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The MadHouse TV show on the History channel has picked up a following of race fans and non-fans alike, and for many, its their first real look at NASCAR's oldest racing division, the modified's.

The popular reality show follows several drivers as they compete in the weekly modified division at the historic 1/4 mile race Bowman Grey Stadium race track in Winston-Salem North Carolina. The show doesn't just follow the drivers at the race track, but also follows them around during the week leading up to race nights.

One of the drivers featured on the show is 8-Time Modified Champion Tim Brown. Tim believes the show has helped in many ways.

"Its got a lot of exposure for the modified series in general and to Bowman Grey Stadium, and the four or five drivers that it portraits and follows for the whole season," Tim said following the first season of the show. "We've become quite the celebrities around there. Its been really good for me and my race team and my sponsors. We're get a lot of publicity that you normally wouldn't get at this level. People across the world are watching now, its not just the people that come to our race track to watch. Its been a really neat experience and I hope it gets to come back next season."

Some people have wondered just how much of the show is reality and how much is 'made for TV'.

"There's a lot about this show thats realistic and there's a lot about it thats TV," Tim said. "All in all it is TV, so they have to do their quirks on it to make it appeal to the people to get them to keep watching it to get the ratings."

The shows cameras follow the drivers for hundreds of hours each week to get the less than sixty minutes of footage they use each week on the show.

"The cameras followed us a lot," Brown said. "I work a full time job at Michael Waltrip Racing and they actually went with me to work and went with me home. They would travel around with me on my commute, I travel four hours a day. Thats one reason I don't get a lot of air time. These other guys that race for a living, they're in their shops with them all day ever day, so they have more footage of them."

The program does a good job of showing Tim as a very tough boss on his crew, often portraying him as short tempered with them and especially meticulous with his race cars. Tim and his guys laugh at this to some extent, but there is a certain amount of truth to the portrayal.

"When I get to my shop I am already tired from a ten hour day at work, and have to get my stuff done," Tim explained. "I'm pretty anal to my guys at the shop, and it shows that on the show."

"I'm not as mean as they make me out to be, or all my guys would quit," he said with a grin. "I've got the best race team out here. All those guys have been with me sixteen years and we won eight championships together. If I was as mean as they show me, all the guys would quit and run, or probably kick my tail."

And as far as his especially meticulous care to detail and appearance on his car, Tim becomes very serious when asked if this is how he really is.

"Most definitely, go look at my race car and you'll see," he said as he quickly pointed to his car. "I've worked in racing my whole life, in cup racing. Everything has to be perfect on a cup car, and thats how I run my team. It doesn't take any longer to do it right than it does period, and on mine its going to be done right."

Overall, the experience has been a great one for Tim and his team. They should know soon if the show will be back for a second season.

"Its neat, my guys are getting a lot of exposure from it and so are my sponsors," Tim finished up the interview with.