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More Racing
AUTOS: PINKS All Out Hits Houston Raceway
Drag racers and fans return to Texas for an expanded SPEED program and more racing excitement with more than 500 competitors.
Drag racers compete all out for $25,000 in cash and prizes in the SPEED program event. (Photo: SPEED)
A lot has changed since 2007, which was when SPEED’s original television show PINKS All Out first visited the expansive grounds of Houston Raceway Park. New on-air personalities, larger fields and more chances to win will be featured on Saturday, Oct. 16, when the nation’s most popular grassroots drag-racing television show hits Baytown, Texas.
The inaugural Houston show was the fourth episode ever shot, and at the time both SPEED and Los Angeles-based production company Pullin Television were still trying to navigate through what it had created. While outward appearances made it seem like a well-oiled presentation, it was far from “challenge-free” behind the scenes.
“We did quite a bit of improvising,” said Robert Ecker, SPEED VP of Programming and PINKS All Out Executive Producer. “Looking back on it now, there were definitely growing pains.”
Houston represented the inaugural show in which exhibition racers were actually inserted and utilized within the overall program. After a rainy and cold presentation at Palm Beach International Raceway a month before, the early spring Houston show was the first full execution of the live show and television shoot within the same day. Despite the many tweaks throughout the years, the overall at-track show model has endured.
On Oct. 16, Rich Christensen and crew will welcome more than 500 racers from throughout the region to battle it out for the final slots. Unlike the first show, where only 16 cars had a chance for $10,000, up to 64 racers may have a shot at the ultimate field. It’s also a television show, so traditional drag-racing “tricks of the trade” may be frowned upon.
“The show is a celebration of drag racing,” said Rich Christensen, host of PINKS All Out and creator of PINKS property. “But we don’t allow deep staging and shallow staging. It’s just two cars, lined up against each other, leaving on my ‘arm drop.’ This show may have different rules, but racers need to respect the competition. If not, you’re out.”
“This is the anti-sandbagging show,” Ecker added. “The title says it all.”
Tickets for the show are open to the public and available at www.houstonraceway.com. For more information on PINKS All Out, log onto www.SPEED.com.
About PINKS All Out
PINKS All Out is a unique television property which combines a ‘made-for-television’ grassroots drag racing competition with the sights, sounds and atmosphere of a large-scale motor sports event. Each episode – shot at 13 drag strips throughout the country from South Florida to Sonoma, Calif. for 2010 – invites up to 500 grassroots racers (door cars; 12.99 seconds and quicker) to compete for $25,000 in cash and prizes, running ‘All Out’ on national cable television network, SPEED, and in front of packed grandstands. Host Rich Christensen, creator of the PINKS concept, sets the show’s tone through his signature ‘arm drop’ starts, edgy personality and ‘firm but fair’ approach to the competition.
The rules are simple, run your car ‘All Out.’ After two timed sessions, the PINKS All Out technical team – led by Christensen and supported by technical advisors Willie B, Clay Millican, Ken Herring and Brian Bossone – selects a group of either 16 or 32 cars to compete for the title. The selection process is subjective in nature, focusing on a close grouping of elapsed times, great storylines, characters and interesting cars that generally make up the final field. Subsequent two-car elimination rounds set up a best two-out-of-three, ‘hot lap’ final. Racers can be eliminated from the competition if they click off elapsed times that aren’t consistent with their previous passes, thereby ‘sandbagging’ or trying to position their cars for the final field by holding back.
About SPEED
SPEED™, anchored by its popular and wide-ranging coverage of NASCAR, is the nation’s first and only cable television network dedicated to automotive and motorcycle racing, performance and lifestyle. Now available in more than 80 million homes in North America, SPEED, a member of the FOX Sports Media Group, is among the industry leaders in interactive TV, video on demand, mobile initiatives and broadband services. For more information, please visit SPEED.com, the online motor sports authority.
The inaugural Houston show was the fourth episode ever shot, and at the time both SPEED and Los Angeles-based production company Pullin Television were still trying to navigate through what it had created. While outward appearances made it seem like a well-oiled presentation, it was far from “challenge-free” behind the scenes.
“We did quite a bit of improvising,” said Robert Ecker, SPEED VP of Programming and PINKS All Out Executive Producer. “Looking back on it now, there were definitely growing pains.”
Houston represented the inaugural show in which exhibition racers were actually inserted and utilized within the overall program. After a rainy and cold presentation at Palm Beach International Raceway a month before, the early spring Houston show was the first full execution of the live show and television shoot within the same day. Despite the many tweaks throughout the years, the overall at-track show model has endured.
On Oct. 16, Rich Christensen and crew will welcome more than 500 racers from throughout the region to battle it out for the final slots. Unlike the first show, where only 16 cars had a chance for $10,000, up to 64 racers may have a shot at the ultimate field. It’s also a television show, so traditional drag-racing “tricks of the trade” may be frowned upon.
“The show is a celebration of drag racing,” said Rich Christensen, host of PINKS All Out and creator of PINKS property. “But we don’t allow deep staging and shallow staging. It’s just two cars, lined up against each other, leaving on my ‘arm drop.’ This show may have different rules, but racers need to respect the competition. If not, you’re out.”
“This is the anti-sandbagging show,” Ecker added. “The title says it all.”
Tickets for the show are open to the public and available at www.houstonraceway.com. For more information on PINKS All Out, log onto www.SPEED.com.
About PINKS All Out
PINKS All Out is a unique television property which combines a ‘made-for-television’ grassroots drag racing competition with the sights, sounds and atmosphere of a large-scale motor sports event. Each episode – shot at 13 drag strips throughout the country from South Florida to Sonoma, Calif. for 2010 – invites up to 500 grassroots racers (door cars; 12.99 seconds and quicker) to compete for $25,000 in cash and prizes, running ‘All Out’ on national cable television network, SPEED, and in front of packed grandstands. Host Rich Christensen, creator of the PINKS concept, sets the show’s tone through his signature ‘arm drop’ starts, edgy personality and ‘firm but fair’ approach to the competition.
The rules are simple, run your car ‘All Out.’ After two timed sessions, the PINKS All Out technical team – led by Christensen and supported by technical advisors Willie B, Clay Millican, Ken Herring and Brian Bossone – selects a group of either 16 or 32 cars to compete for the title. The selection process is subjective in nature, focusing on a close grouping of elapsed times, great storylines, characters and interesting cars that generally make up the final field. Subsequent two-car elimination rounds set up a best two-out-of-three, ‘hot lap’ final. Racers can be eliminated from the competition if they click off elapsed times that aren’t consistent with their previous passes, thereby ‘sandbagging’ or trying to position their cars for the final field by holding back.
About SPEED
SPEED™, anchored by its popular and wide-ranging coverage of NASCAR, is the nation’s first and only cable television network dedicated to automotive and motorcycle racing, performance and lifestyle. Now available in more than 80 million homes in North America, SPEED, a member of the FOX Sports Media Group, is among the industry leaders in interactive TV, video on demand, mobile initiatives and broadband services. For more information, please visit SPEED.com, the online motor sports authority.
DTM Zandvoort
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