On NASCAR: Drivers Are Indeed Athletes

I think the first really in-depth piece of NASCAR-related writing I ever did was for inclusion in a USA Today special section during NASCAR Champion’s Week six or seven years ago. The story was titled, “Drivers are athletes.”

I did my due diligence, researched the topic thoroughly, and put together a convincing argument lauding NASCAR drivers’ athletic and competitive skills. Whether it swayed anyone’s opinion, I will never know.

Danica and the Power of NASCAR

Let’s just make one thing perfectly clear from the outset — I am not a person who is inclined to wear hot girls on my T-shirts. I have a shelf full of Tony Stewart and Brian Vickers T-shirts, and if they make one with Gerard Butler on it, count me in, but that’s it. In a perfect world, I’d be wearing a hot girl IN my T-shirts, but that’s another dream for another day.

Taking Stock of a Most Valuable Year in NASCAR

OK, it’s the end of the year, and you know what that means: lists.

Some of them are forward-looking. There are lists of what we plan to gain — and in the case of those of us with hips, to lose — in 2010. There are lists of which credit card bills we can get away with making the minimum payments on, and lists of numbers to block from our cell phones.