Is NASCAR a real sport?

[michaelskis]

Since there was some question of this… I have to take a poll now…

IS NASCAR a real sport?

Go Fast, Turn Left, Go Fast, Turn Left!

 

[Budgie]

Since there was some question of this… I have to take a poll now…

IS NASCAR a real sport?

Go Fast, Turn Left, Go Fast, Turn Left!

Uh, is drunk driving a sport?

 

[Rumpy Tunanator]

Uh, is drunk driving a sport?

Only if your driving backwards

I don't know if it is or it isn't. I don't watch it, but I like to see people crash. Sometimes I think that is the only reason people go.

 

[Budgie]

I don't watch it, but I like to see people crash. Sometimes I think that is the only reason people go.

Why not stand on a interstate overpass with a set of bionoculars? It's a hell of a lot cheaper, but I guess you can't consume frozy barley pop while watching the action. How can something nearly everyone in this country does everyday can be a sport? Is breathing a sport?

 

[Seabishop]

I vote "no." Its a skill, and its competitive but it doesn't involve the same amount of athleticism as basketball etc. You can be the best auto racer or demolition derby guy in the world, but that doesn't make you an athlete.

 

[Repo Man]

I file NASCAR in the same category of "sport" as bowling, skeet shooting, golf and other "skill" based games. NASCAR people will whine and cry that it takes athleticism to manuver around a track at 200mph, but athletics has nothing to do with it, it is all skill.

 

[JNL]

Just to clarify for the foreigner, what is this NASCAR you speak of? Would it be like our V8 Supercar series?

 

[michaelskis]

Just to clarify for the foreigner, what is this NASCAR you speak of? Would it be like our V8 Supercar series?

http://www.nascar.com/

 

[martini]

I vote "no." Its a skill, and its competitive but it doesn't involve the same amount of athleticism as basketball etc. You can be the best auto racer or demolition derby guy in the world, but that doesn't make you an athlete.

eh, I dunno about that. to be a driver on the skill level that any professional driver is at(F1, Rally, Indy, Trans-am), the drivers are incredibly fit. Its not easy to drive that fast, in that high heat for hours on end. I know of several rally drivers that use cycling to keep and atttain fitness(and yes, cycling IS a sport).

Not that I'm defending NECKCAR or anything. I hate circle drivers. I do like other types of auto racing though. My dad raced cars as I was growing up, so I was constantly surrounded by cars when I was young.

 

[JNL]

http://www.nascar.com/

Mmmm, petrol fumes.... cars....
Not a good idea to introduce me to a potential new addiction.... 8-!

 

[ludes98]

Road racing is definitely more exciting, but attendance is pathetic in the US. I have been and watching one section of the track isn't that great. At many oval tracks, you can see the majority of the track from your seat. As for is a sport? If fishing, hunting, archery etc. are sports, then so is racing.

JNLYour V8 supercar series is more like the American Trans-Am or GT series.

 

[JNA]

Never was and never will be!
I put it in the same category as "professional" wrestling.

 

[Chet]

I dont know, but if it is, then bowling is a sport too.

 

[Richmond Jake]

I vote "no." Its a skill, and its competitive but it doesn't involve the same amount of athleticism as basketball etc. You can be the best auto racer or demolition derby guy in the world, but that doesn't make you an athlete.

I voted no. I'm in complete agreement with Seabishop.

OT: Am I the only one who has grown tried of the overused term "athleticism"? And who was the first to coin this term?

 

[SGB]

Never was and never will be!
I put it in the same category as "professional" wrestling.

[naive]
You mean the outcome of NASCAR events is scripted, too?
[/naive]

 

[michaelskis]

I am going to beak with almost every comment here. I think it is a sport. You know how hard it is on your body to make long road trips. Stops to use the rest room or get a bit to eat, traffic, and sun glare. NOW, imagine all of that at almost 200 miles, with g-forces pulling your body in one direction, NO BATHROOM BREAKS, NO FOOD, tailgating is called drafting, and being hit by another car at almost 200 miles per hour, now that is crazy.

We call horse racing a sport… NASCAR is that, at 200 miles an hour, more dangerous, and it takes a lot more skill,.

 

[michaelskis]

Never was and never will be!
I put it in the same category as "professional" wrestling.

Yep, and they script when a car breaks, an accident happens, a tire goes down, or a car runs out of gas, or worse, the most popular diver in the sport hits a wall at 190 mph on the last turn of the biggest race of the year, and dies.

I think that everyone should watch the first 20 laps, then the last 20 laps... and that will show you twice as much as the rest of the race, but only show you 2% of what realy happens.

 

[JNL]

From a future V8 Supercar champion...

I think it is a sport. ,.

I would tend to agree (referring to car racing I am familiar with). A combination of skill, dedication, stamina, sponsorhip and luck are required to get to the top.

 

[michaelskis]

I would tend to agree (referring to car racing I am familiar with). A combination of skill, dedication, stamina, sponsorhip and luck are required to get to the top.

Thank you for your support!

 

[Maister]

let's look at the definition of the word 'sport'.....Webster's says:

1. any activity or experience that gives enjoyment or recreation; pastime; diversion........hmm, can you say sex? OK I think definition 2 is closer to the mark in this instance....

2. such an activity requiring more or less vigorous bodily exertion and carried on, sometimes as a profession, according to some traditional form or set of rules.

Given this not overly-broad definition, I think car racing is clearly a sport. One may argue that the physical exertion is not as intense as, say football but on the other hand there IS clearly physical exertion involved. It usually takes more form in terms of endurance than cardiovascular workout (although I am sure there are moments of extremem heart pumping action too)

 

[Zoning Goddess]

I live in the South. Here, among certain socio-economic groups, Nascar is a sport, no, a religion. Probably one of the few where you don't have to have teeth to be a fan. Personally, I think Nascar should be declared a sport... whenever sewing or quilting make the grade, too. It's an excuse for a day-long beer-fest!!! (sorry, beer drinkers!)

 

[Rumpy Tunanator]

Nascar is a sport, no, a religion. Probably one of the few where you don't have to have teeth to be a fan.

What about hockey, or wait only the players should be missing teeth.

 

[Super Amputee Cat]

My problem with Nascar is that all the cars are fake: They are specially made for the track. The Nascar of yore used real cars and customized them for racing porposes, but you could still tell what kind of car it was. It's fun to watch those broadcasts from the 1960s and 1970s that they sometimes show on ESPN classic.

Now, under a glut of decals and advertising, you can't tell the cars apart at all. They even have ads in the headlights for Crissake. Plus, like any other professional sport they have become too powerful for their own good. Big money, TV contracts, and big sponsorships have replaced any integrity and uniqueness that the sport may have once had.

And they have taken on a "white trash and proud of it" kind of stigma.

 

[martini]

Plus, like any other professional sport they have become too powerful for their own good. Big money, TV contracts, and big sponsorships have replaced any integrity and uniqueness that the sport may have once had.

Yup. Couldn'ta said it better me self. Lets get back to the soul of it all, the passion for the GAME(same thing goes for football, basketball, baseball, etc.).

 

[boilerplater]

Run around in circles

Professional sports typically showcase overpaid, overglorified,oversexed and undereducated jocks parading around in gaudy outfits. Their fame and the entire event is used to shamelessly market products. In that sense, NASCAR is a sport.

OK, I've got some issues with dumb jocks. I used to room with 'em! Give me a break!

But I really don't see how cars going around in circles can be all that interesting. Now show me LeMans or one of those road rallys, where at least the scenery changes. Now that's entertainment!

 

[H]

No.

It is a competition, like a pie eating contest, but not a sport.

 

[Zoning Goddess]

Why not stand on a interstate overpass with a set of bionoculars? It's a hell of a lot cheaper,

Perfect summary. Down here, it's the world of the white-trailer-trash...

 

[Miles Ignatius]

Of Course, and Pass The Pork Rinds!

I think that any endeavor which had its origins in transporting "hooch" under the Fed's noses certainly qualifies...... :-D