Actually, there’s someone named Herman Johnson. He’s 6’7″, 360 lbs and he ran his 40 in 5.40 seconds. He’s probably faster than you judging you’re not a true athlete.

You know what? Anybody can play football. Even chicks, there are powderpuff leagues everywhere. Not many women can race cars competitively. true. Look around you. There’s a PeeWee league near every one of you. Little kids playing football.

yah…by that logic my son driving his big wheel down the driveway can be a racecar driver..you freakin tools quit showing your ignorance

also…to the people who say nascar is americas #1 sport because they “draw 150,000 people to every event” here are some things you might want to think about..on any given sunday across the united states there are between 12 and 16 NFL games going on with an average attendance of 80,000 people..so by my math (insert redneck joke here if you so wish) there are over 1 million fans attending games every sunday..just imagine for a minute how many fans the NFL would draw if like nascar they played 1 game a week in 1 stadium..and before you respond think long and hard about all the things todd helton has done for the last 5 years to try and stop the bleeding about declining attendance at most of the tracks and even more importantly worsening TV ratings..something the NFL hasnt had to worry about.After Dale Sr. was killed nascars ratings spiked through the roof for about 5 years and have been in decline ever since…partly because Dale Jr has been a huge disappointment and hasnt won a race in 2+ years. The argument of whether drivers are athletes can continue (and there have been some on both sides that have made me laugh out loud) but the argument that nascar is “americas favorite and most popular sport” is both naive and ignorant.

Most people don’t understand what kind of cardio is needed to be able to function at high sustained G-Forces for hours at a time.

I am no NASCAR fan, but I respect what they do. For all on here who say it’s easy, it’s not easy to be a NASCAR driver. It’s hard. It’s dangerous. BUT! That doesn’t make them athletes. They are not athletes. Just because there is competition and sponsers and they get paid doesn’t mean it’s a sport either. There’s competition, sponsers, and salaries in poker and darts, and those aren’t sports, and the participants aren’t athletes either.

I will say this about NASCAR. To quote George Carlin (rest his soul), where else can you see a 20 car pile up and not be in it?!? Carlin had a great routine about what is a sport versus what is an ‘activity’. Quite funny. FYI, race car driving fell under the ‘activity’ category.

This is just one of those issues where you won’t convince someone on the other side of the fence. Just the way it is. To NASCAR defenders, just because I don’t think it’s a sport or that the drivers are true athletes doesn’t mean I don’t respect what they do or respect the fact that you disagree with me. There’s no ‘hatred’ from here.

Honestly. Get a clue, guys. If you think you’re so good at anything, go for it. I hope Golden takes up JJ’s offer for a go. I bet half of these jackasses would drop out after 50 laps. You have to be fearless to drop into a turn at well over 170 MPH (Talking 190+ guys) with a guy a foot from your front end and the guy outside of you trying to take that position PLUS be aware of the guy behind you that’s trying to slip through to the inside. Sound confusing? It is.

NASCAR drivers are athletes as much as golfers. Also to the guy that commented about Mark Martin’s age? The guy has the body of a 30 year old. He’s fit and really strong. I’m a racer myself, he knows my dad and I got invited to go run with them both. (My father works for a company that sells high performance coatings). Anyway, Mark our ran us both and I’m pretty well in shape.

Just being blunt. Athletes are humans who have skills beyond those of the average person. The ability to drive nearly 200 miles per hour while getting bumped on all sides plus having to fight the draft from the guy in front of you requires some level of athleticism. Just so happens theirs requires a higher thinking ability. Being a golfer requires sharp eyes to see how to line up the shot perfectly. Honestly all sports require some form of strength, speed, reactions, balance. etcetc. Just because you don’t like something doesn’t give you the automatic right to bash it. I like all sports to some extent. Okay, except basketball. I just find it boring and overhyped.

Here’s the tiebreaker: two years ago, Jimmie Johnson was named AP ATHLETE of the year. That’s right, Athlete. Same award that’s been won by Stan Musial, Bradshaw, Brees, Orr.

And Jackie Stewart won the SI Sportsman of the Year award. So I guess you all know way more about this than the people who cover SPORTS.

jackasses. Let’s see if anyone has the brains to counter that.

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As far as Jimmie Johnson’s AP Athlete of the Year award, the AP doesn’t list their criteria for the award, but it makes about as much sense as Jethro Tull winning a Grammy Award over Metallica for “Best Hard Rock Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental” in 1989. Simply winning the AP Athlete of the Year award no more makes Johnson a great athlete than winning a Grammy makes Jethro Tull a heavy metal band.

As for Jackie Stewart’s SI Sportsman of the Year award, here are a few other winners:

Pete Rozelle, NFL Commissioner
John Wooden, UCLA basketball coach
Steve Cauthen, Jockey
Joe Paterno, college football coach

So….welding is an athletic endeavor as well?

“I hate to say it, but if nascar wasn’t a sport filled with nothing but white guys he would have never made that comment. It’s sad to see how after all this time all we can focus on it skin color. ”

Umm….did you just make this a racial issue, and then say how sad it is that it’s a racial issue?

I’m white and don’t consider NASCAR drivers athletes anymore than I consider someone who plays video games an athlete…..where’s the difference? Sit in one stop and tax on specific muscles in the arms and hands.

I hate to say it, but if nascar wasn’t a sport filled with nothing but white guys he would have never made that comment. It’s sad to see how after all this time all we can focus on it skin color.

Maybe Tate should keep his mouth shut, atleast untill he accomplishes something.

You have a right to your own opinion but not to your own facts. Of course all pro drivers have a workout regimen. You’ve shown your ignorance here. I’m not trying to convert you to motorsports but please, read up a little before taking shots.

I may enter a pro race next season, and I can tell you, my daily workout regimen is already pretty demanding.

You’re dead wrong. Which is strange considering that this topic has been covered pretty well in forums ranging from ESPN to the Wall St Journal, who ran a long article on a drivers at home and travel routine as well as his diet.

More curiosity. Less judgment.

You point out that it’s not a sport, a bunch of nerds get their panties all in a bunch and don’t shut up until you finally say “Fine, it’s a sport. Settle down spaz.”

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Do you think Roethlisberger can do all that? No, he can’t. He ran a 4.75 at the combines. Therefore, using your logic, he’s not an “athlete”.

Also, driving fast doesn’t make one an athlete. These guys have a skillset that allows them to react quickly, but that’s the only thing that sets them apart. There’s no workout regimen for drivers. There’s no injury report for NASCAR. Professional drivers don’t have nutritionists and trainers working with them to maximize their physical performance. There’s never been a NASCAR driver who has missed a race because he pulled a muscle. While a swimmer who wears the type of wetsuit most of the top swimmers in the Beijing Olympics wore certainly receives some resulting benefit, a NASCAR driver’s improvement in performance is based almost exclusively on improvements to his vehicle, not work he puts into his body or playbook.

I don’t like NASCAR, but even if I did, I’d think it pretty obvious that drivers aren’t athletes by virtue of being drivers. That doesn’t mean that a driver couldn’t be extremely athletic, or even compete in a sport like baseball or football, but that’s not the norm at all.

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Remember that the next time you eat a cheeseburger.

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The WWE is headquartered in Connecticut for a reason.

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It’s true. Look around you. There’s a PeeWee league near every one of you. Little kids playing football.

Golden Tate should stand by what he said. I do.

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So what’s stopping you? Don’t you consider yourself an average good driver?

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Remember that the next time you see a 360 pound tub of lard that can’t run the 40 in under 6 seconds and realize that he’s wearing a football uniform.

That’s like saying he grew up there but doesn’t know what country music sounds like.