Columbus, Ohio (20 February 2014) – For Ohio race fans, there is a new way to catch up on the latest racing news as Mike Shank and former Ohio State and NFL player Matt Finkes will once again join forces as hosts of a new television show.
Beginning with the first-ever broadcast on February 21, Time Warner Cable Sports Channel will televise the new weekly show, Pit Pass, every Saturday morning at 10:00 AM ET.
Shank and Finkes formerly hosted the Rocky Fork Power Hour, a weekly Columbus, Ohio radio show that delved into all things racing from NASCAR to IndyCar to sportscars, with Shank also showcasing insights into his own IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar Championship race team based in Pataksala, Ohio.
“It’s crazy how this has grown because Mike was just on the (radio) show as a guest and then we started having him on all the time and he was the co-host, and now we’re taking on this new show by moving to TV,” said Finkes, who has found himself recruited to help Shank’s pit crew on occasion. “This is a big challenge, to add the visual element of what we are doing from the radio show, but it is pretty exciting and I think fans are going to have fun watching.”
Pit Pass, produced by local fence and landscaping service provider Rocky Fork Company, will largely follow the same format with additional coverage featuring video highlights from all of the week’s racing action.
“We are very excited about this project,” said Brian Bailey, Rocky Fork Company Founder & President. “Rocky Fork’s involvement with Michael Shank Racing over the past six years has paid huge dividends in both the branding of our company and awareness of what we do. I am a big supporter of what Mike Shank has done with his race team and in the Central Ohio community so hopefully bringing the latest and greatest racing news updates from around the country will help to raise his profile in Central Ohio.”
Shank, who has been involved in motorsports for over 40 years is eager to take on the new opportunity.
“Well, I always had a face for radio but now we’re taking it to TV,” joked Shank. “I’m learning a lot and will hopefully keep getting comfortable and be looking at the right camera at the right time! Going back to my time as a driver and what I experience now at the races, I’m definitely driven by adrenaline and being on the show is a little taste of that. We want to be little bit different—no vanilla from us—and hopefully folks will warm up to it.”
The Time Warner Cable Sports Channel can be found in Ohio statewide on Channels 311 and 1311 (HD) as well as in ex-Insight areas of Ohio on Channel 510 and in Northern Kentucky on Channels 510 and 511 (HD).
