My NASCAR start

Just because the NASCAR race season is over, doesn’t mean we have to stop talking about it. But we will. And then the season will start again in February, and we’ll have more to talk about. Yay.

I remember the first time I watched a NASCAR race. It was the very last race of the year, at Richmond. I knew absolutely nothing about any of the people on the track, except Jeff Gordon.

The race announcers spent a lot of time talking about how great Mark Martin was. About his outstanding and seemingly unreachable stats. I kind of took a liking to him. And his car was sponsored by Viagra. Who better to cheer for than the car sponsored by the drug that keeps America screwing?

Several members of my family were huge NASCAR fans, so during that off season, I asked a lot of questions. Every single one of them gave an argument about why their driver was better than another. I remember everyone wondering who I’d eventually end up supporting. And in late January, when I announced I would be a faithful Mark Martin fan, I was greeted with approval. Although everyone rooted for someone else, they all secretly cheered for Mark because he was….Mark. A legend. One of the “good ol’ boys”. One of the guys everyone in the garage looked up to, and listened to.

I went to my first NASCAR race at Fontana that year, where Greg Biffle ended up winning. That was the day RJ decided he was going to cheer for Biffle. And to this day, he still asks me Where did Biffle finish? So cute.

Mark struggled that year, only getting two wins. His top 5 and top 10 finishes were commending, and he made the Chase that year. I cheered for him like a crazy woman. I was his biggest fan. And all the Viagra memorabilia around my house, proved it. The X was none too thrilled about all the stuff everywhere, so bought me a glass cabinet so most everything was in one spot.

The following year, I learned a little bit more about NASCAR. I asked more questions. I listened in to drivers’ radios. I started learning that the cars were built different for different tracks. It was simply mindboggling that there was so much effort, devotion, and money, put into racing cars.

The more I learned, the more I loved it. Then Mark decided to retire. That was hard for me. After a couple of years of studying my driver and his driving technique, I was all of a sudden, driverless. Who the hell was I going to cheer for now?

I went back and forth between a few different drivers for a long time. It took me over a year to finally decide on who I would eventually give my vote to. And believe me, that decision wasn’t easy.

I finally chose Kyle Busch.

I took immediate criticism from everyone. And every time he went to Victory Lane, I laughed. When he would act like an idiot, I’d brush it off saying he’s just a kid. he’ll learn. No matter what, I supported him. And I still do. To this day. No matter what stupid mistakes he makes, he’s still my favorite driver. He gets through the hard times, and his fans get through them with him. He’s one of the best drivers on the track. And after all, his ability to win races is what makes us fans FANatic, right?