Hypothesis: Why being a "Speed Freak" may define you as an Alpha

"The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL" (tokyobayaqualine)
03/27/2014 at 23:34 • Filed to: Psychology, hypothesis, speed, faster, need for speed, genetics, alpha

Clearly, most of the people visiting Jalopnik enjoy speed; It's a website about cars and motive transport, come on!

The hypothesis of what I'm about to speak about is based on my own individual findings, in and around large groups of car guys and girls.

Obsessed car guys and racers, such as Niki Lauda and Ayrton Senna, as well as many of the commenters on this board, and many of the car guys you meet tend to "soak" in information, while socializing and racing. True car guys are rarely a loud, obnoxious bunch. They also enjoy collecting information behind the wheel. Not many of them speak or contribute unless it's to give a statement about their findings. This, for the most part, is a mature group of people. The difference is that some of them let their emotions get in the way on the rare occasion, outside of their analysis (like myself) and others are purely analytical, all the time.

And that takes me to where I'm going with all of this; Our ability to digest information may be hereditary, as car guys.

Think of it this way. Back when we were all technically cave men, we had to leave the cave to go and hunt for food to sustain our families well being. The quicker we could soak in information and our surroundings, the more adaptable we were. Especially when it came time to "hunt".

Knowing when the perfect time to make the move, and knowing how to travel at excessive speed across land in order to orchestrate the "kill" was extremely vital, and eventually became instinctive. Some people could sneak, but the truly great hunters among us were capable of not only timing our kills, but also attaining our prey if our sneak technique ultimately failed. We became faster - and therefore felt the urge to BE faster, always, in order to get what we needed to survive. Our prize was our catch. And in order to catch it, we needed to be FAST.

In other words, our only pursuit was in strength and velocity. We became obsessed with speed because we knew that by being faster, and adapting faster, we in turn got what we wanted quicker and more successfully. This ultimately made us better hunters, and more attractive to mates: IE an Alpha.

Now factor that into today's society. Most of the people on earth want instant gratification (we're clearly part of a "ME" generation). The faster we can get what we want, the happier we'll be. But not many people are capable of "digesting" the information at the speed necessary to constitute continual growth. Often times, we'll spend years stagnant on a corporate ladder, not because we're not capable of improving, but because in terms of adaptation, we haven't adapted at the rate of speed necessary to facilitate further growth.

A good racer is very different than most people however. They can digest information at incredible rates of speed. Processing the meaning behind the information comes secondary - what becomes most important is the adaptation to their surroundings. Because they soak in information at such an accelerated rate, their reflexes become quicker, such as that of the "cavemen" hunters. They learn from their mistakes very fast, and adjust their positioning accordingly. To them, the environment around them becomes only a small contributing factor in their major motivation: To win.

Therefore, the faster we digest and process the information (Which a racer must do in order to stay competitive), the more of the urge to go faster we have, in turn making the best racing drivers, the best "hunters".

The only difference being, we're not pursuing the prey anymore. We're pursuing the euphoria of coming out on top, as victors.

Which is why it may just be that the people who love speed more, and live for it more than others, are the top dogs, and more capable of getting what they want quicker in their chosen field of work, whether it be racing or whatever.

In summary, our genetics, and the predisposed knowledge of knowing that "Faster + Accuracy = Success" may make us what we all are. And it may explain why those late night drives alone... In other words, "calming yourself in the practice of pursuit" may be more important than you think.

DISCUSSION (8)

JR1 > The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL
03/28/2014 at 00:20

Interesting idea, repost for the morning crowd!

Flat Six > The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL
03/28/2014 at 01:20

Being enamored with your own genetic superiority doesn't usually end well. Even if you are born with an edge you still have to work harder than everyone else to win. Otherwise that beta will be passing you while you are looking at yourself in the rearview mirror.

The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL > Flat Six
03/28/2014 at 02:08

I'm just presenting a theory. It doesn't mean I think you, me, or anyone else is superior. It just means that I think under the right circumstances, and in the right conditions, we get more of an adrenaline rush to succeed, and that I believe we're genetically predisposed of this "urge" at birth.

HijoDePuta > The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL
04/01/2014 at 04:16

This reminds me of a night we got really, really high, and I had to keep asking my buddy Doug to hand over the lighter after he finished with the bong, and passed it on. I started to notice that each time he used the lighter, he stuck it in his pocket. I asked if he needed a lighter, because I had one I could give him. He answered that he was fine, and he had his own lighter. So I mentioned the fact that he kept pocketing the lighter every time he passed long the bong. He looked a bit confused for a minute, and then he nodded his head, and started to explain exactly what he thought was going on.

According to his well formed theory, his multiple attempts to steal the lighter were an unconscious action that was coming from deep in his mind, and were a leftover of our evolutionary past. According to him, people are constantly pocketing someone else's lighter because of our ingrained desire to posses fire. He pointed out many examples where one or another of us had walked off with a lighter that was not ours, and it was not always a conscious decision to do so. It was our primeval brain, and it's constant quest for fire, and the power it represents. And that desire is so strong that we will steal another mans fire, even though we already have our own. We were genetically programmed to do this, because we had all obviously descended from people who used fire to their advantage, because those that did not most likely perished during the harsh winters.

I finally had to stop him and say "you are really fucking stoned, and you have talked about this for 30 minutes. Now, take my damn lighter out of your pocket, and pass me the bong". He could be a bit of a douche that way, especially when he was stoned.

94GTratracer > Flat Six
04/01/2014 at 14:31

And besides, what's cooler than a Lancia Beta?

94GTratracer > The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL
04/01/2014 at 14:36

Yeah, and that's ridiculous. Unless you come up with a methodology and start testing this stuff you're just talking out your ass. And nobody's interested. What does Alpha mean to you anyway? I wouldn't even correlate driving expertise with leadership ability, though I suppose it helps. I do agree that the focus necessary to be a successful driver is exceptional, but I don't think it has much to do with paleolithic behavior patterns.

The-Ever-Socially-Apathetic TBAL > 94GTratracer
04/01/2014 at 14:56

And where do you think your urge to "Go fast" came from? Do you think it came at one point, or that it was always hidden in you, only to be let out the first time you actually went fast? If you had have had your first time at speed at any other time, would your perception have been different? Would your euphoric feeling have been less substantial, or maybe not there at all?

If your answer is that "you would have enjoyed it irregardless to when it happened" then you only further drive my point home.

In all "speed demons" there's an aggressive nature waiting to come out. It's just a matter of whether or not they're exposed to the experience that brings it out or not, that depends on whether the become one or not as well.

It's very simple. I don't need "scientific studies" to figure it out.

Flat Six > 94GTratracer
04/01/2014 at 15:56

Great point. Although there are some pretty cool Alphas out there :)