Nascar drivers are not athletes

Do sports talk show host really know what they are talking about? This past Sunday I want to say it was on a Fox Sport radio that I heard a host saying that NASCAR drivers were not athletes because they set down, press a pedal, and turn a steering wheel.

At first, he just annoyed me. Really, his argument made no sense. Then he followed it up by talking about drivers that were no longer racing in NASCAR. Some had been out of racing for as much as 25 years. To make it worse, he called one of them by the wrong name which didn’t do anything for his credibility in my book.

But back to his initial premise of them not being athletes because they set down, press pedal, and use a steering. If I take this same premise and look around, then I see an equally comparable match between NASCAR drivers and cyclist. They for the most part set down nearly all of the time. They press pedals. They use a steering wheel so by his definition cyclist would not be athletes. I certainly consider them athletes.

Then, after about 10 minutes of listening to him, the thought hit me that he was taking this particular point of view – possibly - not because he believed it but because it would incite his listeners to call his show and attempt to repudiate his argument. He is a talk show host. Part of his job is to create a buzz about his show. What better way than argue an opinion which most people might not agree.  This intern gets them calling which can only serves to boost his ratings.

Anyways, I did what any good sports fan should do in this situation. No, I didn’t call his show. Instead, I reached up to my radio dial and changed it to another sport talk radio station.

Sometimes, saying nothing at all is better than yelling from the top of the tallest mountain.

The Cool Down Runner