It only takes minutes. Racing coverage that covered the entire field. What a novel idea!

Bravo to NBC for taking the time to let the fans see ALL the cars that qualified to be in the Tropicana 400 at Chicagoland. It was different hearing about ALL the drivers that made it into the race. A reminder that the teams running in the top 5 aren't the only cars on the track. There are actually 43 cars out there! They aren't just a name and a number at the top of the screen. Though, the bubbleheads were unnecessary.

The field of 43 looks harder and harder to fill with each race. Some teams just can't afford to run anymore. Think about the cars running on race day with no colors to show off. What about the driver who pilots a racecar but has a blank hood and no decals or stickers on their side panels? The team who has no company logo on their uniform. They have fans too and those fans hope their driver will be there next week and the week after that. But we all know that takes money. Don't you think it would help if a company knew they might actually get some TV time? Couldn't the field summary help those teams find a sponsor so they can continue to run? Just maybe that little bit of air time might get those teams a sponsor, which will get them the money to run competitively. And all it took was a few minutes out of a three-hour race! A few laps out of the 367 ran.

You say you missed some of the battles that were happening on the track during the review. Did you watch the scoring line at the top of the screen and saw positions changing? Thought you were missing something? What race was it that you saw all the passes happening on the track? I missed that race. Had they not been doing the drivers review, do you really think that the cameras would have been on the battle for 13th or 19th? Or would they have been on the leader with a 3-second lead over his nearest competitor. Maybe the cameras would have been on the 3rd place car that just gained a tenth of a second on the 2nd place runner.

Are the people that complained about the field summary new fans of auto racing? The racing audience never sees all the battles. With 43 teams vying for positions throughout the race, how can you?

If you are fortunate enough to be at the track, are you able to keep your eyes on all the cars? Aren't positions changing that you are missing, say, off turn 2 while you are watching others running side by side in turn 4? If you turn to watch the turn 2 battle you have just missed the pass coming off turn 4. Side by side battle on the backstretch, but there may be a battle for the lead passing the start finish line. Did you catch them both? What about all the traffic in between, are they waiting to grab the next spot only when all other passing has stopped on the track? When the crew tells the driver they are on TV?

The television audience is at the mercy of the network and what cars they choose to show. We do not have the option to watch the battle of our choice. Don't you think they are battling in the back of the pack when all we see is the leader running alone? What about when the commentators are telling the TV audience about the cars going 3 wide mid pack but all we get to see are the drivers running single file up front? They all can't run up front! And we can't see all the battles while they are happening.

The scoring line at the top is helpful. But once a driver goes a lap down, you have no idea where he is. There is no seconds, just the -1. Where is he on the track? How close is he behind the leader? Is it possible to make the pass and get the lap back if there was a yellow? Unless your favorite driver is always in the lead the field summary is a welcomed addition to race coverage.

So you missed some battles. Stop and think before you complain. You always do. The only difference was you got to see the entire field too. My only suggestion, do it near the end of the race and not in the early laps. That's when where the drivers are on the track really matters.

- gertie