rec.autos.simulators

I must admit that I've never seen a real NASCAR race, it isn't too
populair here in Holland. I played all the nascar sims available on a
pc, and I just can't find out what the fun of NASCAR racing is.
What's the fun of driving circle after circle?
With NASCAR 3 coming out, I'm curious to find the 'magic' of NASCAR
racing.
Why is NASCAR racing in the US so much more populair than F1 racing?
Because of this, papy is concentrating more on NASCAR games now than
on F1 sims I believe.
Americans, enlighten me please :)

Andre

i agree! where is the F U N???

I guess cause we are all Hicks at heart:)Honestly if you don't get a rush
from Nascar 99 then maybe its just not for you.If you don't like watching
races then you probably won't enjoy the game.

Mark

says...

1) As a spectator, you can generally see the entire track from your seat.

2) The cars are pretty (well, most of them are).

3) You can pronounce the drivers names without sounding like you're
*** on a hairball.

4) When a driver is interviewed, you don't need an interpreter to
understand what he's saying.

5) Wrecks usually involve more than just two cars.

6) Chrysler will be back in Winston Cup by the middle of the 2000 season.

7) At 395 pieces, my Nascar diecast collection is getting to be pretty
impressive.

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In many parts of Europe, and in Australia, racing sedans/salon cars or
"stock" cars as we call them here in the States is very popular. Why?

Because the racing is close, and competitive, because the cars can bump or
rub into one another without causing a crash, even at high speeds.

Because we can associate with the cars (you can go out and buy the street
version at you local car dealership) and the drivers as for the most part
they are "local boys" so there is a sense of connection between the fan and
the team/driver.

America is a pretty big place... We've got lots of race tracks (most of
which are ovals, I guess it's a piece of Americana) so it's fairly easy to
see a "stock car" race at a track nearby, and since you can see the ENTIRE
track from the grandstands (unlike road racing, where you can only see one
or two corners) it's very exciting to see the cars bump, rub and race there
way around the oval for position and hopefully the win.

Hope this answers, why NASCAR racing, why oval racing for that matter is so
popular in the USA.

If you ever get a chance to come over to the states and attend a race in
person, you might better understand the exiting atmosphere and thrilling
racing that takes place on oval tracks.

Cheers
Jay J

I guess its like anything you grow up with. The canadians favor Hockey over
Football, Baseball, Basketball, etc.. because they grew up with it, have a
history associated with it.  They remember the old stars, and live through
the new.  NASCAR here in the states has a rich history associated with it.
Everything from its early roots of whiskey runners to the Daytona races in
the sand. Early stars like Fire Ball Roberts to Richard Petty had a lot to do
with its growth. NASCAR is  also associated with cars that are parked in
allot of american driveways. So if you drive a Ford you most likely will
favor NASCAR drivers which drive Fords, etc..  Probably the number one reason
for its current growth is the close competition during any race, but NASCAR
has also done an excellent job of marketing its drivers and the sport.
Drivers here in the states easily recognizable, and very approachable to the
fans.  Maybe this will give you a little of the insight you are seeking.

I have just one thing to say...Bristol - last night...that's why...

        hehe, it's because the NASCAR boys and fans can't think of more then
one thing at a time.. Turn left, turn left, turn left....  If they had
to think of two things, they would be lost.. Turn left, Turn right,
turn.. um, what was that last thing? <g>

        NASCAR is fun to drive  because the competition is almost always right
there with in inches of you.  Not just front and back, but front, back,
left and right.  Competition is a whole lot closer and wins are almost
always calculated by hundredths of a second rather then seconds.

        I like that aspect of NASCAR racing, or Oval racing in general.  If
such a thing would happen on a regular basis on road courses... That
would make NASCAR fans forget about NASCAR.  I like the close
competition in circle tracks, but I need more then just that.  That's
why I love road racing.

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If you don't think driving a 3000lbs car at 195mph, without much help from
aero, just inches away from a concrete wall and other competitors is scary
and exciting, you don't understand the problem.

I'm not going to wear down my fingers and go into the reasons for the
closeness of the racers, nor am I going to explain the tactics involved. If
you can't look beyond the shape of the tracks there is no hope for you
Andre.

I hope for you sake Crammond delivers.

Jan.
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<snip>

Close racing - actual PASSING - drivers who can *lean* on each other a bit
withoug tearing up the machinery(or themselves).  I'm sure there are other
reasons, too.

Eldred

__

Put your message in a modem, and throw it in the ***-sea...
remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

The popularity of ovals in the U.S. goes all the way back to the birth of
the automobile itself.  One thing that people outside the U.S. don't realize
is that while road racing was born in Europe, oval-track racing was born in
the U.S.

Back in the early 1900s, when Europeans were starting to discover the joys
of road racing, people in the U.S. were starting to discover the joy of
oval-track racing.  1911 saw the birth of the Indianapolis 500, and that
race captured the imagination of Americans all across the country.  There
were other ovals before, but none so grand.  Indy quickly became this
country's premiere racing event, and it has remained so ever since (don't
give me any of that "Indy has lost its prestige crap," either -- ask any
European to name a race that's held in the U.S., and I guarantee you that
they'll invariably say "the Indianapolis 500.").  I've heard that on any
given Saturday night during the summertime (the racing season, that is)
there are over 300 dirt tracks (all ovals) in this country hosting events.
That's more than 3 tracks per state on the average.  That's a LOT of
oval-track racing going on, especially given that there are usually several
races run per night (heats, 2nd chance, quals, features, etc.).  Again,
that's a LOT of oval track racing.

And given that, it should be easy to see why NASCAR is so popular in this
country.

Indy is where our interest in oval racing really took off in this country,
but now, NASCAR has become the highest level in the career path for all
those Saturday night oval racers.  Dirt track cars are tough, durable,
front-engine, rear-wheel-drive cars, just like NASCAR -- whereas over the
past 30 years or so, Indy-style cars that have evolved into delicate,
high-performance, rear-engine designs that have more in common with F1 cars
than Saturday night sprintes, late models, or supermodifieds.  If you're a
Satuday night dirt-track hero and you want to make the big time, you've got
yoru sights set on NASCAR.  The Indy Racing League's all-oval formula was
intended to change that, and it has made an impact, but right now, NASCAR is
king in this country.

As for the fans, the same thing applies:  If you follow Saturday night dirt
track racing and you want to follow the career of your favorite dirt track
hero, you're eventually going to end up following NASCAR, more than likely.

Hence the popularity of NASCAR.

And NASCAR is so much more popular than F1 because we just don't understand
road racing.  I mean, really, a bunch of cars following each other around in
a parade-like formation with little or no passing -- where's the fun in
that?  Then again, I suppose that could be either F1 or NASCAR, come to
think of it . . . <G>

-- John Bodin
    Publisher, The IRL Insider Magazine
    http://irlinsider.adnetweb.com/

Hmmm, good question.  I'd have to say that on the whole we Americans are
entirely too unintelligent to understand a race with both left and right
hand turns.  Of course that doesn't explain the popularity of road
racing, and autocross events.  But our inability to comprehend any non
oval sport, runs deeper than that too.  Look at our car manufacturers....
Low end torque, cushy rides, boring people movers.  Americans care only
about straight line performance and not the joy of twists and tuns on a
winding road.  When Pontiac can sell themselves as sports cars you know
we have a problem

 Yeah, that is the major reason I like Nascar over F1, though I DO like
both.  In nascar, 1st and 2nd usually are decided by the width of a wheel,
whereas in F1, the 1st place driver usually has time for a shower before 2nd
crosses the line. :)  (Ok, a bit of an exaggeration.)

Of course, AndrewS does not speak for all americans...

Nicely said John!