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defrogI had a fascination with the stock car races when I was a boy, thanks to Dad taking me to the Nashville Speedway to watch the races. Like most stock car fans (who won’t admit this, but it’s true), I was there to see car crashes. Sure, the actual race was exciting, but if there wasn’t one decent crash the whole night, I went home disappointed. George Carlin said it best: “Driving around in a circle for 500 miles does not impress me. Where else am I going to see a 26-car pile-up and not be IN the goddamn thing?”
Yes, I know, crashes are dangerous and drivers get seriously hurt and occasionally killed as a result (as well as fans). But they’re also fantastic spectacle. Why not? Gratuitous car crashes are a staple of American entertainment – maybe not to the point where J.G. Ballard was right, but it’s pretty close.
Still, as Anne Boleyn once said, it’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye. I remember when Dale Earnhardt was killed at Daytona seven years ago, NASCAR caved into public pressure to revisit its safety requirements.
Judging from what happened to Michael McDowell a week ago in Texas during a qualifying run, it looks like the improvements are paying off.
He hit the wall at around 180 mph, barrel-rolled eight times, and walked away from that without a scratch. Wow. Not that it proves that injuries and death at NASCAR are a thing of the past. But it’s still a good sign. Spectacle is great, but I don’t want people dying in the name of entertainment if it can be avoided.
Hit it,
This is dF
Yes, I know, crashes are dangerous and drivers get seriously hurt and occasionally killed as a result (as well as fans). But they’re also fantastic spectacle. Why not? Gratuitous car crashes are a staple of American entertainment – maybe not to the point where J.G. Ballard was right, but it’s pretty close.
Still, as Anne Boleyn once said, it’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye. I remember when Dale Earnhardt was killed at Daytona seven years ago, NASCAR caved into public pressure to revisit its safety requirements.
Judging from what happened to Michael McDowell a week ago in Texas during a qualifying run, it looks like the improvements are paying off.
He hit the wall at around 180 mph, barrel-rolled eight times, and walked away from that without a scratch. Wow. Not that it proves that injuries and death at NASCAR are a thing of the past. But it’s still a good sign. Spectacle is great, but I don’t want people dying in the name of entertainment if it can be avoided.
Hit it,
This is dF
