NASCAR and F1 - all of Racing\'s superstars!
2000gt I appreciate your remarks. Your concept of NASCAR was certainly true 15-20 years ago. With the onset of drivers like Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, etc. the atmosphere is changing. There are actually drivers now with a complete set of teeth! Not all of the "down home, suthin' boys" are too happy about it, either. The stigma remains, however. I am not from the south originally, I was raised in NY. My mother is shocked and embarassed that I'm a NASCAR fan!
About my tone of response to you, well I figure if me or my sport can take a little criticism then we aren't worth much are we? By the way, for the record, my sport is
motorsports, but I prefer NASCAR because it's so much easier to watch and understand than some other types.
Sorry I neglected your references to 2 wheeling. I am just not a 2 wheel guy. Why?
It scares the hell out of me! I drove a CBR929 for a while and I had to get rid of it. I tried taking it around one of those SCCA road courses and did well but I was shaking, my heart was pounding, and I was sweating profusely. I looked over at my wife and daughter and said to myself, "Self? This bike has got to go..."
I have respect for motorcycle racing, sort of along the same lines as bungee jumpers and ski-divers. I respect them but
they are nuts. Not sure I would trust a pilot who raced motorcycles! A little too much of a death wish if you ask me, but I suppose it's natural, as anyone who wants to fly a single engine cessna around the country must be a little nuts...
I think it's MotoGP that I watch on 2-wheel Tuesday that runs those European road courses. On the straights they out run the chase helicopters. Exciting, but I sit and shake my head
Back to 4 wheel racing, I think Kurt Busch has summed it up best. "Open Wheel racing is exciting and high tech, but NASCAR is 'the scene.' It's not about equipment or hardware, it's about collecting trophies." Kenny Schrader added, "If it has wheels, I'll race it."
Oh yeah, about the tobacco/alcohol issue. Obviously they are huge supporters of racing and no one knows how the sport would do without them. Consider though, that tobacco company RJ Reynolds is pulling out of NASCAR. There is no longer a single car that has tobacco on the hood. I think the France family would like the alcohol companies to gradually be replaced as well, as they realize the commercial value of "returning to family values" in America.
The Big Three beer companies are still car sponsors, and Busch sponsors the Grand National series. Smirnoff Ice comes in on Matt Kenseth's car once in a while.
Yes I watch the sponsors
very closely. They are a key to understanding racing, as where the sponsors go, is where racing will go. Without them we will not have our favorite spectator sport.
One last statement. CART/IRL and USAC need to get their act together. Tony George is a smart man. I hope the parties involved realize that if they want to compete with NASCAR they need to start thinking like businessmen and not elitists. If not, they are doomed.
