RIP Jayski.com

Good site. Good folks.

 

Does that say more about the fall of NASCAR or how obsolete Jayski became?

 

In a sport that seemed to go out of its way to shine up turds for the sake of sponsorship (Kurt Busch), one of the few places that could provide a decent scoop without hurting access.

 

The writing was on the wall when ESPN took over the URL. No way they were going to give Jay the exposure needed for growth when they no longer own NASCAR rights, so they let it suffocate to death. Too bad, because Jay seemed to be updating 24 hours a day during NASCAR's heyday. About the most connected guy in Charlotte, and that's saying a lot.

 

Does this mean Gluck gets more subscribers/sponsors (if he's still covering NASCAR, that is)?

 

This has been a couple of years in the making. First they gutted their open wheel coverage. Then began doing the same with their NASCAR coverage, recently allowing Pockrass to move on.

 

I truly don't know how Gluck is doing it, to be honest. He connects with an ever-smaller number of hard-core NASCAR fans in some way that generates enough revenue to eke out travel and some standard of living for his wife and kid. It shouldn't work, but somehow he's figured the magic formula (or robs banks on travel days). Then again, I never figured out how Jayski survived with limited sponsorship all those years.

Gluck's been singularly focused on getting a NASCAR gig since well before he was in Rocky Mount bugging me in Atlanta. Good on him. He's happy, and that's what matters in life. If he turns out to be the last person in the media center still regurgitating NASCAR's "the sky ain't falling" mantra, then there's hope for TV evangelists everywhere.

 

Is he related to Rokski?

 

Gluck was focused on a NASCAR gig for, well, forever. He covered the shit out of the races in Fontana when he worked in SoCal.

Really nice guy, but I don't know how he makes a living on what amounts to a continuing GoFundMe stream of revenue.

 

Currently, Gluck has 1,046 patrons making monthly payments, no idea what the amounts are. His wife is a Child Life Specialist at a children's hospital (unless there was an update that I missed), I don't know how well that pays.

It's paid enough for him to go to the Daytona IMSA race and Chili Bowl.