Help! I don’t like watching racing!

"William Byrd" (thedriver) 02/05/2014 at 09:28 • Filed to: None

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Hi, my name is William and I am a car enthusiast. No really, I can prove it. And since I'm about to tell you why I don't like watching racing, something most enthusiasts consider blasphemy, I figure I damn well better provide some proof.

Read original article on RightFootDown.com or continue below...

My automotive resume is pretty stacked. As a child, I had a Countach poster on my wall and buckets of well worn Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars in my closet. That carried on through my teen years. I took my driver's test on my 16th birthday. In a tropical storm. And passed. I've spent way too much of my life reading and eventually writing for sites like this. Since then I've owned all types of conventional car layouts and have raced them all, spending many, many days at various tracks and autocross events around DC. I even taught at a teen performance driving school, that was a lot of fun. I love to race. But I don't like to watch professionals race and it's a little embarrassing as an enthusiast. Even my non-car loving friends are confused by it. Here is a typical exchange.

Coworker: "Did you catch that NASCAR race yesterday, pretty awesome".

Me: "Um, I don't watch NASCAR".

Coworker: "But you're a car guy….".

So is there something wrong with me or am I just not doing it right? Let's try and figure it out. The best method I could come up with to get through this is to analyze each of the major types of motorsports and let you all know what I like, and and what I don't like about them. Perhaps I can get some help or maybe I'm a lost cause.

NASCAR

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I'll start with the most popular, at least here in 'Merica. 200 miles per hour with big V8 cars, sounds awesome. But biggest beef with NASCAR starts with the name. The " National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing " Stock cars. So these used to be stock? Oh good, then not only can I root for my favorite manufacturer, I can go buy something similar to what's on the track! Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday am I right?! Oh, I can't buy one of these? That doesn't come with a V8 and rear wheel drive? Hmm. This may be a theme across each of these sections, I just don't care about the cars . And if I can't get into the cars, what's the point? I'll take the one on the right in the picture below.

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The only thing left is to root for specific drivers. "Who's ur driver" they say. There are lots of personalities out there, I can pick someone I identify with or find interesting! Only that doesn't seem to be quite as easy anymore. Gone are the days of Earnhardt Sr., Richard Petty and people who's persona came into the room before they did and was still there when they left. Tony Stewart seems like a pretty awesome guy, owns his own dirt track. But so far he hasn't been enough to get me to tune in to watch him on TV. I've always been told that "you have to go see a race". Admittedly, I haven't. Even though I'm only an hour or so from Dover, I haven't gone.

Photo: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

But this is about me watching on TV and I unfortunately don't care about the cars or the drivers in NASCAR. Let's move on.

Read original article on RightFootDown.com or continue below...

Formula One

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The pinnacle of motorsports, F1. But much like NASCAR, I don't get any enjoyment out of the "cars" if you can call them that. They are at the top of the food-chain from an engineering standpoint, and that I very much appreciate. And I think that is enough for most people, but for some reason it just doesn't do it for me. So this seems to be a trend, maybe we are making some progress here! This confirms that I need to be able to identify with the cars . Thanks for letting me talk this through internet. You're the best.

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Let's look at the drivers. That Kimi guy seems to be pretty interesting. And I do like Ferrari. Maybe that will be my driver and team this year! Except that I have a lightly worn Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari shirt from his 2007-2009 time with the team. And I didn't really end up actually paying enough attention back then either. Has anything changed in the last few years? Are drivers interesting enough now to make me tune in? Part of me wants some conflict, some audacious behavior. I want the drivers from Rush! Ah, so I need to care about the driver's, I need some personalities ! Now we're getting somewhere. It's like I'm on a psychiatrist's couch, only cheaper and with less questions about my family.

World Rally Championship

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I put this next because I actually used to watch it. And when I say "watch", that is relative. I probably spent more time watching The Price is Right in my life than I have WRC. I used to catch it on The Speed Channel (is that still a thing? Kidding, I know Fox killed it) at midnight and it was fascinating. You had real cars competing in real world environments with interesting drivers. I really enjoyed rooting for Solberg and Subaru to beat Grönholm and his silly French Peugeot. But there was a problem. It's almost never on TV and, in the end, the drivers either didn't really hold my interest over time, they moved onto another, higher profile sport, or they just plain retired. So what else is out there?

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Read original article on RightFootDown.com or continue below...

Tudor United SportsCar Championship

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I'll admit, I had to Google this one to understand what it is actually called now. I know there was an expensive watchmaker involved, something like that. I see lots of interesting coverage of Daytona and other sports cars racing events on my favorite blogs, but I don't know a lot about the series itself. I just read up on the "unification" between two existing North American sports car racing series, the American Le Mans Series and Rolex Sports Car Series. OK, I've seen some of that on TV, and the cars look fantastic! Some of them even look like cars I can buy, so that's cool. Box checked. What about the drivers?

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Well I've heard of this guy, loved him in that movie he played a teenage prostitute. Is there anyone else interesting? Hmm, doesn't look like it. Please let me know if I'm wrong on this, but this series doesn't have the coverage of F1 and NASCAR, curious if there is more to the story than I think there is. I need some tension, I need some rivalries.

Conclusion

So what did we learn with this drill? I need real cars and I need real personalities. Well, fake personalities would be OK as long as they are interesting. Unfortunately the largest motorsports, in terms of popularity and coverage, don't meet my car criteria, and the series that are based on real cars don't seem to have enough interesting personalities. Plus they're rarely on TV.

I hate to say it, but we almost need more reality motorsports TV . Yep, let's put these guys in the same house for a season, see how things go. See how they succeed and fail at being a race car driver, let me get vested in their lives a bit. I know it's not necessarily "real" but it's interesting for sure.

So what am I missing Oppo? I know there are a lot of passionate race fans out there. Sell me on your sport.

Will is an automotive writer and regular contributor to !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Based in Maryland, he contributes to Jalopnik's !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! under " !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! " and has had a long history of founding failed automotive sites and spending way too much time on car forums. He has owned "too many Mustangs" according to Josh and has a fetish for RWD V8s. He spent most of his 20s on tracks in the mid-atlantic and killing cones in parking lots and has even taught at a teen performance driving school.

CalzoneGolem > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:31

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I also don't like watching motorsports, but I really don't like watching much of anything. I also don't like racing games.

William Byrd > CalzoneGolem 02/05/2014 at 09:33

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Interesting. I do like watching TV generally speaking, have a few shows I DVR and watch regularly. I also have Gran Turismos and Forzas that I play occasionally. I feel like I'm a prime motorsports viewing candidate. I just can't sit through a race without getting bored.

dogisbadob > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:35

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Awesome article! I don't really watch racing, either.

I hope this article gets shared on the troll page.

Goshen, formerly Darkcode > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:35

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Your comments on F1 are very true. The days of crazy, characterful drivers behind the wheel is dead. Instead, we're left with Vettel-type sissies.

CalzoneGolem > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:37

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Yeah I've never seen the appeal. I was even brought to the races as a child. I can handle drag racing though. My dad used to take me to the local Show, shine and drag.

William Byrd > Goshen, formerly Darkcode 02/05/2014 at 09:38

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That's one series I really want to like, but just can't get into. I'm guessing if I went full bore into being a fan there are lots of driver profiles, interviews, behind the scenes stuff. But I'm not sure I have that kind of time.

William Byrd > CalzoneGolem 02/05/2014 at 09:38

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But would you watching NHRA on TV?

CalzoneGolem > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:40

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No, no I would not.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:44

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This raises an important point: being present at a racing even is far far different from just watching it. Some events like NHRA are exhilarating to be at, but lack the punch remotely.

puddler > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:44

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i don't like watching racing. i like racing.

OtherBarry > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:50

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I watch F1 from an engineer's perspective. I also liked the strategy that used to be involved. So while I like watching racing, I cannot in good faith advise you to watch anything besides drifting. Those cars are at least attainable, RWD, and they have some personality.

EL_ULY > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 09:51

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Best way imo is to have someone to root for. A friend of mine was really into the C6-R, not the driver or racing series, just that awesome Compuware C6-R. We went to the ALMS race at COTA and he was hooked since the race began following his cars. The next day at the 6 hour WEC race, he didn't recognize a car, team, or the series all together. Same thing when we went to the F1 race, he was on his phone most of the time without a care in the world about the race. He did mention that he couldn't wait til next year's TUSC race for the C7-R. Find your C7-R man :]

1337HPMustang > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:06

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I'm the same. I also have the same sentiments for sports; I like playing but I never watch the pros. I do however catch highlights and follow results so I'm actually current but never actually sat through a whole race.

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:09

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Forget F1. I watch it because I did so starting in 1999 - when I was about 6 years old. I grew up with it, and therefore I still get excited.
It might be too hard for someone not into F1 to start liking it in 2014. Penis nose, fuel saving, and Vettel. There is no room for personality, only Kimi stands out. The rest? Yeah, Hamilton is incredibly fast, but he also whines quite a bit. And there is his Hollywood lifestyle.

WRC is awesome, but sadly they have like no media coverage at all. It is possible to follow it, but you need commitment. Take a look, it is actually worth it.

My advice: Watch the "big ones" of all series. Nascar : Daytona, Talladega and I must insist on you watching the Nascar race at Watkins Glen. It is incredible. 2013 was great, but 2012 made me jump off my seat.

F1: Monaco, Montreal and Spa.

WEC : Le Mans!

Indycars : Indy 500!

WRC : Monaco & Finnland

TUSC : Petite LeMans

And you could try Rally Cross. There will be a Rally Cross World Championship and there's the american GRC.

RightFootDown > Fred (FreddsterExprs) 02/05/2014 at 10:16

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I can't watch an entire NASCAR race but I'll be damned if I'm getting off my couch if the race is in the final 20 laps. That Watkins Glen race was definitely one of the greatest.

William Byrd > Fred (FreddsterExprs) 02/05/2014 at 10:16

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Excellent reply, thanks! Agreed, sounds like you need some commitment to the lesser televised sports. I can give some of the big races a chance, see how it goes.

William Byrd > EL_ULY 02/05/2014 at 10:17

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I can probably work with something like that. It's easy to find cars I like in the sports cars series. The Corvette is a natural option, I already know who "Jake" is. Good reply, thanks.

William Byrd > 1337HPMustang 02/05/2014 at 10:18

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True for me with sports generally speaking. I watch the big games, some playoffs, championship games etc. But that's about it. Good analogy.

Bandit > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:19

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I don't watch any racing that isn't F1. NASCAR is boring, I don't understand rallying, and I don't know much about sports car racing other than every year I watch the 24h or LeMans. I want to be an engineer when I grow up so the tech being used in F1 really fascinates me. The races are short enough to hold my attention and generally include a crash or fire to keep things lively. I like to root for the underdogs in the series, I am rooting for Romain Grosjean from Lotus.

William Byrd > dogisbadob 02/05/2014 at 10:19

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Thanks!

Share away! haha

William Byrd > Bandit 02/05/2014 at 10:20

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Other than finding an underdog, how did you pick Grosjean? Team, nationality? It sort of reminds me of Premiere league football (soccer...), it sounds like fun, just don't know enough about it to get into it.

RotaryLover > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:23

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No worries, we are in the same boat. I even went to see F1 at the local race track...I was bored. I would prefer to be the one racing :P.

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:24

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I would say that of all these TUSC and WRC are the worst to follow media wise. The rest is streamed either officially or there is tons of streams on the web.

I made an overview to help beginners to get started in WRC, maybe it is of some help.
http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/thanks-for-thi…

And I am just glad I could help you out and "guide" you a bit. I even made my total non-car guy friends respect the WRC after explaining them how different it is from F1 and what amount of skills are needed to master a Rally. Youtube and great onboard videos certainly helped.

Good luck finding your perfect series, I bet there is one!

Bandit > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:26

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Before last year I had never seen a race, had no clue who the drivers or teams were, and didn't know any of the history behind the sport. Quite honestly I chose team lotus based on the livery of their car, I thought it was cool. The more I learned about the personalities of Kimi and RoGro the more I liked the team. The Lotus PR department is pretty awesome too (check out their twitter page). I just DVR the races and watch them when I have time. I don't bother watching practices and qualifying.

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > RightFootDown 02/05/2014 at 10:26

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I really don't like most ovals. It just bores me. That's why I only watch Talladega and Daytona plus the final.
And then someday in 2012 I was bored and decided to tune in the Nascar stream. I don't regret it. It's the best the series has to offer, and I barley could contain my excitement during the last 15 laps.
I wonder how Mr. France can just ignore the potential of great road courses but at the same time is looking for "excitement".

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 10:34

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If you want real cars and excitement, check out BTCC (British Tour Car Championship); especially the vintage stuff. Personally, I love watching racing (except Nascar). Also, any SCORE or Stadium Super Trucks should provide plenty of enjoyment!

jgreen11 > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 11:00

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NASCAR: The reasons you listed are the same reasons that I list when people ask me why I don't watch the sport.

F1: I follow because I am an engineer and love watching these crazy cars do what they do, and also learning about the technology.

WRC: I agree that it is a royal pain in the ass to try and watch, but I know that Velocity has done some pretty good recaps in the past on events. Hopefully they will continue to do so, and make it more well known.

TUSCC: I follow this series pretty close due to the fact that I love having all different makes and models out on the track at the same time fighting for positions. FOX tries to do a decent job of getting the races televised, the only problem is that it isn't NASCAR, which is apparently equivalent to football and deserves hours of prerace and postrace analysts getting red in the face over little details.

I will say that once you go see races in person, your whole perspective on the series changes. I have been to 1 Rally America race which was just two weeks ago in Michigan, I know it is no WRC, but it is still just as fun, and even more so to stand a few feet from the cars as the rush past. Also, NBCSportsNetwork is going to air recap coverage of the events later this year. I have been to two ALMS/Grand - Am series events, and getting to hear them full boar is amazing. Also, getting the paddock passes and walking through right next to the teams' work shops is a great experience. I have even watched INDYCAR live and have started to get more interested in the series because of that.

There may be no big names in any of these series that immediately stand out, but there are a large number of big names that race in them. Boris Said, Max Angelelli, the Taylor brothers, Graham Rahall, Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon, etc. The racers are there, and as time goes on, people will be more "available", so to speak, where you can feel like you know more about the person through Twitter or the team's website, if they have one.

William Byrd > jgreen11 02/05/2014 at 11:04

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Awesome reply, thanks!

I think with some of the lesser televised series I am just going to have to make the effort to go online and watch some stuff, try and learn more about them, etc. I would love to go to a rally race, need to find one near DC.

wabbastang > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 11:13

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I am with you. I have been into cars since I can remember, own hundreds/thousands of little cars, books, advertising, etc. I own a large hot rod shop, a retail automotive store and an online parts house. License plates and vintage race parts hang on my garage walls. But I cannot watch motorsports. I can absolutely appreciate the technology, the craftsmanship, the skills. What it takes to make a NASCAR team build something that can endure 500 miles at 9000rpm, and a driver to withstand that with every second counting, is amazing. How a car can be built to go from zero to 300mph in 4 seconds, even if lasts only long enough to barely avoid it's own complete destruction, is fascinating. The more you learn about these things and understand the engineering and technology behind it, the more interesting it becomes. Yes it's fun to see a top fuel car run down the strip a few times and experience the insane power of it first hand, the same goes for the other sports. But to sit down and watch it all day, or Daytona, or a Grand Prix, ugh. I simply cannot do it. Shows detailing the workings behind the scenes of what it takes to get there and compete are far more interesting - Caught the last two segments of the Dempsey Racing piece and it was really interesting to see the drive of competitors, people of some means no less, and what they would do just to satisfy their own ambitions - because *racecar*. I would take 24 hours of horrible reality TV over 24 laps of NASCAR. Don't ask me to explain why, as I can't understand it either, and have asked myself the same questions as you. But the conclusion is the same, it's just boring as a spectator.

William Byrd > wabbastang 02/05/2014 at 11:16

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Good stuff, thanks. See, I think we're onto something. Combine racing with reality TV. I feel like MTV did it one time many years ago (they were driving Dodge SRT-4s in one segment) where they brought a bunch of amateur racers in and put them in the same house (Real World anyone?) and they had to go through a bunch of race instruction and training with people getting booted from time to time. I'm sure that the whole Nissan/Playstation Academy thing is similar but I haven't seen it.

Real cars, interesting personalities, let's do this TV land!

ddavidn > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 11:33

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Watch the Rally America series on NBC this year. See if that helps. Also, bond yourself to a smaller team to follow, like Turner. Try and keep up on their races, find ways to stream them. It's difficult, I know.

Alternatively, you may just not like to watch racing. Just like some people like playing soccer, but hate watching it. Or some people like eating, but hate watching the Food Network. Or it's not worth it to you to spend a whole day hunting down a stream for a few hours of racing, or staying up all weekend for a 24h endurance race...

LuczOr > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 13:18

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Look up the Pirelli World Challenge. It's the other sports car racing league in the US. The racing is awesome and there are multiple classes incorporating anything from tube frame, all out race cars to stock ford fiestas. As far as "personalities" go, I don't really need that in my racing. I guess if you're that interested in people drama you should go watch real housewives or something.

William Byrd > LuczOr 02/05/2014 at 14:57

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I will check that out. As for the people drama, everyone is different my friend. If I can't root for anyone in particular I don't have a reason to watch.

LuczOr > William Byrd 02/05/2014 at 15:15

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Just FYI, you can catch up on the past few seasons of world challenge if you desire. They have the full seasons available to stream since 2008 if desired on their website right here . This series really resonates with me since I am a big Cadillac fan, and they have been doing quite well in the past few years. Volvo is also a big player.

Lumpy44, Proprietor Of Fine Gif > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:19

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I feel like racing is like any sport to watch on TV. If you don't understand the strategy and the "game within the game" its not enjoyable. The more you understand and the more you get into the real life "drama" of a sport the more you will like it.

GuacamoleFire - JRCC > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:44

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I'm completely sold on F1, I love the sport, love the silly things that happen around it, and love the races, some of them at least, so, how do you get hooked to it.

F1 cars are art on wheels, from an engineering and aerodynamic viewpoint that is, people tend to minimize the effect of the driver on the car but it's consistently shown by guys like Vettel and Alonso that they can take the maximum out of their cars in every GP, putting their respective team mates to shame. I would recommend you to watch the first race of this season, after the race, check on official times and speed, the teams will come back a week later and you will see the evolution of the cars, it's amazing to watch how cars change through out the season.

F1 drivers are cool, the top ones, that is, Hamilton is a bad boy that will not lift despite being side to side on a 1 car turn, he will never back off and he's very unconventional in his statements. Fernando Alonso is an amazing driver but driving for Ferrari and its many rules, he's very limited to comment, his statements are corporate talk. Kimi is unique, he knows nothing about being polite or personable, he just wants to get his shit done and that's it, fuck with him and will shout "I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING" on the team radio, he's so much fun. Vettel is a kid and when he doesn't get things done his way he will say it out loud. Those are some of the interesting guys out there.

If you want to get hooked, get on f1fanatic.co.uk, it's super engaging.

marvthegrate > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:46

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I think the way to get into any sort of sport is to get a personal connection to a team/driver/player etc.

I like Red Bull in F1 because I like Red Bull, and I love that a "Fizzy Drink" company has bloodied the nose of the established blowhards Ferrari. Over the last several years I watched the races, followed the off track stuff, and generally enjoyed the series more.

In Sports Car racing, I follow http://www.magnusracing.com extensively because I am good friends with the brother-in-law of the team owner and driver John Potter. Also, they have an engaging and hilarious PR staff that loves tweaking the noses of the old guard. In the wake of the 24 hour webcast during the 24 Hours of Daytona hosted by Magnus Racing, I now also have an Australian V8 Supercar driver I will follow: Shane Van Gisbergen. #magnusmilita

I think that if you find a personal connection to any driver or team, you can enjoy it and then build on that to enjoy the sport as a whole.

Disclaimer: I was raised on NASCAR and Indy. I watch neither now due to the former's morphing into WWE on wheels and the latter's fall into just another Spec racing series.

William Byrd > GuacamoleFire - JRCC 02/07/2014 at 11:49

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That does sound interesting. So do you get the inside bits about what the drivers are like online, from watching, both? As I mentioned, I'm not sure I'll ever totally get into the cars, but I could get into rooting for (and against) certain drivers.

William Byrd > marvthegrate 02/07/2014 at 11:53

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Interesting. Any suggestions on how to learn who's who in Sports car racing?

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:54

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I'm glad I'm not alone here... I am a huge car person, yet watching racing was never fun to me. Maybe because I can't do what they tomorrow. I don't know. Either way, it just isn't for me.

I'm more of a highlights guy.. I like seeing the big crashes; the huge passes; the last lap of a race. Sitting there for multiple hours isn't that exciting.

Casper > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:55

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I don't watch many race series. It is a lot like how I feel about sports in general: I only care if I'm competing. I couldn't care less about a person or team I don't personally know, playing another team I don't or care about. Racing catches my attention from time to time when there is some technological revolution happening or when someone is really pushing the limits. The rest of the time they keep everything in such a tight little box with regulations that it's boring.

willkinton247 > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:57

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Watch this race today at 2:15 PM ET. It's streaming live.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

It's going to be so much fun. Supercars vs Fiat 500s vs. a bunch of other random stuff.

William Byrd > willkinton247 02/07/2014 at 11:58

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Already replied to your post! If I can get it to work while I'm at work. Done!

marvthegrate > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 11:59

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Start by watching a few races. I really like Jordan Taylor, John Potter and Andy Lally for TUSC and in CTSCC I like Ryan Eversley. They are all very powerful personalities. You can get additional commentary by listening to Radio LeMans too. Even though it's really an Audi ad, you can watch the Truth in 24 documentaries. Same with the miniseries about Patrick Dempsey. My biases against Chip Ganasi followed me to GrandAm (Now TUSC) so I tend to prefer other prototype racing teams like Wayne Taylor racing.

puddler > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 12:14

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forget watching it. go karting.

willkinton247 > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 12:38

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Did you watch this video?

This is GREAT racing.

GuacamoleFire - JRCC > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 12:42

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Getting into the cars is easy, you can relate to them reading stuff like F1technical which is amazing or Scarbs, that's a way to understand them and why a little flap here and a little new spoiler makes sense and how each track makes up for very different settings, the engine technology is quite amazing too, the new V6 Turbo engines are extremely complicated machines and some of that technology will transfer over to everyday applications, Williams for example, provide KERS systems for buses in Europe, flappy paddles and super fast transmissions are also a direct transfer from racing series like F1.

Relating to the drivers is easy by joining discussions as those presented in F1fanatic or in Pitpass.com, you get to read their reactions and their complaints, Autosport is cool too. Drivers are all drama queens at that level, and they love to get attention.

I'd recommend watching the full weekend of the first two GP's from Qualy to Race day, some races are decided on Qualy and you get to see the tendencies for Race day, it's quite interesting in fact.

George McNally > William Byrd 02/07/2014 at 17:36

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NHRA.....perfect sport for folks with a short attention span like myself.

One of the few racing disciplines where you can get right next to the cars in the pits.

On TV, each race is only a few seconds long and the rest is filled in with replays and commentary.

I do watch WRC, but I only watch torrents....no commercials and it's easy to skip to anywhere in the video.

Korea Miéville > William Byrd 02/13/2014 at 10:47

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I'm with you. I love cars, but have little interest in watching racing. I love movies about racing, I'll read with interest any stories about racing, I'll watch race highlight videos, and I enjoy racing video games, but I cannot watch more than a few minutes of any actual race. I think part of the problem for me is that I'm not into the cars enough to make me sit and watch them for an extended period. NASCAR and F1, the cars are awesome but they're not differentiated enough to provide me with the visual interest I need to get me through the long haul.

What makes me realize this is that I would absolutely watch a race in which the participants each drove a different regular, unmodified street car. Not even necessarily a performance or high-end car. Just your everyday Accords and Camrys and Subaru hatchbacks and such, with no sponsorship liveries or anything.

I would find this cool to watch because there'd be several levels of interesting things going on. Obviously a Corolla isn't going to challenge a Corvette, but it would be competitive against, say, a Sentra. So instead of a race with a bunch of similar cars all vying against each other to be first to the finish line, you'd have basically several races going on within the race, with high performance cars competing against each other, mid-size sedans competing, and so forth.

IDROVEAPICKUPTRUCK > William Byrd 02/13/2014 at 14:44

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Reality Motorsports TV was actually tried and I actually enjoyed it. I'd love to see it brought back: Forza Motorsport Showdown. Yes it was just a 4 episode marketing ploy for Forza Motorsport 2 but it was awesome! Teams bring different cars and get assigned a driver, the drivers have different styles, they do all sorts of events, they get to do video game style upgrades! The losers have to sleep in a crappy trailer! It was awesome! I want it back!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forza_Mot…

bob and john > William Byrd 02/28/2014 at 13:03

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i dontg watch it either. doesnt make you any less of a car guy