I'm excited about the upcoming baseball and racing seasons. (To clarify, when I mention racing, it does not include NASCAR. I'm referring to F1, IRL and CART...or whatever may happen to poor ol' CART...stay tuned.) January is a good kick-start month for both. Major League Baseball & the Cooperstown Museum announce the new Hall of Fame class (two good choices this year, but many deserving were left to wait it out again), and there are a lot of free agent signings (none, sadly, to the advantage of my Pittsburgh Pirates) and roster maneuvers. (SIDE NOTE: All of these events are very exciting to baseball geeks. Trust me.) In racing, F1 finalizes its team drivers, and the new cars are launched. (Those in tune with Formula 1 will agree that these announcements are big deals. Again, trust the nerd.) As for IRL and CART, well, they're just trying to play nice right now...well, still trying to play nice after, what, eight or nine years! For those two American open-wheel series, the next few months will be interesting. Of course, for all of these sports, there are a lot of things going on right now, but those are the few that come to mind.
Now, when I mention that my two favorite sports are baseball and racing, the usual response is something like "Oh...my...god, how BORING! You love the two most BORING sports imaginable! What is wrong with you?" To this, I shrug and explain that they're beautiful sports with rich histories and that there are many reasons to love each. In fact, from this fan's point of view, baseball and racing have a lot in common when you really think about it. The enjoyment is much different than what is experienced during football, basketball, or hockey (the other "big" professional team sports in the US). Take a moment to read why they are similar, ESPECIALLY if you dislike baseball and have no idea why people like racing in ANY form.
Three Reasons Why Enjoying Racing is Like Enjoying Baseball:
1. Patience: You can't expect a home run or a no-hitter every game, but, when it does, it's worth the wait. At the racetrack, there's nothing like a slick pass, a lead change, a fast lap, a quick pit stop, non-injurious contact, etc. Racing and baseball aren't for fans who need constant "action" (as the nay-sayers opine the sports lack). I believe that this is why racing and soccer are hugely popular outside of the States (for example, Brazil or Japan or Italy). To those fans, the anticipation is just as exciting as the event.
2. Subtlety: The joy of baseball is the "little things": looking at uniforms and batting stances, watching the pitcher's ritual on the mound, hearing the sounds of the game, etc. Even better than all that is getting into the heads of the managers, hitters, pitchers and following the mental chess match. This subtlety is a big part of racing, too. For example, I love the beauty of the race cars (the "upside-down fighter plane" variety, not the "race on Sun, buy on Mon" kind), the genius of the engineering, the teamwork, the courage of the drivers, the noise, the smell of fuel and rubber, etc. With racing, the chess match is all there, too, but at 200 mph (as the cliche / marketing goes). For the owners, crew chiefs, and drivers, strategy is everything, but the strategy is subtle, unlike other sports that have constant, obvious "plays" (huddles and the quarterback signaling at scrimmage; point guard running the floor with the hand up). With baseball and racing, if you understand more about the "head game" (not a reference to Roger Kahn) the whole experience is so much more interesting.
3. Statistics: It's all about the numbers: speeds, times, lap counts...or ERA, OPS, RBI... Race fans crunch numbers just like baseball fans. Gears, horsepower, fuel loads, point systems, and many more... SLG, AVG, WHIP, OBA, RC...the calculating goes on and on... And, for both sports, the history is IN the numbers, but that's a whole other post.
I suppose one could think of more similarities, and, without a doubt, another could refute or dismiss all of the thoughts above. I'm not writing this to convert everyone into baseball or racing fans. Quite the contrary. You may read this and STILL think they both suck. Fine by me. The purpose of the argument is to open minds to why people out there--whether baseball fantasy leaguers or die-hard NASCAR fans--love what they love. I believe there's a lot more to everything if one is willing to dig a little deeper and take the time to understand.
I've always said in both my personal and professional lives that I don't care what you like or dislike, what you believe or don't believe...just explain to me WHY. Don't just tell me without explaining the "because". Show me that you have thought about it. Don't "like" or "accept" or "believe" just because your family or friend or preacher or boss thinks a certain way. Too many people walk this planet with opinions, prejudices, politics, beliefs locked in their brains, refusing to approach topics differently or to put their ideas on trial, in private or in public.
In the end, no matter what one likes or what one believes, there should always be a well-thought out "because" to the question "Why?"
Now, when I mention that my two favorite sports are baseball and racing, the usual response is something like "Oh...my...god, how BORING! You love the two most BORING sports imaginable! What is wrong with you?" To this, I shrug and explain that they're beautiful sports with rich histories and that there are many reasons to love each. In fact, from this fan's point of view, baseball and racing have a lot in common when you really think about it. The enjoyment is much different than what is experienced during football, basketball, or hockey (the other "big" professional team sports in the US). Take a moment to read why they are similar, ESPECIALLY if you dislike baseball and have no idea why people like racing in ANY form.
Three Reasons Why Enjoying Racing is Like Enjoying Baseball:
1. Patience: You can't expect a home run or a no-hitter every game, but, when it does, it's worth the wait. At the racetrack, there's nothing like a slick pass, a lead change, a fast lap, a quick pit stop, non-injurious contact, etc. Racing and baseball aren't for fans who need constant "action" (as the nay-sayers opine the sports lack). I believe that this is why racing and soccer are hugely popular outside of the States (for example, Brazil or Japan or Italy). To those fans, the anticipation is just as exciting as the event.
2. Subtlety: The joy of baseball is the "little things": looking at uniforms and batting stances, watching the pitcher's ritual on the mound, hearing the sounds of the game, etc. Even better than all that is getting into the heads of the managers, hitters, pitchers and following the mental chess match. This subtlety is a big part of racing, too. For example, I love the beauty of the race cars (the "upside-down fighter plane" variety, not the "race on Sun, buy on Mon" kind), the genius of the engineering, the teamwork, the courage of the drivers, the noise, the smell of fuel and rubber, etc. With racing, the chess match is all there, too, but at 200 mph (as the cliche / marketing goes). For the owners, crew chiefs, and drivers, strategy is everything, but the strategy is subtle, unlike other sports that have constant, obvious "plays" (huddles and the quarterback signaling at scrimmage; point guard running the floor with the hand up). With baseball and racing, if you understand more about the "head game" (not a reference to Roger Kahn) the whole experience is so much more interesting.
3. Statistics: It's all about the numbers: speeds, times, lap counts...or ERA, OPS, RBI... Race fans crunch numbers just like baseball fans. Gears, horsepower, fuel loads, point systems, and many more... SLG, AVG, WHIP, OBA, RC...the calculating goes on and on... And, for both sports, the history is IN the numbers, but that's a whole other post.
I suppose one could think of more similarities, and, without a doubt, another could refute or dismiss all of the thoughts above. I'm not writing this to convert everyone into baseball or racing fans. Quite the contrary. You may read this and STILL think they both suck. Fine by me. The purpose of the argument is to open minds to why people out there--whether baseball fantasy leaguers or die-hard NASCAR fans--love what they love. I believe there's a lot more to everything if one is willing to dig a little deeper and take the time to understand.
I've always said in both my personal and professional lives that I don't care what you like or dislike, what you believe or don't believe...just explain to me WHY. Don't just tell me without explaining the "because". Show me that you have thought about it. Don't "like" or "accept" or "believe" just because your family or friend or preacher or boss thinks a certain way. Too many people walk this planet with opinions, prejudices, politics, beliefs locked in their brains, refusing to approach topics differently or to put their ideas on trial, in private or in public.
In the end, no matter what one likes or what one believes, there should always be a well-thought out "because" to the question "Why?"
posted by Brian at 12:58 AM
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