FoxSportsRacing

If you're lucky enough to get it, Fox Sports Racing will be carrying the full IMSA schedule this year.
 
By: Mike Sullivan/RaceCanada.ca
January 23 2016
 

Ten years ago, watching a race in Canada was pretty easy. If it was one of the “big 3”, Formula 1, Indy Car or NASCAR, you tuned in to TSN. If it was anything else, IMSA, DTM, Pirelli World Challenge, you tuned in to Speedvision, and both TSN and Speedvision widely available to virtually every subscriber in the country.

However, with the demise of Speedvision, several series moved their coverage to either Fox, NBC or CBS Sports Networks, Indy Car has moved from TSN to Sportsnet, and live internet streaming became a serious option. Figuring out where you watch your favourite racing series has gotten a lot more difficult. And even if you can figure out what network your looking for, finding a carrier for it in Canada might be the biggest challenge of all.

With the first race of the season, the Rolex 24 at Daytona, just a week away, we are seeing that confusion play out more and more.

IMSA has released it's 2016 television schedule and in the US, the race will be broadcast on a combination of Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2 and at IMSA.com, which might be OK in the US, but in Canada we get Fox Sports Racing, and nothing has been specifically spelled out for us.

In the IMSA press release (read it here), the only mention of Canada is:

“Television coverage in Canada will mirror the U.S. schedule on FOX Sports Racing and will also offer live streaming on IMSA.tv and the IMSA mobile app. Other international television coverage plans will be announced shortly. A complete 2016 U.S. and Canada television schedule follows below.”

All we have been able to get from IMSA on twitter so far has been, “The race broadcast will stream live for international markets, yes”.

However, last year the live stream was blocked until after the initial TV coverage was over, and we found ourselves scrambling to get the TV hooked up in place of the computer streaming we were prepared for. Nothing has been said about the live stream being blocked during the TV coverage, and it also doesn't mention whether Fox Sports Racing will carry both Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2 broadcasts, or just FS1.

Despite our efforts to get confirmation from IMSA about what will, or won't, be on Fox Sports Racing, we haven't had any luck, so we've done out best to piece things together.

To the best of our knowledge, Fox Sports Racing will be showing what's on both Fox Sports 1 and 2 with streaming on IMSA.com at the same time, as well. We've been told by one of our Twitter followers that, at least on Rogers in the GTA, Fox Sports Racing will be showing live coverage on Saturday from 2:00pm to 10:00pm and again Sunday from 7:00am to 3:00pm.

Now that we think we know what will be on Fox Sports Racing, we just have to find out who carries the channel. Unfortunately for a lot of Canadians, two of the major carriers, Bell (cable, Fibe and satellite) and Shaw don't carry it, so we've put together a list of all the carries in the country (to the best of our knowledge) that carry Fox Sports Racing and listed them below. (Always confirm channel line-ups directly with your carrier before making any changes)

We're working on similar lists for both NBC Sports Network and CBS Sports Network for the near future, but they're proving more difficult.

Here is the Fox Sports Racing carrier line up: (where channels aren't listed, check with the carrier)

Alberta

City West Channel 22
CommStream
Conuma Cable Systems 406/HD 274
Eastlink - 277
KBS Cable - 37
Lynx
Milk River Cable Club - 806/HD 590
Northwestel
Olds Fibre - 312 HD
Seaview 406 / HD 274

British Columbia

Brooks Bay Cable Carp - 56
CityWest - 22
Coast Cable Communications - 48/ HD 713
Coastline Broadcasting Corp
County Broadcasting Corp
Eastlink - 47 HD
Gitxaala Nation DBS
Haisla - 285
Kemano Community Assn
Keta Cable - 406 / HD 274
Lake Broadcasting Corp
Mascon Communications Corp 284 / HD 533
Masset-Haida TV Society
Nimpkish Valley Comm Ltd
Northwest Tel
Novus Entertainment 9BC) Inc - 55 / HD 135
Omega Communications - 406 / HD 274
Raftview Communications - 406 / 274
Riondel Cable Society - 406
Rose Island Ventures
Sayward Valley Communications
South Island Cable Ltd - 406 / HD 274
South Kountry Cable Ltd - 406
Ucluelet Video Ser Ltd - 406
Yourlink Incorporated

Manitoba

Arctic C-operative Ltd
Eastlink
Gillam Cable Inc - 50
Westman - 49 / HD 430

New Brunswick

Rogers

Newfoundland

Clearview Cable Ltd
CRRS TV - 401 / HD 733
Eastlink - 111 / HD 713
Rogers

Northwest Territories

New North Networks
Northwest Tel - 503 / HD 732

Nova Scotia

Eastlink - 111 / HD 713
Rogers
Seaside Communications - 52 / HD 466

Nunavut

Northwaesttel

Ontario

Astrocom Cablevision Inc
ATOP Communications
Black Creek TV Inc
Bobcaygeon Cable Inc channel 62 / HD 244.
Brooke Telecom Co-Operative Ltd channel 150 / HD 151
Bruce Telecom of the Municipality of Kincardine channel 859 in HD
Cable Cable channel 62 / HD 244
Cogeco
Eastlink channel 29 / HD 713.
Execulink
Fenelon Falls Cable, LTD
Gosfield North Communications Co-Operative Limited channel 428 / HD 1428
Hastings Cablevision channel 5
Hay Communications C0-Operative Ltd
Huron Telecommunications Co-Operative Ltd channel 498 in HD
Tuckersmith Communications Co-Operative, Ltd channel 488 / HD 497
Videotron
VMedia channel 81
Westport Telephone Company Limited channel 465

Prince Edward Island

None

Quebec

Axion channel 403
Briand & Moreau Cable Inc channel 224
Cablevision (Canada) channel 212
Cablodistribution du Quebec
Cablovision Warwick inc. channel 112 / HD 712
Cogeco
Coop de Cablo channel 401
Coop de Cablo de L'arriere-Pays
Coop De Cablo Ste-Catherine-Fossambault channel in HD
Coop de Cablo-Distribution St Leon
Coop de Communication et de Developpement Stratford channel 334
Cooperative Antenne TV St.Zacharie channel 403
Cooperative de cablodistribution de Bellarmin
Cooperative de cablodistribution de l'Isle-aux-Coudres
Cooperative de Cablodistribution de Sainte-Hedwidge
Cooperative de cablodistribution de Saint-Jacques-de-Leeds
Cooperative de Cablodistribution Norte-Dame-Des-Monts
Cooperative de Cablodistribution Ste-Agathe
Cooperative de la Television Communautaire de Fermont
Cooperative Tele-Cable Ste-Clotilde
CoopTel channel 538
Cross Country TV Ltd channel 14
Dery Telecom channel 401
Nunavik Communications
Rogers
Shannon Vision
Sogetel Inc
St. Just De Brentenieres
Teknocom Advantages, Inc
Telecable Albanel
Tele-Cable St. Hilarion
Teledistribution Amos channel 405 / HD 634
Teledistribution Dela Gaspesie channel 224
Telephone De St-Ephrem channel 110
Transvision Cookshire Pq
Videotron channel 112 / HD 712

Saskatchewan

Access Communications
Askivision Systems Inc. channel 406
Buffalo Narrows Broadcasting Corp
CIPI Cable, Inc. channel 406 / HD 274
Copper Valley Cable channel 406 / HD 274
Eston CATV Co-operative channel 32
Ile a la Crosse Communications Society Inc.
Imperial Cable Systems
Rouleau Cable T.V. Assoc. Inc. channel 32
SaskTel channel 113 / HD 413
Southey Cable channel 413 / HD 414
Yourlink Incorportated

Yukon

Dawson City Cable channel 406
Northwestel