Maybe I'm the not the most qualified person to write this column.
I've never seen a NASCAR race in its entirety. I don't really understand the rules and regulations of the sport. I only know a few drivers by name.
So in spite of - or perhaps because of - my lack of knowledge about the sport, I must ask one question: Why?
Why does NASCAR fascinate the American public? As one of the fastest growing spectator sports, NASCAR needs a lot of elements to come together to draw hundreds of thousands of fans every weekend. The sport is a mixture of skill, personality, speed, chaos and danger. Which of these factors is lining the course with fans?
In the wake of racing legend Dale Earnhardt's death Sunday in Atlanta, a more important question comes to mind: Are these risks a necessary part of sports?
This is not a column meant to stop the mourning. This is a not a column to attempt to disrespect the dead or take away from what drivers do. This is not a column with answers. I only have questions.
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Next week, at the North Carolina Speedway, the NASCAR community will continue to race. There is the distinct possibility that someone could die there. Is it enough to dismiss what happened on Sunday as a freak accident?
According to ESPN.com, 17 people have died in the last 10 years in the six major professional racing circuits. Given the number of races and the number of participants in each race, I'm sure the percentage of deaths is statistically insignificant. But the fact remains that 17 men died that didn't need to.
It seems to me that the ultimate draw for NASCAR fans is personality. Support for certain drivers often boils down to whether you like them or not and not necessarily how good they are. Ask Jeff Gordon detractors what fuels their critique. Their answer will likely be that they don't like him.
It is paradoxical then that a sport based mostly on driver personality would endanger those personas week in and week out.
There is a human quality that makes people slow down to look at an accident on the side of the road. A cynic might say people watch NASCAR for the crashes. I don't think, however, that it is this aspect that interests people in racing. There seems to be a genuine love for the personalities that populate the sport.
How then do the major circuits keep drivers from dying? Can they keep drivers from dying? There has been much talk recently of the Head and Neck System, or HANS, which keeps the driver's head from violently snapping forward during a collision. Maybe this is the answer. Maybe it isn't.
The harsh reality is that when you propel men around a track at speeds approaching 200 miles per hour, someone might die. As skilled as these drivers are, their survival may depend just as much on luck.
Dale Earnhardt was arguably the most skilled driver NASCAR has ever seen. On Sunday, he had no time to implement any sort of stratagem or skill. He had no time to do anything.
If since 1991, 17 football players had died on the field, what would be the public response? Would it be simply for larger, more padded helmets? Probably not. Would football even continue to exist on a national level? Maybe not.
What people are afraid to say is that maybe there shouldn't be NASCAR. As thrilling as the sport may be, at some point you have to look beyond excitement. You have to look beyond profit margins and merchandising rights and simply ask, is it worth it?
As much of a culture shock as this might represent for some people, it will prevent heartbreak and tears. It will prevent laying a legend to rest. Most importantly, it will prevent burying another good man.
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