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Mondak · 05-01-2004, 07:57 AM

Well, as part redneck, I will try to explain how I started following it.

I have very little in common with my family. They live on the east coast and are bible thumpers. I live on the west coast and am a heathen. I try to maintain relationships, paticularly with my brothers, and so about 9 years ago I started to look in the paper on Mondays and just learn who won each week. Then if I would talk to a family member, I would say something like

Hey! That was a crazy race this week. I can't believe (insert driver name here) won.

Figuring out who won each week got me an added benefit as well. At the time, I was doing an internship for Perdue Farms in their Transportation department. Yep - I would talk to truckers, warehouse people, mechanics and dispatchers as part of my job. I had to teach them how to use a new satelite tracking system for their trucks. UhHuh - darn 'puters - can't trust 'em.

Well as it turns out, talking with these folks about NASCAR - despite the fact that I knew VERY little other than a few names and who won that week - broke the ice and got them to listen to me when I needed to show them how the system could help them. No system is any good unless the users "buy in" to it. Getting them to WANT to use a new system is not easy to do when you have used plastic cards on a giant peg board or multiple phone calls to the people in the room with the peg borad to figure out where a truck is (READ: where a truck is SUPPOSED to be).

Over time I have figured out a few things that have helped me a lot. While Sports is a Universal Launguage, you have to pick the right one that the person is interested in to make it work. NASCAR has a gigantic following and a lot of people like to talk about it. You see - you don't need to know anything about NASCAR to speak it. You just need to get someone going on it and they will get all fired up.

It is not about the cars or their performance, it is about the personalities that drive the cars. Most of them are quiet and unassuming, but a few of them really stand out as polarizing figures. These fellows are the key to the sport. It used to be taking a position on whether Dale Earnhardt was evil could get you whereever you wanted to go. Babe Ruth of NASCAR died a few years back, but they still have their figures. Here are a couple:

Jeff Gordon - Fans either love him or want him dead. Married Miss Winston (cigaretes) a few years back (storybook romance no?) Got divorced last year. Wins a lot of races. Some people think he is a dirty driver. Coward, pussy, winner, etc. are common descriptions.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. - See even if you HATED his dad, you don't really hate him in most cases since his dad is dead. Kind of a crown prince but with enough redneck in him so that people can identify instead of just hate the entitlement. Current NEXTEL Cup (Was Winston Cup) points leader
Matt Kenseth - Young guy, never an ill word type. Consistant winner. Won the Winston Cup last year. Comes in the top 10 a lot. Does not win a lot of races outright.
Ryan Newman - Graduated Perdue with Masters in Automotive Engineering. Comes in first or comes in a Fireball. One of a few racers that are fun to watch since he really goes for it.
Tony Stewart - Piss and vinegar. He does not hold back and NASCAR is always trying to sensor him. That makes some people mad (the ones who like drivers to behave and have respect etc.).
Bunch of old guys - These guys are really boring and always tell you what a great day of racing it is even as they come in 40th. The Anti-Tony Stewarts. There really can be a 70 year old out there on some days. Sterling Marlin, Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace and many others can go here.
Young Guns - There are a whole bunch of younger guys who could bust out at any time. Kevin Harvick, Jeremy Mayfield, Kasey Khane, Jamie McMurry and many others.

So after just pretending to follow this sport for a couple of years, I kinda started to like it. I don't think I can watch a whole race (Unless it is Bristol - a half mile track that they stuff 43 cars going 200 MPH on twice a year). Mostly I leave it on in the background and watch the end of the race. As time goes by, you can develop your hatred of Jeff Gordon and figure out on your own that he gives blowjobs to NASCAR officials.

Oh yeah - and the mechanics are the real heros of this sport. . . figure that one out and you will get any blue collared NASCAR fan on your side. It is like the one universal truth to the sport.

05-01-2004, 07:57 AM	#6 (permalink)
Mondak Industrialist Location: Southern California	Well, as part redneck, I will try to explain how I started following it. I have very little in common with my family. They live on the east coast and are bible thumpers. I live on the west coast and am a heathen. I try to maintain relationships, paticularly with my brothers, and so about 9 years ago I started to look in the paper on Mondays and just learn who won each week. Then if I would talk to a family member, I would say something like Hey! That was a crazy race this week. I can't believe (insert driver name here) won. Figuring out who won each week got me an added benefit as well. At the time, I was doing an internship for Perdue Farms in their Transportation department. Yep - I would talk to truckers, warehouse people, mechanics and dispatchers as part of my job. I had to teach them how to use a new satelite tracking system for their trucks. UhHuh - darn 'puters - can't trust 'em. Well as it turns out, talking with these folks about NASCAR - despite the fact that I knew VERY little other than a few names and who won that week - broke the ice and got them to listen to me when I needed to show them how the system could help them. No system is any good unless the users "buy in" to it. Getting them to WANT to use a new system is not easy to do when you have used plastic cards on a giant peg board or multiple phone calls to the people in the room with the peg borad to figure out where a truck is (READ: where a truck is SUPPOSED to be). Over time I have figured out a few things that have helped me a lot. While Sports is a Universal Launguage, you have to pick the right one that the person is interested in to make it work. NASCAR has a gigantic following and a lot of people like to talk about it. You see - you don't need to know anything about NASCAR to speak it. You just need to get someone going on it and they will get all fired up. It is not about the cars or their performance, it is about the personalities that drive the cars. Most of them are quiet and unassuming, but a few of them really stand out as polarizing figures. These fellows are the key to the sport. It used to be taking a position on whether Dale Earnhardt was evil could get you whereever you wanted to go. Babe Ruth of NASCAR died a few years back, but they still have their figures. Here are a couple: Jeff Gordon - Fans either love him or want him dead. Married Miss Winston (cigaretes) a few years back (storybook romance no?) Got divorced last year. Wins a lot of races. Some people think he is a dirty driver. Coward, pussy, winner, etc. are common descriptions. Dale Earnhardt Jr. - See even if you HATED his dad, you don't really hate him in most cases since his dad is dead. Kind of a crown prince but with enough redneck in him so that people can identify instead of just hate the entitlement. Current NEXTEL Cup (Was Winston Cup) points leader Matt Kenseth - Young guy, never an ill word type. Consistant winner. Won the Winston Cup last year. Comes in the top 10 a lot. Does not win a lot of races outright. Ryan Newman - Graduated Perdue with Masters in Automotive Engineering. Comes in first or comes in a Fireball. One of a few racers that are fun to watch since he really goes for it. Tony Stewart - Piss and vinegar. He does not hold back and NASCAR is always trying to sensor him. That makes some people mad (the ones who like drivers to behave and have respect etc.). Bunch of old guys - These guys are really boring and always tell you what a great day of racing it is even as they come in 40th. The Anti-Tony Stewarts. There really can be a 70 year old out there on some days. Sterling Marlin, Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace and many others can go here. Young Guns - There are a whole bunch of younger guys who could bust out at any time. Kevin Harvick, Jeremy Mayfield, Kasey Khane, Jamie McMurry and many others. So after just pretending to follow this sport for a couple of years, I kinda started to like it. I don't think I can watch a whole race (Unless it is Bristol - a half mile track that they stuff 43 cars going 200 MPH on twice a year). Mostly I leave it on in the background and watch the end of the race. As time goes by, you can develop your hatred of Jeff Gordon and figure out on your own that he gives blowjobs to NASCAR officials. Oh yeah - and the mechanics are the real heros of this sport. . . figure that one out and you will get any blue collared NASCAR fan on your side. It is like the one universal truth to the sport.