The hypocrisy of NASCAR

[Luke]

I didn't think this would fit in the boogery boogery thread.

With the recent suspension of driver Jeremy Mayfield for an as of yet unreported "drug" violation, I have began to notice many hypocrisys in one of my favorite sports.

Suposedly born from the transportation of illegal alcohol, the sport until recently would not allow "hard" liquor to sponsor race teams. Beer companies were OK evidently, as in Budwieser, Coors, Miller, yet no hard liquor. The Minor league as it were was named the Busch Cup, while the Winston Cup was the premium championship. I guess RJ Reynolds was not deemed "family friendly" anymore.

With drivers such as Carl Edwards hawking Claritin-D, which is as I understand on the list of prohibited substances, and the Wallace family pushing 5 hour performance enhancing juice, hypocricy seems to be reaching a new level.

I understand that piloting a ton and a half machine at 200 mph along with 42 other racers then trying to turn left is rather risky. I would not be in favor of racers injesting alcohol, meth, herion or cocain and getting behind the wheel.

NASCAR management seems to have quite a bit of flexibility in the rules when they pertain to certain racing familes. Yet they plead zero tolerence to drugs against other folks.

Maybe it is the bad economy, falling ticket sales, or lack of business financing, but for any sport to grow I feel the rules should be uniform for all.

Rant over, thank you for your time.

[Saccopoo]

Originally Posted by KC native

You're nuts. They do more than just turn left all afternoon. The cars are superior. The drivers are superior. It's the pinnacle of racing.

My vote goes to the World Rally Cup, but the Formula/Le Mans series is a close second in terms of being "the best" in overall racing skills.

[Abba-Dabba]

Originally Posted by KC native

You're nuts. They do more than just turn left all afternoon. The cars are superior. The drivers are superior. It's the pinnacle of racing.

They do more than turn left. Anyone that says they just turn left is completely naive of what it takes to turn a 3400lb stock car. A stock car slips and slides all over the place. If you're only turning left, you would never make it around 1 lap. F1 drivers are superior? Hardly. Each driver in F1 and NASCAR are both highly talented. I'm pretty sure Juan Pablo Montoya, multiple F1 winner, Indy 500 winner, CART champion, Rolex 24 winner, who now drives in NASCAR, would highly disagree with you conclusion.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_IfM5X7QIU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmvkXxQySrI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp5P5rk4Fts

It's hard to imagine where do you guys come up with this nonsense. It simply reeks of naivete of not knowing what the **** you are talking about.

[Katipan]

Originally Posted by Fairplay

I think the UFC would be all over trying to get their ad on one of those cars.

Nascar is generally a guy sport. It would be perfect.

Anything short of a primary sponsorship would be worthless. I'm guessing 20 Million is pretty steep for an industry that just recently got out of the red. If they're even out now.

[L.A. Chieffan]

its like **** it, my car is is sponsored by beer so im gonna drink beer mother ****ers!

*HIGH FIVE*

[Saccopoo]

Originally Posted by Fairplay

The X games had those high energy drinks ads all over.

They are legal drinks so why not. Its all about he money as GTA would say.

Those drinks are only legal because of some asinine 1994 anti-FDA legislation that gave birth to the modern supplement industry. (Nice article in this weeks Sports Illustrated on the supplement industry - which equates to complete insanity. Still don't get it. A bunch of criminals and basement hobby chemists running a multi-billion dollar a year industry that laughs and scoffs at the FDA and really doesn't give a rats ass about anything other than the bottom line/profit margin. It truly is the pinnacle of the Old West's Snake Oil salesmen, and I don't understand why people continue to purchase that crap. Eat a balanced meal, establish proper sleep patterns and that's all you need. It's amazing to see an entire industry fully manipulate the 15-30 year old male age bracket because they think that using that crap will make you ripped and will subsequently get you laid at 2:00 am at closing time.)

On a side note, with regard to the mention of alcohol sponsorship, I'm utterly amazed that the entire country isn't a bunch of raging alcoholics. Every other commercial is a liquor ad with hotties and hep cats pushing it down your throat. They go full auto and empty the clip into the tobacco industry, but yet they allow the liquor industry to inundate the airwaves, electronic and print media with their profiteering propaganda. (And yet, 80% of all murders and 85% of all rapes are committed while under the effects of alcohol. But that's okay, but some dumb ****er who is too stupid to realize that fill their lungs with smoke is a bad thing gets cancer and they knee jerk themselves to hell and back to amend national and state laws on smoking and allow the industry to get sued into the stone age by the same dumb ****ers who were filling their lungs with smoke under no duress whatsoever.)

[Mojo Jojo]

Originally Posted by Fairplay

I think the UFC would be all over trying to get their ad on one of those cars.

Nascar is generally a guy sport. It would be perfect.

I don't think UFC wants to spend millions of dollars to be on the hood of a car for a few races. To be a title sponsor for 5 races you are talking 25 million in sponsorship dollars.

[L.A. Chieffan]

Originally Posted by Saccogoo

Those drinks are only legal because of some asinine 1994 anti-FDA legislation that gave birth to the modern supplement industry. (Nice article in this weeks Sports Illustrated on the supplement industry - which equates to complete insanity. Still don't get it. A bunch of criminals and basement hobby chemists running a multi-billion dollar a year industry that laughs and scoffs at the FDA and really doesn't give a rats ass about anything other than the bottom line/profit margin. It truly is the pinnacle of the Old West's Snake Oil salesmen, and I don't understand why people continue to purchase that crap. Eat a balanced meal, establish proper sleep patterns and that's all you need. It's amazing to see an entire industry fully manipulate the 15-30 year old male age bracket because they think that using that crap will make you ripped and will subsequently get you laid at 2:00 am at closing time.)

On a side note, with regard to the mention of alcohol sponsorship, I'm utterly amazed that the entire country isn't a bunch of raging alcoholics. Every other commercial is a liquor ad with hotties and hep cats pushing it down your throat. They go full auto and empty the clip into the tobacco industry, but yet they allow the liquor industry to inundate the airwaves, electronic and print media with their profiteering propaganda. (And yet, 80% of all murders and 85% of all rapes are committed while under the effects of alcohol. But that's okay, but some dumb ****er who is too stupid to realize that fill their lungs with smoke is a bad thing gets cancer and they knee jerk themselves to hell and back to amend national and state laws on smoking and allow the industry to get sued into the stone age by the same dumb ****ers who were filling their lungs with smoke under no duress whatsoever.)

jesus. whats a matter sackagoo, no shiatsu this morning?

[Katipan]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

I don't think UFC wants to spend millions of dollars to be on the hood of a car for a few races. To be a title sponsor for 5 races you are talking 25 million in sponsorship dollars.

I totally disagree.

[Saccopoo]

Originally Posted by L.A.Chieffan

jesus. whats a matter sackagoo, no shiatsu this morning?

Hmmm...I thought I was in a pretty good mood actually. Got up early, went for a long, strenuous walk this morning to get the metabolism up and running, had a nice breakfast. Everything seems to be okay so far. Though a massage sounds nice. I haven't had a good massage in ages. Shit. Now I'm pissed thinking about a massage, or lack thereof. Godammitalltohell! F'ing ex-wife couldn't give a massage for shit. Got like two in ten years. Then the girlfriend, who said she gave kick ass massages, was just as worthless! ****!

[wild1]

I am a fan of many kinds of racing, but this is one thing I don't understand. Virtually every other form of racing on earth is more interesting than this. Why do people follow it? Watch any kind of racing on a road course, open wheel, two wheels, whatever.

Nascar is like someone being willing to treat you to a meal anywhere in the world you desire and you pick McDonald's.

That being said, I think the whole series and racing as a whole is really struggling right now with the economic situation. Advertising is all that props it up. They aren't going to be suspending many popular drivers. I am waiting to hear what it is he was actually using.

[wild1]

Originally Posted by Saccogoo

On a side note, with regard to the mention of alcohol sponsorship, I'm utterly amazed that the entire country isn't a bunch of raging alcoholics. Every other commercial is a liquor ad with hotties and hep cats pushing it down your throat. They go full auto and empty the clip into the tobacco industry, but yet they allow the liquor industry to inundate the airwaves, electronic and print media with their profiteering propaganda. (And yet, 80% of all murders and 85% of all rapes are committed while under the effects of alcohol. But that's okay, but some dumb ****er who is too stupid to realize that fill their lungs with smoke is a bad thing gets cancer and they knee jerk themselves to hell and back to amend national and state laws on smoking and allow the industry to get sued into the stone age by the same dumb ****ers who were filling their lungs with smoke under no duress whatsoever.)

I don't understand why they make all these laws about tobacco when alcohol is a much, much worse blight on our society. If I could wave a magic wand and make all alcohol disappear from the earth forever I would do it. The world would be so much better of a place.

[Dr. Johnny Fever]

Originally Posted by Fat Elvis

ESPN also shows the Scripps National Spelling Bee....

And poker.

[Skip Towne]

Originally Posted by wild1

I don't understand why they make all these laws about tobacco when alcohol is a much, much worse blight on our society. If I could wave a magic wand and make all alcohol disappear from the earth forever I would do it. The world would be so much better of a place.

The hillbillies would just cook up some more.

[KC native]

Originally Posted by Saccogoo

My vote goes to the World Rally Cup, but the Formula/Le Mans series is a close second in terms of being "the best" in overall racing skills.

Rally is awesome but impossible to watch. I used to follow it religiously too but Speed doesn't really cover it anymore. I'm still sticking with Formula 1

Originally Posted by Saggysack

They do more than turn left. Anyone that says they just turn left is completely naive of what it takes to turn a 3400lb stock car. A stock car slips and slides all over the place. If you're only turning left, you would never make it around 1 lap. F1 drivers are superior? Hardly. Each driver in F1 and NASCAR are both highly talented. I'm pretty sure Juan Pablo Montoya, multiple F1 winner, Indy 500 winner, CART champion, Rolex 24 winner, who now drives in NASCAR, would highly disagree with you conclusion.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_IfM5X7QIU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmvkXxQySrI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp5P5rk4Fts

It's hard to imagine where do you guys come up with this nonsense. It simply reeks of naivete of not knowing what the **** you are talking about.

Are the tracks not circles? I don't dog NASCAR like a lot of racing snobs. The drivers are talented however their races are boring. The run two road courses a year and everything else is on an oval track.

I used to watch NASCAR every weekend so I'm not naive as to what it takes for them to run a race. I respect the drivers however I feel their version of the sport is boring. There are too many caution flags (which always seem to come out at opportune times for race leaders or when the leaders get too far out in front of the pack).

Finally, Juan Pablo Montoya sucked in Formula 1. He would compete on occassion but was never an elite driver. Look at Micheal Schumacher, Allonso, or Lewis Hamilton if you want to see a good example of an F1 driver.

[GoHuge]

To say F1 drivers are superior is laughable. To say you have to be a better driver to drive and make go fast a computer-contolled/enhanced vehicle is stupid. look at the "open wheel invasion" of a couple years ago. The only guys left....AJ Allmendinger and Juan Pablo. Neither of them has won on an oval and the other guys are back in open wheel because they weren't competetive, and it wasn't solely because of their equipment. Most of them couldn't even qualify or keep sponsors due to lack of performance or missing the show.

An F1 car or IRL car has somewhere between 3-4 times more downforce. Physics isn't debateable. There tires are twice as wide and the car weighs half as much. Those cars are glued to the racetrack. Their pit stops almost do themselves. They can use a computer to lean out the motor "on the fly" to increase fuel economy which almost completely takes the human factor of trying to figure gas mileage. Everything in NASCAR is a mechanical adjustment rather than computer adjustment. You have to physically work on everything in NASCAR. In open wheel it's a matter of looking at the onboard computer and making computer adjustments to fix the car. A Cup car weighs twice as much, with tires half as wide, with 3 times less downforce, and no computers that make on the fly adjustments and auto-corrections. The notion that the skill set to drive an open wheel car is greater than that to drive a Cup car is one of the more utterly reeruned arguements I've seen out of people on this board.

As I stated open wheel racing has taken alot if not most of the human element out of correcting the car. What makes NASCAR more challenging to the teams is it is almost purely the human brain that decides what to do to the car. Also the team concept is much more important. In open wheel there is one lug nut per wheel and no jack man compared to NASCAR having a jack man and five lugs per wheel while at the same time making mechanical adjustments to the car during pit stops. You can argue all you want about which form of motorsports is more exciting, but it shows your complete lack of understanding of motorsport to argue which is a more challenging. Or you can just look at the attrition rate of open wheel guys not being able to hack it in NASCAR. When they say it is much more difficult to drive a Cup car I would tend to believe the guys that have actually done it rather than the opinion of the motorsports experts on CP. I enjoy open wheel and NASCAR equally but don't sit here and make stupid ass statements because you like on version of racing more than another.