I am going to the NASCAR Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium this weekend and I rented a scanner with 2 headsets and an intercom feature for the weekend through Racing Electronics.

The rental was not cheap and I was curious if I could build my own similar system with off the shelf items that I could take to other NASCAR races or listen to the weekly series at Bowman Gray when I attend.

I have done some research and see a lot of folks use the Uniden BC125at and are able to listen. That part is easy. The part that I am trying to figure out is how to set up an intercom system so I can talk to who ever attends with me.

Has anyone built there own set up like this or have a clue what I should be looking for?

Something like this?

https://www.amazon.com/NASCAR-...-2334895282771&psc=1

If there is a giant list of everyone's freq's,
Are all the race teams listing to each others comm's ?


Am I missing something?

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
If there is a giant list of everyone's freq's,
Are all the race teams listing to each others comm's ?


Am I missing something?

Good point. But I don't think it would take a list for them to do that anyway.

I looked up that track in the OP as I wasn't familiar w/ it. The history is interesting.
I like the description from Wikipedia -" Bowman Gray's nickname, the "Madhouse", is largely attributed to the racing antics that take place on the tight, quarter mile bull ring. In 2014, Bowman Gray's promoter, Gray Garrison described the events at BGS as part racing, part religion, and part wrestling.[8] "

Here are the frequencies, I used to live close to Hampton and could pickup the teams using my Uniden SDS 100.

"NASCAR Driver and Officials Frequencies
Frequencies in this section are used at NASCAR events throughout the country. For track specific frequencies, see the NASCAR Track Specific Frequencies section of this page.

All race communications between car, spotter and driver are analog in the clear. In fact, since 2013 NASCAR has banned all digital radio usage by teams during races (source).

The practice of car to car communication was banned in 2012 to prevent tandem drafting at the superspeedways."

Radio Reference Nascar Links

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
Are all the race teams listing to each others comm's ?

So I called my Aunt and asked her. My Cousin raced ASA, Busch, Nascar, and then Nascar Carftsman Truck series.
Talking to my Aunt I got the impression that they don't really bother much to listen to the others. That may change a little towards the end of season when dealing w/ the leading teams but for someone to listen, then call the pit chief or team and then pass on info to the driver, their working on to many other things to worry about it.
I was also told they do use some code for certain things.
Hope that helps, Bendable.

I don't watch the. NASCAR's.
But the technology they use is sometimes interesting.

It seems like they find people " bending twisting and misinterpreting" the rules on a very regular basis.

The M.L.B. and N.F.L. both have cheaters.

Seems like the teams with a lot of money on the line would have a business load of listeners on hand to get an edge.

Then again perhaps the comm's they are exchanging are SO time sensitive that it might not help that much.

I have listened at past races I have attended.

A majority of the radio traffic is between the driver and spotter. There is some with the crew chief about the condition of the car.

Most if any strategy talk would be in code. Like if they were gonna pit this lap and what they were gonna do the car during the stop.

If you attempted to listen to all the teams there were would be too much info too fast to be useful.

quote:

Originally posted by dsiets:

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
Are all the race teams listing to each others comm's ?

So I called my Aunt and asked her. My Cousin raced ASA, Busch, Nascar, and then Nascar Carftsman Truck series.
Talking to my Aunt I got the impression that they don't really bother much to listen to the others. That may change a little towards the end of season when dealing w/ the leading teams but for someone to listen, then call the pit chief or team and then pass on info to the driver, their working on to many other things to worry about it.
I was also told they do use some code for certain things.
Hope that helps, Bendable.

Generally, they don't everyone is to busy with their own race to worry about what the other guy is doing.

quote:

Originally posted by FenderBender:

Generally, they don't everyone is to busy with their own race to worry about what the other guy is doing.

I think it is actually yes and no in that much race strategy at certain tracks revolves around cooperating with other teams. These are the large tracks where drafting is a very important part of staying competitive in the race. Teams will coordinate thier pit stops so as to not "lose the draft" and get lapped. Much of this coordination is done face-to-face, e.g. between crew chiefs, spotters, or designated crew members, but some of it is done over the radio. There are other situations when it is useful to know another teams strategy or situation. Coded language is often used to deny other teams this information. Many times, in post-race interviews, I have heard drivers and crew chiefs refer to information they gleaned from other teams' radio communications.

However, I doubt monitoring is considered a big part of managing a race. If so, it would be much more blatant, and far more resources would be applied to the practice.

Oh, and BTW, we are certainly expecting a post-race report from those attending this weekend's race at Bowman Gray!

It’s been awhile but I remember seeing systems for sale at the track. Having support right there has advantages. If you have an issue waiting till you get home to fix it pretty much defeats the purpose.

I went with a Bearcat scanner and some Koss headsets. All were sourced at home. Major suck was spending the time programming while at the track. If I had the right stuff it could be programmed at the scanner rental place in minutes.

My fix would best be addressed on a non race day Friday for example. No doubt everything I’ve outlined can be done on line. Did I mention it has been a long time since I’ve done this?

quote:

Originally posted by Apphunter:
I have listened at past races I have attended.

A majority of the radio traffic is between the driver and spotter. There is some with the crew chief about the condition of the car.

Most if any strategy talk would be in code. Like if they were gonna pit this lap and what they were gonna do the car during the stop.

If you attempted to listen to all the teams there were would be too much info too fast to be useful.

I put the first successful radio communications in Bobby Unser's race car at the Pocono 500 in 1972 while working at GE Mobile Radio out of FT. Washington, PA. I used a UHF portable with the antenna mounted on the front nose of the car and the push to talk button on the spoke of the steering wheel.

Others were interested in the set up like Paul Newman and James Garner who were also racing or owned race cars. I didn't recognize them at the time since they were wearing sunglasses but people were taking their picture.

Bobby Unser used the radio in talking with the pit crew concerning gas and tires. The radio cut their pit times in half.

In 1998 I listened to Dale Sr. and Larry Mac during his race win at the Daytona 500, rented scanner and frequency sheet, it was pretty special. Scanners sure do give you more insight to the racing.

Think this set will work? Scanner

And 2 of these headsets

With an audio out splitter from the scanner and 5 wire cable to connect the head sets

From the description in the headsets you linked.

"These headsets are to be used with a two-way radio for communication. They are not capable of connecting directly to each other via a cable for communication."

How important is the intercom feature for you? If it's VERY important than you'll likely need to go with the $360 set linked earlier.

You can save some money by buying a used scanner on ebay. I like the Radio Shack Pro-83. But it seems like there isn't any available. The Pro-99 would be perfect and is actually more of a race scanner. They're going for about $30.

If you want to use the headsets you linked you'll need an intercom box between them. I don't have any experience with them. But you can save a ton of money going with a basic ear protection headphones and a splitter for the scanner.

I hope you LOVE Bowman tonight. I'm watching on TV from Ohio and loving this race.