At the beginning of the semester we were asked what is a sport. We looked at different "sports" then decided which one of them is a sport and what is not a sport. One thing that was not discussed but someone did bring up was NASCAR. The conversation about it ended right there. We also looked at John Loy's elements of sport. The elements include physical prowess, circumscribed space, competition, time constraints, rules, chance, skill, institutionalized. Looking these elements I believe that NASCAR should be considered a sport.
I have been a NASCAR fan for a very long time, so I am bias when it comes to this topic. The problem that I have with people that say that NASCAR is not a sport have never sat down and watched a race. There so much more to NASCAR than just making left turn as many people think that all it is.
Looking at the elements of what is a sport that John Loy came up with, NASCAR should be considered a sport. The easy ones to point out is the circumscribed space (the track), competition (43 drivers on the track), time constraint (laps), rules, and it is institutionalized. When it comes to physical prowess the amount of conditioning the drivers have to go through during the season and off-season is intense. Depending on their physical condition a driver can lose up to 15 pounds in one race. When there is 36 races in one season a driver has to be in very good physical condition. Another one of the elements is outcome determined by chance, skill or combination. In NASCAR, it takes a lot of skill to drive a NASCAR. There is so many different things that go into driving a one of those cars. It is hard to understand what actually goes on in a NASCAR race until you sit down and watch it.
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Using John Loy's definition, I think you have made a convincing case for NASCAR being considered a sport. One of the interesting things to me was when Danica Patrick started to race (in IRL?) and other racers made a big deal about her weighing so much less--suggesting that it gave her an advantage. It struck me as ironic, since that is something that can be controlled, and women are almost always at a disadvantage physically when it comes to competing against men in sport. I don't know if that is still an issue, but I would be interested in your take on it if it is.
ReplyDeleteI went through some articles on the issue because I was not familiar with it. I also looked up the average weight of male IRL drivers to see how much more Danica weighted compared to everyone else. I also looked at the weight of an indy car. This is only an issue in IRL because the average car weights only 1,500lbs compared to a stock car which is 3,200lb. Danica only weight about 40-50lbs more than the top driver so I do not seeing this as much of an issue. Like you said this is something that can be controlled so why should it make a difference. I also found that probably the reason it is, is because Formula 1 has a weight limit for their drivers. Once she moves to NASCAR it will not be an issue because of the weight of the cars.
ReplyDeleteYou made a good point. Using those elements, I don't think anyone can argue with you. I actually believe NASCAR is underrated. It is said to be one of the most watched sports yet you hardly hear anything about it in the news. Sports Center will carry a story telling you who won which race, but you don't get that much information about it. I have never been to a NASCAR event, but I have seen the Indy 500 twice, and watching such event in person is unreal.
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