NASCAR Nation Read Free Page B

driving at a high speed. Sure, the cars look like they’re moving fast on the screen, but it’s all relative. People don’t realize that these cars are actually burning rubber, sometimes moving at speeds in excess of 180 miles per hour. At such high speeds, the mere ability to control the vehicle, as well as the driver’s responsiveness to other drivers, is at risk. The drivers have to manage a 3,450-pound vehicle while hurtling at top speed. No driver could ever say that there wasn’t risk involved.
    Many drivers have expressed fear about the sport. It’s hard to say what makes them face these risks and it’s hard to say what makes us want to watch them face it. We don’t want anything bad to happen, but that risk creates the tension that keeps the race interesting. That’s what risk is – not knowing what might happen. The safety devices allow a person to enjoy the race with a bit less guilt. We don’t feel like we’re putting someone’s life on the line for the sake of our entertainment. We have the comfort of knowing that they, like a tightrope walker with a net beneath them, will not die for our enjoyment.
    However, to say that NASCAR is just entertainment is to ignore what that risk means. That risk is morethan just fun. It speaks to something greater. Fans admire drivers and their lives. They want to witness the bright cars speeding down the straightaways. Fans want drivers to win the race for them and feel like winners in the process.
    It’s similar to Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, and all the superheroes in colorful costumes who face life-threatening danger and succeed. Drivers, dressed in full uniform, with their suits on and their helmets over their faces, become superheroes to a lot of fans. They even
look
like superheroes. We don’t want our superheroes to lose, but we do want them to fight villains. Can you imagine telling the Caped Crusader not to drive the Batmobile too fast? NASCAR is more than simply a taste for danger. It’s a desire to conquer a challenge. If the risk wasn’t there, then there would be no challenge, and no NASCAR.
    What’s great about NASCAR drivers is that they are average people in many respects who are somehow superheroes. They range in age from twenty-five to fifty and older. Some of the guys aren’t very tall, nor do they have athletic builds – but they’re still great drivers. Mark Martin is in his fifties and at the top of his game. These drivers are human and relatable, so their feats on the race track make us feel like we, too, can succeed when we face challenges, even if the outcome is unsure. NASCAR drivers are real-lifesuperheroes. Children idolize them, women admire them, and men are inspired by them.
    Many of these superheroes start out on a dirt path made in the backyards behind their family homes. They begin refining their skill early, and through dedication, perseverance, and natural talent, they ultimately begin a rise to fame and success. The very story of the NASCAR driver is that of risk. When beginning the career path of becoming a driver, who can say where it will end and if it will take you to the desired destination? The risk, like the challenges on the track, must be faced in order for NASCAR to continue. Meeting these challenges calls for a very particular type of athlete and person. Think of Edwards jumping out of a wrecked car and then heading home for a relaxing evening of stunt airplane flying. Now that’s a real athlete.
    I did not believe that NASCAR drivers were athletic when I started covering the sport, but this type of a personality and spirit must be coupled with an agile mind and body. When a competition forces people to refine the human body and mind to its sharpest elements, those people are athletes, and that is a sport. It’s true that driving well is more of a skill than a physical undertaking. Nonetheless, if you are more of an athlete, you are going to