Video device could replace gearheads' beloved scanners

01:52 PM CDT on Wednesday, April 5, 2006

By TERRY BLOUNT / The Dallas Morning News

The race scanner could be about to join dirt tracks and open-face helmets as extinct pieces of NASCAR's glorious past.

The Nextel FanView, a handheld device that combines a scanner with a video screen, may soon make the traditional scanner obsolete.

The new gadget is available on a limited basis this season. About 5,000 fans will get a chance to test it out this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

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John and Debra Craig, NASCAR fans from Lynchburg, Va., used FanView for the first time last weekend while attending the races at Martinsville.

"Nextel really got it right," John Craig said. "I don't think we have ever been more impressed with a new gadget. The fans at Texas are in for a real treat. This just added a whole new dimension to attending a race."

Thousands of fans attending NASCAR events have used scanners for years. The scanner enables a fan to listen in on radio communications between their favorite drivers and his crew.

Nextel FanView is a major step forward – sort of like going from a prop plane to the space shuttle.

Along with hearing driver-crew conversations, fans can call up in-car camera angles while listening to the drivers talk.

"We've used scanners several times, but I always had trouble hearing the announcers and programming the frequencies," Craig said. "With the FanView, the headsets were 100 percent better. I actually had to lower the volume.

"When you are listening to a driver, the number is displayed in the lower right corner with a green indicator light when they are talking. You just press audio and the car number and the team communications come through loud and clear. Press the stats button and you have all the stats you could ever need."

The video screen also offers statistical information by tapping into NASCAR's timing and scoring data to continuously update race positions and season standings.

"The picture was as good as the TV picture at home, that is, once the sun went down a little," Craig said. "We had to shield the screen from the sun for the first half of the race. The broadcast is delayed for about five seconds. If you see something happen on the track, you have the time to look to the screen and watch it happen."

Michael Robichaud, vice president of sports marketing for Sprint Nextel, said this type of innovative technology is one of the reasons Nextel partnered with NASCAR.

"With Nextel FanView we can advance the sport," Robichaud said. "This launch is an excellent example of how we can enhance the fan experience at NASCAR events."

Nextel

About 5,000 fans will get a chance to test FanView out this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

FanView was developed and produced by Kangaroo.TV, a broadcast technology company headquartered in Montreal. Sprint Nextel and NASCAR helped refine it to what it is today.

This is a trial year for the device, but it could revolutionize the way people in the grandstands follow the race. It also could give fans another reason to attend a race.

"It's as good or better than TrackPass on the laptop at home," Craig said. "This device eliminates the best excuse for watching the race at home. It's all right there in your hand."

Robichaud believes FanView's applications will grow over time.

"We designed it for continual enhancement," he said. "As fans become more accustomed to the device and demand different types of information, we have the ability to develop new content and integrate it quickly and seamlessly.

It will bring an even greater personalized at-track experience."

Staff writer Chuck Carlton contributed to this story.

E-mail tblount@dallasnews.com

The screen is 2.5 inches across. The device is 1.5 inches deep and 7 inches tall. It weighs 12 ounces and has a five-hour battery life.

It has the same capabilities as a traditional scanner. The frequencies are pre-programmed for the drivers, NASCAR officials and the radio broadcast. It also has a priority-scanning feature to set up as many as four favorite drivers. An audio replay feature allows the user to replay team communications.

Up to seven in-car camera angles are available, along with the in-house race telecast on the Nextel Vision screens.

Tons of them. Color graphics show real-time race standings and continuous updates of lap times and season standings.

Only about 5,000 are available to rent for the TMS weekend.

The branded NASCAR NEXTEL FanView hauler in the TMS frontstretch midway and all Track Scan locations at the speedway.

It's $50 per day or $70 per race weekend.

The FanView device, a battery, a charger (for weekend rentals), headphones, neck lanyard and a Quick Start guide.