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Stripes, since you are so close to ZMax raceway you should check it out just once.
There is nothing like four Top fuel of Funny cars all taking off at the same time.
I too am an oval track fan but every once and a while I go to see the pros in NHRA.
BRING EAR PLUGS
You're not kidding about the earplugs! I took the family to Z-Max on opening weekend a couple of years ago. One of my kids misplaced their earplugs, so good ol' Dad gave his up. Yikes! That stayed with me for awhile!
The racing was exciting, but it's not my cup of tea. They didn't run all 4 that weekend either. That would have been neat to see!
One thing I do like about NHRA is the "open pits" where anyone can walk around the people and equipment.
The thing with F1 is you need sponsor support more;are not likely to drive a winning car and your career is going to be shorter and then its a steep drop if you want to continue racing. Personally there are other series that offer much longer careers if the love is of racing.Also one of getting into owership involvement after your career ends.Many F1 past drivers fade from memory than are actually rememebered ;even some who win championshps.I think Schumacher saw the steep drop that happens even to a past 7 time champions.
I still remember what Nigel Mansell said when he switched from F1 to Cart: "The fun is in Cart!" Although F1 is much more advanced in every way, American racing series tend to create a better spectacle for the fans. Although F1 has done a lot, especially this year I think, to bring the sport closer to the fans.
My first experience with NASCAR was at 15, when my neighbor drove a transporter for Dale Earnhardt the first year he won the Winston Cup. I've been around CMS in a two seat car with Earnhardt behind the wheel. I worked NASCAR and Indy hospitality for 9 years, and have been to over 140 races, in and around the pits, hospitality areas, and trackside. I have friends who ran SCCA and all kinds of drag racing. I've done a few drag runs and a few dozen road course laps.
So I've been around some racing.
I think F1 and to a lesser extent Indycar are exciting, but there is no room for error. They are so technologically advanced that if anything goes wrong, their day is done. If one of those cars does anything physical besides clip a wing or rub tires, the car is out of the race. I seldom see a repaired car come back out on the track. And the top level is so perfect that a race is largely an exercise in trying to achieve that level of perfection. While that's interesting, it seldom makes for exciting racing. Now with all the tech mumbo jumbo in F1, like KERS and DRS, it's just becoming too perfect.
OTOH, the car at any level of NASCAR is a tool to be used against other drivers, sometimes aggressively. Smash it, put some tape on it, send it back out and wait for the fireworks.
As others have said, it's not really a matter of which genre is better, it's what an individual prefers.
I record all Nascar, F1, Rolex Grand-Am, and Indycar races. So I watch a lot of it. Someone said going to a race is better than watching it on TV. While I agree that it's more raw and visceral, and anyone interested needs to go to at least a few races, there is much more to be learned on TV. With today's coverage you'll basically not miss anything, plus you'll have the added benefit of repeated explanations of everything important. Oh yeah, don't forget instant replays. Tom Cruise said it in "Days of Thunder", when asked how he learned about stock car racing:
ESPN. The coverage is excellent, you'd be surprised at how much you can pick up.
I think the real ballsy drivers are in the World Rally Series. Drive full blast, with someone else telling you where to go, on all kinds of terrain. Add in narrow "roads", fans walking into the driving lanes, changing conditions, animals, etc., and that's a lot to deal with at full speed.
There's also the major difference in that IndyCars and NASCAR are spec racers and F1 has much more liberty to alter the cars.
I think skillwise IndyCar has to be pretty high up there as you are doing road, street and ovals which all require a very different setup for the cars.
I am an avid drag racing fan. What can I say I have ADD I like a new race every 30 sec (total time including burnouts etc) and power that registered 1.8 on syzemograph at UCLA when 2 Top Fuel cars leave the starting line. I am a moderate NASCAR fan. Excellent competition but they should run the fastest 43 cars from that weeks qualifying. IndyCars are useless. As a casual F1 fan your statement above doesn't ring true. Yes they are the most technologically advanced racing machines in the world but what good is technology when you can't use it. Why do you have to run part of the race on less then the fastest tires? Why can you not reduce drag from the rear wing whenever you want to? Why is the rule on downforce from exhaust changed week to week? As I said I'm a casual fan and there may be a logical reason for these rules but to me it looks like if Fararri doesn't have it it's not good for F1. Can any real F1 fan enlighten me?
Like F1 (although the Schumacher years drove me away as I thought it'd gotten boring). The new qualifying makes the races much more interesting and gives the announcers a little more time to cover the cars, each of the drivers and teams. Enjoy road courses, street courses not so much. Like the tech aspect of F1, like watching the drivers going so fast and so on-the-edge of control. A lot of the in-car stuff is great for watching over the driver's shoulder and seeing the correction he has to make.
I also watch a little rally (hard to find on the limited channels I get), LeMans, Australian Supercars (would watch British or German Touring Cars if they were still on where I could see them), the Rolex series. The Cart/Indy Car split killed my interest in the series (I never watched the ovals anyway) and the few races I've watched in the last year+ have been utterly boring - I also hate the false drama that the announcers try to pitch.
Not an oval fan in the slightest. I've driven dirt ovals before and they are fun to do, but I think they are uninteresting to watch. Drag racing doesn't particularly interest me, either.
Some things I don't like about motorsport in general are the broadcast emphasis on crashes, rough/aggressive driving, artificial personal drama. Also the stupid interviewer questions - "how did you feel when he crashed into the side of you?"
I do love my Varsha, Hobbes and Matchett, too, that helps F1.
F1 and yes the Shumacher years where so boring... its simple in F1, as an owner, if you need to know the price of anything, you probably cant afford it. In F1 if you need to spend 20 Million dollars to gain one half a second, you will do it. Most other car racing disciplines have much stricter budgets. Its around the World, its hip, most drivers are crazy playboys, not a family sport like NASCAR.
Location: Finally escaped The People's Republic of California
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I clicked other in the poll...
Big race fan here, watch and record all of them..Pit crew for a buddy on the local tracks for the last 20 years.
Some thoughts..
NASCAR- Need to shorten the races and dump some of the mile and a half tracks
Indy-Gonna die without Danika, should hook back up with USAC
F-1: Tech Marvels, fastest things around, but boring, with only a few passes a race.
The best: Winged Sprint Cars on a dirt track. Go support your local track and see how much fun it is on a Saturday night....
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