The Great American Billboard Race

With less than a week before Fusion's, Impala's, Camry's and Charger's are transformed into rolling cereal boxes for the Daytona 500, this morning I was once again reminded that NASCAR season is approaching.

For a full 20 minutes, I followed a driver doing 70 mph in a 45 mph zone, trying to shake cars that were riding in his draft. I saw him screaming obscenities as he tried to use the shoulder to pass a car on the right, just to be caught by the next red light. For as bad as the driving seems to be in the off-season, there tends to be a noticeable difference come NASCAR season, especially on a Monday after the race. It is then that the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon wannabe's seem to come out. You know the type, with the NASCAR bumper sticker on their mini van. The mornings commute turns into a jockey for pole position. The normal speed limit no longer exists and the cops just tend to stay out of everyone's way - unless they haven't made quota. Everyone seems, at least for the morning rush, to want to outdo the other drivers in typical NASCAR style.

Yes, it's that time of the year again. If you're like me, it represents the beginning of the college baseball season or March madness. But if your one of the 75 million NASCAR fans, it's racin' time. You can almost smell the familiar scents of gasoline and tire smoke in the air. There is nothing else quite like NASCAR or its fans.

NASCAR fans stake claim that their favorite pastime is a sport performed by skilled athletes who by pressing their foot slightly downward and making one continuous 500-mile left turn perform great acts of athleticism. They would probably agree that lawn mower racing; mud bogging and the WWE are sports too. This leads to the never-ending debate of whether or not driving a car in circles for three hours is really considered a sport, or entertainment. Now before you start forming a mob, I am not saying it's not difficult. But just because it's difficult doesn't make it a sport. Coal mining and well digging are difficult but that doesn't make them sports. Not to mention how boring they might be to watch.

I mean what could be less exciting than watching 43 cars drive in left hand circles for 200 or so miles, even if it is at almost 200 mph? How about caution flag laps? Watching cars drive in circles at a moderate pace as some guy named Cletus waves around a yellow flag. The bright spot of NASCAR has got to be the racers feuds. They are actually much better than the race itself. Have you ever seen such constant bickering between men so humorous? If they crashed during the race it's always someone else's fault.

This "sport" was born out of rednecks running from the police to get back to grandma's house with their backwoods, homemade alcohol. Now that might be fun to watch. Despite the fact that the origins of the so-called sport come from dishonesty, NASCAR is constantly trying to change the rules and inspect the cars to ensure that everything is as fair as possible. What other sport constantly changes the rules to make sure the best participant doesn't always win? Maybe the NBA should make Kobe wear loafers, or maybe Barry Bonds should have to hit with a fly swatter to make it fairer.

I am not saying that NASCAR isn't entertaining. But maybe instead of calling it a sport, we can all agree that NASCAR is entertainment, along with Monday Night Raw, tractor pulls and Word Series Poker.