Cablecam moved anywhere within a rectangular box between the front stretch and pit road for FOX Sports’ coverage of the Daytona 500. (Photo courtesy of Jim Rodnunsky, Cablecam.)
Fresh off its performance at Super Bowl XXXIX, Cablecam, an 80lb. high-definition camera, successfully played a role in FOX Sports’ telecast of the Daytona 500.
Suspended by a system of cables, pulleys and computer-controlled winches 30ft above ground, Cablecam is a mobile, gyro-stabilized HD aerial camera that moved anywhere within a rectangular box between the front stretch and pit road at Daytona International Speedway. The area included the start/finish line and covered about 250,000sq ft.
Cablecam required two operators - a pilot that used a joystick to fly the remote-controlled camera and a technician who operated the camera – to pan, zoom and focus the lens at the discretion of Director Artie Kempner.
The aerial camera provided unique, intimate shots of the cars and drivers as they passed through the start/finish line and along pit road. Kempner said it took viewers where they previous had not been. Built-in redundancies assured safe Cablecam operations.
The cables used in the system were just 1/8in thick and were made of a synthetic rope that can support up to 2600lbs. They were suspended from two 120ft towers erected in the infield and connected across pit road, the infield grass, and front straightaway to the grandstand.
Cablecam International of Los Angeles provided the system.
