{"id":38329,"date":"2025-07-04T15:00:16","date_gmt":"2025-07-04T15:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/38329\/"},"modified":"2025-07-04T15:00:16","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T15:00:16","slug":"how-chicagos-historic-orchestra-hall-helps-nascar-tackle-a-street-race-problem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/38329\/","title":{"rendered":"How Chicago\u2019s historic orchestra hall helps NASCAR tackle a street-race problem"},"content":{"rendered":"

CHICAGO \u2014 The Symphony Center is one of Chicago\u2019s oldest structures, but the history inside isn\u2019t why NASCAR teams have descended on a building that first opened in 1904. The reason is that, when you go up to the ninth floor and walk out onto the east-facing balcony, you get a picturesque view of Millennium Park to your left, Lake Michigan straight ahead and Grant Park to your right.<\/p>\n

From this lookout on the Symphony Center\u2019s highest floor, NASCAR teams get an important view during the Chicago race weekend. During on-track sessions for both the Cup and Xfinity Series, teams position spotters here to help their drivers navigate the temporary street circuit that encompasses 2.2 miles and 12 turns around Grant Park.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s definitely quite the view from up here,\u201d said Travis Geisler, alternative spotter for Team Penske driver Joey Logano.<\/p>\n

Geisler, Penske\u2019s competition director, doesn\u2019t normally spot for Logano, only stepping into that role whenever NASCAR races on a road course. The spotter\u2019s job requires being an additional set of eyes for a driver, helping them through the potential safety and competitive facets they must navigate, while also monitoring every other driver. An already challenging role is made more difficult when NASCAR ventures away from its traditional oval tracks to road courses, as it will this weekend in downtown Chicago. For the third consecutive year, NASCAR is racing on the Windy City\u2019s streets.<\/p>\n

On circuits like Chicago, a spotter\u2019s visibility is often obscured, with several obstacles in the way and communication with their driver limited. And that\u2019s how a group of spotters find themselves atop a building that the Chicago Symphony Orchestra \u2014 regarded as one of the United States\u2019 \u201cBig Five\u201d orchestras \u2014 calls home. It\u2019s an ideal place to view a section of the track.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are higher up, so you can see more, even though some of the braking zone into (Turn) 11 is blocked by the tree, you can at least see when somebody\u2019s setting it up and can give (a driver) a heads-up,\u201d said Hayden Reeves, primary spotter for Legacy Motor Club driver Erik Jones, of the Symphony Center location. \u201cFrom here, you can pick them up a little sooner.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chicago<\/p>\n

The view from Symphony Center, where spotters are stationed. The tree blocking the view into Turn 11, from S Michigan Ave. onto E Jackson Dr., is at right. (Jordan Bianchi \/ The Athletic)<\/p>\n

At most ovals, teams employ just a single spotter, stationed usually at the track\u2019s highest point \u2014 typically on top of the scoring tower on the frontstretch. On a road course, with a more complex layout, teams usually bring in at least two additional spotters, scattered throughout the circuit to offer guidance at areas where the main spotter cannot get a proper visual.<\/p>\n

For Chicago, teams generally place their primary spotter on a stand along the main straightaway in the frontstretch. Additional spotters, many of whom study the vernacular of the primary spotter to make it easier for the driver to understand, are in the designated locations between Turns 3 and 4 \u2014 where they stand atop double-decker buses parked outside the circuit \u2014 and at the Symphony Center.<\/p>\n

Spotters along the straightaway are responsible for picking up the cars exiting Turn 12 and entering Turn 1, a primary passing zone, then coming into Turn 6, another passing zone. They also handle restarts, which are often frantic. Spotters on the buses handle the cars as they come down the high-speed backstretch into Turn 3, through Turn 4 and into Turn 5. Spotters at the Symphony Center pick up their driver as they exit Turn 8 and enter a quick succession of three turns, including Turn 11, a tricky 90-degree bend that has been the site of many pileups.<\/p>\n

\"NASCAR<\/p>\n

The course layout. Spotters are typically located along the frontstretch, between Turns 3 and 4 (at upper right), and at Symphony Center (at Turn 11 at lower left). (NASCARChicago.com)<\/p>\n

\u201cMost of the corners are 90-degree corners and blind, and you can\u2019t see around them,\u201d said Kaulig Racing driver AJ Allmendinger. \u201cAnd as we\u2019ve seen a couple of times, you start stacking cars in there, if the spotter is slow to get to it or can\u2019t see it, we all kind of stack it in there because you just don\u2019t see the cars wrecked.\u201d<\/p>\n

The use of multiple spotters on road courses \u2014 teams may use more than three and place them where needed \u2014 requires everyone to adjust their operations. T.J. Bell, spotter for 23XI Racing\u2019s Corey Heim, described it as a \u201cgame of telephone\u201d where not everyone has direct communication with everyone at all times.<\/p>\n

On an oval, a driver\u2019s lone spotter informs them of everything \u2014 choosing the right lane on a restart, if another driver is to the inside or outside of them, cautions, what\u2019s happening on pit road, or any number of other things. On road courses, however, the regular spotter is not necessarily the primary voice, as some duties are left to those with a better sightline.<\/p>\n

The setup means the regular spotter has to accept not being able to talk to their driver as often as normal and must adapt to handing off to the alternative spotters, then remaining silent.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019m an egomaniac. I don\u2019t like to share my job with anybody,\u201d said Freddie Kraft, the spotter for 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace. \u201cI want to be in control of everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NASCAR<\/p>\n

Spotters direct cars between Turns 12 and 1. \u201cMost of the corners are 90-degree corners and \u2026 you can\u2019t see around them,\u201d says driver AJ Allmendinger. (Jordan Bianchi \/ The Athletic)<\/p>\n

This year, track officials have relocated the primary spotter stand from above pit road to across from it, a move made due to the removal of a hospitality area that had been there for the past two years. While spotters should now have a straight-on viewpoint of pit road itself, some have expressed trepidation about whether they\u2019ll be able to clearly see cars exiting Turn 12 and entering Turn 1, or picking up their driver going into Turn 6 due to trees that line the course. Track officials responded to the concerns by adding video boards to assist.<\/p>\n

Limited visibility for spotters is not unique to Chicago, with similar concerns arising in the past few years at other tracks, including some ovals. Last month at the Aut\u00f3dromo Hermanos Rodr\u00edguez, a permanent road course in Mexico City where NASCAR raced for the first time in nearly 20 years, some of the initial designated spotter locations weren\u2019t ideal. Spotters had difficulty seeing cars going into Turn 1, a key section of the 2.49-mile, 15-turn course, due to the stand being too low to the ground. After consultation with NASCAR, spotters were allowed to relocate to areas they saw as a better fit, though some still said they lacked sufficient visibility.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpotters into Turn 1 of Mexico. Do you know where they were standing? You can\u2019t see anything,\u201d Wallace said. \u201cAnd so if we want to talk about safety and all this stuff, either say we\u2019re not racing with spotters, or get them in a position and make sure the area is safe for them to operate in to give us the safety and the protocols that we need.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wallace\u2019s frustration stems from how much drivers rely on spotters. That importance is magnified on some tracks, particularly a street course that offers little margin for error due to the concrete walls that closely surround the track.<\/p>\n

But because of the vast layout of the Chicago course, or nearly any road course, there are areas where spotters can\u2019t see their cars. There can also be radio issues due to interference from nearby buildings. The combination of factors leaves drivers momentarily on their own, a little blind to what\u2019s around them.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou just have to pick it up on the stuff that you may get relaxed on, stuff like relying on your ears a lot,\u201d Logano said. \u201cWhen you get your spotter going and all that, you listen to him to make your decisions, and now you have to take a little bit of focus off the road and look at the mirror.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s all part of the challenge of trying to race on a road course, both for those behind the wheel and those watching from above trying to keep a close eye on the action.<\/p>\n

\u201cChicago is a tough one with a lot of blind spots,\u201d Kraft said. \u201cYou would probably need five or six guys to do it effectively. It\u2019s basically just a positioning thing. You see Turn 4 spotters are standing on top of a damn tour bus. Like, we got someone on Symphony (Center) on the balcony. Some guys are in hotel rooms trying to watch Turn 6. It\u2019s very challenging at times. It\u2019s hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NASCAR<\/p>\n

Cars drive up E Jackson Dr. during last year\u2019s Chicago Street Race. Symphony Center, one of the main spotters\u2019 perches, is at center right. (Jared C. Tilton \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

(Top photo of cars going through Turn 11, with Symphony Center in the background, during last year\u2019s Chicago Street Race: Joseph Weiser \/ Icon Sportswire)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CHICAGO \u2014 The Symphony Center is one of Chicago\u2019s oldest structures, but the history inside isn\u2019t why NASCAR…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":38330,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[1833,1406,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-38329","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nascar","8":"tag-motorsports","9":"tag-nascar","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-united-states","12":"tag-unitedstates","13":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114795566038777208","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38329"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38329\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}