Nextel FanScan — Now you can ride with Dale Jr.

Or Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Ryan Newman, Michael Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson or Dale Jarrett.

Last summer Nextel introduced FanScan, a proprietary service that allows Nextel subscribers to dial in and hear real–time conversations between NASCAR drivers and teams.

FanScan provides a service similar to the headsets fans can rent at the speedway, with one big difference: you don't have to be at the race to listen in.

Single races cost $4.99 and can be purchased online — if you're a Nextel customer — at www.nextel.com/fanscan.

Monthly access to all races costs $9.99.

Here's yesterday's Richmond Times–Dispatch story by Jeffrey Kelley about the bespoke technology.

Off-Track, But in the Driver's Seat

Nextel service lets NASCAR fans hear talks between drivers, teams

With the right cell phone and service, you can hop into a NASCAR driver's seat from your lounger.

Last June, Nextel Communications Inc. introduced FanScan, a service that allows subscribers to dial in to hear real-time conversations between NASCAR drivers and teams.

"We do it mostly for people that are not at the track," said Jill Gregory, who is vice president of marketing for Nextel, based in Reston.

FanScan is similar to the headsets that attendees can rent at the speedway.

The technology is proprietary to Nextel, which signed a 10-year, $700 million sponsorship deal with NASCAR in June 2003, and began promoting the Nextel Cup Series soon after.

"We want to target that demographic," Gregory said.

Nextel spends $30 million annually in NASCAR promotion and advertising.

FanScan is also a feature that appeals to Nextel's consumer base.

The company has roughly 15.5 million subscribers, about 80 percent of which use Nextel for business purposes.

FanScan is offered on top of regular service charges.

Single races cost $4.99 and can be purchased online at www.nextel.com/fanscan.

Serious fans can obtain FanScan for monthly access to any race for $9.99.

Gregory said there were some problems with its launch last year involving jammed networks, but Nextel has since added capacity to serve more customers.

The company declined to give FanScan subscription or revenue figures.

Available drivers on FanScan vary depending on the race, but can include Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Newman, Michael Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Jarrett.