Would someone please explain the appeal of auto racing?

[Subby]

I saw a race live and it was pretty miserable - the smell and the noise was bad, bad, bad.

On television I just don't get the sense that they are going that fast - so there isn't a "thrill" component for me.

On the other hand - I like the idea of endurance racing - something that isn't on a closed track...but rather through the streets of a city or on off-road courses.

And let's be honest...Cannonball Run is one of the greatest movies ever made. If there was annual Cannonball Run race, I would be all over it...

[Butter]

Formula 1 - sport

IndyCar - sport

NASCAR - more about tweaking the car than actual driving skill = not a sport

[sarcasm]
Oh, and I like soccer. Whoever said soccer fans are touchy needs to GO FUCK THEMSELVES!!!!
[/sarcasm]

[TLK]

Originally posted by Butter_of_69
Formula 1 - sport

IndyCar - sport

NASCAR - more about tweaking the car than actual driving skill = not a sport

Indycar is quickly turning into NASCAR. More car tweaking than driver skill. Champ Car on the other hand, at least for the next couple years with there spec engine, will be based more on driver skill.....

TLK

[cuervo72]

Originally posted by kcchief19
Any activity in which a guy damn near 60 years old can compete with a 20-year-old is probably not a sport.

Baseball had better watch out for Jesse Orosco

I think there needs to be a disconnect between the sport/athlete association.

I had this discussion many times at my old job - it was an interesting debate; in one corner we had a NASCAR loving, bible thumping Jehovah's Witness, in the other a WWF watching, trash talking Atheist (and also the boss). Good times. What I took out of it is that NASCAR/racing is a sport, though the debate was still out on if the drivers were athletes (I lean towards them being athletes). Pro wrestling isn't a sport, but the wrestlers are certainly athletes.

My (working) definition for a sport would be "an organized competition where there is a defined, non-subjective, measured criteria for victory". By that definition, things like figure skating, ski aerials, gymnastics, and diving are not sports, even if all of the participants are athletes. The results are determined by judgements - so while they are competitions, they don't cut it for me as sports.

Auto racing is clearly defined by the fastest time, so it is a sport. UPS boxing isn't really organized, so it fails the criteria :-)

[KWhit]

Originally posted by cuervo72
My (working) definition for a sport would be "an organized competition where there is a defined, non-subjective, measured criteria for victory".

By that definition, chess is a sport. So is hot-dog eating.

Keep trying.

[Butter]

Those of you looking for completely objective criteria by which to determine once and for all what constitutes a "sport" are doomed ultimately to fail, I think, because the definition most likely will contain at least one word or phrase open to subjective interpretation.

So, good luck!

[cuervo72]

Originally posted by KWhit
By that definition, chess is a sport. So is hot-dog eating.

Keep trying.

Like I said, it's a working definition. I could buy chess as a sport anyhow (ok, I know it's a board game), I'm not going to limit it to physical competition. If you want to work that into the definition, fine. But chess has a standard set of rules and an orginized (well, semi organized) governing body. Is it athletic? Certainly not. You don't have to be an athlete to be a sportsman.

Howabout adding to the definition: "which takes a measure of skill to master greater than that held by the general populace". So bingo couldn't be a sport because there's no skill or strategy to it, but Poker could. So could hot-dog eating; that even takes a certain physical prowess.

[KWhit]

I think you're way off. "Sport" connotes some sort of physical prowess. Jeopardy is not a sport. (And please don't tell me that the contestants have to push the button to buzz in, so it is physical).


But, race-car driving? I don't know. I lean toward thinking it's not a sport. I also lean toward hating it. I personally don't see the appeal, but I know that there are millions of people out there that do. Whatever floats your boat.


And poker is not a sport either.

[cuervo72]

Originally posted by KWhit
I think you're way off. "Sport" connotes some sort of physical prowess. Jeopardy is not a sport. (And please don't tell me that the contestants have to push the button to buzz in, so it is physical).


But, race-car driving? I don't know. I lean toward thinking it's not a sport. I also lean toward hating it. I personally don't see the appeal, but I know that there are millions of people out there that do. Whatever floats your boat.


And poker is not a sport either.

Ok, I was stretching things for the sake of argument....in most cases, physical prowess would be argued as an integral part of sport. From American Heritage 4th Ed:

NOUN: 1a. Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively. b. A particular form of this activity. 2. An activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often undertaken competitively. 3. An active pastime; recreation.

Definition 3 would be a little more open to interpretation, 1 and 2 (which read very similar) would eliminate things like Chess, etc. I guess I wouldn't really ever argue that Jeopardy is a sport either.

Now....hot dog eating. I still say there is some physical activity involved. No, it's not a traditional sporting activity, but eating is a physical act. If someone set up a structured league, maybe some tour events and some sort of standings/rankings, with certain rules and regulations, I suppose it could qualify as a sport. A rather arbitrary and inane sport, but one nonetheless. There are certainly some other sports out there that have less of a point to them. I mean, take shot-putting for instance. Not too useful or exiting, but you can get a gold medal for it.

But who's to say one type of physical ability is any more valid than any other? I mean, look at all those people who follow soccer.

[KWhit]

Originally posted by cuervo72
I mean, look at all those people who follow soccer.

Now there's something we can agree on!

[sterlingice]

Originally posted by KWhit
I think you're way off. "Sport" connotes some sort of physical prowess. Jeopardy is not a sport. (And please don't tell me that the contestants have to push the button to buzz in, so it is physical).

Alex Trebek is coming to kick your ass as we speak

SI

[KWhit]

Originally posted by sterlingice
Alex Trebek is coming to kick your ass as we speak

SI

But ass-kicking IS a sport!

[stkelly52]

Originally posted by KWhit
I think you're way off. "Sport" connotes some sort of physical prowess. Jeopardy is not a sport. (And please don't tell me that the contestants have to push the button to buzz in, so it is physical).


But, race-car driving? I don't know. I lean toward thinking it's not a sport. I also lean toward hating it. I personally don't see the appeal, but I know that there are millions of people out there that do. Whatever floats your boat.

You do need to remember that racecar driving is one of the most physical activites that people are involved in. It is nothing like when you are driving down the freeway. Do I enjoy racing, no, I find it incredibly boring, but I would say it is a sport.

[QuikSand]

So then anything that involves both competition and primarily physical activity is a sport?

Bowling?
Darts?
Whack-a-mole?
Shuffleboard?

[Bee]

Whack-a-mole is definitely a sport. I don't think anyone questions that.

[Tekneek]

Originally posted by Bee
Whack-a-mole is definitely a sport. I don't think anyone questions that.

Absolutely!

[Happy29]

Answer to Butter_of_69 's point

IRL - SINGLE FILE RACING CRAP. NOT A SPORT

F1 - SINGLE FILE RACING. NOT A SPORT

NASCAR - ONLY FORM OF RACING THAT GOES TWO, OR THREE WIDE IN THE TURNS. SPORT DEFINETELY

[Franklinnoble]

Is NASCAR a sport? I don't care. If you ask me, it's a bunch of rednecks watching stock cars drive around in a circle. The races give them an excuse to sit around, drink beer, and burn meat over an open fire. So don't knock it - it's keeping rednecks off the streets.

I do think drivers need a certain degree of skill and physical fitness that most of us slobs don't have. Even the old guys like Dale Earnhardt were in pretty good shape. Was he as athletic as Nolan Ryan? Not in my opinion - throwing an 90 MPH fastball is something only a rare few of us could ever hope to do.

One of my favorite "sports that people question whether or not it's really a sport" is horse racing. I think that, pound-for-pound, jockeys have to be as physically fit as any other athlete in any other sport. Don't knock it until you try to hold onto the back of a thoroughbred at a full gallop - it's not as easy as it looks.

Not to mention that the horses are indeed very athletic.

[cmp]

I believe NASCAR drivers are much more athletic than a DH on a Major League Baseball team.

[mrbuttercup]

How can u not enjoy the thrilll of NASCAR, of course you need a driver to root for, and know the drivers. If you have neither, i can see your point. GO JOHNNY

[Happy29]

Yeah, Benson would have lots of wins if he werent stuck with such dead end teams. Go Harvick, even though you're behind Kurt Busch in wins, England has always been second to the U.S in economy and they turned out just fine.

[cuervo72]

Originally posted by QuikSand
So then anything that involves both competition and primarily physical activity is a sport?

Bowling?
Darts?
Whack-a-mole?
Shuffleboard?

Why not? Where in the definition does it say a sport need be strenuous, or aerobic, or put an emphasis on the use of any particular muscle groups?

As an aside....I could even make a far out argument that by the "physical" definition, chess can be considered a sport....no, not the moving of pieces, but the use of neurons in the brain and the speed/efficiency of neural impulses

[KWhit]

It's the difference between denotation and connotation. The word "sport" connotes a physical competition of an athletic nature.

When you're saying chess is a sport, you're arguing just to be difficult. I mean, that's ridiculous.

[Dutch]

IRL - SINGLE FILE RACING CRAP. NOT A SPORT

F1 - SINGLE FILE RACING. NOT A SPORT

NASCAR - ONLY FORM OF RACING THAT GOES TWO, OR THREE WIDE IN THE TURNS. SPORT DEFINETELY.

NASCAR is fun to watch if and only if there are wrecks involved. Preferably "the big ones". What you meant to say was that F1 is not as much of a "show" as NASCAR is. And I would agree with that.

At one point in time I remember my dad telling me that "They reached a lap speed of 193MPH!" And the next year is was 195, then 197, 199 and the coveted 200MPH (And Indy500). But somewhere along the line, driver safety capped the limit of how fast you could go. They have the technology to push a Champ car around the Michigan Speedway at 260MPH, but there just isn't enough downforce to do anything over 225 safely in the turns, and even then it's risky.

But the idea of racing seems to have taken a turn. The reason NASCAR has made such leaps has more to do with the "Showmanship" of the sport more than any milestones they have reached. Because the Indy cars did it all already, back in the 80's. So they marketed well, turned to the power of drafting, and there you go. You might be the baddest driver, you might have the best engineered car, you might have the best mechanics, but nothing will let you skip out in front of "the big one" when it comes, because the draft will suck you back into the field of vision of the singular camera they have at a NASCAR track.

Choreographed auto-wrassling better describes NASCAR than racing. "That's rasslin'!" would be a better quip heard by a NASCAR driver. That would make me smile.

[Honolulu Blue]

In my eyes, all of the major forms of auto racing are sports. All of the racers are athletes. Most are quite athletic and fit.

Why does it appeal to me? Lots of reasons, some more important than others:

1. The passes
2. The drivers
3. The humility of the drivers
4. The pit strategies
5. The technology
6. The high speeds (and the implied bravery - and danger)
7. The motor sounds
8. The announcers (sometimes)
9. The rampant sponsorship
10. The bumbling idiots from Daytona Beach (NASCAR HQ)
11. The fumbling attempts by F1 to NASCAR-ize that series

My two cents, and worth about that much on the open market.

[ctmason]

Originally posted by Schmidty
As I sat there trying to not fall asleep, this question came to my mind: What in the world do racing fans find interesting or entertaining in the "sport"?

You just answered your own question. We like auto racing because you don't, therefore you're nowhere near us.

[TLK]

Originally posted by Honolulu Blue


11. The fumbling attempts by F1 to NASCAR-ize that series

F1 has been a lot more entertaining this year than any year since I've followed it. Give me a Champ Car race anyday though, over F1, NASCAR or The EArl.

TLK

[TLK]

[Airhog]

LoL

[TLK]

i'm glad somebody got enjoyment out of that.........

TLK