I just want to start off with a little disclaimer: NASCAR is really exciting to watch and I actually do love watching them. But…
NASCAR is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to professional racing, and other countries have such an exciting lineup of disciplines that I feel like I am missing out. Sure, I get it, Americans are in love with the loud, fast car that takes life a quarter-mile at a time (probably why there are eight Fast & Furious movies), but why are we not exploring more?
My personal favorite is Rally racing, which is a point-to-point race form that is on various road types like gravel and tarmac, and it is based on how fast the car goes through the track. It is pretty popular thanks to the likes of Ken Block, but he branched off into RallyCross (a race that is multiple laps with other drivers in heats) and also Gymkhana (which is a flashy racing style a lot like drifting, but is used more in making YouTube videos). It is quite exciting and getting more fun to watch with the addition of drone technology, but we still are far behind the world in popularity and driver skill.
The next one that is more famous abroad is Formula 1 racing. With the world’s best car manufacturers building supercars and traveling at high speeds, it also features some of the toughest tracks and best drivers in the world. The tracks are multi-turn and not just an oval, which really makes the driver focus on finesse. To be honest, I have never seen an F1 race, but would love to see Americans get behind it more.
The other one that would be cool to see is more amateur racing that is coordinated on racetracks. From time to time there are autocross races I’ve been a part of, but they were very unorganized and were lacking in funding. This is important especially in winter climates because not only are we getting people off the roads who are fooling around, we are also training people to know their car more in the case of defensive driving. Becoming better skilled drivers is an important aspect to making our roads safer. Also, it is really fun to put yourself to the test with other drivers.
So, to conclude, I am in no way knocking NASCAR and its fan base (Although a racetrack in the northwest would be pretty cool to see). I just wish Americans would look more to Europe and the rest of the world and focus on making cars that look really cool and can take corners (Ahem… the Ford Focus RS). Hopefully the future of cars will include a new way to incorporate the excitement of racing.
In the words of Ricky Bobby, “I wanna go fast!” I really do, America. Let’s build tracks, not walls.
