Over the past few years it seems that everyone has been pushing NASCAR in one direction or another in an attempt to make the sport “better”. The COT, the Chase for the Sprint Cup and double-file restarts were implemented to hopefully improve the sport.

Since the end of the 2009 season, and the end of Jimmie Johnson’s fourth consecutive year of domination in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, there has been an on-going discussion within the NASCAR community about new ways to put fans in the stands and in front of their television sets and, even more challenging, to keep them there.

Obviously Danicamania has entertained us all during this first month of the off-season and that storyline is sure to keep our attention through the beginning of 2010 as we figure out exactly how she will fair first in her ARCA Racing Series debut at Daytona and then in her NASCAR Nationwide Series debut a week or two into the season. Will Danica be the answer to NASCAR’s television ratings slump? Maybe at first, but if she struggles early on then the excitement may not live much past February.

In the midst of all these Danica discussions, more discrete changes are in the works.

ESPN has kicked Dr. Jerry Punch out of the booth and back to the pits, replacing him with the more exuberant Marty Reid in hopes of further entertaining fans who are watching ESPN’s 17 race broadcasts. The change may delight the new NASCAR generation but, for some who are long-time hardcore race fans, the lack of Punch in the booth may be just another reminder of how great the early days of NASCAR were.

Another new concept is the joint effort by NASCAR and Morgan RV Resorts to create a tail-gating experience for fans who are not actually at the track.

The first 13 resorts, all current Morgan Resorts that will be renamed, are scheduled to open in the spring. They will offer big-screen televised broadcasts of weekend racing events plus behind-the-scenes information that is not part of the regular broadcast.

If you ever talk to fans at a track on raceday, most will tell you that the camping and tailgating are the best parts of the weekend. Many hardcore race fans have developed traditions revolving around the “pre-game” atmosphere with their families and friends. This new concept will allow thousands of race fans to experience the fun minus the multi-hour drive to the track and back; they can hunker down at a nearby NASCAR RV Resort and still be close to home.

These concepts are further proof of NASCAR’s ongoing effort to improve the sport and that of the organizations surrounding it.

Personally, RV resorts and excitable announcers, while wonderful and amusing, are not the reason I choose to spend 36 weekends out of the year at racetracks or on my couch. It is the roar of the engines, the speed of the cars and the excitement of seeing men tame machines for 500 laps around the Bristol bowl, the track too tough to tame, or the high banks of Dega.

And I’m sure I’m not the only one.

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