How is NASCAR considered a sport?

Question

Athletes who are athletic compete in sports...you dont have to be athletic to drive a car, so nascar drivers arent athletes....so how is this a sport? yeah, i know it takes skill...but so does chess, checkers and poker and those arent sports.

I would like someone to try and convince me why NASCAR is a sport and not a game (like poker)

Solid answers...im not crapping on the sport, just looking for insight.

Military police is definately a homo...of course you can be a fat *** in nascar, YOU ARE SITTING DOWN THE WHOLE TIME!! what other sport are you sitting down in? NONE!!

Answer 1

NASCAR drivers loose 6-12 lbs per race, depending on the outside temp. The sweat profusely in their suits and race in the heat of summer where outside temps can easily reach into the 100's.
Very rarely will they have a time out, flag on the play or even a moment to just rest and regroup. Pit stops are spent paying attention to what is going on around you to make sure you get away clean and also in good time.
They drive thru the wrecks, around the debri on the track and thru the grass to avoid the pileup in front of them.
Their reflexes are quick when they need to avoid the wall, another car or the occasional thrown helmet.
They have fire suits on, helmets, gloves and no ac. They do not stop for potty breaks, to stretch, or eat. They may have a water bottle in the car, but that gets just as hot as they do. Sometimes they are handed water during pit stops, but those times are few.
They are constantly aware of the other 42 cars around them, their speed, the cars condition, the track condition, sun, rain, air, the spotter on the radio, his crew chief and sometimes the owner as well.
Most races they travel at speeds of over 160 mph, almost continually, for hours a a time. The tracks are banked at varying degrees which in turn puts different levels of force on both the car and driver. They have to be in top shape to handle the type of strain that their body is under. They may be a little overweight, but they work out, are in the car a few times a week for testing, practice and qualifying.
They are determined, dedicated and driven to make their car and their team the best it can be.
They do not have a bench to warm, a side line to sit on, halftime or intermission. They are at the track from early in the morning til late at night, they have media appearances, drivers meeting, autograph signings and endorsement deals.
They are on a track, traveling at a high rate of speed, with 42 other cars just inches apart. They have to have quick reflexes, an attentive eye and a sharp mind.
Agreed, it doesn't take an athlete to drive a car, but it takes an athlete to drive for NASCAR.

Remember...he wants to be convinced. He is not bashing the sport...he posted a legitimate question, so don't be rude to him. That's how so many NASCAR fans get a bad name. Defending your opinion is one thing, but trashing someone else's is just wrong and it won't change their minds to see the good side of yours.

Answer 2

I tell you what, get in your car on a 100 degree day, roll up the windows, turn on the heat, & then drive around for 4 to 5 hrs. Now please don't forget that you don't have to deal with going 180 + mph with 42 other cars all around you doing the same thing (do you even realize how much air is being displaced by a car going that fast). Now I've got a question for you: How come golf is considered a sport? Bacically anybody that can walk can do it, just go to any country club & watch all those old men play it. Yes some people are great at it & some are terrible but all of them can play. Now if you say that is a silly comparision then how much sillier is it to compare someone going 100 mph (which is only 25 to 30 mph above highway speeds) on a highway to someone going 180 +? By the way please don't mention sports & ESPN together, the people at ESPN think that poker & hot dog eating contest are both sports.

Answer 3

Partner your jockstrap is too small for your brain.
To stay inside of a NASCAR racecar fo nearly 4 hours at temps of 100 + degrees takes a well conditioned and athletic minded person.Some sports purest think that only the Olympic events are sports others think the stick and ball (football,baseball,basketball) are the only sports.Well all are right and all are wrong.The value of man vs man or man vs animal or man vs machine makes for a sporting event.So open your eyes and do some research into the various styles and types of sports.
Check out these sports too:fishing , bowling,poker,rodeo,sailing.Yes these are also sports.
So to say NASCAR is not a sport it's time for you to go to a race and watch whats going on.Watch the drivers and see their abilities ( several of the drives are 50ish,several lift weights,several ride various type bicycles,several run in 5K,10K,or even in marathons).
Check in on the racing scene.
Oh while your at it go into the world with an open mind.

Answer 4

NASCAR drivers are althletes who work out at the gym almost every day.

NASCAR isn't all about "driving in circles". Much like a QB in football, drivers and team memebers alike will use their education and knowledge to continuously tweak the car's performance duringthe entire race. Like basketball, defense must be quick and calculated. When three cars are swerving around you at 190 MPH, you must react quickly to keep yourself from becoming part of the carnage.

Driver's don't just "drive in circles". Whip your car around a turn at a speed faster than you ar eused to. With each pull and tug of gravity and centrifugal force on the car, you must use your strength and knowledge to keep the car from spinning out. These cars don't ease into turns. Controlling a car that is "loose" (rear end wants to come out and hit the wall) or "tight" (front end want to dive into the wall), or not [performing well, utilizes strength and agility.

Hitting another car or wall can severely injure a "weak" driver. Smacking a wall at 190 MPH, no matter what the preotection, is going to hurt, but being fat or weak will cause more trauma to your body.

Please give NASCAR another thought. it takes presicion and skill, and alot of willpower and physical strength.

Answer 5

Most NASCAR fans (like my fiancee) describe the track conditions and the toll the high speeds and temperatures of racing take on their body. Impressive, but I still don't really consider it a sport, myself. A competition, certainly, but not a sport. To me, sport involves visible activity. The driver's bodies may certainly be under stress, but that only makes it an endurance test, not an athletic competition. They're still just sitting in a car, driving in endless circles.

Answer 6

Those guys train hard. When they're not "driving in circles" (it's an oval people) they're in the shop thinking of ways to make their cars better, faster, stronger. It's constant change. If your tight on the end of the turn in the middle of the race you pit to make adjustments to open ya up a little and then you fly. What makes football a sport? Because they pump borderline illegal steroids? Because they get to knock each other down over a stupid ball only to tear their ACL in their rookie year to never play again? I mean come on. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and to me a bunch of hot rednecks driving their cars way to fast is as exciting as it gets. They typical nonNASCAR fan sees this: A bunch of people riding in circles in their cars. But a fan sees Dale Jr. only 3.423 seconds behind first place closin in on Mark Martin because Jr's car just started runnin the way he's been waiting for it to for his 2nd NEXTEL cup victory this year. There's nothing like the last 50 laps of a race when they start racing three wide trying to gain every position they can, for the points, for the chase, for the checkered flag. I love it. To me that makes it a sport, but if ya want a dictionary term here ya go; sport "to amuse oneself." So I guess if it makes you happy watching, playing, driving then it is a sport. I would love to see some people get in a car and drive 400 miles at 100 degrees with no personal stops. You need visible activity? Here, you drive through thick smoke at 180+ mph because Smoke just spun someone out again only to make it out by the skin of your teeth...there's your visibly activity.

Answer 7

I never could get into Nascar .... To sit and watch a car go around in a circle 500 times!?! I watch the highlights on sportscenter. They show all the passes and of course the best part.... the 20 car Pile ups!

Answer 8

Well strap yourself in a car in a 165 degree cockpit in fireproof clothing like it aint hot enuff drive 4 hours in those conditions keep your temper no road rage and drive balls to the wall with death at every corner if you not on top your game loose 6-8 pounds from sweating and how could you not call it a sport and the men athletes?

Answer 9

I feel it is more entertainment then sport. It takes some skill to drive a car that fast but the drivers really aren't athletes. Now, that being said some could be very athletic but for every Dale Jarrett there is a Jimmy Spencer.

Answer 10

lets see you try and be in a car that is 100 degrees plus at times and sit in the car for 4-5 hours straight and not going to the bathroom thats why it is a sport it's just as physical as football if not more physical,and it is a whole lot more mental then football or anytoher sport too