File this under ‘ignorant sportswriters’
Steve Dilbeck, a columnist for the Los Angeles Daily News, puts his best bash on NASCAR:
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The cheaters are coming, and aren’t you just so excited?
Those rule-bendin’, death-defyin’, rebel-yellin’ conglomerates masquerading as simple good ol’ boys.
It is Southern California’s turn to host the strangest, would-be athletic event in the country.
It’s NASCAR, which is so huge it defies mortal logic. NASCAR, which has easily become America’s most popular form of autoracing. NASCAR, which is so marketable its sponsors have sponsors.
It’s a phenomenon and I do not get it. I am absolutely amazed.
Guys drive around a narrow oval in supposed stock cars at ridiculous speeds, trying to squeeze into miniscule openings for hours at a time, and people are stunned when they go bouncing like pinballs?
Where is the great attraction? If you like breathtaking turns and high-speed shenanigans, drive the 405 some evening.
NASCAR is the dullest major spectator activity in America. Ever actually gone to one of these goofy things?
You sit crammed in the bleachers watching cars go flying by for mere seconds. They drive 500 miles and you see maybe 4 miles of the actual action.
Oooh, be still my beating heart. You see almost no real racing, unless you’re watching the monster video screen. Might as well stay home and save the ears.
Listen, it is not a sport. Got that? Not a sport.
A sporting event doesn’t rely on something mechanical. It is not about who has the best engineers. Not about who has the best tires or spark plugs or cleanest motor oil.
That’s not to say the drivers aren’t highly skilled, aren’t courageous and don’t sweat alot.
But they’re not athletes.
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Obviously everyone is entitled to their opinion but this guy does not know much about auto racing.
We thought it would be good entertainment for all our readers!!
I bet he’s a huge baseball fan. There’s a riveting sport for you.
It sounds to me like this guy has tried several times in his life to be successful and has failed every time, which is ok, at least he tried, but now he has the opportunity to bash all those who have become a success. Look, he may now be a great sportswriter, that’s his nitch. Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace and the list goes on, they are all great drivers in a sport that has monumental success, that’s their nitch. So stop crying like a little baby because you had to settle for a job that requires no athletic ability at all, oh wait, he has to push that pencil! OK, now I must return to my work! Sorry if I sound bitter, but this guy flipped the wrong switch!
I would like to see how people who play “real sports” hold up in a stock car. “A sporting event doesn’t rely on something mechanical” i guess with the advent of instant replay football is no longer a sport as it now uses a mechanical device.
Okay, it sounds like someone never achieved anything in his life and wants to put down everyone that has. I didn’t understand racing until I went to the track and saw the EMOTION myself. It is kindof like Golf. Who wants to watch people try to get a ball in a hole, then you go and see the intensity and how much effort is put into it. These guys are training even in the off season. They go through very strick workout routines and they put there life on the line more than 36 times a year. It is amazing how someone who obviously knows nothing about NASCAR can say that these drivers aren’t athletes. Did he not watch the Daytona 500. That was a lot more exciting than the world series, SuperBowl, and many other sports. It has everything all in one……excitement, intesity, emotion, close calls, and it even has violence. Just ask Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, the list could go on. He needs to ask Tony Stewart about the good ole boy routine. Does he actually want to open that can of worms??? I hope he doesn’t have to travel to the southeast. If he does, I would recommend that he not let any of the NASCAR crowd know.
Someone should tell this guy to shove it. At least nascar drivers don’t cry
and whine over their contracts and refuse to drive because of money.
All other athletes are so spoiled rotten and only play the game for the
money. I would like to see them have the heart of a racer.
Aww sounds like a fat nerd who has nothing better to do than sit around eating donuts and has absolutely no way of knowing what he is talking about. You don’t even deserve to be a sports righter thats right fatso! NASCAR is more than just driving around a oval track. It is a physical sport they have to be in top shape to be able to do what they do. They sit in those cars for hours risking their lives, dehydration while trying to out do their competition. I’d like to see your fat ass get in one of those cars you would walk away with a brown stain on your ass!
He obviously knows nothing about racing. Not a sport? Nascar
drivers lose a substantial amount of weight every single race
because of the sheer overwork of their bodies and the sweat
pouring out of them. Obviously there’s some kind of exertion
there, yes? If he had ever payed attention to their biceps,
it is quite obvious they’re in top shape to do what they do.
Just cuz they don’t slap each other on the ass for a job well done
like other sports doesn’t mean it’s not a sport. So I agree, this
guy needs to cut the bullshit and have some kind of knowledge
pertaining to what he’s talking about before he runs his mouth
about it. And to answer his question, yes, I’ve been to one of these
“goofy things”; we get pit terrace seats at Watkins Glen
International every year; the drivers are [[for themost part]] very
nice guys. I know this because you can actually
interact with them. How many sports can claim that? So, quite
frankly, I like the “good ol boy routine”, you stupid cityboy.
Nascar is to auto racing what WWE is to Olympic Sports….
Everyone can see it.
When I first read this I thought ‘Oh, he’s just trying to get all the rebels fired up. Have all the redneck fans write in and prove they can’t spell’! But then I realized what the real problem was. He’s from L.A. Enough said.
so some people dont think its a sport. i think its a motor sport. id like to see this guy drive 500 laps at bristol. at night. so by his logic then horse racing isnt a sport and the jockeys arent athletes and dont have to be in shape to race. this guy sounds ignorant.
Now I’m not a big fan of Nascar, but this guy has way over stepped the line. He states,
“A sporting event doesn’t rely on something mechanical. It is not about who has the best engineers. Not about who has the best tires or spark plugs or cleanest motor oil.
That’s not to say the drivers aren’t highly skilled, aren’t courageous and don’t sweat alot.
But they’re not athletes.”
Well, what constitutes an athlete? I race karts national so I know the fitness level it takes to compete. Race car
drivers in general are some of the most physically fit ATHLETES. Yes that is right, ATHLETES!
I think all sporting events use mechanical devices. ie.. Batting cages (mechanical), Big screens at almost every sporting event… Basketball, Hockey, Nascar, and many more. I don’t see what the big deal is???? If you don’t like it then that’s fine but, do you have to publish your opinion for attention? The Olympics are sports and you can’t see the whole event??? Why are you so down on Nascar! Have you ever driven in a Daytona 500 or any other race? You are obviously just out for attention!
Oh yeah and wrestling is another thing….. you can only see the good events Pay Per View. All of Nascar’s events are free to watch on Television. Nascar also gives a lot to charities! I think that’s a great thing!
racer dude, I agree there is about as much athleticism in nascar as driving down the freeway. The only demanding aspect for drivers is trying not to get stuck in the spin cycle of left turns. The real athletes in Nascar are the safety teams and the pit crew. While they are busting their butts, the driver is sitting in an airconditioned suit, in a seat custom molded for the driver in a car with powersteering. Wow, real race car driving is in openwheel racing where they have to drive uncomfortable, hot cars around a road course following natural terrain where they have to stand as hard as they can on the brakes while not so hard as to lock the brakes, more then 12 times a lap! not a race!
Well someone has his panties in a wad! I like the first line “The Cheaters are coming” So what about all the “athletes” from other sports,you know the guys whouse steroids and what not? Are they not cheaters? I think someone should takethat guy out of his posh little cubicle and stick him in a stock car with no a/c or plug in for his iPod and see how long he lasts. Better yet lets just make everyone appy and put him through a crash at the same rate of speed the NASCAR drivers go through and THEN let him write his story! just because he “Doesn’t get it” doesn’t mean its NOT a sport. I don’t get baseball,but apparently its a sport. And a sport the relies on a ball and bat,where NASCAR relies on a car and an engine. I see no difference. But hey who am i to judge,I’m not some sports writer from L.A. ,I’m just a Lil’ redneck girl from Florida.
After the disaster that was the Daytona 500, I would expect some backlash.
People were cheating and they had a guaranteed starting spot. That is like a millionaire robbing a bank…why?
The qualifying races were useless, only two people transferred out of every race. Mike Bliss, for example finished 13th and didn’t make the field.
The race itself was boring…very little passing, big wrecks, and cautions at the end of the race when to bunch the pack up and do what? Create another wreck. 190 laps of boredom and then another big crash……..not good.
And of course, the controversial finish.
A recent SPEEDTV.COM poll shows 2/3 of the people responding think Nascar is making up the rules as they go. It’s for ratings, not, the good of the sport.
It sounds to me like this write needs more readers so he took apoke at NASCAR in the
Hopes more people will read his pitifull column. Nice try dude not going to work
Ok Joe let me get this straight. A 150 degree cockpit is cool just because they have a hose that may or may not blow cool air on them at times. The cars are so easy to drive that a 14 yr. old can drive them due to power steering, which conequently does tend to fail at time - oh and the drivers don’t just park the cars because they got “hard” to drive. Hell many finish races with barely any breaks. The G-forces can be so intense at some tracks that you can barely breath or move and I’d say that most racecars want to wreck at least once if not more times each lap. But nah, you don’t have to be an athlete to get through all that stuff. They’re not true athletes like those baseball players, I tell ya what, that takes true athleticism! Get over it. Nascar is a sport, more people watch the Daytona 500 than the Super Bowl, drivers are athletes, and Nascar has become one of the biggest sports in America. Don’t diss it until you’ve ridden in car going 190 mph towards a wall and then tell me drivers aren’t “true” athletes!
He obviously knows nothing about racing. Not a sport? Nascar
drivers lose a substantial amount of weight every single race
because of the sheer overwork of their bodies and the sweat
pouring out of them. Obviously there’s some kind of exertion
there, yes? If he had ever payed attention to their biceps,
it is quite obvious they’re in top shape to do what they do.
Just cuz they don’t slap each other on the ass for a job well done
like other sports doesn’t mean it’s not a sport. So I agree, this
guy needs to cut the bullshit and have some kind of knowledge
pertaining to what he’s talking about before he runs his mouth
about it. And to answer his question, yes, I’ve been to one of these
“goofy things”;I go to DOVER every year twice a year and to see how the drivers act and the introductions and stuff like that is amazing. How many sports can claim that? So, quite
frankly, I like the “good ol boy routine”, you stupid cityboy.
wow. this guy’s comments are too ridiculous to respond to.
i live in l.a. and have read through this idots crap. he bashes other sports as well what the hell is a he a sportwriter for????
Newspaper Sportswriters are Archaic to say the least. Most people browse the sports sections check the box scores and get all there real information from Sports TV and the Internet. These guys have to find something to blast or bash each day to get read. I bet this guy is just sad Manning won the Superbowl because he can no longer make himself feel better by saying Manning can not win the big game! Have fun doing your next Barry Bonds article.
and I sent that response to him as well!
What rock did this guy crawl out from under. Well I am glad he doesn;t like Nascar, that will be one less dumb ass to have in the crowd, and on the road to and from the track.
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NASCAR
“Those rule-bendin’, death-defyin’, rebel-yellin’ conglomerates masquerading as simple good ol’ boys.”
…is that meant as an insult? heck ya they are! Does he have a problem with that? This guy needs to know a little about racing before writing a story on it… or maybe he just wasnt fit to be a sportswriter…
This honestly doesnt bug me in the least though, hes got his opinion, I’ve got mine. Thats why there’s different sports. NASCAR is for the people who can grasp the power of the cars, the battles among drivers, and some people just cant comprehend 43(+/-) teams battling for one goal on the same track. Its just too much for them. He should stick with one team against another. It’s simple, maybe he can get that right.
Never judge a book by it’s cover. Sure, to many it may look like cars driving in circles for miles. Surely it must be boring? But for the true Nascar fan, they look at what it’s all about. There’s more to it than the driver. I can’t even list all of what goes into just to qualify for a race. So to all the people like this idiotic reporter, don’t look at a sport for it’s surface level value. That’s for little kids. Nascar is truely a great sporting event. Oh, and don’t dare call a driver a non athlete when you yourself have never driven at 190mph just feet apart for consecative hours. Get a life.
well.i love nascar.not football,not baseball,not hockey.NASCAR.YES I HAVE BEEN TO A RACE
abunch of them and will continue to go.my wife and daughter too.if you do not like it,do not go.do not watch it.keep your oppinons to yourself.all will be fine.its not all about the race.its about the drama every week.the people who put on “THE SHOW”.as for the sportswriter,you just pissed off alot of people!
That guy is an idiot he dont know what hes talking about. NASCAR is a sport. If it invloves a ball or a stick then it is a game! get it straight!
wow seriously i’m from California, and i love NASCAR seriouly though
who shoved a stick up that guys ass, this guy has some serious
problems if he thinks Nascar isn’t a sport, i have gone to and NFL
game and Nascar races and if you ask me Nascar is way more entertaini-
ng, Californians love Nascar and he is giving all of the Nascar fans
out here a really bad name, o and by the way driving the 405 freeway
doesn’t exactlly qualify as death-defying although it does give you a
serious case of road rage
This guys sounds like some of my friends. And Man do I go off on them!! LOL I can’t stand people who say stuff like this about the sport…it pisses me off!
2nd comment: Well, the whole point of his story, as i see it, isn’t about just NASCAR, but racing in particular, he just uses NASCAR because they happen to be the biggest franchise! I just think this guy is tryin some “Celebrity tricks” to get people to remember him and read his stories. Sadly, it might have worked, but I want HIM to get into any top series “race car” and try to do what these teams do day in and day out, and see how “FIT” as an athlete he really is!
sport or not. it is still true competition at its greatest. cars that handle like crap, with life and limb on the line. these drivers focus, to manhandle the machine for hours with no timeouts, and ability to manage stress, pressure, and fear is remarkable. to quote ernest hemingway, “auto racing, bull fighting, and mountain climbing are the only real sports, all others are games”.
Hey why don’t you go write about your Dodgers…or did they get demoted to Triple A? At least the guys in my sport don’t need STEROIDS to win a race, or don’t need to beat their wives to feel like a man, or don’t need to go to prison in the offseason, or get get busted for being crackheads day after day like many other “sports”. And exactly how many NUT CASES are there in Nascar??? I cant think of one….I guess Baseball and the NFL have mastered that catagory……at least Nascar punishes people that push the limit of the rules unlike MLB and the NFL that give players 25 chances to clean up their act. Everyone is just jealous….go JR!!!!#8
you tell um KAY!!!!
Racers are athelets…..but, Nascar is a circus. A side show for ‘racefans’ who have trouble grasping a real racing event. Technology is too hard to understand for these folks and the thought of having to actually qualify for a race scares the NECKCAR community.
i am a big fan but he doese make some good points,anyone with the balls and the best car can win a race if you choose the right line and make the right moves. driving a race car is pretty easy. when your racing its all on making the right picks on were to put the car.dont wreck and if you have the best car you will take the checkered flag.
Well, I take it this guy’s column is never one of interest to anyone so to gain some publicity, he decided to bash NASCAR??!! Honestly though, do we really care what this idiot thinks?? I don’t, I could care less!!!! I proudly love NASCAR & know the sport well & how it works & that’s all that matters!!! And yes, the drivers are athletes!!! He’s the one who’s not the athlete!! Well, then again, writing a column can probably be pretty draining on the body & mind mentally & physically?! LOL He’s just sore because he’ll NEVER be part of something so amazing!!! Poor fella, he was probably the kid everyone beat up in school, probably RACE FANS!!! LOL
This guy ughh. I can’t really say anything or I will explode. I agree with Kay completly.
ok, whoever that anonymous writer was needs to drop the act. Stock Car Racing is one of the more challenging forms of racing because of the lack of technology. Sorry drivers over here dont need traction control or computers to drive a car. Don’t get me wrong, I love all racing, but most road racers who have tried Nascar will agree that it is a challenge to muscle a 3400 pound car around a road course, and they do it all without on type of drivers aid!
Maybe he just wanted to get himself a little publicity by firing up a bunch of NASCAR fans and draw attention to himself. Or maybe he tried to be a racecar driver once and failed at it. For the most part he will have some people who feel like he does, on the other hand he will have a lot of fans really irritated with him and knocking on him and his article. Remember the saying good or bad if people are talking about you then you are getting noticed so he probably succeeded in doing the only thing he was looking to do. He doesn’t care about NASCAR but he sure found a way to make alot people notice his article and that was probably all he was looking to do.
We all know drivers and crew members are athletes, and could care less what someone who doesn’t like the sport feels about it. At least if he fails as a sports writer maybe he can get a job writing comedy. lol.
I bet he thinks a “real” sport is watching 10 seven foot tall dopeheads run up and down a court sweating all over each other in a 1/2 empty area. And if thats not exiting enough , follow one of them home and maybe you can see a drive by shooting or a drug deal up close and personal. This jerk probably thinks poker players are athletes and Barry Bonds is a role model.
Since this idiot says NASCAR is not a sport because… “A sporting event doesn’t rely on something mechanical.” Does that mean then that disabled people such as myself are incapable of playing sports? I mean wheelchair basketball, quad rugby, sled hockey, track & field, the list goes on about disabled sports and guess what… we use some sort of mechanical device in order to participate you JACKASS!!!
Way to go in pissing off not only the NASCAR fans but disabled people as well, what a frickin moron!
My email to Mr. Dilbeck and his lame response:
Mr. Dilbeck,
If there is no entertainment aspect to the sport of NASCAR, and, yes,
I said sport, then why are millions of fans tuning in weekly from all
over the world in anticipation of each race. Why do hundreds of
thousands of fans, corporations, and sponsors devote an amazing
amount of time, money, energy, and dedication following their teams?
I thought sports writers were supposed to understand and logically
analyze the sports that they write about, otherwise what they have
written is pointless dribble, like your article. Thanks for the
laugh and for confirming my belief that the LA Daily News is just
another crackpot outlet for misinformed/ignorant writers and
misguided fools.
Response:
Kyle,
Funny, that is exactly my question too. To each his own. But
disliking a particular “sport” hardly qualifies as being a crackpot.
Steve
OK so this fool (Steve Dilbeck) thinks NASCAR is not a sport, and the the drivers are not athletes. HMMMM. Auto racing is the only sport that does NOT stop the action, to go to a commercial break, it’s does not have quarters or a half time.
If you told these other “athletes” that they had to play for an hour straight they would all be crying. These drivers spent 3-4 hours in a hot car, and in a fire suit, sweating their butts off. Lets put these over paid football players, basketballers, and stick ball players in one of these cars and fire siuts and see how long they last. Better yet lets put his butt in one of these races and see how he does.
I’m glad I don’t live in LA have to read Steve Dilbeck’s BS colum.
Hey Cody,
That is very interesting……Champ Cars and IRL do not have traction control. Either do WOO sprint cars, which take much more talent to drive then a stock car.
And tell me. if driving a 3400 lb stcok car on road courses is so very challeging, why did Jeff Gordon and JJ stink it up so bad when they tried 24 hours of Daytona. Using your theory with these type of cars, they should have mopped up the compitition. But, they can’t hang with high g-force braking on every turn. No drafting to make up for lack of skill.
How many stock car drivers have gone to road racing and had success? None.
I would love to see this guy get strapped into ANY race car and see just how “close” he gets to the speeds they are driving at and the g-forces that the drivers go thru. Then to keep doing it for about 400 or so miles. I am also willing to bet that EVERY driver in ANY series is in better shape than he is.
The best thing I can tell Mr. Dilbeck is to ask his boss for a bigger expense account or open his wallet a little wider to afford tickets higher than the 3rd row, or perhaps he should wear his high heels so he can see more of the track.
I would love to see him or any other person who thinks this is not a sport to attempt one lap with 42 other drivers all going in excess of 150 miles per hour. Not likely he’d make it out of 1st gear let alone around the track.
seems to me this writer knows corporate america racing when he sees it. i remember them old boys who could party all night an put on a race. where as this new generation has to have a trainer a speech coach so you sound like a singing salesman. call on their radio ask spotter to make a deal an complain no real racer would put up with nascars foolish rules all nascar cars should have two seats one for a lawyer to help you remember all of the rules keep up the good writing
Ok, this guy says that NASCAR drivers dont sweat. What about trying to
drive a stock car in the grueling heat at a track like Dover in Sept., or
Michigan, and all the tracks in the summer. This guy also says there not
athletes well stick like Barry bonds or Peyton MAnning in a car without
power steering and see if they can drive the car for 500 miles around Dover
or bristol. This is just a loser.
Naah…the guy’s obviously a golf fan. Now THERE’S some riveting action…do those guys even break a sweat? What define’s a “sport”? Sweat? Physical prowess? Golf has neither of those…must not be a sport. But auto racing does. I’m betting those guys are pretty rubber legged when they hoist themselves out of their cars, a physical act in itself, by the way. Bet Mr. Dilbeck would have a hard time haulin’ his rear out of a car through the window. Never mind having to do it after driving for four straight hours with no potty breaks, watching for other drivers’ cars spinning out around you, concentrating on not spinning your OWN car out in four turns, or the straightaways, for that matter. I say he needs to DRIVE one of these cars, before he goes and makes an ass out of himself like that.
NASCAR is NOT real racing. it is stupid fat hillbillys driving in a supposed stock car for HOURS
the only REAL racing is Champ Car.now that is real racing.Champ Car 4ever.
Quoting:
“Bethany
Feb 22nd, 2007 at 10:27 am
Someone should tell this guy to shove it. At least nascar drivers don’t cry
and whine over their contracts and refuse to drive because of money.
All other athletes are so spoiled rotten and only play the game for the
money. I would like to see them have the heart of a racer. “
I agree someone should tell this guy to shove it!!!!! At least the drivers are not crazy enough to insist on having multimillion dollar contracts to do what they would being doing for fun if NASCAR wasn’t around. Just ask all the guys that go to dirt tracks and race on the weekends. They don’t do it for money.
NOW THE SECOND THING I GRIPE ABOUT:
Where does this guy get the idea about the mechanical device making NASCAR not a sport??? I think that he just wants to stir up crap so that he can sell his articles.
Okay, calming down now so that I can get back to work!
The old commercial catch phrase says it all for me: “NASCAR: Everything else is just a game.”