I'm Watching My First Super Bowl on Sunday

Written by Gene Zarnick

Friday, 12 February 2010

Yes, I know what I just said. I am watching my first Super Bowl on Sunday. Disappointing to some of you, I am not talking about football. This Sunday at 1:00pm on Fox I will be sitting on my couch for probably a solid four to five hours to experience my first NASCAR race. My thinking is that if I'm going to force myself to watch one, why not make it the Daytona 500?

That's not my only thinking though. NASCAR

I've never got car racing. I don't know if I don't understand, don't like it, or just don't want to like it. I know it's more than just driving around in circles making left turns, but it still doesn't seem captivating. Over 15 million people will be watching the Daytona 500 on Sunday; I have to know the reason for this.

I love sports; the competition, the drama, the little nuances in different sports. I love knowing stats and facts that other people don't and I love appreciating sports for the game itself, not just liking a player or team, but actually loving the game. I think the diehard NASCAR fans are the same way, so there has to be something I'm missing that isn't drawing me to one of the biggest sports in America.

I liken people not wanting to watch NASCAR to a lot of people not liking to watch baseball. It's long, it's boring, nothing’s going on; the typical excuses for baseball are very much in the same for NASCAR. I will defend my love for baseball and the greatness of the game to anyone. I don't really need to get into it now, but there's so much more to it then a pitcher throwing a ball and a batter trying to hit. There are games within the game, there's an abundance of strategy, and there's a lot of skill and athletic ability involved to play baseball.

I can't believe that others can't see what I see, but am I ignorant in having those same thoughts about NASCAR?

What really got me thinking about finally sitting down and watching a racing event was HBO's 24/7 with Jimmie Johnson. I've always been a fan of the 24/7 series on HBO where they follow two boxers as they lead up to fight night. The series is great; the narrator is what really grabs your attention though. Jimmie Johnson 24/7 wasn't as good as any of the boxing ones, but it was still very entertaining. HBO could've really made it much better if they focused on two drivers and made it more of a competition similar to the boxing series. If they would've had Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon together on the show then we would've gotten to see how each team acts differently and prepares in their own way for a race. I think it's a dynamic they need in any 24/7 series.

I've learned a little from the show, but I still haven't seen anything that really makes me want to watch NASCAR. I understand how it's not an individual sport and how important the team is. I know that the littlest problem in the car can screw up the race in a split second for not only the racer of the car, but other racers as well. I even appreciate how knowledgeable and efficiently the entire crew works together and how hard they train for the races. I just don't see how watching any of this for five hours could be exhilarating.

There has to be a reason though. I could go out and read other blogs to see their reasons for loving NASCAR, but I won't. I don't really care to. I want to learn on my own. If I'm going to figure out why millions of other people love the sport, then I want to find a way to love it myself. I'm going to be rooting for Jimmie Johnson; I'm going to be giving it my full attention; and I'm really going to try to find something in it to try and appreciate it like I appreciate the other sports that I love.

I won't be the average person who just says they hate a sport without fully attempting to like it. I also won't be the person who just loves a sport because others like it either. Will the Super Bowl this weekend be the only race I ever watch for the rest of my life?

I don't know, but I'll find out late Sunday. You'll find out Monday.