Hey soon to be readers. This will be my first of many rants. For those unfamiliar with me when I rant (which will be nearly all of you), I tend to come up with irrational ideas and then rationally argue against them while still clinging to the irrational. This amuses my boyfriend to no end. Hopefully this one doesn't end up like that. Here goes.
I was perusing the IndyCar Nation forum today as I do every day and read the new posts on the topics that interest me. One topic, that was originally was about car numbers, has been hijacked into a driver vs. team slugfest. You can read the whole thing here (page 1 is irrelevant unless you really do want to read about car numbers).
For awhile, this was rather relevant: car numbers are an easy way to recognize drivers and since drivers change teams often, this can produce a problem regarding recognition and fan-gear (I think that's another blog, though). However, when the "casual" fan vs. "hardcore" fan was brought into the mix, it made me pause a moment. Based on one poster's definition, I am only a "casual" fan because I think of drivers more than the teams. Wait, what?
Here's the problem with that theory: it is dichotomous in nature. The concept of a "fan" is not dichotomous. I offer myself as an example; I'm pretty sure I don't fit the mold of a "casual" fan.
1. I've actually been to more than one race and more than one track.
2. I post on the forum frequently.
3. Check out my blogroll. There are many racing blogs there: I read them and sometimes comment.
4. I've been watching races on TV or online since '98(first CART, then CART/IRL, then IRL, then ICS, finally IICS) when I was just a kid.
5. When I go to any kind of car race, I take lap times on my cell phone.
6. I'm blogging about it (!!!).
Where do people like me fit into this picture? I know I'm not a gearhead or anything like that, but I can tell you who drives what for whom and in some cases, who drivers have driven for in the past. Ex: Before driving for AGR (now AA), Tony Kanaan drove for Mo Nunn Racing and Tasman Racing. The "casual" fan just gave me a crazy look and said, "Who cares?" That's my point, though; a "casual" fan wouldn't understand why that is important.
I'm willing to wager that I'm not the only fan that has followed open-wheel racing for awhile that fits into this middle-of-the-road category. So, open up your minds a bit and break out of this dichotomy. Figure out where you fit in the mix. If you care to, leave a comment with where you think you fit.
People are so quick to label others, especially on the internet. More than that, people on message boards (in my opinion) are not there much of the time to listen to anybody else, it's just a place for them to air their (sometimes twisted) views and then yell at anybody who doesn't agree. That's why I haven't spent more than about 10 total minutes on racing message boards in the last 10 years. Blogs and their commenters are generally a little more tolerant, though there are exceptions...
ReplyDeleteMy advice: enjoy racing however you like. Me? I'm an extremist. I watch everything (F1, IndyCar, sports cars, NASCAR, SCCA), read stuff about everything, and even do a little screwing around with my own car. I don't expect anybody to be quite as crazy as I am, though there are a lot of people out there who just can't tolerate people who aren't as fanatic as they are. There's room for everybody, and the racing world is a richer place for having folks around who are less than "rabid".
I think you've hit the nail on the head: every type of fan has it's place within fandom. By appreciating these differences, we build a strong fan base that, when called upon, will have the ability to provide a wealth of opinions coming from many different perspectives. That, is worth appreciating.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment, Speedgeek; I hope you stop back again.