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Burnin

This is going to be unprecedented.

During my four years at this school, I have read countless columns on college basketball and college football. There have been many columns about the NFL and some about the NBA. There have even been a handful of columns about hockey. And, yes, there are plenty of sports that have not had columns written about them. But - and forgive me if this is incorrect - I have never read a column about NASCAR in this paper.

NASCAR is one of the most popular sports in the United States but not among the college-age population - at least, this is my sense. Even though NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series held its first and most prestigious race of the season - the Daytona 500 - this past Sunday in Daytona Beach, Fla., I doubt many University students were watching. Most college students' only exposure to NASCAR is probably through the recent Danica Patrick phenomenon, definitely popular with males. But she is racing in the NASCAR Nationwide division, which is a league below Sprint Cup, and this column is not about that. Sorry, no Danica or GoDaddy.com references.

I think there are NASCAR fans at the University, however, but they are just a little embarrassed to admit it. At my orientation first year, there was a fellow first-year student wearing a Tony Stewart hat, and Stewart happens to be my favorite driver. I don't think I've seen anyone else wearing merchandise, but this proves to me there must be a few fans out there. Virginia is a Southern college, and NASCAR has its roots in the South, so I know there are those of you who grew up watching NASCAR. Don't lie to me.

NASCAR has been branded as a sport only rednecks enjoy, and as such, people are afraid sometimes to admit they like it. (The notion of a "redneck" itself is pretty narrow-minded, but that's another topic.) This affiliation between NASCAR and rednecks is an antiquated stereotype from when men would race illegal moonshine from the Appalachian Mountains where it was produced to other parts of the South during Prohibition. The history is an interesting read and worth a browse. We all know, however, that making overarching statements about an entire population is immature, and anyway, NASCAR has mostly outgrown its Southern roots and has expanded into a truly national sport. As an attendee at races since I was 4, I can tell you that the NASCAR audience has definitely diversified during the last two decades. In recent years, it's even received criticism for ignoring its Southern roots too much by moving races from tracks in the South to tracks elsewhere in the United States.

Many also claim that NASCAR and auto sports in general aren't even real sports. This baffles me. Admittedly, NASCAR doesn't require the athletic prowess that football, baseball, basketball, hockey and several other sports do, but it takes a certain type of endurance. I feel exhausted just driving my car at 60 miles per hour for three hours. Now imagine driving a car that is heavier than your typical automobile, where you're constantly weaving through traffic that is trying to blow past you at more than 100 miles per hour and close to 200 miles per hour in some cases. Oh, also, the sport runs through the summer, and these cars have no air conditioning, so it's not like your cool and comfortable. Folks, if curling is a sport, racing most definitely is, too.

I grew up watching NASCAR with my dad Sundays, but the biggest fan in my family is my uncle. I went to two races in Richmond each year with my dad, uncle and my mom's dad (some tracks host two races during one season). I also always went to one race in Charlotte in May with the same family members, plus my mom and grandma. I've even gone to races in Richmond a couple times during college, but because of various conflicts, I have not made it to Charlotte since my senior year of high school. My interest has wavered in recent years even though I still enjoy attending races. There's no doubt races are sometimes boring to watch on television, but at the venue, they are much more interesting - as are most sports - especially if you have a sense of what is happening.\nAs NASCAR grew into a national sport during the past decade, its executives attempted to tone down some of the rough-and-tumble personalities and tough characters that pervaded the sport. On-the-track contact between cars, though never completely allowed, was enforced more strictly and fines were levied on drivers who argued with other drivers after a race. The sport, however, grew stale during the last few years, and this year - in an effort to cater to fans, boost television ratings and appease drivers - officials have promised to loosen the reins a little on the drivers.

This has rekindled my interest somewhat in the sport, at least at the beginning of the season. The less strict rules resulted in a great Daytona 500 Sunday. Cars "bump-drafted" around the famous 2.5-mile track. This means cars literally bumped other cars to give them a surge ahead as they raced down the straight parts of the track. Some drivers on the same team may give each other bumps, and this can be advantageous for both drivers. Sunday's race saw a record 21 different leaders during its 200 laps. The eventual winner, Jamie McMurray, led only two laps - the 199th and the most important lap. Fan favorite Dale Earnhardt, Jr. picked up around 20 spots during the last couple laps but came up just short and finished second.

Another rule change that allowed for a more exciting finish was the institution of three possible "green-white-checkered" finishes to the race. A green-white-checkered finish means that following a caution flag near the end of the race, NASCAR will stop the race and start it again if there are safe conditions with two laps to go. After the restart, the white flag waves at the end of the first lap, and the checkered flag then comes out when the first-place car crosses the finish line. If a wreck happens before the white flag comes out, the process is started again and the race has two more chances to be completed under the green flag.

Previously, the race was given one chance to finish under these conditions, but now this year, three chances can be given. This way, the fans can be more assured of seeing a legitimate race to the finish as opposed to a winner being declared because another caution occurred.

I've never been completely enamored with NASCAR, nor have I totally dismissed it. The way NASCAR has gone about bringing energy back to the sport this year is interesting and has got me checking it out again. The NASCAR 2010 season is definitely worth a look if you are a closet NASCAR fan who shelled up once you got to college, embarrassed to admit your fandom. And if you're not a NASCAR fan, don't believe the stereotypes - check it out for yourself.

It's definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but it deserves respect as a true sport.

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