Singer and call the races. So when I watch Flo I listen to see if there is another Bill Singer out there. I watched Bridgeport this weekend. The new guy is good; Jeff I feel is honestly invested in the sport announcing at Grandview, Delaware and the STSS races. He is even keel and knows the drivers (I heard him reference East Windsor Saturday night). I can do without the music at Bridgeport; not sure what that is all about. Chet is great with the USAC sprints and midgets. Doesn't yell and pays attention the entire race; not just the front two cars. I can't comment on the WoO announcers since I am not a subscriber. I like the Lucas Oil announcers although they repeat "are you kidding me?" way too much and seem too hung up with who is leading lap #2 in a 50 lap race. How many lead changes there are doesn't interest me. I will give a tip of the cap to the All Star Sprint announcer. He knows his stuff. I'll give him the music because sprint car drivers are a different breed. I like the nicknames (the law firm of Parker Price Miller) and his yelling at the start "It's Showtime!" is fine because many nights the sprints were showtime. I have run into more than one announcer that can ruin the show. If I am at the races I plug in my Raceceiver and if I am home watching Flo I mute them. I don't think promoters realize the effect they have on the show but I do understand that many of them are not professionals and are just guys like me who love racing. Only they got the chance to call the races. - David
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