Postcards from the Paddock - Long Beach

I've covered multiple series on the same weekend before but never quite like this! Double duty is nothing new; many of us that work in motorsports have roles in multiple series but this past weekend's IndyCar and Formula E races marked the first time I have broadcast two different series at two venues on the same weekend and between the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and the Rome E-Prix there was plenty to talk about!

Step one was getting my Formula E equipment to Long Beach. Through the magic of modern technology and a good internet connection I had worked the first two races of the year from a spare bedroom at home. The incredible Formula E television team shipped me a giant Pelican case full of all the gear I needed: a laptop, a monitor, several items I still can't identify, and what seemed like miles of cords. It was daunting to set up the first time and it was not without trepidation that I tore down the whole setup and loaded it back into its case in order to send it to California.

I've written about this before but it's worth reiterating: I'm incredibly fortunate to have employers who are willing to let me work multiple jobs on the same weekend. I am indebted to the IndyCar Radio general manager Chris Pollock for stepping in and ensuring my giant case of gear ended up on an IMS Productions truck to Long Beach and to our network engineer Rick Evans for securing a spot for me to set it all back up at the track. That spot happened to be a spare broadcast booth which sits atop the grandstands along the front straightaway at Long Beach.

After arriving Friday morning I managed to reassemble the kit but wouldn't get to test it with the Formula E production team in the UK until midnight Pacific Time due to the time difference. In between, I covered the first IndyCar practice session and tried to get organized for the rest of the weekend because, as I was about to discover, the logistics of calling races on multiple continents can be tricky.

For example: the Long Beach track closed around 8:00 p.m. every night but I needed to be on air at 2:00 a.m. each morning for Formula E qualifying. The only foolproof solution to this that I could come up with to ensure I wouldn't be locked out of the track and therefore unable to get the the booth was to make sure I was back at the track before the gates were closed and not leave again until the next day! That led to the unique experience of sleeping on the floor of the broadcast booth above the pit straight at Long Beach in between shows, which I suspect may have been a first in the nearly half-century history of the event.

Saturday night was particularly memorable because some time in between my tech check at midnight and the start of Formula E qualifying I was awoken by the sounds of several race fans who had managed to sneak into the track! They climbed up the grandstand where the booth is located and up onto the platform where the broadcast booths are located. A few of them tried the door, which thankfully I had remembered to lock, before wandering away to parts unknown.

Other than a lack of consistent sleep and the one near-intrusion, the weekend went about as well as I could have hoped. The equipment worked without a hitch and both legs of the Formula E doubleheader were thrilling. The dominance of Mitch Evans and Jaguar after a slow start to the year was eye-opening and both driver and team now are back in the championship conversation. The new qualifying duels also have been a positive addition to the series and I think it's a format other series should examine.

I'm always amazed at the technical team's ability to stitch together a show with its component parts scattered all over the world: me in Long Beach, Bob Varsha in Atlanta, half of the production team on-site in Rome and the other half in London. Working with Bob is a thrill as well. He is a master of the craft and has long been someone I look up to in this profession.

The IndyCar side of the weekend also went smoothly and we were treated to a classic finish. Josef Newgarden's stout defense, first on cold tires against Alex Palou and then against Romain Grosjean, who was armed with the softer compound tires on a pair of late restarts, was a master class. I know I was enthralled listening to our anchor Mark Jaynes and our turn announcers Jake Query, Nick Yeoman, and Michael Young bring those moments to life in the final laps. Nothing quite captures the raw emotion of sports like a radio broadcast done right.

Reflecting on the blur that is this past weekend I can't help but grin. Even while attempting to sleep on an admittedly uncomfortable booth floor, I remembered the nights that I would lay awake dreaming of getting to cover events like these at some point in my career. Those memories still drive me to soak in the experiences and enjoy the journey. Ultimately there is no job I would rather have.

And it's a good thing, too, because that journey is already on to its next stop. I'm writing this in the air on my way to Sonoma for the first full SRO America weekend of the season. We got a taste of what to expect at St. Petersburg with a pair of GT America races but the rest of the series get started this weekend in wine country and it's shaping up to be a huge year. Eight race broadcasts and over 130 total cars to cover this weekend should keep me on my toes! I'm happy to say my wife Audrey is coming along once again so keep an eye on my Twitter and Instagram for some additional content from the track and join us on the GT World YouTube and SRO Motorsports Twitch channels for live coverage all weekend long. Talk to you from California wine country!

--Ryan