The Dummies Guide To NASCAR

Topics:  NASCAR

Dan Cross
March 20, 2007

If you live in America, it is very likely you have heard the term NASCAR somewhere about the place, yet you may be one of those few who do not know that the acronym NASCAR stands for the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, which leaves little to the imagination to guess what its all about… that’s right, you have got it, Stock Car Racing.

The association was founded in the late 1940’s by William France and Ed Otto, by realizing the need for setting up an organised body for stock car racing. It was clear people enjoyed the sport, so an organised body would help enable it to flourish.

If you are totally new to the concept of stock car racing, a good place to start would be to explain a stock car. When it started, a stock car was simply an unmodified car fresh from the manufacture. Picture in your mind a standard four door American car, add a lick of paint and you have your basic stock car. However, as the years went by, the need for safety modifications became apparent, and then from these came speed and handling until present day where all you have is an appearance of a stock car, all supped up underneath the hood.

With the creation of NASCAR came tournaments as well. The three main ones include:

1.NEXTEL Cup Series 2 Busch Series 3 Craftsman Truck Series

The biggest out of the three is the NEXTEL cup series, and when people generally refer to NASCAR, they are talking about the NEXTEL Cup. The tournaments all have a series of races in them to compete for the cups each year. For instance, the NEXTEL cup has 36 races occurring on 22 different tracks. For each race the driver will gain point’s dependant on how well they do, and the person with the most points will win the cup at the end.

Hopefully, reading this you are starting to understand what NASCAR is all about, speed and muscle. What is important is not to get stock car racing mixed up with other forms like Formula One. Rather than the sleek speedy cars you’ll see at the Grand Prix, Stock Car racing is more about bulk. Due to the cars designs having fenders, it enables side-to-side contact so that when drivers start bumping into each other, the wheels are not going to hook around and cause a crash.

You might also be reading this article and trying to find the appeal in such a fast paced yet seemingly dangerous sport. If high speed crashes are not your thing there are a number of things to help you get more into the sport.

For starters, its like following baseball, its important to have a team to support, so if you want to get more into it, choose a driver to follow through a tournament. Having someone to cheer on will give the race purpose to you. In fact, take it a step further and start participating in the single most thrilling experience with NASCAR racing; being there and watching a live race. The smell of burning rubber accompanied with the taste of a cheap beverage will ensure a thrilling experience, especially while cheering on your chosen driver!

About the Author

The writer is the webmaster of: NASCAR Talk Blog