When I was a kid watching stock car races all of the drivers looked like regular guys. They were paunchy, losing their hair, some older, some fat. Funny thing happened when NASCAR became big in the last 10 years. Suddenly all of the Richard Petty's and Cale Yarborough's were replaced by young drivers with matinee idol looks. The second big money comes into contact with something that is televised the look changes. Big money can't afford regular guys driving the cars, now we need Dale Jarred, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhradt Jr. to sell T-shirts, mugs and posters. Nothing new here I guess. Same thing happened to wrestling and music. Budweiser physiques of King Kong Bundy and Meatloaf gave way to pretty boy video stars and steroid abusers.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Daytona 500
When I was a kid watching stock car races all of the drivers looked like regular guys. They were paunchy, losing their hair, some older, some fat. Funny thing happened when NASCAR became big in the last 10 years. Suddenly all of the Richard Petty's and Cale Yarborough's were replaced by young drivers with matinee idol looks. The second big money comes into contact with something that is televised the look changes. Big money can't afford regular guys driving the cars, now we need Dale Jarred, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhradt Jr. to sell T-shirts, mugs and posters. Nothing new here I guess. Same thing happened to wrestling and music. Budweiser physiques of King Kong Bundy and Meatloaf gave way to pretty boy video stars and steroid abusers.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
When I was driving through West Virginia , I stopped at a flea market, the main non-church social activity on the weekend from best I could tell. There was this one stiall where a guy was selling a bedsheet on which he spray painted F.A.G. - Fans Against Gordon.
I brought this up to my coworker when I went home and he assured me that there is a bonafide movement of those same good old boys who hate what NASCAR's become.
Interesting, so it's not only me. Good, I am no fan but that kind of commercialization irritates me. Here's another sport I have noticed doing the same thing; the Ultimate Fighting Championship. When I watched it it in it's infancy the guys were street brawlers and martial arts masters. Now buff pretty boys. Look at the game now. It almost looks like wrestling. Almost.
I was really into NASCAR in the mid to late 1980's. My driver of choice?? Tim Richmond, who at the time was driving an Oldsmobile sponsered by Old Milwalkiee Beer but he went on to be the wildest driver ever - racing his car even if it was completely smashed up - of course he lived up to the adage of "Live fast die young" because he died of AIDS far too early in his racing career. I never went to a race again after that. The Pocono 500 used to be a real rowdy afair. I recall one time spending 40 laps passed out by the trawf in the shit house. Dover Downs was another total blurr... back then it was still hicks for the most part who were into it. Now - it's mainstream, safe and commercial... I mean, how disgusting !!
Interesting points George. NASCAR started out as a collection of moonshine drivers who raced their modified vehicles on the weekends. Then it seems NASCAR management tried its darndest to distance itself from that past. These days they fondly talk about it as some kind of cool retro selling point although it couldn't be farther from its roots. Now its just a big corporation. I could care less.
Post a Comment